Okay, so after tax season normally comes a period of catching up on everything which was not done during tax season. I try to keep things organized during tax season - this year I had a folder next to my desk with paperwork that needed to be done - including some things which were half done and needed to be followed up on. Last week when I posted I had started that work and expected to go quickly through it. Then I was sidelined - by my husband and his loom.
Normally when husband starts a new weaving project on his loom, I help him get the project set up. I see detail easier than he does and I don’t get dizzy bending over. I don’t mind the time it takes as once it is set up he will be happy weaving for some days. This time he was doing a new type of project. It has a much more detailed setup - we have never done this setup before or seen it done and he was relying on books and web information to do so.
While this is not a weaving or craft site, a bit of information is needed to follow what I am talking about, so bear with me and you will have a rudimentary knowledge of weaving. His loom is different than those huge ones you have probably seen at historic buildings and craft fairs. It is much smaller - the width thing it can weave is about 30 inches wide. It also does not have all those strings hanging down with the threads/yarns going through them. Those strings are moved by pedals to raise the strings in various groupings to make differing patterns in the weaving. His loom has a panel that is plastic pieces between a top and bottom piece of wood to hold them together. The strings are called a heddle. What he has is called a rigid heddle. His heddle has alternating holes and slots - slots go from top to bottom of the heddle. Threads alternately go through a hole, then a slot. When the heddle is moved up and down the threads in the holes will be moved up and down alternately and that is how one can slide the weaving yarn/thread through to weave. There are different sizes/spaced heddles for different thickness of threads. The threads that go through the heddle (that go straight ahead and are what are woven through, are called the warp - I set this in my head by remembering “warp speed ahead”). The threads that weave through the warp is called weft. When we set up the loom we are “warping” it and putting on the warp threads.
Since his loom is narrow side to side, there is a way to warp to make double width fabric. It needs a second heddle that matches the first one on the loom. He got a second one for the most common size heddle he uses last Christmas and was ready to try it out. Understand, one is not adding to the sides of the loom, one is (somehow) weaving an upper and lower weaving that is actually one piece when it is finished.
So last Thursday we started setting up the loom for him to try this. At my suggestion he was not warping the entire loom and making a large 60" piece of fabric, but just doing an 8" wide piece, which would double to 16". We tried to follow the directions - we ended up taking the yarn off the loom twice and starting over. And then took it off again at the end of Thursday.
Friday we did the same - we finally decided it was on correctly and he tried to start weaving. The threads were too thick to pass each other in the slots (remember the slots?). He also decided that the threads were twisted around each other. So we again took it apart. Luckily he does not use expensive yarn as we had to toss it out - again.
Saturday he bought different thread that was thinner and stretched thinner when pulled. (Sunday we were out at an event from our reenactment unit.) Monday we warped the loom. We had questions about which of the 4 threads passing through each set of holes/slots went in which (remember we have two heddles so there are 2 holes to go through and 2 slots and out of each group of 4 threads, one goes through the hole in one heddle, while the other three go through one slot. Then one of the threads that went through the slot, goes through the hole in the other heddle and the other threads go through slots - one to the left and two to the right. But which ones go through which slots to make the colors correct? So we stopped and overnight he posted the question. He received a reply and Tuesday we finished “warping” the loom. Today (Wednesday) we fixed some threads that crossed over each other and should not. With some trouble starting, he now is weaving it! The colors are not how he wanted them, but if it works and he ever does this again, we will know how to adjust them.
So everything I planned to do this week to catch up had to be greatly condensed. We put our money as we receive it into a savings account and I transfer what we need into our checking account. I needed to plan out what to transfer last Friday for the coming week on Thursday night and pay some bills. I ended up doing so at 1 am. (Okay, I am also writing post at 1 am as we are still up, but I like to relax a bit this time of night.) All week every time I thought I would do something - or could catch up - we were working on warping the loom. I would go upstairs as he would think he was done, only to be called back down. He knows I have things to do and will try to do things on his own. I came downstairs for something I had forgotten and saw him leaning over the loom - knowing him, about to get ill. “Why didn’t you call me?” “I don’t want to keep bothering you.”
I write the monthly newsletter for my embroidery chapter. It goes out once a month - a week before the meeting. That means it gets emailed out tonight. (Okay, I consider that it is still Wednesday, but technically it is Thursday am.) I try to write it a little at a time over the week, but did not have a chance to do this due to the ongoing warping and unwarping of the loom. So tonight - after emailing some attachments I forgot for my friend’s tax return to her so she could attach them, I first started writing the newsletter. I managed to get that finished and out - 3 different versions of it - one for members, one for the other chapters in our region, and one for potential members. It only took about 3 hours until 12:30 am.
Then I came down here to write my post for this week. I started my laptop - it starts, loads and runs very slowly - and ran to the basement to throw in a load of clothing laundry. I then started writing this post. I just switched the loads of laundry so one is washing and one is drying. The laundry will not be put away until Friday or Saturday as tomorrow (okay, technically today) I am going to a client to do her books.
