flashlight

I literally just ordered my first big boy flashlight (Olight s2 baton). I decided that I'd want the extra 400 lumens and longer battery life over the size of the s1 but god damn the s1 looks good.

reddit

I have a couple S1's as well... and yes, I'm using rechargeable. Having pretty good luck and runtimes with the KeepPower 700mAh[1].

Quote

"Without conscious and deliberate effort, inertia always wins"
- Tony Hsieh -
"Sin un esfuerzo deliberado y consciente, la inercia siempre vencera"

Formula to change Date (Text) to Date format

Example: "Tuesday, December 15, 2015" is in Text format. I need a formula, that can convert it to either a value or just a date format of "M/D/YYYY".

EDIT: Custom formatting or Formatting the cell does not resolve the issue Imgur Example

Assuming your date in Cell A1:

=DATE(RIGHT(RIGHT(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""),LEN(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))-SEARCH(" ",SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))),4),MONTH(DATEVALUE(LEFT(LEFT(RIGHT(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""),LEN(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))-SEARCH(" ",SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))),LEN(RIGHT(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""),LEN(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))-SEARCH(" ",SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))))-5),SEARCH(" ",LEFT(RIGHT(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""),LEN(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))-SEARCH(" ",SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))),LEN(RIGHT(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""),LEN(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))-SEARCH(" ",SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))))-5)))&" 1")),RIGHT(LEFT(RIGHT(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""),LEN(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))-SEARCH(" ",SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))),LEN(RIGHT(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""),LEN(SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))-SEARCH(" ",SUBSTITUTE(A1,",",""))))-5),2))

Result: imgur

https://www.reddit.com/r/excel/wiki/clippy 

REDDIT

https://www.reddit.com/r/excel/comments/3x8unq/formula_to_change_date_text_to_date_format/

VGC Loading/Liquidating Etiquette for Dummies

Over the past couple of days, traveling to quite a few local Rite-Aids and Wal-Marts to unload a couple of VGCs, I have had several conversations with CSRs behind the register that leads me to believe that the "common sense" for liquidation via Serve and similar methods is not that common. I would like to take a moment to try and give back to this truly awesome community and put together a short list of dos and don'ts for liquidating via Serve/etc. in the spirit of not having our newest method of Serve liquidation (at Rite-Aids) disappear.

I hunted around quite a bit for a similar list, but only found tidbits here and there, nothing consolidated. Feel free to disagree/comment/downvote if you don't think this is a good list, but I truly feel that the list below is accurate.

Golden Rule: Never unload more than 1 VGC per visit/shift.

• Unloading multiple debit cards in one transaction is simply not a good idea, for a multitude of reasons. If you absolutely mustunload more than 1 VGC at your local store, do not just go through the line again with a new cashier, rather, come back when shifts have changed so you can be sure not to run in to the same people.
  . Never unload a VGC when a store manager is running your kiosk.
• They will be the ones most likely to enforce all of the rules, and will request that you show them an embossed Debit card most of the time.

Which brings me to my next point:

If your cashier asks to see the "debit" card you are going to load with before swiping, never show them your VGC; just hand them a real debit card.

• At this point, you are stuck using that card for the transaction. If they asked you the amount to load before showing them the card, and you gave them a higher amount than you are comfortable with, just purposefully type in the wrong PIN a few times, then say you will have to call your bank to get it sorted out. If they did not ask the amount first, just load like 5 bucks or whatever is convenient.
  Always be polite and cordial to your cashier.
• Chat them up, engage in small talk. If you plan on coming back to this store on a regular basis, then, just like any other place you frequent regularly, you want to built positive relationships with those you interact with a lot.

Popular reccomendation: Don't hog the KATE/unload 5 cards at once if you have a line behind you

• brandiniman 9 points an hour ago*

Needs to add: Don't hog the KATE, if someone is waiting behind you, don't continue to load 5 more cards. Get in line like a normal customer and don't draw attention.

Hope this helps for those that are new to this method of MS

Cheers

reddit.com/r/churning

Coffee consumption rapidly reduces background DNA strand breaks in healthy humans

A discussion on whether decaf would have similar effects was deleted while I wrote this up. TLDR: I suspect dark roast decaf would.

While caffeine's adenosine receptor antagonist activity appears to reduce neural inflammation[1] and block β-amyloid neurotoxicity[2] , with potential benefits in dementia prevention, I suspect the benefits seen in this discussion's study are from the melanoidins produced by roasting, which activate Nrf2 and inhibit NF-κB[3] . Other Nrf2 inducers reduce DNA double strand breaks[4] , as are detected by the comet assay of this discussion's study.

