Life in America - I made the move.

[Mrs. Zog]

Daily update:

I'm still in tax hell with my business. My accountant has deserted me. I'm trying to get together with Mr. Zog's boss's wife, she offered to help, she's been doing it for their business for a long time... also, I will need to buy accounting software, which will cost me $75/month for a subscription. Yikes. Is this all worth it... probably. Being a business versus going as "self-employed" saves me close on $5000 in taxes every year.

Worst case scenario, I'll have to just close my eyes and wing it, figure it out by myself. Which is probably not a good thing when it comes to taxes. 

[RobbieJZW]

Mrs Z, I know a tax person costs money. But for me at least, it’s been valuable - every single cent.
Good luck!!

[Mrs. Zog]

Thanks Robbie. The accountant does our taxes (my business and our personal), that's something I would never try and do myself.

He has deserted me in the sense that I need advice how to go into the next year with the correct way of "paying myself" out of the business and using the accounting software correctly to have it take out the proper amount of taxes - federal, social security, and Medicare (because I'm basically paying myself as my own employee). I also need to figure out the software so it spits out the correct tax forms at the correct dates to give to the accountant so he can file the taxes.

He's very bad at explaining and even worse at answering e-mails, texts, and calls. I just have a million questions that need answering to make sure I'm not shooting myself in the foot come January and basically using this computer program correctly. Boss wife is a better resource in that regard, she's been using it for a long time and can help. We just talked and are getting together soon.

[Tom van Brits]

Mrs Z can't you go see the IRS, don't they have client care offices like SARS?

I am with a tax guy in SA for many years, only last year did a WD help me out (very generous of him) when my tax guy was away with business but this year I'm back with him as a loyal supporter since his service is outstanding.

I know in America out of my experience everything works, just have a look at the DMV!
So if possible go in person to an IRS service building.

[Mrs. Zog]

Thanks Tom.

IRS centers are closed because of COVID, and, in any case, it's really not an IRS problem. They'll help you with a specific tax form issue, debt, or refund.

They would only refer me to a tax preparation service like H&R Block or an accountant. 

[Mrs. Zog]

I should be working, but this is too good not to share. In the local news right now:

A prisoner on a road works assignment escaped. He hit the cop who was supervising the gang with a shovel, stole the cop car, and raced away. He got as far as the neighboring county, where he crashed the car and a traffic cop arrested him.

 

[Fudmucker]

Sounds like a storyline from a movie set in Alabama...?

Lots of car chases and dust and sub-plots. 

[BigEd]

All I can say is I'll miss this if you close it down. 

Even the pap story... why oh why would someone not in jail eat pap is beyond me...but then, I'm Malmesbury born Cape Townian so all this pap stories are lost on me.

Regarding garage use - my Ohio neighbor thought I was a little daft for using my garage for my car (it helped with the ice in winter and the heat in summer duh!)

Also he would piss himself laughing for me locking my house and car... he worked in a factory making envelopes and me in IT and he made $5 per hour more then me! I was 26 at the time and he 24 I think. Hmmm...still won't eat pap...

[Fudmucker]

In some neighbourhoods in the US, the Home Owners Association has such sweeping powers that they fine you for NOT leaving your garage door open when you go out so they can verify that it is neat and tidy...! 

[BigEd]

Reminds me of the house in one of Boston's (US) affluent neighborhoods that would not sell - normally a house in this hood would sell within 24h, but not this one. So the agent asked the people why not and they said the crime of the hood. What crime the agent asked and they said the house had burglar bars on. Turns out the owners were from Jozie and they could not sleep till they had bars on the windows.

They removed the bars and sold the house the next day... 

[Fudmucker]

The opposite is true when US people come to ZA.
A friend had a house she was renting out to Embassy people.
They wanted a prison to live in - with radio alarms and 24/7/365 armed response.

[BigEd]

The opposite is true when US people come to ZA.
A friend had a house she was renting out to Embassy people.
They wanted a prison to live in - with radio alarms and 24/7/365 armed response.

I can relate to that with what they see in their media...

[Ri]

Reminds me of the house in one of Boston's (US) affluent neighborhoods that would not sell - normally a house in this hood would sell within 24h, but not this one. So the agent asked the people why not and they said the crime of the hood. What crime the agent asked and they said the house had burglar bars on. Turns out the owners were from Jozie and they could not sleep till they had bars on the windows.

They removed the bars and sold the house the next day...

When I moved to Cape Town, I was struck by the general absence of high walls and burglar bars. My opposite neighbour doesn't have a walled garden, it's completely open to the street, and he's not the only one.