So, this has been a week of warping and unwarping the loom. Lots of frustration and swearing. Little done that should have been done - another week of “Do the bare minimum and put the rest aside until next week”
THOUGHT FOR THE WEEK - Sometimes it is better and more necessary to help someone (especially a loved one) to do something even if it wastes lots of one time.
Thursday, April 26, 2018
Thursday, April 19, 2018
TAX SEASON OVER AT LAST - GLAD I WAS ORGANIZED
Well, somehow I managed to finish the tax returns for my clients and us - I never understand how it always gets done. I actually finished early enough to work in a day trip to Lancaster, PA on Friday.
Okay, I know sort of how I get it done - Organization!. Well, also there are a lot less returns than there used to be. I have an organized system for working on them. I even print a form for each client on which I summarize the information before I start the return. This lets me double check that I have entered the information in the program for the returns correctly. (If, say the amount of interest income on the summary sheet does not match what is to be on the return - one of them is wrong and I have to figure out which.) I print them out in the same manner each time. I also make a pdf file of the client’s completed returns, any hand written info pages from the client, anything that showed withheld taxes (such as a W2) for the client, any extra pages I wrote up (sometimes there are a lot of some item and I list it on “columnar paper” - that’s the funny paper with number columns that accoutants use - and then add it up and put the total on the summary page - I also use the back of the summary pages for shorter, simpler listings), and then the summary page - front and back. My paper copy of the client’s return is stapled together with all of these same items and put into my “to file” holder for next year. Now, since I scan in everything I needed and did, as well as the return, after I finish the return I shred last year’s paper copy. What? Shred it? Don’t I need to keep it as an accountant? I have the scanned copy and I keep that - it takes no space other than on a computer disk. I only keep the paper copy through the next year’s return to help me prepare the next year’s return.
The organization is important as I may be working on several returns at the same time. Clients send me their info - but sometimes they are missing information either because they forgot to include it or they have not yet received something and wanted to get the rest of the information to me in the meantime. By being organized and having a summary sheet to match up everything to (and checking last year’s return) I can pick up again if I need to stop and then go back to work on a return. Last year’s return helps (which is why I keep a paper copy for the year) as generally people have the same items year to year. You know, if they had wages one year, chances are they do the next year. If they had interest from the XYZ bank one year, chances are their bank account is still there the next year. If they had his and hers statements from a broker - well, they should again next year. If I find something missing compared to last year, unless the client let me know about it, I know to check for missing information.
Oddly logic is important also in this organization project. If a client has, say, a business from their home, not only will a missing amount for their business phone costs pop up when I compare this year to last, but it only makes sense that they would have some expense for using a telephone (of some sort) for their business. A client who works online has to have Internet service and maybe some other related costs.
Now despite the organization and being caught up enough to take a day off, I still did not finish until late Sunday afternoon. I knew I would be able to finish and so took for the day. I did end up with a small problem. A client who is a good friend moved to another state and I had not a return from that state in over 30 years. Their return was finished mostly, but I needed one tiny piece of information that I had not known I would need. I needed to know their school district. (This is something some states require, most do not seem to based on the returns I have done.) The name of their community matched one of the school districts, but I know that there still can still be a difference. (I live in a community that has a school district, but since I live just into the district, my house is in the next community’s school district.) So I had to set the return aside until I was able to contact them, they checked, and got back to me. It was a different district, so I was glad I waited. I prepared and filed extension forms for them and at the same time I mailed out the extension forms, I mailed their returns to them, they owed no taxes - the extensions were only to cover that they would not have the returns to mail out on time.
Now I have to catch up. Anything that was not important was set aside. (Please note that YOU are important as my posts went out timely.) I set up a file folder on top of my paid bills holder and put anything that came along into the folder. Three bills. A stack of bank statements for us, our reenacting unit, and my embroidery guild chapter. RV insurance policy. You know the stuff I mean.
Bills were timely paid while dealing with doing the returns due to them being in order in the wall holder next to my desk - and I made sure to note that of the three bills set aside, the earliest one was due to be mailed out on April 20.
I kept on my email that was of importance. The lesser emails - this store or that - I deleted. I get emails from a chat group and they sat unopened until yesterday when I opened all of them and dealt with them.
Dishes and laundry were kept cleaned on schedule.
On Monday afternoon I mailed out our returns and the items for the above client. I then came home and wrote up my treasurers report for our reenactment unit’s meeting that night. (And went to the meeting that night.)
So yesterday, Tuesday, I finally started catching up. I reconciled 6 bank statements - most from the 2 groups I am treasurer of. I caught up on the chat I mentioned above and got to see photos of 2 lovely crocheted squares from one of the other “chatters” and hear about weather problems of the 2 weeks and a miniature kit one of the others was assembling.
Today we went food shopping - yes, everything gets short shrift during the height of tax season.
I should explain that I am the daughter of 2 accountants. I grew up with tax season the same as I did with the seasons of the year or the holidays during the year - it was something that occurred at the same time every year. My dad would let me “help” with the photocopying - back when this was a relatively new thing and copies came out wet and had to be hung to be dried. No computers, of course. So it is a part of my life. My husband took many years to be accustomed to the idea of a period of a couple of months in which life basically stops - more so towards the end of tax season - for work. He knows now how it will all unfold.
