Author | Lightnews

Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · 2d

Poking around tax websites, it looks like he might be doing a self-employed 401(k), which has a $23k limit for 2024 (so ~$8k of tax liability), and the contribution deadline extends (to Oct. 15) if you get an filing extension, so he could invest the $23k for 6 more months. Just working-class things!

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · 3d

Yes! The new lower rate is meant to encourage adoption of dual fuel systems like yours by lowering the cutover temperature where it becomes cheaper to heat with the gas furnace instead of the heat pump.

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · 3d

If you've installed a heat pump (or have electric baseboard heat or similar) in Xcel's territory in Minnesota, make sure you're on the residential space heating rate - it's more than 40% cheaper than the normal wintertime residential rate.

www.mncee.org/mn-puc-appro...

Energy Charge
Below is a breakdown of the energy charge per kilowatt hour (kWh).

Note: Energy charge is measured per kWh

June through September: $0.13
October through May: $0.11
October through May with electric space heating: $0.06

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · 10d

Even if you've always gotten a refund, never had to pay in at tax time, who does the federal refund come from? Not your state government!

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · 12d

Yeah, it's not the ideal maintenance facility (or station) location(s), but if gently-used passenger rail infrastructure suddenly becomes available on an existing route Amtrak's not really in a position to not at least try for it.

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · 12d

Based on a single bullet point from the last slide of this presentation last month, Amtrak seems to be investigating extending the Borealis to the maintenance facility in Big Lake. Gotta think that would include stopping at a station or two, not deadheading the whole way.
miprc.org/Portals/0/us...

miprc.org

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · 26d

The city where the mayor had to declare a state of emergency to ensure the garbage kept being collected?

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Sep 19

Back of the envelope math, but the park board could probably bring in $4-500k/year by metering the part of West River Parkway immediately north of Plymouth, where parking is 80%+ utilized all day every day between North Loop commuters, Mpls Bouldering Project climbers, and Pryes Brewing patrons.

Wedge LIVE!™ @wedge.live · Sep 18

Frey: "That gap can be solved in a different way other than the property tax increase, specifically fees. Parking fees at the park board have not been increased in, I believe, many years."

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Sep 4

It was bad when Johnson did it too! Something can be bad even if it's your fav doing it!

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Aug 21

I think a fundamental problem is that there's not one big issue to fix with the LRT ridership, but a ton of small ones. Shorter trains are a piece, less frequent trains are a piece, Twins attendance being down is a piece, last train being at 11pm so you can't rely on LRT after a concert is a piece..

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Aug 15

This is what we've got on the newly reconstructed Lowry St NE from Washington to Central. It works... fine, in a less dense setting, where there legitimately isn't a wide enough right of way for anything better. Absolutely unacceptable to build that on Lyndale to preserve street parking.

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Aug 7

Baby's first train!

A selfie of a smiling couple holding an infant wearing a train onesie on the Amtrak Empire Builder. The infant is staring off into space.

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jul 31

instead of just having people park in the ample parking lot and come grab a bag of food. Clearly a procedure that was put together in the "no masks, only distancing" early pandemic days and adhered to through 2024 for whatever reason. Didn't see anyone not in a car, but I wasn't doing checkin. (2/2)

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jul 31

I found myself volunteering at one of these last summer through my employer. Happy to help get food to people who need it, but it was a bizarre experience: a long line of idling cars backed up half a block down Rice St as volunteers tried to find the open tailgate button for *this* car model (1/2)

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jul 28

For what it's worth, the estimated restore times are intentionally very conservative during storm events. In Northeast I was given an estimate of 2:15pm tomorrow, but the lights came back on about 10 minutes ago.

Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jul 17

11/10 day to be told that my corporate laptop needs reimaging and I just need to kill two hours downtown in the early afternoon.

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jul 17

I'm counting more than 30 in Minneapolis, though maybe I'm misremembering the height or construction date on a couple.

0 seems right for St. Paul though!

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jul 15

Idk, I just took the northbound 11 from 11th and Nicollet a couple hours ago, and taking ten minutes to get from 11th to Washington on Nicollet when the 4 and 6 can get the same distance in five minutes on Hennepin sucks, actually!

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jul 11

The 31-day pass is still available, as far as I know.

www.metrotransit.org/go-to-card

Go-To Card - Metro Transit

www.metrotransit.org

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jul 8

They are finally ramping up fare enforcement on the proof of payment BRT and LRT lines. Would have been better to do it right off the bat before habits set in, but better late than never, I guess.

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jun 25

Thanks! He's a little too young for that big of an excursion, unfortunately, as sad as we are to miss the tour for the first time in idk how many years.

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jun 25

Thanks! She's doing great.

Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jun 25

Some personal news.

A man and a baby are sitting on a couch, looking at each other.

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jun 22

This is the part I'm envious of, shivering with my living room sitting at 69 degrees as the ducted central heat pump labors to keep the upstairs bedrooms livable.

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Joey Senkyr @joeysenkyr.bsky.social · Jun 8

100%. I don't think I've done a trip longer than like St. Paul to Red Wing without getting an Amtrak hot dog. They're not really that good, but they're part of the experience.

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