Tax Day

So my sister called me last night and asked what I was doing. I responded, "My taxes." There was hearty laughter on the other end. I thought it was rude too! :)

I am not a mathematical moron. I did my own taxes for years, usually the last week of Jan. I even did our married taxes the first few years of our marriage and then convenience drifted in. Tim had Turbo Tax at the office and so began the next 10 years of me collecting the documents and him filing them one night after work.

Enter divorce. Many women are financially lost when they get divorced but I have not had that experience. Until last night. Two weeks ago I stopped by the library to pick up the forms. They didn't have any. So I stopped by the post office. They didn't have any. They no longer print forms, you have to down load them from the internet. When did that happen?! Did I miss a memo?

Last night I printed out the forms thinking this will take an hour or so. Four hours later, two phone calls to my Brother in law in Washington state, 40 pages of resume paper because I am out of regular paper and just a wee bit of frustration, I printed off the Request for Extension form. I was very please to hear on the nightly news that Pres. Obama will be revamping the tax process and making it more user friendly. Yeah, I won't hold my breath.

So, lesson 1,488,367 from this last year - file your taxes with your hubby each year. Know what a 1040 is, where to find one & how to fill it out. Do it together.