THOUGHT OF THE WEEK -
If you have not filed your tax return yet, I hope that you have filed an extension and you get it prepared as soon as possible - remember it is only extension to file, not to pay and you could end up with interest and penalties if you owe money.
If you did file your return and are getting a refund - how about using it towards paying off bills or putting it in the bank towards having savings? If you owe money and couldn’t pay it - pay it as soon as you can to save to on penalties and interest which can add up quickly.
Start now to set up a system to be able to figure out what you will need to have for next year’s tax returns and organize a way to save the paperwork so you will have an easier time next year. (I am going to send to IRS and our various medical related providers/insurances in a month or so for some printouts we will need to apply for a low income/senior real estate tax exemption, so when the paperwork for that arrives next August, I will be able to do the forms right away and get them done and out as I will have all that I need in advance and I already have a folder set up to keep them in.)
For those of you in other countries with different income tax systems - I am sure that you have paperwork you need also at the end of the year and need to have it organized to find it all easily.
As I always say when I write about taxes - this is not tax or legal advice. Everyone is different and you need to check with whoever does your income taxes as to what YOU need to keep and what YOU need to do.
Okay, I know sort of how I get it done - Organization!. Well, also there are a lot less returns than there used to be. I have an organized system for working on them. I even print a form for each client on which I summarize the information before I start the return. This lets me double check that I have entered the information in the program for the returns correctly. (If, say the amount of interest income on the summary sheet does not match what is to be on the return - one of them is wrong and I have to figure out which.) I print them out in the same manner each time. I also make a pdf file of the client’s completed returns, any hand written info pages from the client, anything that showed withheld taxes (such as a W2) for the client, any extra pages I wrote up (sometimes there are a lot of some item and I list it on “columnar paper” - that’s the funny paper with number columns that accoutants use - and then add it up and put the total on the summary page - I also use the back of the summary pages for shorter, simpler listings), and then the summary page - front and back. My paper copy of the client’s return is stapled together with all of these same items and put into my “to file” holder for next year. Now, since I scan in everything I needed and did, as well as the return, after I finish the return I shred last year’s paper copy. What? Shred it? Don’t I need to keep it as an accountant? I have the scanned copy and I keep that - it takes no space other than on a computer disk. I only keep the paper copy through the next year’s return to help me prepare the next year’s return.
The organization is important as I may be working on several returns at the same time. Clients send me their info - but sometimes they are missing information either because they forgot to include it or they have not yet received something and wanted to get the rest of the information to me in the meantime. By being organized and having a summary sheet to match up everything to (and checking last year’s return) I can pick up again if I need to stop and then go back to work on a return. Last year’s return helps (which is why I keep a paper copy for the year) as generally people have the same items year to year. You know, if they had wages one year, chances are they do the next year. If they had interest from the XYZ bank one year, chances are their bank account is still there the next year. If they had his and hers statements from a broker - well, they should again next year. If I find something missing compared to last year, unless the client let me know about it, I know to check for missing information.
Oddly logic is important also in this organization project. If a client has, say, a business from their home, not only will a missing amount for their business phone costs pop up when I compare this year to last, but it only makes sense that they would have some expense for using a telephone (of some sort) for their business. A client who works online has to have Internet service and maybe some other related costs.
Now despite the organization and being caught up enough to take a day off, I still did not finish until late Sunday afternoon. I knew I would be able to finish and so took for the day. I did end up with a small problem. A client who is a good friend moved to another state and I had not a return from that state in over 30 years. Their return was finished mostly, but I needed one tiny piece of information that I had not known I would need. I needed to know their school district. (This is something some states require, most do not seem to based on the returns I have done.) The name of their community matched one of the school districts, but I know that there still can still be a difference. (I live in a community that has a school district, but since I live just into the district, my house is in the next community’s school district.) So I had to set the return aside until I was able to contact them, they checked, and got back to me. It was a different district, so I was glad I waited. I prepared and filed extension forms for them and at the same time I mailed out the extension forms, I mailed their returns to them, they owed no taxes - the extensions were only to cover that they would not have the returns to mail out on time.
Now I have to catch up. Anything that was not important was set aside. (Please note that YOU are important as my posts went out timely.) I set up a file folder on top of my paid bills holder and put anything that came along into the folder. Three bills. A stack of bank statements for us, our reenacting unit, and my embroidery guild chapter. RV insurance policy. You know the stuff I mean.
Bills were timely paid while dealing with doing the returns due to them being in order in the wall holder next to my desk - and I made sure to note that of the three bills set aside, the earliest one was due to be mailed out on April 20.
I kept on my email that was of importance. The lesser emails - this store or that - I deleted. I get emails from a chat group and they sat unopened until yesterday when I opened all of them and dealt with them.
Dishes and laundry were kept cleaned on schedule.
On Monday afternoon I mailed out our returns and the items for the above client. I then came home and wrote up my treasurers report for our reenactment unit’s meeting that night. (And went to the meeting that night.)
