sin

Singalong

photo taken October 2020




sin

What To Do With a Business Card at a Conference

I was lucky enough to get to attend the Nebula Awards this year, and I was there in my new role as a Director at Large. This meant that, instead of ghosting in to see my friends, I was meeting a lot of people and exchanging business cards. Someone noticed a habit of mine that […]




sin

Report from Wisconsin: John Nichols on Harris's Madison Roots & Key Senate/House Races Nationwide

We speak with The Nation's John Nichols in Wisconsin, where Kamala Harris and Donald Trump are spending a lot of their time in the closing days of the election in a tight battle for the state's 10 Electoral College votes. Nichols also discusses the battle for the Senate, with key races in Wisconsin and Nebraska; how New York races could tip control of the House to Democrats; and why Kamala Harris needs to expand her message beyond the threat of Trump’s authoritarianism. “At the doors, people want to talk about economics,” says Nichols.




sin

Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud on Refusing Meeting with Trump, Not Endorsing Harris

All eyes are on Michigan as Donald Trump and Kamala Harris battle over undecided voters in the crucial swing state, including many of the state’s 200,000 Arab American and Muslim voters who reject both the Republican and Democratic parties’ stance on Israel and Palestine. We speak to Dearborn, Michigan’s Lebanese American Mayor Abdullah Hammoud, who is the first Arab and Muslim mayor of the city, about many of his constituents’ loss of support for the Democratic Party and how the Arab American vote could impact the presidential election. Hammoud, like many Dearborn residents, has lost extended family to Israel’s attacks on Lebanon, and describes the climate in the city as “a blanket of grief.” Having called for a ceasefire and arms embargo on Israel, he refused to meet with Trump last week, but has also declined to endorse Harris. Hammoud calls on voters to not sit out the election entirely, but to “vote their moral conscience, and says the citizens of Dearborn are “willing to put people over party, first and foremost.”




sin

"The Misinformation Web": Maria Hinojosa on the Pro-Trump Propaganda Targeting Latinos in 2024

As Latino voters are a key voting bloc in the 2024 presidential election in battleground states like Nevada, Arizona and Pennsylvania, they have been targeted by a rise in Spanish-language misinformation. Most of the false messaging disparages Kamala Harris and supports Donald Trump, says Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Maria Hinojosa, host of Latino USA, which investigated the phenomenon in a new episode called “The Misinformation Web.” She interviewed some of the content creators in this “blob” of online vitriol and says there is almost no effective content moderation online, nor many reliable fact-checking sources in Spanish to counter the lies.




sin

Singham Again: 'सिंघम अगेन' का बुरा हुआ हाल, 11वें दिन की कमाई जान पकड़ लेंगे माथा

Singham Again Box Office Collection Day 11: बॉलीवुड के फेस फिल्म मेकर रोहित शेट्टी की फिल्म 'सिंघम अगेन' गत 1 नवंबर 2024 को सिनेमाघरों में रिलीज हुई थी। शुरुआती दिनों में तो फिल्म को दर्शकों से काफी अच्छा रिस्पॉन्स मिला था




sin

Assessee can avail ITC only on tax paid on services for leasing/ renting/ hiring of motor vehicles for women's safety

The AAR, Tamil Nadu in the case of M/s. CMA CGM Global Business Services (India) (P.) Ltd., In Re [Order No. 15/ARA/2024 dated July 15, 2024] ruled that an Assessee is eligible to avail input services in respect of leasing/ renting/ hiring of motor vehicles of motor vehicles to provide transportatio




sin

No ITC to purchasing dealer in the absence of proof of genuine transactions

The Hon'ble Supreme Court in the case of The Additional Commissioner of Commercial Taxes v. M/s Shankara Infrastructure Materials Ltd. [arising out of SLP (Civil) No. 5504 of 2022 dated October 14, 2024] granted leave and allowed appeal, wherein M/s. Shankara Infrastructure Materials Ltd. ("the Resp




sin

Change in legal name of business

Our company has changed the name recently, what is the process for update the new name in our GST portal, is it posible only after change the name on PAN data base




sin

CPC Processing IT Return for AY 2023-24 without recognizing the Taxation Option under New Regime

