I'm Back!

[Tim]

Hello Boys ... I'm back.

It has been a long three weeks since we left Florida. A home which fits our needs has not been found, but we know it's out waiting to be found. I had the interview/luncheon this past Thursday. I past the quick round table conference room small talk and was taken to lunch by the Director and Personel Manager.

It seems that I will not be working directly for the company, but instead be an independent auditor on contract by the company. This means I must keep my own records for taxes, expenses, etc. Since I never had to perform these tasks before, I am a bit leery. Can any Fretters recommend self employed books or software that will make this task a little easier?

Looks like Santa will have to bring me a new laptop for Christmas. This dinosaur will not handle the requirements needed for the new job. I will be working out of the home and receiving my assigned audit instructions via email and internet downloads. There is even a special program that must be downloaded in order to perform daily task requirements. Oh yea! Can anybody recommend a small light weight laptop? It will be used on a daily basis with lots of traveling. I have been looking at some of the small compact ones, but not sure which to buy. The main office uses Microsoft 2000 Professional for all it's needs.

It is good to be back and I miss visiting the Fret Net as much as not playing my guitars. All my household goods are still in storage.

Keep strumming.

PS Hello to all the new members that have joined in the past 4 weeks.

[oldguy]

Welcome back, Tim!
Glad things are going well.
I can only advise on the laptop, if you're wanting a small one. I use a Panasonic Toughbook, have for 5 yrs. and I use it outdoors, checking grade w/ a GPS system.
This thing has been in 0 to 100+ degree weather, it's been wet, been dropped, and has been covered in dust more times than I can count. I carry a can of compressed air in my truck, and use that on the Toughbook to clean as needed. I drag it through brush, use it in the rain, sun, snow, etc. That's part of my job.
It's never missed a beat. That's my 2 cents worth.
Nice to have ya back!!

[ted s]

Welcome back Tim, man 3 weeks, that's a long walk.. :D
Fla to Pa right ? You wishing for Florida warm right now ?

[Spudman]

Tim! Glad you are back. Ain't it cool when you leave somewhere for a while and when you want to go back it's still there? I wish my folks would have done that. Some days I'd come home from school and the house is packed up and empty, but I'd still manage to find my parents eventually. We aren't like that here.

[just strum]

Tim,

Good to see you back on the forum. We had a debate/recommendation thread here a few weeks ago, if you haven't read it, here it is:

http://www.thefret.net/showthread.php?t=4650

Oldguy gave me a scare, I thought he was talking about how he takes care of his guitars.:D

[tot_Ou_tard]

Tim!!!

Welcome back!

I'm sorry, but I'm gonna have to defer to the other fretters on the laptop. I've never owned one.

[warren0728]

hey welcome back tim! hope you find "your" house soon.

As for working from home each state differs....i would check the state/county and city websites for rules and regulations. Keep in mind you can deduct businesses expenses from your bottom line and here in florida....if you have a home office (it cannot be used for anything else but an office) you can deduct the percentage of space the office takes up (say 10% of total sq. ft. of house)

10% of utility bills, maitenance, etc.

but since it differs from state to state you need to do some research. Get a decent account and they can help you out!

ww :pancake

[just strum]

Keep in mind you can deduct businesses expenses from your bottom line and here in florida....if you have a home office (it cannot be used for anything else but an office) you can deduct the percentage of space the office takes up (say 10% of total sq. ft. of house)



Hmm, that would apply to the laptop and how many guitars do you need to perform business?:whatever:

[warren0728]

Hmm, that would apply to the laptop and how many guitars do you need to perform business?:whatever:
absolutely! :AOK:

ww

[M29]

Welcome back Tim:AOK:

M29

[Robert]

Glad to have you back, Tim! Have you seen all the new cool smilies? :beer:

[luvmyshiner]

Hey Tim, welcome back. One small businessman to another, definitely find you a good CPA. They can take care of everything and give you great advice on saving taxes, but a bad one can cost you a buttload of money.:mad: :reallymad:

My CPA told me I could right off one of my guitars as long as I kept it at the office as a "decoration".:)

[duhvoodooman]

Dude!! :Dude: Good to see you back here. But ya gotta get those gitfiddles out of storage and start spankin' them planks again!

FWIW, top rated laptops for cust. satisfaction and reliability per this month's PC World are Apple and Lenovo (formerly IBM).

[SuperSwede]

welcome back Tim...

[aeolian]

Good to hear from you, Tim.

[Tim]

Thanks for the information guys. I have a lot of catching up to do on past posts. My nights will be busying reading all the latest gossip.:R

I like the new smiley faces.:wave:

[sunvalleylaw]

Welcome back Tim! They already linked you to the laptop thread. I also personally think that Quickbooks is useful on either a Windows or Mac platform. I don't know about Linux. It has many templates in it that are useful for small businesses, and independent service businesses are no exception. Talk to your accountant also. Many like simply using Quickbooks files to do their clients' work.

[Tim]

After many miles and hours of house searching, my wife and I finally found our home. We are scheduled to close on January 30th. I will call for our furniture after siging the multitude of papers. The household goods should arrive February 1st. Then we can finally settle down and put our home together. My little cornor will be down in the finished basement. I can't wait to get the muisc room set up once more. If there are any Fretters near the Pittsburgh area let me know. Hopefully we can get togehter one day for a jam.

Warren, sorry we did not get together before I left Florida. Everything happened so fast. Send some warm weather northward if possible.

[duhvoodooman]

That's good news on the house, Tim. Post some pics once you're in. :AOK:

[just strum]

Tim,

Hey, it's great to hear you are going to be settling in to a new home. Pittsburgh isn't too far from me although people in Pittsburgh are suppose to be sworn enemies (with me being in the Cleveland area), we can let music bridge the gap.

[warren0728]

glad you finally found a place tim...no prob on not getting together....just gives me an excuse to head up pittsburgh way!! :dude:

later,
ww

[sunvalleylaw]

Glad you found a place. Now you can get settled and see what the next path looks like.

[Spudman]

Tim...who? Oh ya, now I remember. Party at Tim's.

Welcome back to a semi normal life.

[Robert]

Great news Tim. Keep going north and you can jam with me in Alberta. :D

[Tone2TheBone]

Tim! Long time no see buddy!

[tot_Ou_tard]

Righteous Tim! Nice to know that things are working out & that maybe you can spend some more time 'round the ol' Fret.

[Tim]

Thanks guys. Spending two months in "Nowhere Land" is really the pits. Even though I am presently staying at my parents, living out of suitcase this long can really wear a person down. Plus not playing my guitars ... wow, what can I say. Now I know what a junkie feels like without his junk. My young nephew is learning to play guitar. He is a Van Halan fan. So hopefully we can get together and do some jammin together. There might even be some guitar pickers in the new neighborhood. January 30th will not be here fast enough. I fell like I am stuck in the Twilight Zone.

Oh yes, on top of al this, yesterday I twisted my right knee. The wife made me go to the emergency room. Now I am on crutches and wearing a knee inmobolizer. What a bummer!

[ted s]

Ouch, that sux Tim, I've never messed up my knee but am sure it's gotta hurt.