So yesterday, Tuesday, I finally started catching up. I reconciled 6 bank statements - most from the 2 groups I am treasurer of. I caught up on the chat I mentioned above and got to see photos of 2 lovely crocheted squares from one of the other “chatters” and hear about weather problems of the 2 weeks and a miniature kit one of the others was assembling.
Today we went food shopping - yes, everything gets short shrift during the height of tax season.
I should explain that I am the daughter of 2 accountants. I grew up with tax season the same as I did with the seasons of the year or the holidays during the year - it was something that occurred at the same time every year. My dad would let me “help” with the photocopying - back when this was a relatively new thing and copies came out wet and had to be hung to be dried. No computers, of course. So it is a part of my life. My husband took many years to be accustomed to the idea of a period of a couple of months in which life basically stops - more so towards the end of tax season - for work. He knows now how it will all unfold.
THOUGHT OF THE WEEK -
If you have not filed your tax return yet, I hope that you have filed an extension and you get it prepared as soon as possible - remember it is only extension to file, not to pay and you could end up with interest and penalties if you owe money.
If you did file your return and are getting a refund - how about using it towards paying off bills or putting it in the bank towards having savings? If you owe money and couldn’t pay it - pay it as soon as you can to save to on penalties and interest which can add up quickly.
Start now to set up a system to be able to figure out what you will need to have for next year’s tax returns and organize a way to save the paperwork so you will have an easier time next year. (I am going to send to IRS and our various medical related providers/insurances in a month or so for some printouts we will need to apply for a low income/senior real estate tax exemption, so when the paperwork for that arrives next August, I will be able to do the forms right away and get them done and out as I will have all that I need in advance and I already have a folder set up to keep them in.)
For those of you in other countries with different income tax systems - I am sure that you have paperwork you need also at the end of the year and need to have it organized to find it all easily.
As I always say when I write about taxes - this is not tax or legal advice. Everyone is different and you need to check with whoever does your income taxes as to what YOU need to keep and what YOU need to do.
Thursday, April 12, 2018
TAX DAY PANIC SETTING IN
Well, Tax Day is coming up on Monday. Even though this year it is on April 17 instead of the 15th , I still have work to do. In case anyone has forgotten, I am an accountant so I am not just talking about our own return. I should remind you - if you cannot file in time, file an extension!
In the past week and a half I have done and mailed out 4 tax returns to clients and also sent estimated taxes for 2018 to another - very estimated they are based on his 2016 returns, so it does not show his 2017 income and deductions and I have no idea of how the change in the tax law will end up affecting him. (I did use the calculator at IRS’s website to calculate what his tax will be.) In addition he has had a life change so his taxes will be filed totally different for 2018 than prior years. I will adjust it when I do his return - he always gets an extension. I have another return sitting here 99% done, but needed one tiny piece of info that I am waiting for and this will be an extension also, as the return will not get to the client until after tax date just due to the distance to the client after I finish it. I also finished our corporation return and it is ready to be signed, paid and mailed.
This sounds good - 4 gone, 1 almost done which will be on extension and another one also to be on extension and our corporation return done also. Lots of time to do our return right?
Ummm, Saturday I had a call from a client whose taxes had been mailed to her the Monday before - “Where are they?”. I told her to wait for this past Monday and if she still did not have them, I would mail another copy by Express Mail. She received them on Monday. She also went crazy as her taxes were more than she anticipated. (We don’t have a lot of money - she has none.) I ended up spending 2 hours on Tuesday writing up a breakdown comparing her 2016 and 2017 taxes for her so she would understand. Time I really needed.
Husband is (again) planning a day trip. This one on Friday, so I was trying to get everything done by then, but it won’t be. We went to the bank today to transfer money to pay our RV insurance and I transferred extra money to pay what I figured we would have to send as a first estimated payment for 2018 as we don’t earn wages/have withholding and have to pay our taxes on our own.
Then I started our return. I should explain that we don’t generally pay income taxes due to our low income and high deductions. We do have to pay Social Security taxes if either or both of us made $400 or more from businesses - and we pay double what people pay on their salary as we are the employer and the employee. We also have ACA (Obamacare) medical insurance so we have to adjust our advance credit on our return - we always seem to have received a small bit more than we are entitled to. No problem - we paid estimated taxes based on our Social Security taxes and the advance credit we owed in the past.
I should also explain that husband is always in a panic when we have to spend/pay money that we did not anticipate - because we don’t have a lot of it.
So last night I started working on taxes - I summarized information - and today I started doing the return.
First problem - I used our computer bookkeeping software to figure out husband’s business income and expenses after some adjustments. I then went to enter it into the tax program. Uh oh! Several expenses were missing - the entire categories of expenses. I tried several times and in frustration complained to husband - working at his computer across from me on whatever. He came over. With the questions he asked, I figured out that somehow some of the expenses had become unchecked to be included on the statement and that is why they were not included. I fixed that and printed out the corrected form and entered the information into the tax program.
