A brief thought

It's been a while since I posted and someone asked me why I stopped the other day.  I had no real answer other than laziness so I'll try to get back in the swing of things.

I don't much about online poker or poker in general but it seems a little wild that the US government apparently just took down the whole industry in the US the other day.  I'm not really sure why people can't gamble online, or gamble in general, but I guess that the system we've created.  It just seems like such a waste of money for the government to really care though.  Over the past weeks I've seen plenty of coverage on the Barry Bonds perjury trial and now the DOJ concluded a 5 year investigation to take down online poker.  Why aren't they investigating the people at the heart of the subprime mortgage industry instead or something that actually matters!

Late Wednesday Night Linkage

So when I was driving home from work on President's Day, the radio station I was listening to had a "name your favorite president" call-in deal.  Somebody actually called in and said Millard Filmore was their vote.  Millard Filmore?!?  Seriously?  So of course I had to do a little investigation on who exactly Millard Filmore was (the 13th President of the United States from New York no less), and you can too, by clicking here.

I just finished an excellent book today call Matterhorn: A Novel of the Vietnam War by Karl Marlantes.  The novel, which was simply impossible to put down, follows the journey of USMC Second Lieutenant Mellas as he navigates the travails of battle and politics in the middle of the Vietnam War.  Buy it here.

As of late I've been interested in finding some quality clothing items that are made in the US.  I like to think I'm doing my part to help the economic recovery.  Anyway, I wore a new tie by Southern Proper (based out of Atlanta, Georgia) this week and was impressed.  They have interesting designs and the ties are well made, aren't too thin, and tie a nice, thick knot.  I went with the Sweet Magnolia in Navy, which can be found here.  When in Charlotte, Southern Proper ties can be purchased at Fairclough & Co, which is simply a great shop over in the Myer's Park area and where I purchased my tie.  Here's their website.

I was happy to get an email from my favorite outdoor shop today, Diamond Brand Outdoors in Arden, NC, to let me know they've launched their new online store.  The brick and mortar shop is cavernous, stocked with a great selection of gear, and staffed with a cadre of knowledgeable and useful employees.  Needless to say, I'm excited that I can give them my business when I'm not in Arden.  Check it out!

Good Riddance 2010 Taxes

So in between cleaning the house today I devoted time to filing our taxes.  A little while in it became pretty obvious that there's a strong policy in favor of marriage and in favor of home ownership.  We always talked about this in tax class, but having never been married or owning a home until last year, I just sort of took it for granted.  Well I saw how thing would've shaken out without being married or owning the home and now I'm pretty happy with both decisions.  Ha!  All this being said, I think things could be a little better.  For instance, why do we eliminate a credit for mortgage insurance premiums once people make a certain amount of income per year?  The only reason we, and I mean my wife and I personally, have mortgage insurance in the first place is because we devote a large chunk of our income towards student loans and not towards a nice down payment on the house.  This only leads to another point, why do we limit the credit for student loan interest?  Married couples filing jointly only get a credit of $2500 paid towards student loan interest per year.  That's absurd.  One of my law school loans managed to cover this.  I hear all the time how the federal government is in favor of people owning homes but are they not equally in favor of people pursuing higher education?  It just seems silly to me.

The one bright side of the tax ordeal today was that TurboTax made it relatively uncomplicated. So that's something.

So who am I and what am I about?

So obviously my name is Stephen and I was born in Marietta, South Carolina.  After attending the University of South Carolina for many years, I finally graduated law school in 2008 and moved to Charlotte.  After passing the bar exam, I got a job in Monroe, NC, where I currently practice family law, among other things.

I met my wife, Kirsten, in law school and we were married last September.  We recently returned from our honeymoon in Jackson Hole, Wyoming and also have a dog, Harry.

Kirsten and I snowshoeing in the Tetons

In my free time, I really enjoy photography and hanging out in the outdoors.  I'm a big fan of hiking and backpacking and hope to use this blog to detail some of my trips.  I also enjoy reading, music, and a little of bit of fashion, all of which I plan to incorporate here.  I was diagnosed with melanoma last fall and after successful surgery, these days I'm really focusing on living each day to the fullest.  I think this will be fun, and who knows, maybe someone will actually read this blog from time to time.