Ask MetaFilter questions tagged with states

30% exchange rate, really? Give me a break, weight watchers!

cgg — Fri, 13 Nov 2009 08:36:23 -0800

WeightWatchers Canada vs WeightWatchers United States -- is there a difference, besides price, for the online version? I'm thinking of joining the online version of WeightWatchers. The main site (the .com), has three months for $65 USD. The canadian version (.ca) has the same three months for $85 CDN. Last time I checked, it's been years (decades?) since the exchange rate was 30%. Does anyone know why on earth I should sign up for the Canadian version? Assume I'm not interested in their real life meetings at all. Do they not take Canadian credit cards? Is there a difference between the programs, or does one take canada-specific products into account? Do they just assume canadians are suckers?

What's a good university town for a non-traditional student?

patheral — Fri, 25 Sep 2009 22:50:26 -0800

Looking to go to grad school for Linguistics or TESOL, but I'm a non-traditional student. I have a few schools picked out but don't want to end up in another tiny "college town." Help? Here's the long and short of it. I'm 43 years old and finishing up my BA in English in a small town down here in the South (exact location withheld for personal reasons). In this tiny town, I stick out like a sore thumb amongst these 18-23 year-old kids, not to mention that there is *nothing* for people my age to do around here - especially a non-drinker like me.

I want to go to grad school and get my MA in either TESOL or Linguistics (the degree changes depending on the school I'm looking at). However, I don't want to end up in a tiny college town again. I don't really trust city websites because they're made to look the town look good, as are the college websites.

So here are four of the colleges I'm looking at:
Kent State University in Kent, OH
Arizona State University in Tempe, AZ
University of Colorado at Boulder in Boulder, CO
and
Oakland University in Rochester, MI

I'm also considering Old Dominion University in Norfolk, VA... but I already know about Norfolk because I've lived there before.

Any information anyone can give me about these cities or even the universities would be great.

Where can I find some USA-made jeans in Los Angeles?

rybreadmed — Mon, 03 Aug 2009 22:06:21 -0800

Where can I buy jeans in Los Angeles that are made in the USA? I got sick of all my clothing being made in China and Vietnam. It seems that no matter what store I go into (including "high-end clothing"), everything is made in Asia.

I want to wear jeans made here in the USA--without spending an arm and a leg. That means I want to spend less than $100, and closer to $50 would be much better. I want something comfortable, long-lasting, and perhaps in a boot cut--but I'm not a cowboy. I'm not looking for rodeo wear.

I went into an American Apparel, and did not like anything. It's perhaps too hip for the likes of me. I'm impressed with their desire to provide livable wages and make their product in downtown LA, but it's not my style. Up until now, I've mostly been a Gap and Banana Republic type of fella. I'd also like to be able to try on my jeans first, so buying something online sight unseen isn't going to happen.

The food that defines your state is?

bigmusic — Wed, 08 Jul 2009 18:36:35 -0800

What is the one dish that is quintessential to your state? When I say [North Dakoda, New York...] you say?

What is a gel that turns to liquid with minor agitation?

Bugbread — Sat, 30 May 2009 02:48:16 -0800

What do you call a gel that turns into a liquid with very minor agitation/pressure? I have an alcohol hand cleanser which, when you push the pump, comes out like a gel (like thick shampoo or the like), but when you start rubbing your hands together, turns into a regular fluid, like straight alcohol. I remember seeing something on a science show on TV which talked about this type of gel, which had a special name. What was that name?

(Note: telling you the name of the hand cleanser probably wouldn't help, as it's Japanese)

I'm a dependant, full-time student abroad and haven't filed with the IRS for the past three years. Doing immigration stuff and need tax returns. What now?

Anonymous — Wed, 13 May 2009 10:34:23 -0800

I am helping my partner migrate to the U.S. after our marriage. We're nearing the point where we do an Affidavit of Support during our embassy interview abroad, which says I need to bring tax returns. I have not filed income taxes for the last three years, because I have been a full-time student in this country. What should I do? I've been living abroad for the past three years, and now my partner and I are moving / moving back to the U.S. Part of the marriage immigration process deals with an Affidavit of Support. Even though my partner makes a substantial amount annually, and we're filing as if my partner can support can survive on that, we know they will probably still need a co-sponsor. To join the one we file, we're going to get a co-sponsor in the form of one of my partner's relatives in the States. The Affidavit of Support we're submitting together, though, needs tax returns from my filing, and I've not filed for the last three years, because I've been a full-time student, making no money at the taxable rate as a single person. (My partner and I only married this year.)