My ITR3 for AY 2023-24 has been processed by CPC under OLD REGIME without recognizing the Taxation Option exercised undersection 115BAC for NEW REGIME by filing FORM 10IE during AY 2022-23 on 01-Jun-2022, which has been CONTINUED for AY 2023-24, as EVIDENT in the ITR3 filed for this Assessment Year. I have also Registered my grievance in this regard in the e-portal of the IT Department and have sought RECTIFICATION FIVE TIMES under Section 154 but have got the same RECTIFICATION ORDER repeating the same MISTAKE with processing done under OLD REGIME with TAX DEMAND of Rs.87,000. (Similar thing had happened in AY 2022-23 but it was corrected by RECTIFICATION). I am in continuous correspondence through email and written communication several times with the Department, including grievances raised on E-PORTAL, but the issue remains UNRESOLVED. I have also registered my grievance in this regard in CPGRAMS Portal of GOI which is pending.
I request advice on further course of action to resolve the issue including as to whether i can file an Appeal under Section 264 .
G S Prakash




sin

ProMat 2023 officially opens for business

Ready to welcome a steady incoming flow of conference attendees, introduce the world to a host of new industry innovations and provide a full lineup of fun events all week long, ProMat 2023 opened its doors to the world at 10 a.m. CST this morning.




sin

Medication Abortion Using Telehealth Is As Safe As In-Person Care, Study Finds

Researchers find that medication abortion provided at home with a Zoom or text link to a medical provider is extremely safe and effective




sin

Una temporada de incendios sin precedentes arrasa uno de los puntos calientes de biodiversidad de la Tierra

En Colombia han ardido más de 500 incendios, incluso en sus delicados y únicos humedales del altiplano, uno de los ecosistemas de más rápida evolución de la Tierra




sin

Chimpanzees and Bonobos Have Surprisingly Different Parenting Styles

Chimpanzee “helicopter moms” often protect their offspring from bullies, but bonobo moms are more hands-off





sin

Sing the Lyrics Almost Perfectly Out Loud

The Army, The Navy “BBIDGI” The Army, The Navy are a folk duo with the same basic set up as Simon & Garfunkel – two singers, one guitar. The interesting thing with them, most especially on “BBIDGI,” is how their melodies and vocal harmonies are much closer in style and tone to mid 90s through […]




sin

Fell For A Singer With A Dead Eye Drawl

The Hard Quartet “Six Deaf Rats” I’ve been enjoying The Hard Quartet’s debut record, but was having trouble digesting it as anything more than a late-period Stephen Malkmus album that happened to include some other songs by Matt Sweeney and Emmett Kelly. Seeing the band perform at Webster Hall last night made it all click […]




sin

The mystery of the missing La Niña continues – and we don't know why

A climate-cooling La Niña pattern was expected to develop in the Pacific Ocean months ago, but forecasters now say it won't appear until November




sin

This surprisingly creative trick helps children eat more fruit and veg

Weaving tales of magical fruit and vegetables into your children's stories may encourage them to eat healthy snacks




sin

Spies can eavesdrop on phone calls by sensing vibrations with radar

An off-the-shelf millimetre wave sensor can pick out the tiny vibrations made by a smartphone's speaker, enabling an AI model to transcribe the conversation, even at a distance in a noisy room




sin

Lakes are losing winter ice cover at an astonishing rate

Fewer lakes are freezing over each winter compared with past years, posing environmental and economic consequences around the world




sin

Distant dwarf planet Makemake might have a surprising ice volcano

A small world in the outer solar system appears to have volcanic activity possibly spurred by liquid water




sin

How a single gopher restored a landscape devastated by a volcano

Never underestimate what a single gopher can achieve in a day: one of the burrowing mammals helped boost soil fungi in an area blanketed by ash from the explosive eruption of Mount St Helens in Washington state




sin

Humanity has warmed the planet by 1.5°C since 1700

Most assessments of global warming use 1850-1900 as a baseline, but researchers have now established a new pre-industrial reference by using Antarctic ice cores to estimate the average temperature before 1700




sin

Person Adopts the ‘Mean, Hissing, Swatting’ Cat That No One Wanted at the Shelter, and after Getting Some Love, the Fluffy Feline Shows Her True, Cuddly Colors

Getting a cat to love you can take some time. We think that most cat owners know that. It's a rare thing for a cat to fall in love with its new owner on day one. Especially when you're adopting an older cat. You don't know what they have been through. You don't know where they came from most times. What you do know - or should know - is that for most cats, it's a matter of time. You need to give cats space and respect, affection when they ask for it, and snacks… like- all the time. 