FWIW, I drink 4-5 cups of dark-roast caffeinated coffee brewed through paper filters (to remove the LDL elevating cafestol & kahweol) daily. This is the sweet spot suggested by dozens of papers I've read on coffee health effects.

Unfiltered coffee, such as through a French press, can raise blood cholesterol by 5-15% in otherwise healthy adults. On mobile so cannot source. FYI I drink nespresso everyday at my desk, and not to sound like a corporate shill but that shit is the bomb diggity. 

Everyone knows cholesterol is separated into LDL (bad) and HDL (good) cholesterol. Current research is far more advanced than that and has identified that LDL has small and large LDL. Of those, the small LDL is worse, and of the small LDL, Lp(a) is the worst blood lipid that we know of.

Do we know what type of LDL is being increased with these coffee byproducts?

Edit: After finding the proposed mechanism, I'd guess that we are raising large LDL by drinking coffee, but I don't like guessing.

I found this, which happens to be pretty good.

http://www.drsinatra.com/defining-the-different-types-of-cholesterol/[1]

I'll keep this as simple as I can while remaining thorough.

When we worry about cholesterol, we are worrying about heart disease and stroke. This is caused by a process called atherosclerosis, which is often times referred to as the hardening of the blood vessels. The process can cause an increase in pressure, a vessel blockage, or even rupture. This happens when LDL (bad cholesterol) flows through your blood and enters the wall of the blood vessels. Once inside the LDL it becomes oxidized by a free radical. This triggers your immune system to recruit white blood cells into the area. The white blood cells enter the blood vessel wall and 'eat' the oxidized LDL. So far this is all normal and happens to everyone all the time. Your body then processes the oxidized LDL by pulling it out with HDL, and then the rest of the inflammatory process breaks down and is removed. No harm no foul.

In atherosclerosis your body cannot keep up with the removal of oxidized LDL because you either have too much of it, not enough HDL, or usually both. It's also possible that you could have genetic issues with your immune system, although this isn't fully understood. Then you start creating a buildup known as a plaque. The larger the plaque, the harder your blood vessels get, and the larger it gets, the more it wants to grow.

The large type of LDL (type a) is much less likely to enter the vessel walls and become oxidized. The small type of LDL (type b) is much more likely, with most people believing small LDL is almost the sole force behind atherosclerosis buildup, because of the small types ability to pass through the vessels wall and the large types inability to do so.

Large LDL is increased when you eat things like saturated fats. Small LDL is increased when you eat excess carbohydrates that are processed into fat. Lp(a) is a small molecule inside of you that is very similar to small LDL and is controlled by your genetics. It's usually much higher in people of African descent, and can also be altered both up and down by several liver disorders. Lp(a) is 4 times more likely to correspond to heart disease than LDL levels, but thats still just a correlation. Increased large LDL without increased small LDL has so far been shown to not increase heart disease significantly, or at all. There's a correlation to high triglyceride levels and small LDL, however thats not fully understood yet either.

There is also a couple types of HDL, one of which is active and one of which is much less active.

To lower small LDL, eat less excess simple carbohydrates that will be turned into fat if the energy is not burned. I do not advocate removing carbohydrates completely unless you have very specific health conditions to require it. There is evidence that your body requires a certain amount of carbohydrates for the immune system to work properly, including most importantly the ability of your body to regulate against cancer formation. Uncontrolled diabetes is especially bad in regards to small LDL formation. Exercising has also been shown to both lower total LDL and alter the composition of LDL more towards the less harmful large LDL. Exercising also alters the composition of HDL more towards the more active type, while increasing total HDL. Different cholesterol lowering drugs do different things to your lipid profile, and not all effect the bad LDL as much as the next. The only thing proven to lower Lp(a) is niacin, but its not a drug that is tolerated well by everyone. If you are being treated for increased cholesterol, get a more specific diagnostic test than the typical blood test and match your treatment to what you need.

This is why I continuously advocate against fad diets. We are still finding out a lot about our bodies all the time, and it almost always comes back to the same thing. Everything in moderation, and exercise is extremely important for most systems in your body.

Fun fact: Lp(a) still has no known function even though we produce it genetically. It only shows up in asian/african monkeys and humans which means it probably developed at some point not too long ago to counteract some environmental factor we don't have to deal with anymore, such as a disease. There are other theories as well which are just as interesting to a nerd like myself.