I'm not sure what I should do. I want the visa process to go smoothly, in which case having the tax returns would probably be preferable, but I'm not sure how to even go about filing in my situation. This is a big reason I've not filed, really. The IRS expects me to have a U.S. address, and I don't. For reasons I won't go into, I also haven't had a very stable, close familial place to send information to, either, so that wasn't an option. When I go to the IRS website, there is the option to contact a local office internationally (in London, Frankfurt and Paris) for help, but none of them is where I am abroad.

Some extra caveats:

- My father is a disabled U.S. veteran, and I've been receiving non-taxable VA educational benefits for the last three years. He has mostly helped pay any leftover costs of my tuition and living. When he's not been reliable, my partner has helped me. I've been a dependent, because of my studies. I have a lot of anxiety issues and can't really work and study at the same time, so that's why. :/

- My parents divorced a little over a year ago, and my mother sent me $10,000 from her settlement with my father. (She was concerned that my father might pull the rug out from under me and not help me pay for things while abroad.) Is this generous gift taxable, or is it part of my being essentially a dependent? I don't know how my parents file me (if they call me a dependent), if they file me, because they don't talk to me much.

- My partner and I have begun pooling our money together--my little bit and my partner's regular income--in preparation of our immigration interview (date yet to be set) and our move. I feel this may complicate things, even with my bank statements. Am I right?

So yes...what should I do? Do I file (and how, if so?) and try to get the returns ASAP, before our interview? Do I not file and just take bank statements and a letter explaining my situation? I can point to p. 8 in the 1040 Tax Instructions Book that shows I don't need to pay, I think, since I've not actually earned over $8900USD in any of the three years, but I'm still not sure if this is good enough.

- I will start working as soon as I am through with my studies next month. I have this lined up. The money I make will go into my and my partner's joint account. How might this affect stuff?

I'm just wanting to do what will help us the most, and harm us the least, for the visa process. Any advice would be welcome.

I need a table of deaths by state due to flu in 1918!

elder18 — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 07:44:42 -0800

Where can I find a state-by-state breakdown of deaths in the 1918 flu pandemic in the US? I'm trying to determine the percentage of each state's population that died because of the flu or related diseases. To do this, I need to find how many in each state died so I can compare it with census data.

Foods that originated in the United States?

wastelands — Tue, 03 Feb 2009 23:23:38 -0800

Where can I find a list of foods that originated in the United States? Wikipedia has this list, but it's more of a list of "commonly consumed" foods in the US, rather than strictly ones that originated here:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_United_States_dishes

Armchair travel as Plan B

carbide — Tue, 18 Nov 2008 03:40:50 -0800

I'd like to read a book set in/about every US state, and would love recommendations from those living in or from each state. Actual travel I'd been hoping to do won't happen, so please help me make a journey via the library. I've spotted Librarything's Tag Mash* and am digging through Wikipedia, but recommendations from people who love and know each state would be a huge help.

Anything goes (short stories included), but if you need some extra criteria to narrow it down:

- I really like good storytelling in simple language, rather than poetic prose. Raymond Carver, Richard Bausch, Stephen King and Douglas Coupland all do this for me in varied ways.
- I also really like stories about ordinary life. Conversely, I hate stories with new-agey themes.
- Stories where place is important would be good, or where there's a sense of the place's identity throughout. I realise one book won't get every bit of any state.
- Your personal canon is more interesting to me than Official Best Books. Weird and personal books are the best, when they're good. An engaging story set in a town I've never heard of would be a total joy.

I was really hoping to make a few long train journeys in the US this year but am going to be laid off soon and trying to avoid defaulting on my loans (oh boy oh boy!), so the library and Bookmooch will be helping me to have an imaginary tour as compensation.

(Previously about cities, from which I will be borrowing, but it's short.)