But no, our garages will not be left open, although I've often forgotten to lock my doors

[BigEd]

When I moved to Cape Town, I was struck by the general absence of high walls and burglar bars. My opposite neighbour doesn't have a walled garden, it's completely open to the street, and he's not the only one.

But no, our garages will not be left open, although I've often forgotten to lock my doors

Until recently I didn't either, but MiL came to live with us and we changed things around a little and made it safer for her with a new gate and fence.

[goodtoogo]

She shouldn't get out of that.

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[BOZO]

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[Mrs. Zog]

Fun times at Casa Zog.

OF COURSE we have plans to go out tonight and attend the Christmas event at the Botanical Garden.

OF COURSE today turns into an emergency home renovation session, already to the tune of $200, probably $300+ by the time we're done.

OF COURSE.

Will explain later. Back to cleaning filth out of air ducts.

 

[Mr Zog]

I'll explain the "emergency renovations" 

We scheduled a guy to come and clean out our air-ducts for Friday afternoon. 4pm. I even took off work early so I could be home and see what they find. Their website shows them using high-pressure, high-volume air and a rotating brush to very effectively clean out the ducts, and using a massive high-volume vacuum cleaner at the other end to suck all the kak out. Then they also use a boroscope-type camera to inspect all the ducts for stuff like mould.

The dude called me just after 4. He is running late. He'll be here between 6 and 7.

Then he called again and said he wasn't going to make it, can he come in the morning, around 9?

Then he called again. Can he come early? What is the earliest he can come? We agreed on 7:30.

So eventually the dude arrived at 7:45. Does an inspection of our ducts... and does the car-mechanic type of shakes his head and gives the low-whistle....

Fuck.

Turns out we have the "old-style" connectors where the round flexible insulated pipes from the main plenum meet the registers (outlets) in the ceiling. They are square boxes above the ceiling, about 18 inches high, with a round pipe heading horizontally out at the top of the box. So he can't get his twirly brush jobbie into the pipes to clean them out.

Unless we get a aircon company to come and replace all the boxes with the newer round jobbies that connect to the pipes. Should only be around $2000 he says...   

But that's not the biggest issue. The biggest issue is that the boxes we have are lines with a fiberglass-type insulation that has started to degrade, and it looks like the worst pf our problems are because of the fiberglass fibers floating out of the boxes in the ceiling and causing all of our "allergy" problems... 

So all he can do is spray a mould-killing muti up into the entire aircon system and circuloate it all through the system and the home to kill any mould or fungii or other kak possibly growing in our ductwork. We agree, and he goes ahead and sprays his smelly kak, we pay him his $196 and change and he leaves.

Eish 


So we have a couple of options; either borrow the cash and get an aircon company to come and remove all the ducts and pipework and replace them with the newer type, or I borrow the cash and go buy the parts at Home Depot and do it myself. 

Right now borrowing even more money just isn't an option. We are right against the wall with our budget.

So I come up with an alternative 

I went off to the Home Depot and bought some very thick primer paint that has an added mould-killing additive. The brand name is "Killz", because it killz the mould and mildew and kak...

Then I removed all the registers (outlet jobbies with the directional vanes) from the ceiling. Mrs Zog gave them all a really good cleaning. And I painted the inside of the boxes in the ceiling with the primer paint to catch and hold the degrading fiberglass insulation. After doing the first one I saw the need for some additional PPE... so another trip to Home Depot for a pair of safety goggles, as well as another can of the primer paint (doing the first one I saw how much was soaking into the soft fiberglass)

Back home, armoured with goggles, head torch, face mask, and rubber gloves I tackled the other 6 boxes. Fucking strenuous work painting up on a ladder inside a deep (about 45cm) narrow box with loose kak falling down onto me, and paint dripping all over me...

But I got it done. 

Put all the nice clean registers back. Fired up the AC again. So far so good... 

I will have to replace all the stuff eventually. But right now that's not financially an option. So with time I will get it done, myself. But I think I have bought a bit of time with the mould-killing muti and the primer to hold the fibers.



And because of this "emergency repairs" I didn't get any work done on the boat or the trailer... 

Oh well. Maybe tomorrow. 

[Mrs. Zog]

Then I removed Then Mrs. Zog removed all the registers (outlet jobbies with the directional vanes) from the ceiling. Mrs Zog gave them all a really good cleaning.

With a toothbrush and heavy-duty industrial cleaner    Outside, because... smells and fumes. 

Fixed 

We did make it to the botanical garden tonight, even after all that. It was really, really nice and we enjoyed it thoroughly. It was what we call a "mental reset." I took lots of pictures for you, and I'll get around to posting them, but probably not for a couple of days.

[Fudmucker]

We hope the effort helps with the allergies...!   

Aircon stuff we don't have in homes in ZA because we can just open windows.