david-s.net - David Schlosnagle's Words, Photos, and Links

That’s what I’d like to know. According to the IRS’s “Where’s My Refund?”:

Your tax refund is scheduled to be mailed on April 29, 2005. If you do not receive the refund by May 27, 2005, please contact us again. We are unable to take any action until then.

Can someone explain exactly how they can schedule a date to mail my refund over a week in advance, but not send it out until then? If it’s already been processed, shouldn’t the Treasury cut a check and give me my money back? It only seems fair that since they’ve been collecting interest on it since I earned it, that I should get it back once I’ve told them how much they’ve overcharged me.

BusinessWeek has an article on Cracking the Street’s New Math. It’s just a high level overview of how money managers are using computer algorithms to spread trades over a finite timeline. Reverse engineering these trades and algorithms gives you Pi.

I guess it’s about time I post again. Life has been keeping me busy. Today was the first day of work in over a month that I didn’t have to spend in front of a computer monitor for eight hours, so I decided now was a good time to update.

Instead, I had the first day of a three day training seminar for the project I am working on. It was a whirlwind of accrual and cash based accounting, appropriations and apportionments, credits and debits, internal and external offsets, JFMIP certification (we’re one of only six out there), and many other fun federal financial topics. I learned a lot about how the various government departments and agencies allocate their funds, and the ways our software makes their lives easier.

This past weekend was Artsfest at Penn State, and I already miss the place. It felt really weird driving back into town being an alumni now, but at the same time it felt just like home. I had a great time seeing most of my old friends, going out, walking around the town to see all the booths. As my old roommate Dave said while we were all walking around artsfest:

“I’m an artist, I just haven’t found my medium yet.”

Aren’t we all?