* Sorry, Delaware, but you're on the More Challenging list from the outset!

Census information for US, circa 1995?

Phire — Thu, 13 Nov 2008 17:58:19 -0800

Where can I find the population of US states in 1995? I need individual population statistics for US states for 1995. I've managed to find similar information for Canada on the Statistics Canada website (based on the 96 Census), but the US Census Bureau is much more confusing to navigate. Googling has yielded nothing. Hope me, AskMe!

A year off would be okay (e.g. 94-96), but any more than that is a bit of a stretch. Thanks!

Americans Abroad?

Doublewhiskeycokenoice — Mon, 03 Nov 2008 15:50:15 -0800

Where can my sister watch the election returns in Dublin? She's doing a year abroad over there and would love to watch the results trickle in. Is there any sort of place that's doing this? No cover would be preferable I am told.

MapFilter

bad grammar — Tue, 28 Oct 2008 20:13:10 -0800

Where can I find a freeware or shareware download for Mac OS X that will allow me to plug in numerical data (e.g., public library funding in a given year) for each U.S. State and get a map of the USA that displays color-coded states? Like the infamous red / blue states map, which also has county breakdowns. I've tried EuroOffice's Map Chart extension with OpenOffice for Mac and ran into the Python-related bug they warn about; EuroOffice does not come in Mac OS X. Most of the other apps I can find either come in Windows only (such as Microsoft MapPoint), are hideously expensive, or both. I am not looking for 3-D visualization or GIS, just for a way to create a 2-D map that represents numerical data by U.S. state (and county would be nice as well).
I currently am using Mac OS X 10.4.11.
I am willing to pay up to $50 but $25 or less would be preferable.

Predicting the winner of the US Presidential Election.

clearly — Tue, 02 Sep 2008 16:24:55 -0800

How can I accurately predict the overall winner of the 2008 US Presidential Election. I would also like to know the best methods of accurately predicting the winner of the electoral votes of each individual state. I am familiar with the Iowa Electronic Markets as a fairly good indicator of predicting the national election, but what are some other good indicators or predictors of which candidate will win each individual state. These may be past voting trends, current registered voters by party, and others. Please lead me to these resources.

Thanks.

Does America's religious history have a parallel in England? Give me the details.

gregb1007 — Wed, 16 Jul 2008 20:12:45 -0800

Does America's religious history have a parallel in England? Give me the details. In retrospect, it's pretty clear that fervent religious sentiment was a major influence on American history from times colonial to modern. But what about the parallel history of religiously-minded Englishmen? Those colonists with an unwavering commitment to God presumably left behind church-going brothers and sisters, cousins, and neighbors who adhered to the very same principles. What happened to these communities of faith over the course of 300 years since some of their members came to America? Did the religious fervor eventually die down in the face of the Enlightenment? Was there a specific point in English history where the speeches about hell and damnation, brimstone and fire go completely out of fashion while they continued to thrive on the American continent? Or are there are some hidden corners of England that are still under the sway of 17th century-style zealotry?

Shipping computers across the Canada & U.S.A. border

danwalker — Wed, 25 Jun 2008 11:05:58 -0800

I'm in Canada, and I need to send some computers to our office in the U.S.A. (Vermont, to be more specific). Will the hardware be inspected by customs or other security as it crosses the border? A colleague is certain that we can't ship a computer across the border without it being seized and inspected by border security. I've never heard of this, outside of a laptop being carried by an actual person going through customs.

A quick Google turns up lots of info on duties and cross-border shopping, but not much about actually shipping a box of computer equipment into the States. Does a policy/practice/rule about cracking open every box to inspect the computer hardware inside exist? If so, can you tell me anything about it?

Am I Eligible for Dual Citizenship?

brandoniain — Wed, 14 May 2008 22:45:24 -0800

Can I, having been born in the US to a British citizen before 1983, attain dual citizenship? Some details:

I was born in September of 1982. My mother was born in Scotland in 1962 and moved to the States in 1976. She is still not a full blown citizen of the States - she can't vote, but she does have a social security number and has worked in the States for a long time.