I went on to get the same sort of statement printed out after making some adjustments - and this time checking that everything was checked to print. I then managed to erase some forms from the tax program related to both of these forms and had to start all over - entering his business info and mine.
I then entered our other incomes - you know, the whopping interest now being paid on bank accounts, the small dividends from the small number of shares of stock he received as boy, etc. Going well - no problems.
I then went through our items for deductions. While the bookkeeping software has all the items paid by check or charge cards, I have to see if I paid anything by cash and then there are charitable donations of “stuff”. As I went to enter our medical expenses - it all went blooey!
I had to enter the ACA medical insurance into the form that calculates if one is entitled to more credit or owes part of the credit back. This form brought me to a complete stop and I went into panic. It seems that when one spouse goes on Medicare and the other stays on ACA - it throws it all off. We owe back 2/3 of the advanced credit we received. I kept looking for what I did wrong. I was shaking. I finally decided that I had to tell husband - we don’t have enough money in the bank to pay it. Luckily rather than panicking he started to see what he could find out online - he was actually comforting me rather than the other way around when we have an unexpected expense. Nope, he found no way around it. So tomorrow we will go and take money out of his IRA to pay it, as what we had and I transferred is not enough. After Monday when I can breathe again, I will call and stop this year’s advance credit so I don’t have the same problem again next year.
It is important to know that other this oddity, I think ACA insurance has been great, as even without the credit it is considerably less than we were paying before it - and it has been several years since, so we would be paying even more. It was just a bit of a shock.
So all of our papers which were neatly sorted are now strewn around my desk. I put it all aside until tomorrow - well, I will probably do some calculations tonight after I finish this post - we donated stuff and I have to add up what it was worth.
I know that somehow the return and the two extensions for clients will be done and out on time. I will make sure it is. Then Monday afternoon and night I can relax and rest - oh, wait, I can’t. We have a reenacting unit meeting that night and I have to write my Treasurer’s report and go to the meeting. Oh, and today the electric co came and trimmed the trees - they even actually trimmed the ones around the wires that run through the back yard that never get trimmed. We do have tree limb from a neighbor’s tree which overhangs our garage and the line from the wires in the back yard to our house - they could not touch that, but there is a unit that does so and I have to call and have them come - since this tree branch is one of the things that scares husband during storms (not only would be without electricity, he is positive the wire coming down would set the garage - which is really his wood workshop - on fire), so that is something else to do on Monday.
I also have a folder next to my desk. It contains all the things I have not done - or I only did what absolutely needed to be done and the followup was put in the folder - over the past 2 weeks - bills to check, items to scan or copy or send out, etc. I still have to deal with that early next
week.
Oh, and I as do all of this - every time I need something from the office storage closet - business checkbook, more manila envelopes... I have to move the two stacks of stuff I set aside in January to donate in February - which will still be there until early May - and mentally scream about them.
THOUGHT OF THE WEEK -
No matter how well one plans, something goes wrong. One has to roll with it and do what one can. The extra money is upsetting, but it won’t affect our day to day lives (luckily). The errors in the bookkeeping program printouts were found as I match this year’s taxes as they are done to last year’s so that nothing is forgotten.
Oh, and my friend who is getting an extension, had a marvelous trip to Europe as a gift from a friend as it was cheaper to bring her along than pay the single surcharge. That is a great friend she has!
In the past week and a half I have done and mailed out 4 tax returns to clients and also sent estimated taxes for 2018 to another - very estimated they are based on his 2016 returns, so it does not show his 2017 income and deductions and I have no idea of how the change in the tax law will end up affecting him. (I did use the calculator at IRS’s website to calculate what his tax will be.) In addition he has had a life change so his taxes will be filed totally different for 2018 than prior years. I will adjust it when I do his return - he always gets an extension. I have another return sitting here 99% done, but needed one tiny piece of info that I am waiting for and this will be an extension also, as the return will not get to the client until after tax date just due to the distance to the client after I finish it. I also finished our corporation return and it is ready to be signed, paid and mailed.
This sounds good - 4 gone, 1 almost done which will be on extension and another one also to be on extension and our corporation return done also. Lots of time to do our return right?
Ummm, Saturday I had a call from a client whose taxes had been mailed to her the Monday before - “Where are they?”. I told her to wait for this past Monday and if she still did not have them, I would mail another copy by Express Mail. She received them on Monday. She also went crazy as her taxes were more than she anticipated. (We don’t have a lot of money - she has none.) I ended up spending 2 hours on Tuesday writing up a breakdown comparing her 2016 and 2017 taxes for her so she would understand. Time I really needed.
Husband is (again) planning a day trip. This one on Friday, so I was trying to get everything done by then, but it won’t be. We went to the bank today to transfer money to pay our RV insurance and I transferred extra money to pay what I figured we would have to send as a first estimated payment for 2018 as we don’t earn wages/have withholding and have to pay our taxes on our own.