And eventually, when you do all of that enough… your cat will show you love. Now, that might take a few days, a few weeks, or a few years. As long as your cat is not actively harming anyone around it, there is no reason to give up on them. You just need to keep giving them those things, and when the time is right, they will make as big of a turnaround as this kitty.




sin

Black Cat Starts Mysteriously Losing Its Color, Other Vexed Void Owners Question When Their Cute Cats Go From Midnight to Moonlight

We may or may not be a helicopter cat pawrent - meaning that we may or may not go to Google for every pawssible thing that might be wrong with our cats. Their meow sounds a little different than normal? Google. They all of a sudden start sleeping in a random spot we've never seen them sleep in before? Google. They didn't eat the food that they normally love? Google. Most of the things we google end up being purrfectly fine (we are not prone to overreaction, not one bit). But if our black cat started losing its beautiful black color, now that would be a thing to google!

There are a few pawssible explanations for this: the first is a meowgnificent genetic trait called "vitiligo" - which causes cats to lose pigment in their fur, giving them unique and rare fur patterns. Another option is called a "fever coat", which is a temporary change in a cat's fur pigment due to illness or stress. The last, and final option that we know of, is that this black beauty is just getting old. Either way, you'd be surprised how many vexed void owners chimed in with their black cats that went from midnight to moonlight. Scroll down to see all these fading felines below!




sin

napa cabbage wedge with miso dressing

If you were to make a multi-part Venn diagram combining my favorite salad things, you could nestle this right in the center. It’s one part wedge salad, the fork and steak knife kind, something I am so into I talked my podcast co-host Kenji (okay, it wasn’t hard) into dedicating a whole episode to it. And it contains cabbage, and not just cabbage but Napa cabbage, which I think deserves more credit as a salad green. [This can be convenient to know as it often comes in heads large enough to feed a small family for a week.] Napa cabbage is a little leafy, a little crunchy, and yet kind of juicy too and I’ve used it, sliced thin, in everything from this Italian-style salad to a classic Caesar.
Read more »




sin

Sunday Sweets Sinks Its Incisors Into Some Skulls

I'm back with more Halloween goodies, spoops and ghouls! 

I didn't have anything too specific in mind for this week's theme, so I ended up with a boo-tiful mix of everything from Gothic Glam:

(Cake Effect Buffalo, New York)

... to bright pastel eye candy.

(Wonderfully Whitty Cakes, California)

I couldn't decide which of Whitney's cakes I liked best, so you get two:

(Wonderfully Whitty Cakes, California)


Ooooh. Those stripes are swoon-worthy.

Have you ever seen a little kid smile with a mouth full of Oreos?
This is kind of like that, only cuter:

(Backfeevi, Germany)

Hee!

I know I usually err on the adorable side of Halloween, so here's something more dark and dramatic: 

(AyşenButikPasta, Turkey)

This could almost be a wedding cake! And that dry-brushed gold detailing? Gorgeous.

Ahh, but now I bet you want to see an actual Halloween wedding cake.

So to quote the coffin lid as it slammed shut,

BAM:

(MakeLuvBlog)

Isn't this stunning? The wrought iron gate trim, the autumn flowers, the chocolate casket toppers! I love the light gray icing, too; less dye AND you can see all the details better.


Veering right back into Cute with this magical lil guy:

(That Baking Girl)

Batty Potter. Ermergersh. 

And of course we need more Pumpkin King and friends in here:

(Lovlie Cakes & Brookies Cookies Co.)

Digging the vintage illustration style on this one: 

(Saucy Bakes, Canada & Arizona)

The bright green and red makes it pop, and then that bottom piped border made me do a double-take; it looks just like real lace! Whaaaaat.