REDDIT link 

HT of the Month: The Vortex Theater

"...Finally, the riser for the second row of seats was built as a bass trap, and the front stage has about three tons of sand sealed in it.” The front three seats have Buttkicker transducers installed, while the second-row seats do not. “The rear seats are on a bass-trap riser, so they get plenty of tactile bass from the subs!”

The Vortex Theater

¡Entrevista de trabajo en Inglés! Que decir en inglés para conseguir trabajo

Tips: como prepararse para una entrevista de trabajo de éxito.

10 preguntas y respuestas (muy buenas) en una entrevista de trabajo

Difference between Real, Reactive and Apparent Power

Financial Independence

Hi all,

I've been digesting every morsel of FI and general personal finance information out there over the last month or so. I wanna set myself off on the right foot! So I'm gonna put what I'm doing and why in this post, and hopefully you lovely people can give me your final suggestions and critiques before I decide to stop over analyzing everything!

Info: Age 23, salary is smidge under $60k, have 401k available through work. Effectively zero matching, but decent pick of low cost fund options (my highest ER right now is small-cap index at .13%). No debt. Looking to be FI/maybe semi-retire by 40-50. Not dead set on this cause so much could change in life.

Current savings plan/goals:

• 20% of salary into 401k (about $1000/month)
• An additional ~$500 into a Roth IRA monthly
• Another $200 into "general" savings, for things that have no set time frame such as a home, a car, money to start/invest in a business with, an engagement ring, whatever just anything big in the future with no set date.
• Emergency fund is set

This gives me a pretax savings rate of about 35%, about 44% after tax. Might be able to beef this up a bit. Anyway..

My asset allocation for both retirement accounts right now is 90/10 equities to bonds. Open to opinions on this but I'm trying to split the difference between those who say "you'll wish you had bonds when the next recession hits" and "you will wish you were 100% equities when you see the next 20 years of market data." Of the 90% in equities, 80% is in S&P 500, 10% each in small-cap index and EAFE International index (did some research to come to this but trying to keep it simple...). Bond holdings are just a Bond fund mixing between junk bonds, government, intermediate, etc.

Now I know that being in the 25% marginal bracket, many say I should do a traditional IRA instead of Roth, and mathematically I get why, and have read threads showing why. I know I can always do a Roth laddering in the future, but I'm worried about depending too much on that loophole for getting money out of a t-401k or t-IRA should it be closed before I use it. I'd hate to have enough net worth to be FI, but not actually be truly FI because of a lack of liquidity. For that reason I'd like to at least go about half of my retirement (for now, when I'm maxing 401k it will be less) into a Roth IRA.

Please feel free to convince me otherwise if this is stupid, but I like the idea of having the Roth contributions available if I need them, perhaps to bridge the gap between early retirement and "real" retirement if Roth ladders are disallowed. Even so I need 5 years expenses while I ladder).

What does everyone think? Hopefully all my reading and searching on here, MadFIentist, and MMM has paid off somewhat and I have a decent plan here. Mostly I'm just still unsure of both my asset allocation (bonds to equities, as well as equities allocations) and my savings plan. I just dont want all my retirement money untouchable and I don't want to put all my eggs in the basket of relying on Roth laddering still being available in 20-30 years. And I still want to do some intermediate term savings for large purchases that could come up in maybe 3-5 years.

My sincerest gratitude for the help

You might want a taxable account because of the contribution limit on the Roth IRA, but you can decide on that after you've been maxing out your IRA and 401k for a while.

Mostly I wanted to say good luck!

Agreed with rlbabydoll about considering a taxable account once you've maxed your tax-deferred accounts. About 1/3 of my investments are in taxable accounts and it gives me incredible financial flexibility.

Personally, I think the Roth-conversion ladder will always remain available. Traditional IRA to Roth conversions allow the government to effectively get their tax money early (since the converted amount is subject to taxation) instead of having to wait for the account holder to reach age 59.5 to be eligible for withdrawals. Likewise, there is no incentive for the IRS to lengthen the 5 year waiting period as it will also discourage Roth conversions, which will reduce taxes.

