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lodging and meals expenditures, but he has already claimed a
$3,700 standard deduction, and any resulting itemized deduction,
after taking into consideration the 2-percent floor of section
67, would not exceed that amount.4
With respect to petitioner’s homeless shelter activity, we
conclude that, during 1993, petitioner was not engaged in that
activity with sufficient continuity and regularity for us to find
that he was carrying on a trade or business. In short,
petitioner had a business idea that never materialized.
Petitioner did not receive any compensation or income for his
efforts. In fact, petitioner did not even demonstrate a source
from which he could possibly be compensated. We find it unlikely
that those persons in need of a homeless shelter would have funds
to pay for his counseling service.
With respect to petitioner’s writing activity, in order for
him to deduct expenses of an activity pursuant to section 162, he
must prove that profit was the primary or dominant purpose for
engaging in the activity. Wolf v. Commissioner, 4 F.3d 709, 713
(9th Cir. 1993), affg. T.C. Memo. 1991-212; Polakof v.
Commissioner, 820 F.2d 321 (9th Cir. 1987), affg. per curiam T.C.
4 We note that petitioner is not entitled to the claimed
miles, as they represent travel between petitioner’s home and
places of employment. The cost of commuting to work, regardless
of distance traveled, is a nondeductible personal expense. Heuer
v. Commissioner, 32 T.C. 947 (1959), affd. per curiam 283 F.2d
865 (5th Cir. 1960).
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