And finally, even more cheery pastels, since I can't get enough this season:

(Cake Happy, Virginia)

Is this not the happiest skull cake you've ever seen?? I guess Mickey ears really do make everything better. :D

I hope these made you a little happier, too, friends. Happy Sunday, and may your Halloween this year be extra extra Sweet.
*****
P.S. Speaking of happy skulls, I don't know who needs to hear this, but there is such a thing as
rainbow skull spoons:

Stainless Steel Skull Spoons, set of 6

They also come in black or silver, for the more traditional/boring goths out there. :p

*****

And from my other blog, Epbot:




sin

I'm Sensing a Theme Here...

Katy P.'s father-in-law recently retired after 27 years with the fire department.

Naturally, his fellow fire fighters ordered an appropriately decorated cake to celebrate: 

(You know what my favorite part of this Fire Department Theme cake is? The balloons.)

Thanks to Katy for showing us how a cake order goes down in flames.

Also, I should probably point out the original firefighter themed cake from way back in 2008.  Still one of my favorites. -john (thoJ)




sin

HaBO: They Have a Kissing Talk in the Library

This HaBO request is from Katharina, who is hoping to find this romance from 80s: Unfortunately I remember very little, but I’d love to find this book again. It was a slim Regency Romance (could have been Category) with a pastel colored cover (soft yellow/pink). The heroine is the ward of the hero, or he’s a family friend. She gets kissed against her will and flees to his house. They sit in his library and … Continue reading HaBO: They Have a Kissing Talk in the Library



  • Help a Bitch Out


sin

Sinister

I wonder if I still have the extra-tough silly putty from when I had to do hand rehab. That shit was cool




sin

The Wages Of Sin

I'm gonna be at Gencon at booth 1237 this August! I'll have some books and stuff and will be doing sketches and complimenting your pet photos. SEE YOU THERE???




sin

'Not a single person ever paid me back': Man loans friends over $18,000, friends avoid repaying him for years

This person is lending out way too much money to their friends! There's only so much you can do for your friends before you're officially the one being taken advantage of. After all, friendship is supposed to be a give-and-take. You laugh together and cry together. You listen to their troubles and they listen to yours. If it's not reciprocal, it can leave one or both of you with conflicting feelings. You might start to wonder why you're always the one who has to pay the bill at the end of a meal because your friend keeps insisting they've fallen on hard times. Or in this person's case, you might accidentally loan your friends thousands of dollars over time, leaving you with an entire friend group who owes you big.

This person, u/mastagoose, has learned the hard way that they need to be cautious when mixing money with friendship. There's that common rule that states that if you're going to loan someone money, just give it as a gift, and don't expect to get it back. That way, there won't be any hard feelings when you notice your friend wearing a new outfit or buying an expensive meal, knowing that they haven't paid you back. This guy not only hasn't forgotten about their numerous loans to friends, but they made a list about it, and the people of the internet were not exactly kind to them. Instead, they were repeatedly told that they should stop lending people money ASAP. Maybe they'll take the internet's advice! 

Up next, read about one 22-year-old employee who "decided to start including the Chairman/CEO…on all emails" in order to get their coworkers to reply to their emails. 




sin

'His hand pauses in midair': Front desk attendant gets scolded for using his phone at work, instead he maliciously complies with company policy by wasting other precious office resources

No personal cell phones? Okay. This employee took his malicious compliance to the next level after getting scolded one too many times for using his cell phone on the job. 

I get it… It doesn't look good for a hotel receptionist to scroll memes while the line at the concierge starts to grow. Smacking your gum, rolling your eyes, and scrolling endlessly really isn't something you're supposed to be doing at work, but as many of us forget, our phones are actually super useful little tools. We've grown accustomed to traveling around all day with a tiny computer in our pocket that it's easy to let slip their more convenient functions. The front desk reception guy in our next tale knew all the ways his phone could help out clients, but after his manager got on his back about using his personal device on the clock, he decided to use the second language translating tool at his disposal. 

Keep scrolling to read how an employee turned a spiteful MC into a memorable guest experience when a traveler needed help with a quick translation.




sin

Cousin tries to guilt-trip woman into giving up family heirloom their grandma personally left to her in her will, woman refuses but family is divided: ‘She hoped I’d keep it safe’

When a family member we hold near and dear to our hearts passes on to the next life, everything they leave behind holds astronomically more sentimental value—especially those who had special bonds with this family member. We can only hope that this family member can live on in the life they lived with and without us, and the items they pass down to us stick with us for as long as we are here, too.