From the info you provided, you are earning about $60k pretax, paying about $12k in taxes, leaving you with about $48k post-tax, of which you are saving about $21k and spending $27k. At the current Roth contribution limit of $5500 per year, it will take you 5 years of maxing Roth contributions to have enough to pay for 1 year of FI. If you plan to be FI in 17 years, this will only give you enough time to accumulate about 3.5 years' worth of expenses that you can withdraw from your Roth, assuming you manage to not inflate your lifestyle costs. This will only take you to age 44, at which point you will still have 15 years to go until you can start withdrawing the earnings from your Roth. You will need to have a sizeable taxable account to sustain you the rest of the way, or at least for another 1.5 years for the Roth conversion ladder to kick in.

For this reason, Roth IRAs usually don't make sense for aspiring early retirees. A traditional IRA will not only give you an immediate tax break (assuming your salary isn't high enough to make you ineligible), the contributions AND the earnings will be accessible to you penalty-free (not tax-free, but taxed at a substantially lower rate) before age 59.5 via the Roth conversion ladder method.

Full disclosure: I am doing a Roth IRA this year for myself because I am in the 15% tax bracket (started my first job halfway through the year), but I intend to do traditional IRA contributions starting next year until I am FI.

Rule 72(t) allows you to take premature distributions from IRA's without penalty.

More

 

I'm actually in the 15% bracket this year as well due to starting my job mid year. I'm probably going to take my starting bonus and just about max a Roth IRA with it this year.

Thank you for your additional input on my plan!

You have probably seen http://www.mrmoneymustache.com/2012/01/13/the-shockingly-simple-math-behind-early-retirement/[1]already. I provided this link as your current savings rate fits you into your goal FI age.

I fully understand the reasoning for using a Roth. Just a little useless note: I think the fact that you not only understand the differences but that you actually get both sides of why to/not to use a Roth and your ability to clearly state these things shows that you probably do not need any beginner advice.

On your allocations, I see nothing "wrong" with what you have. There are clear arguments as to why more should be put into international and other stating that the S&P 500 by itself already has massive international exposure and blah blah blah. You have stated that you have done research on this already so I see no reason to try to argue about that part. I will state that you could consider looking into mid-cap instead of small-cap because it tends to be better in every way, but the reality is the actual expected difference is minimal so shrug. On the bond fund I do think that you may be making a mistake. The bond fund should not hold junk bonds in my opinion. An overall bond fund has 0 correlation (actually it is ever so slightly positive) with the stock market, however a government bond fund has a negative correlation with the stock market. As such, if you are holding the bond fund to help with volatility or re-balancing then a government bond fund suits your needs much better, although at a slightly lower yield I suspect.

A comment about Roth to consider: if you possibly change jobs in the future you can always consider moving part of your 401K into a Roth fund pre-retirement. Yes, there would be a (probably) massive tax hit on the conversion, but it would allow you to have a larger % of your portfolio in a Roth fund.

One more comment which is likely to be hotly debated if anyone reads this... If you have long-term savings in mind you could consider taxable investments. Yes, the tax drag on your account would be highly noticeable, however for something like saving for an unknown wedding ring, house, or something big and unknown which is then likely to be far in the future it may make sense to consider taxable investments for that particular savings instead of a savings account. I personally use taxable investments despite not maxing out my 401K (I do max my IRA). I fully understand the implications, however it has come in handy: I changed my career path which required several months of full-time training which I had to pay for along with being unemployed for an extended period of time and being able to withdraw from taxable investments paid for much of that.

Overall, I think you seem to have things well under control and now all you have to do is follow your plan and enjoy life :)

Your asset allocation is fine, although I don't see the point in holding any junk bonds. Just stick with muni bonds and perhaps some corporate bonds as well that aren't in the "junk" category.

Some at your age would not have any bonds at all, I personally think this is unwise. Think of your bonds as being an additional "buying opportunity" if the market tanks, because you have some additional funds you can sell to buy equities if you want to. And if you don't choose to go that route then I think the diversification is always a good thing.

Asset allocation is really always a personal choice based on what you are comfortable with. At your age I think 20% would be about the max you should hold in bonds, 10% is probably about right.

Your personal savings rate matters more than anything at your age and yours is fairly high. I would set some goals over the years to slowly increase your contributions, but you are doing plenty well at the moment.

 Allocation looks fine. Possible a little light on international. 90% vs 100% equity at your age hardly matters. My preference is 100% equity at your age, but your choice is good too. If it makes a difference in how you stay the course in the next big correction, then it's all to the good. The important thing is when a big downturn shows up (in a month, or in 3 years, or in a decade) you don't abandon equities. If you can stomach that big drop, then your allocation is working.