I'm planning on calling the San Francisco embassy in the morning, but I'd love some help with knowing what questions to ask or what I might not be thinking about.

Are there such things as Interstate Property Exchanges?

Dub — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 23:40:11 -0800

Are there any agencies to help people exchange properties / relocate in the US (i.e. from one state to another)? Do large organizations HR help their employees? Is it something the Government does to help out? I have a relative on the East Coast of the US (near Boston) and he's retired, owns his own property and would like to move somewhere much warmer and drier (He considered Arizona and a few other states - right now, I can't recall which ones, though!).

Like many others, he's been stuck-in-a-rut for months - having a tough time getting his house sold, before having to look for something else.

So, with house prices and mortgages being what they are at the moment, I wondered if any property exchange agencies exist, or do large organizations help employees by matching people up in different states?

The idea being that if both parties accept the locations, and the properties, then only the difference in property values has to be considered (ignoring legal costs etc.) - and might be more convenient for both parties.

- e.g. is it worth speaking to {insert large organization-name} who may be relocating staff from Arizona to Mass.

I thought I'd ask here, in case anyone had some ideas / comments / suggested websites, etc.

Disclosure:BTW, I'm asking this question by proxy, for a relative in the US (I'll send him a link to this post) - I'm in the UK , so I'm not versed in US law/systems - I may be suggesting something which is not possible/sensible in the US - in which case, please let me/us know {oh, and I've been up all night and it's 0630 here, so I might not be too coherent - please excuse any obvious omissions/errors}
Thanks

If Hawaii, why not...?

greytape — Tue, 18 Mar 2008 07:32:27 -0800

Why has the United States stopped where it has? Are there any plans for further enlargement? I'm curious as to why the United states isn't looking to grow further as the EU is. Surely there'd be some Caribbean islands that would be keen on membership? And why not Canada/Mexico?

Is the issue that no-one wants to join, or that the US is happy as it is?

Where should I go (besides the Freak States)?

drjimmy11 — Sun, 02 Mar 2008 17:46:27 -0800

where should I go in the lower 48, and what should I do when I get there? Last x-mas i got myself bumped from my flight in exchange for a free roundtrip voucher anywhere in the lower 48.

I don't know where to go. The place that intrigues me most in the U.S. is Alaska- but it's not in the lower 48. I am probably limited to two weeks at most in the place I choose, and I'm not sure I even want to waste my vacation for the year going somewhere in the lower 48.

I have been to NYC before and love it, but I'm not sure exactly what I would do when I got there, and I don't want to spend a fortune when I get there. And honestly the idea of spending time there alone doesn't strike me as all that enjoyable. But I am open to any specific events/occasions in NY I could check out.

I live in L.A. Not particularly fond of SF and anyway, a ticket up there would be so cheap it wouldn't be worth using the voucher. Same goes for Vegas.

I grew up in Baltimore/DC area and have had enough of it for several lifetimes.

I've never been to Chicago really, and I know it's a great city, but I don't know exactly what i'd want to do when I got there, besides maybe try to recreate Ferris Bueller's day off.

So, I'm kind of at a loss. I am not particularly keen on standard tourist attractions. Things I do like: music and music history, outdoors and nature, film, literature. I like museums, although I tire of them fairly quickly (and I work within 100 yards of the L.A. County Museum of Art). I would like to see the sights of Utah (Zion, etc), but not sure how close I can get to them in a plane, and if it wouldn't be easier to just drive out there from L.A. anyway.

Sadly, I have no friends or relatives that live anywhere but L.A. or Maryland. Well, maybe happily, since all my friends are near me. But there's no one I could go visit really. I thought about the summer music festivals, Sasquatch has a pretty good lineup, but I'm just not that keen on doing the whole "camp in a muddy smelly field" experience on my own.

so... where do i go? what do I do when I get there? the more off-the-wall your idea, the more i will probably like it. Otherwise I will probably just end up using this thing for a ticket home next Xmas, and that depresses the hell out of me. No one should have to use a free plane ticket to go to Baltimore in the winter. If there was a way to give it to charity or transfer it someone else, i would probably do it, but as far as I know that is not possible.

thanks!

