Revenge on the IRS

I saw on television news today that some disgruntled man, enraged at the IRS, had crashed his small plane into the IRS building, killing himself and causing much damage and several injuries. I can't say I can sympathize with his action, but I have felt rage at the system many times as I crouched over my calculator late at night, struggling with the forms. Years ago we had rental houses, capital gains, mortgages, work reports, and who knows how many pages to add up and send in. I would fortify myself with a box of chocolate candy, a pot of hot coffee and often dawn would be breaking before i finished. One night our mother cat went into labor on the very night I did the forms, and I was so engrossed that I didn't even let her into the house until the last moment. The poor thing climbed up on the sofa and gave birth to two lovely little kittens right before my eyes. If I hadn't let her in she would have been forced to deliver those kittens on the steps of the house!
Anyway, it is so much easier today, since I only have to deal with retirement earnings and they are simple to list on the form. I still fuss and fume as I write the numbers down and I still secretly resent the money I have to send in, but as my husband points out, we are lucky we have the money to send.
My great weakness is my fondness for chocolate candy. A few years ago I ate so much Hallowe'en candy that I ended up in the hospital with a major crisis and had to have serious abdominal surgery. I still sneak a little if there is any around, though I know the danger it poses.
My husband has come in from the garage and is expecting dinner. Take care and keep in touch.

A JOB WELL DONE

Hi everybody. I am feeling somewhat elated tonight because i filled out my income tax forms and will mail them in tomorrow, along with a small sum which i had failed to send in beforehand. I can't say I am pleased that i have to send in a check, but I am greatly relieved to get the papers filled out and on their way. There were a couple of changes this year, and for that reason I had not sent in enough money. But no matter, I am early enough that maybe i can escape the penalty!
This was a rather pleasant day altogether, as we went into town to have my monthly blood test taken, and got to go into Safeway to shop and buy a few frozen dinners for quick meals. The plum trees are all in bloom and the tulip trees are blossoming as well and up and down the highway daffodils and narcissus are popping out. Even though it has been raining most of the week, it was quite warm out.
It is hard to believe that I have been doing tax forms for over sixty years. When we first had to send them in, they were the size of an envelope and had only a couple of lines to fill in. I have kept copies of them in a file cabinet out in the garage and it is sometimes fun to go out and look back all of that time to when I was making ninety-five dollars a month and thought I was well paid! I have always filled them out myself, feeling that they shouldn't be so hard that ordinary people can't do them. I would like to see the country go to a straight tax, but it is not to be.
My husband is prowling around, shutting off lights and checking on the cat, so i had better close and hope all of my readers are well and enjoying good health and cheer. Happy Valentine's day. Keep in touch.

The Big Game

Here i am, back again. No, I haven't been ill, just lazy. We watched the super-bowl today, quite exciting although I found the commercials to be distracting. The red super-bowl logo that kept flashing up on the screen was particularly annoying. We wanted the Saints to win, though, so we were happy with their victory. When i went to college all those years ago, seventy years actually, it was my assignment to write up the football games for the school paper, and i had a great time after the games extracting the pertinent information from the team members. It was a small college then, all in one building, but now it is a big university and fills several large buildings. It took little effort to be admitted to that little school, as all one needed was the tuition and a place to stay, but now it is quite an accomplishment to pass the entrance exams.
The same is true of Sonoma State University, a huge complex. It too started out as just one building. Now it resembles a city, and not a small one either.
We ate rather late, waiting until the game was over. I just made frozen shrimp, baked potato and small peas. My husband can eat with gusto whatever I put on the table, and I managed to eat a little. Now we are going to watch the movie "Amelia" which should be very good. Take care, and let me hear from you!