A Roth conversion ladder isn't really a loophole. Normally, you pay taxes on money before you put it in a Roth IRA. The rollover part is perfectly legitimate and not a loophole. When you roll over from a traditional IRA, you pay taxes on the money before it goes into the Roth account. You're not avoiding any taxes (unless you're legally in a different tax bracket). All you are doing is delaying the payment of the taxes.

Everyday Carry (EDC)

This is my standard carry. I have experimented with different items in nearly every category (flashlight, keychain, knife, multi-tool, wallet, etc.), but seemed to have found a happy medium in these items. I'm always adjusting, searching, streamlining. Let me know if you have any questions regarding certain items.

1) Leather Sportsman Journal

2) Field Notes Pitch Black Dot Grid

3) iPhone 6 16GB

4) Brushed Brass Zippo

5) Black Leatherman Rebar

6) Fenix LD02

7) Timex Weekender

8) Leather Watchband Natural

9) Uni-fold Wallet by Noah Lambert

10) Benchmade Gentleman's Knife

11) Maxmadco Bolt Action Pen (Black)

12) Rotring 800 Mechanical Pencil 0.7 mm

13) MoMa Muji Aluminum Fountain Pen (Blue)

14) Brass Corter Bottlehook and Signature Split Ring

15) Leather Key Cover Natural

16) Kingston Digital DataTraveler SE9 16GB

17) EDC Tweezers

18) EDC Keychain Screwdrivers

19) EDC Pry Bar

20) Tec Accessories Glow Fob

21) Nissan Altima Key Fob

20) 1972 U.S. Eisenhower Dollar

22) Matte Black New Wayfarer Liteforce (Not Pictured)

Eliminate "Um"s From Your Speech Forever

In my experience, the number one way to fix it is to develop the confidence to allow a moment of silence where you'd otherwise say um.

I negotiated a $12,000 hospital bill to $1,500

After reading some advice here, I spoke to their billing department and asked how one might qualify for financial assistance. They sent me some paperwork in the mail asking about our situation and to provide justification along with any documentation. I provided a verification of my employment dates, my lay off notice from my employer, a copy of the unemployment payments made to me, and wrote a statement explaining my wife's cancer and my inability to join the work force.

Two weeks later they sent a notice stating we've been approved for a reduced payment of 90%, now owing approximately $1,500.

What a huge burden that's been lifted off my shoulders.

I hope this info helps someone else.

hospital financial assistance 

Deaf sign learning language site

This as our go-to for tests and practice. It's extremely thorough.

Concrete stained and scored to look like hardwood flooring

How to!
The epoxy actually doesn't make it that cold. Did this to my floor only it looks like marble, not wood, and it stays about the same temp as the air. The epoxy actually acts like an insulator. I love it. It's just slick as hell. Socks might kill you.

Of course it’s the same temp as the air. Every floor does that unless it has indoor heating. what makes a floor feel cooler or warmer is how conductive it is. It will be cooler than body temp. So a more conductive surface will feel cooler to the skin than a less conductive surface at the same temp.

Epoxy is probably a worse conductor than the paint. It’s still the same temperature though.

Having lived for a while in a basement apartment with bare concrete floors, I can assure you this is not true.

All objects have a property known as thermal mass. This is the amount of heat they can absorb and hold onto. It is related to but not the same as thermal conductivity.

Wood has very low thermal mass, it does not tend to absorb much heat. Metal has a lot more, but generally is a fair to good conductor, so it rapidly loses that heat and normalizes to the room temp. Stone, concrete and glass have high thermal mass and relatively low thermal conductivity. They absorb heat or cold slowly, but they also hold onto their temp for a long period of time.*

Adding to that, the concrete floor is in contact with the ground, so it is absorbing the temp from there, not just the room temperature. That means that the concrete will almost always be several degrees colder than the ambient temp of the room-- at least in northern regions.

* I am not a physicist, so it is quite possible this summary is not perfectly accurate, but it gives you an idea of what is going on.

Edit: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Thermal_mass

If you are really slipping a lot you can get a thin top coat of epoxy laid over the top, with some small bits of grit in it. These increase the slip resistance. Supposedly you can get almost see through chips that are barely visible, but make the world of difference. Never used them as the epoxy floors I've had built up have all been flecked anyway, but the contractor seemed to say that they were really useful.

Concrete flooring is great for in-floor heating