Then I started our return. I should explain that we don’t generally pay income taxes due to our low income and high deductions. We do have to pay Social Security taxes if either or both of us made $400 or more from businesses - and we pay double what people pay on their salary as we are the employer and the employee. We also have ACA (Obamacare) medical insurance so we have to adjust our advance credit on our return - we always seem to have received a small bit more than we are entitled to. No problem - we paid estimated taxes based on our Social Security taxes and the advance credit we owed in the past.
I should also explain that husband is always in a panic when we have to spend/pay money that we did not anticipate - because we don’t have a lot of it.
So last night I started working on taxes - I summarized information - and today I started doing the return.
First problem - I used our computer bookkeeping software to figure out husband’s business income and expenses after some adjustments. I then went to enter it into the tax program. Uh oh! Several expenses were missing - the entire categories of expenses. I tried several times and in frustration complained to husband - working at his computer across from me on whatever. He came over. With the questions he asked, I figured out that somehow some of the expenses had become unchecked to be included on the statement and that is why they were not included. I fixed that and printed out the corrected form and entered the information into the tax program.
I went on to get the same sort of statement printed out after making some adjustments - and this time checking that everything was checked to print. I then managed to erase some forms from the tax program related to both of these forms and had to start all over - entering his business info and mine.
I then entered our other incomes - you know, the whopping interest now being paid on bank accounts, the small dividends from the small number of shares of stock he received as boy, etc. Going well - no problems.
I then went through our items for deductions. While the bookkeeping software has all the items paid by check or charge cards, I have to see if I paid anything by cash and then there are charitable donations of “stuff”. As I went to enter our medical expenses - it all went blooey!
I had to enter the ACA medical insurance into the form that calculates if one is entitled to more credit or owes part of the credit back. This form brought me to a complete stop and I went into panic. It seems that when one spouse goes on Medicare and the other stays on ACA - it throws it all off. We owe back 2/3 of the advanced credit we received. I kept looking for what I did wrong. I was shaking. I finally decided that I had to tell husband - we don’t have enough money in the bank to pay it. Luckily rather than panicking he started to see what he could find out online - he was actually comforting me rather than the other way around when we have an unexpected expense. Nope, he found no way around it. So tomorrow we will go and take money out of his IRA to pay it, as what we had and I transferred is not enough. After Monday when I can breathe again, I will call and stop this year’s advance credit so I don’t have the same problem again next year.
It is important to know that other this oddity, I think ACA insurance has been great, as even without the credit it is considerably less than we were paying before it - and it has been several years since, so we would be paying even more. It was just a bit of a shock.
So all of our papers which were neatly sorted are now strewn around my desk. I put it all aside until tomorrow - well, I will probably do some calculations tonight after I finish this post - we donated stuff and I have to add up what it was worth.
I know that somehow the return and the two extensions for clients will be done and out on time. I will make sure it is. Then Monday afternoon and night I can relax and rest - oh, wait, I can’t. We have a reenacting unit meeting that night and I have to write my Treasurer’s report and go to the meeting. Oh, and today the electric co came and trimmed the trees - they even actually trimmed the ones around the wires that run through the back yard that never get trimmed. We do have tree limb from a neighbor’s tree which overhangs our garage and the line from the wires in the back yard to our house - they could not touch that, but there is a unit that does so and I have to call and have them come - since this tree branch is one of the things that scares husband during storms (not only would be without electricity, he is positive the wire coming down would set the garage - which is really his wood workshop - on fire), so that is something else to do on Monday.
I also have a folder next to my desk. It contains all the things I have not done - or I only did what absolutely needed to be done and the followup was put in the folder - over the past 2 weeks - bills to check, items to scan or copy or send out, etc. I still have to deal with that early next
week.
Oh, and I as do all of this - every time I need something from the office storage closet - business checkbook, more manila envelopes... I have to move the two stacks of stuff I set aside in January to donate in February - which will still be there until early May - and mentally scream about them.
THOUGHT OF THE WEEK -
No matter how well one plans, something goes wrong. One has to roll with it and do what one can. The extra money is upsetting, but it won’t affect our day to day lives (luckily). The errors in the bookkeeping program printouts were found as I match this year’s taxes as they are done to last year’s so that nothing is forgotten.
Oh, and my friend who is getting an extension, had a marvelous trip to Europe as a gift from a friend as it was cheaper to bring her along than pay the single surcharge. That is a great friend she has!
Thursday, April 5, 2018
BALANCING LIFE AND WORK
First, let me say - we had another snow storm this past Monday - April 2. I know that it affected many others around the country. It of course put husband into a panic as we were hearing about 8 inches of snow - again. Luckily what came down was not much and was mostly melted by the time we went out.