Did you hear the one about the loud-mouthed Texan?

bjork24 — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 17:24:36 -0800

Is there a version of this representing attitudes from people within the US about their neighboring states? If not, someone smart needs to start collecting all the stereotypes. Just don't ask someone from Arkansas. ;)

Vector map of United States

Jimmie — Thu, 14 Feb 2008 21:29:42 -0800

Where can I find a free, vector map of the United States, with outlined states? I need a map of the United States for a project.

I need it to be in some sort of vector format. AI, PDF, SVG, hell, it can even be raw latitude/longitude coordinates and I'll write a program to draw the thing myself.

I need the individual states to be outlined. The outlines may be on a separate layer, or the image itself may be comprised of individual shapes for each state.

Here's the kicker:
It must be in either equirectangular or cylindrical equal-area formats. Essentially, any format where the latitude lines are perfectly horizontal, and longitude are perfectly vertical.

I've found numerous resources in elliptical format (like Wikipedia's Blank_Maps collection). These are unnacceptable.

Your help will be greatly appreciated!

US tax rebate for nonresident alien?

tabulem — Thu, 24 Jan 2008 09:37:42 -0800

Am I, a nonresident alien who is a "US resident for tax purposes", going to get the $600 US tax rebate check in 2008? I was livid when I did not receive the $300 rebate in 2001, despite the fact that I lived in the US and paid the same taxes (in fact more) than everyone else. But back then, I used to fill out the 1040NR (where NR = nonresident).

Now, I have been filling out the regular 1040 for a few years (you can do that once you have lived in the US for five years). There is nowhere on the 1040 where I have to mention that I am not a citizen or permanent resident (I have a J-1 visa).

Am I going to get the tax rebate this time?

(As an aside, I think this is a stupid stimulus plan, and I wish no-one would get a rebate, but if people are getting them, then I want mine!)

MARCH: Where to in the lower 48?

ohjustsayso — Tue, 22 Jan 2008 17:39:41 -0800

Where would you visit in the lower 48 during the month of MARCH for a long weekend? Through an airline bungle, I have two tickets to use. The whole trip will be 4-5 days. What events, conferences, shows, etc. are going on in MARCH that you would love to travel for? Alternatively, we could just do great "get away" spot that doesn't cost a fortune. Take me off the beaten path, folks. Show me the way. Background re ticketholders: He is an Apple geek engineer with a Pruis, she is an art/history buff and foodie that works in the legal field. Both live in Northern California.

Leaving Tokyo On A Jet Plane

willmize — Thu, 13 Dec 2007 06:26:52 -0800

Help my Japanese friend find a job in the US! She'll graduate in March with a PhD in Marine Biology, speaks and writes fluent English, and has experience in the museum environment. She's willing to relocate anywhere, but is drawn toward Washington DC, as that's where her museum work was done. She's also willing to work outside her field to get her foot in the door.
She's starting to network and reach out to her friends and former co-workers in the museum field, but not sure if that's enough.
I've volunteered to help her in her search, but because I know nothing about these things (overseas employment/visas in the US), just referred her to Monster and Yahoo! Jobs.
Yeah, I know. Kinda useless.
I would love to present this thread to her as a small gift to aid her in her search. I'm looking for websites, articles, anecdotes, stories, forums, anything and everything that might help someone from Japan get a job here in the US.
Thanks so much.

how many americans have died under individual U.S. presidents? (as a result of their actions, aka war - not natural causes)

krautland — Thu, 09 Aug 2007 11:08:40 -0800

how many americans have died under individual U.S. presidents? (as a result of their actions, aka war - not natural causes) charlie rose discussed billy graham and his relationship with past presidents last night (8/8/07) and someone on the panel mentioned in passing that while bush 43 might be sweating the loss of 3,000 americans in iraq, johnson sometimes lost that in a day. disregarding whether this was an overstatement, it made me wonder how many americans individual presidents might have lost. I might want to turn this into chart.

do you know how I could find this type of information? do you have it?

please note: deaths due to wars - yes. deaths due to attacks on us - yes. deaths due to accidents based on an executive decision - yes. deaths due to not enough healthcare for low-income - too esotherical for this exercise.

yes, I would be willing to pay someone to research this.