Good morning! Happy Snowy Thursday. 😊

We got a fresh dusting of snow this morning although the roads are clear and the sidewalks weren’t too icy. Maybe more snow tomorrow although it doesn’t look like a major snow event. Then cold for the weekend.

Mostly cloudy and 31 degrees at the Elm Ave Park and Ride. 🌥 There is a west breeze at 5 mph. 🍃 Things will start to thaw out at around 11 am. 🌡️

Looking at my phone 📱 it seems like both the earlier and later express 🚍 were on time this morning. I’m taking the 8:25 in this morning which will mean less time for doing laps on the Plaza 🚶 but that’s fine. I wanted to sleep into 6:30-7 as I woke up during the night and had trouble getting back to sleep. 🛏

Out walking on the Plaza today 🚶 and it’s a bit icy but not bad especially on the side walks with the textured concrete. I got off at the Plaza underground bus station had to flash my ID badge 🆔 to the 10 or so state troopers while walking through the Capitol. 👮 Heck of it is all the protestors have gone home as have the legislators so it’s super quiet 🤫 downtown. Yesterday, I did not go any where near the Capitol, with the anti vaccinated protestors and I was quite happy to take the local which drops me off five feet from my office door 🚪 and watch things through my window.

What can I say, 👾 COVID is a real thing and even if you don’t like the mandates or regulations, it’s out there. If you are fully vaccinated than it’s survivable and hopefully less miserable, although I heard one of the people on the Skeptics Guide to the Universe 🌌 got it and if even the most careful and vaccinated individuals can get it, you know it’s really floating around you. But being sick 🤒 for a few days beats going to the hospital and dealing with all those bills and that crap. 🏥

I was kind of bummed out last night when I found out I couldn’t do a regular IRA this year 👴 to save money on my taxes, although I could do a Roth IRA, so withdrawls will be tax free. I was kind of hoping to save on taxes up front, because who knows if I eventually move out west to a place like Missouri or Idaho or somewhere else, there might not be a sales tax. 💸 Plus I like having more money now, and just paying the taxes later. But it turns out starting at $70k, you can’t do a regular IRA or it’s deducatablity starts to fade out. And now I’m making much more then that, especially with my investments. It sucks, because I want to save for my future, and the government is so ducking greedy, taking all the money out of my pocket. 😡 It’s just so damn hard to get ahead in this world, I get why people become fiscal conservatives as they get older and wealthier.