This leads into today’s topic in the “life” part of the balance. Husband’s birthday is this week. He had planned (hoped?) for us to go to Lancaster for his birthday and/or the day before. The day before is one of the farmer’s markets we go to. To go there for same would have been fine with him. To go on his birthday would be fine with him. If the weather was mild I had suggested that we drive down for the farmer’s market in our RV and stay overnight (without running water as we have not yet been able to dewinterize and put the water tanks and pipes back into use, due to the cold weather that is still around) so he could be there both days. He really loves the idea of his birthday and being a special day, so he is terribly upset when it does not work out. Not only did we have the snowstorm on Monday, we had a terrible rainstorm today and we are due to have heavy rain on Friday and rain or snow on Saturday (which already has him in a panic) - so a trip to Lancaster on a day we would like to go is out. His latest plan is a trip to New Jersey for dinner at Golden Corral Thursday (tomorrow) when it is not suppose to rain or snow - yet. (For a story about another attempt to go to this restaurant - http://wheredidileavethat.blogspot.com/2017/07). I should say that despite huge snow storms in our general tri-state area, our immediate area has been fairly lucky with much less snow and electric outages than other parts of the general area.
When it was his birthday we ended up eating our normal lunch at Wendys and then we went to a large chain computer store just to walk around, amuse him, and take his mind off the lack of birthday fun he is having and the coming snow. Of course, with our luck, the store was in the middle of a major redo and it was hard to find where anything he wanted to see had been moved - and the aisles so narrow that one could not really bend to see anything without hitting the other side of the aisle. I wandered over to the laptop section to look, as I always do, what they have, just in case I need a new one quickly. It amazes me that I can walk around and look at the laptops for 20 minutes (or more) and no one comes over. As soon as husband comes to find me, one or another of the salesmen comes running - do they still think only men buy computers?
We could not figure where to go to dinner for his birthday which would be “special”. We rarely take food in and had been looking at a local chicken place’s handout which was delivered to us and decided to go there. Dinner seemed okay - and I was able to get grilled chicken instead of fried - but about 20 minutes after dinner he decided that there had been too much grease and he did not feel well. “Great” ending to a disappointing birthday.
So life has been pushing into my trying to work.
Now the period between, say February, and April 15 is my busy season. I no longer have the size accounting/tax practice I used to and have less than 10 income tax returns - plus a couple of business returns for businesses that I do the books for all year. The week before last it suddenly dawned on me that I had only received information from one client - and I had been holding theirs to work on as they were away anyway. Most of my clients have moved away and are in other states, so I need some time after doing their returns to get the returns to them in mail so they can file them on time. (Well, actually most of my clients have died which is why I have so few left.) Oh, and our return and our business return of course.
So I sent an email to a client in FL which is a fairly quick return who normally sends me her stuff early. She had an accident and had not had a chance to send her info - but she was planning on getting it out to me right away. (Hers was received the beginning of last week, done and back to her.) I was going to email to two other clients, but heard from them. One arrived later last week and is mostly done now, it has to have it’s state return prepared - she lives in New Mexico. I plan to have it out by Friday so she gets it in plenty of time. Another just mailed me their return - and I received it today. They are local, so if it is finished close to deadline, I can always drop it off instead of mailing it, but I hope to have it done soon enough to mail out. One client always asks for an extension and I heard from him today and will prepare his extensions and his estimates for next year and mail them to him and then do his return later in the year. And so on.
How is life making a problem? Well, husband is so upset about the weather and his birthday that I don’t get enough time to work on all the tax returns. I did nothing on returns today to keep him company. Plus I have to do some of the returns on husband’s computers due to some odd circumstances and I need to displace him from his computer. I had hoped he would ask to warp his loom - when he has a weaving project in the living room I have the office to myself - but his upcoming project is trying something new and between the weather and his birthday, he is too nervous to warp the loom for the project.
Now, I know that somehow it will be all be done and on time. How do I know? It always has been before. Our return is done last - of course - and I can always get an extension for it if we need to. But what made this year terribly odd is the nothing until the last minute. We had our car in for work a week or so ago and the owner commented to me that I must be jammed as the tax season is coming to an end and was shocked when I told him that I had not even started yet. I If I had realized that nothing would come in until this late, I would have done our return instead of figuring I would have to stop in the middle of it to do a client’s return.
And of course I also have to do the housework - dinner cooked 5 nights a week (we eat out on weekends), dishes washed every meal 7 days a week, laundry, etc. Somehow, though, it always done.
THOUGHT OF THE WEEK -
What we must do ebbs and flows. There are times when we have too much to do and times when we are looking for things to do, so that they will be done before we run out of time to do them. I have learned that as a general rule, what needs to be done somehow does get done - and on time.
I grew up in a house with accountants. I know the ebb and flow of tax season. Nothing to do. Then all of a sudden a rush (my rush is smaller and over a shorter time than it used to be, but it is still a rush). Then all of a sudden it over. Since being married I learned how to deal with husband and his wants and needs during tax season - and he learned what will be going on during tax season decades ago.
If you are having a time problem - think back to the last time you had to do something similar and how you managed to find the time to get it done. Generally most non catastrophic problems or something similar, have happened before and will happen again. Learn from the past to help with the future.
Think about what you do and the ebb and flow of time - when is your time short in supply and when do you have a chance to breathe and are looking for things to do.