That's the thing about passing on—this event really makes certain individuals show their true colors. Family members who have been nice to you all of your life now turn sour. Others creep out of the woodwork and assume they were grandma's favorite (which means they get everything she left in the will, despite her last wishes.) It's baffling that some folks use somber life events like this to gain something instead of grieving, going so far as to try and rip family heirlooms away from those who have the legal right to keep them.

The woman in this story is dealing with an entitled cousin who, despite not having a close, personal relationship with their grandmother, automatically assumes she is entitled to a necklace grandma left behind. Their grandmother personally gave the woman this necklace in hopes that she'd "treasure" it, and also wrote it into her will before she left them. Their family is divided, though it doesn't make sense as to why. Going against someone's last wishes in order to "keep the peace" is an entitlement that knows no bounds.




sin

'Boss claims that me quitting will result in the business closing': Worker gives 2-week-notice after basically running the company they work for for their boss, prompting boss's total meltdown

It is truly mind-boggling how some employers will treat the workers who are essential to the success and operation of their business. They gamble that they can pay them below market rates and keep them exactly where they are and that their workers will continue to be milked like the cash cow that they are… After taking on increasing responsibility in their boss's small business, this worker knew it was time to move on to greener pastures. They did what they thought was the right thing and gave their boss their two-week notice, prompting a meltdown that they could not have anticipated. 

As commenters in the original thread noted, this begs so many questions. Like, if they were so important to the business why didn't their boss recognize that and reward them for it? Surely, there were chances and opportunities for their boss to give them a promotion or even a partnership in the business that they were so essential to. Still, their boss's general laissez-faire attitude and seeming reluctance to lift a finger to support their own business has spelled their own doom. It seems that they were totally complacent and happy to let the employee do all the work while they raked in all the profits.




sin

28-year-old employee flirts with supposedly single 40-year-old coworker, turns out she's been married for 16 years: 'She was lying about being single'

Here is another example of why one should never try to form a romantic attachment with a coworker. It never works out for a plethora of potential reasons. In this instance, however, the reasons had less to do with the professional side of things and more to do with this lying coworker's personal life.

The Redditor described how their close friend, a 28-year-old male employee at their company, had been engaging in continuous flirtations with his 40-year-old female coworker, who had led everyone in the office to believe that she was single. These weren't assumptions; she was actively advertising her single lifestyle to anyone who would listen. The younger employee even took her out on several dates, and the two seemed to be keeping their romantic lives and their professional lives separate.

Unfortunately for the younger guy, he and the Redditor discovered that she had been hiding her marriage of over 16 years. When the employee decided to get even with his coworker, things went south very quickly and HR ended up getting involved. Keep scrolling below for the full story. For more, check out this post about a company that tried to steal a job candidate's idea.




sin

U-Boat! Sing U-Boat!!




sin

The Evil Business Guy Made of Butter





sin

Government steps in over housing plan row

The housing secretary will decide if plans for 8,400 homes near Sittingbourne can go ahead.




sin

Sinn Féin's difficulty over Michael McMonagle

Senior party figures faced pressure to explain their handling of McMonagle's departure.





sin

NYC using drones to warn residents of floods

NYC emergency officials have begun using drones for the first time as a weather warning system.




sin

Tech Life: The big business of online charity donations

We speak to the CEO of charity fundraising company GoFundMe




sin

'I can't run a business like this': Why the WordPress row matters

WordPress's tools are used by 40% of the world's websites, making this a spat with big consequences.




sin

How X users can earn thousands from US election misinformation and AI images

The accounts are part of pro-Trump and pro-Harris networks sharing each other’s content multiple times a day.




sin

'I was moderating hundreds of horrific and traumatising videos'

The BBC speaks to social media moderators, whose job it is to find and remove distressing and illegal content.




sin

NatWest blocks staff from using WhatsApp and Facebook Messenger

Employees must stick to official channels to make sure their messages are fully retrievable.