This leads into today’s topic in the “life” part of the balance. Husband’s birthday is this week. He had planned (hoped?) for us to go to Lancaster for his birthday and/or the day before. The day before is one of the farmer’s markets we go to. To go there for same would have been fine with him. To go on his birthday would be fine with him. If the weather was mild I had suggested that we drive down for the farmer’s market in our RV and stay overnight (without running water as we have not yet been able to dewinterize and put the water tanks and pipes back into use, due to the cold weather that is still around) so he could be there both days. He really loves the idea of his birthday and being a special day, so he is terribly upset when it does not work out. Not only did we have the snowstorm on Monday, we had a terrible rainstorm today and we are due to have heavy rain on Friday and rain or snow on Saturday (which already has him in a panic) - so a trip to Lancaster on a day we would like to go is out. His latest plan is a trip to New Jersey for dinner at Golden Corral Thursday (tomorrow) when it is not suppose to rain or snow - yet. (For a story about another attempt to go to this restaurant - http://wheredidileavethat.blogspot.com/2017/07). I should say that despite huge snow storms in our general tri-state area, our immediate area has been fairly lucky with much less snow and electric outages than other parts of the general area.
When it was his birthday we ended up eating our normal lunch at Wendys and then we went to a large chain computer store just to walk around, amuse him, and take his mind off the lack of birthday fun he is having and the coming snow. Of course, with our luck, the store was in the middle of a major redo and it was hard to find where anything he wanted to see had been moved - and the aisles so narrow that one could not really bend to see anything without hitting the other side of the aisle. I wandered over to the laptop section to look, as I always do, what they have, just in case I need a new one quickly. It amazes me that I can walk around and look at the laptops for 20 minutes (or more) and no one comes over. As soon as husband comes to find me, one or another of the salesmen comes running - do they still think only men buy computers?
We could not figure where to go to dinner for his birthday which would be “special”. We rarely take food in and had been looking at a local chicken place’s handout which was delivered to us and decided to go there. Dinner seemed okay - and I was able to get grilled chicken instead of fried - but about 20 minutes after dinner he decided that there had been too much grease and he did not feel well. “Great” ending to a disappointing birthday.
So life has been pushing into my trying to work.
Now the period between, say February, and April 15 is my busy season. I no longer have the size accounting/tax practice I used to and have less than 10 income tax returns - plus a couple of business returns for businesses that I do the books for all year. The week before last it suddenly dawned on me that I had only received information from one client - and I had been holding theirs to work on as they were away anyway. Most of my clients have moved away and are in other states, so I need some time after doing their returns to get the returns to them in mail so they can file them on time. (Well, actually most of my clients have died which is why I have so few left.) Oh, and our return and our business return of course.
So I sent an email to a client in FL which is a fairly quick return who normally sends me her stuff early. She had an accident and had not had a chance to send her info - but she was planning on getting it out to me right away. (Hers was received the beginning of last week, done and back to her.) I was going to email to two other clients, but heard from them. One arrived later last week and is mostly done now, it has to have it’s state return prepared - she lives in New Mexico. I plan to have it out by Friday so she gets it in plenty of time. Another just mailed me their return - and I received it today. They are local, so if it is finished close to deadline, I can always drop it off instead of mailing it, but I hope to have it done soon enough to mail out. One client always asks for an extension and I heard from him today and will prepare his extensions and his estimates for next year and mail them to him and then do his return later in the year. And so on.
How is life making a problem? Well, husband is so upset about the weather and his birthday that I don’t get enough time to work on all the tax returns. I did nothing on returns today to keep him company. Plus I have to do some of the returns on husband’s computers due to some odd circumstances and I need to displace him from his computer. I had hoped he would ask to warp his loom - when he has a weaving project in the living room I have the office to myself - but his upcoming project is trying something new and between the weather and his birthday, he is too nervous to warp the loom for the project.
Now, I know that somehow it will be all be done and on time. How do I know? It always has been before. Our return is done last - of course - and I can always get an extension for it if we need to. But what made this year terribly odd is the nothing until the last minute. We had our car in for work a week or so ago and the owner commented to me that I must be jammed as the tax season is coming to an end and was shocked when I told him that I had not even started yet. I If I had realized that nothing would come in until this late, I would have done our return instead of figuring I would have to stop in the middle of it to do a client’s return.
And of course I also have to do the housework - dinner cooked 5 nights a week (we eat out on weekends), dishes washed every meal 7 days a week, laundry, etc. Somehow, though, it always done.
THOUGHT OF THE WEEK -
What we must do ebbs and flows. There are times when we have too much to do and times when we are looking for things to do, so that they will be done before we run out of time to do them. I have learned that as a general rule, what needs to be done somehow does get done - and on time.
I grew up in a house with accountants. I know the ebb and flow of tax season. Nothing to do. Then all of a sudden a rush (my rush is smaller and over a shorter time than it used to be, but it is still a rush). Then all of a sudden it over. Since being married I learned how to deal with husband and his wants and needs during tax season - and he learned what will be going on during tax season decades ago.
If you are having a time problem - think back to the last time you had to do something similar and how you managed to find the time to get it done. Generally most non catastrophic problems or something similar, have happened before and will happen again. Learn from the past to help with the future.
Think about what you do and the ebb and flow of time - when is your time short in supply and when do you have a chance to breathe and are looking for things to do.
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