Tax Season Ends Next Week

 The Tax Season is winding down and this may be my last hurrah.  

I will soon be free to do other things.  

But what?

Resting and Refreshing

The tax season has ended and I’m home trying to rejuvenate and lose this feeling of fatigue and angst.  It was a brutal tax season. 

The good things for today is that I have a remaining cigar, the company of my dog and cat, and it looks like rain.  I like rain.

One More Week of Tax Season

Only one more week of labor in the tax office.  I will be glad when it’s over.  

Ahh, September!

A Stogie Photoshop Depicting Fall

September is here, and already I can feel the faint stirrings of Fall.  More subdued sunlight, a slight chill in the mornings.  I love this time of year.

Some slightly good news:  Trump is edging ahead of Hillary in political polls.  She will probably find a way to steal the election with so many powerful institutions on her side, e.g. the major media, the Dept of Homeland Security, the mainstream GOP.  Nevertheless, I have hope that she will be defeated and the country saved.

Right now, two things are vying for my attention:  a corporate tax return, due September 15, continuing professional education -- I need another 28 hours by December 1st to renew my CPA license.  After those chores are under control, I will explore ways to create more graphical art using Photoshop and Adobe Illustrator.  I love doing graphic art.

Well that corporate tax return won't prepare itself, so over and out, homies.

Superbowl Sunday, But Not For Me. Band Update.

I won't be watching much of the Super Bowl today, if any.  I must venture out to do taxes for some of my personal clients.  I don't really care much which team wins today -- they both represent very "progressive" areas.

At big band practice last Thursday, the band director was very encouraging, complimenting my bass playing and saying that "the bass is the most important instrument in the group."  Of course I always knew that.  However, I suspect he was exaggerating.  All those trumpets, trombones and saxophones count a little.  The drummer and guitar player add somewhat as well.

Of course, they were all giving me dirty looks after the director's comment.  I simply stuck my tongue out at them and turned up my volume.

Well one more cup of coffee and then I have to hit the door.  Have a great Sunday.

Tax Day: The End Is In Sight

9:13 AM.  It's safe to say my 9 AM client isn't going to show.

A couple of days ago I was feeling a lot of pressure to get a lot of returns done, and wasn't sure I could do it and also prepare union reports for a bookkeeping client. Amazing what you can do when you have to do it.  I gave up some sleep but got it done.  Last night I celebrated with a big cigar and a cup of hot herbal tea.

My last obstacle is a woman with an irrevocable trust, that requires amortizing 40+ notes (she's doing it, not I).  That's why God invented extensions.

Stogie the Tax Meister

At the tax firm where I work, clients are asked by email to rate their tax preparer.  My ratings have been very positive.

Last night there was a meeting of the employees at the tax firm, and the manager informed the crew that my comments from clients were "rave reviews," were the best ones received, and that I was THE "tax professional of the office."

Needless to say, this was an ego boost for me.    It is gratifying to know one is doing his job well.

The truth is, I enjoy doing taxes.  I relate very well to the clients, from the lowliest bus boy to the high tech guy making six figures.  I treat everyone with respect, because I consider their trust in me to be an honor.  I fight for every dollar they have coming, and I know the angles.  Or most of them, anyway.

I don't, however, help anyone to cheat.  I resent cheaters.

I particularly enjoy writing opposition letters to the IRS or California Franchise Tax Board, when those bodies have exceeded their authority or wrongly assessed additional taxes from the client.  I have a very good record of getting these bodies to reverse their assessments.

The tax season ends in 30 more days.  It's been fun, but I'm looking forward to the off season.

Lovin' the Tax Season

Ah, one month to go and this tax season will be over.  I am enjoying it though, so I am in no hurry to see it end.  After sitting on my duff for three years with no work, I am busy, focused, involved.  My accounting and tax skills have never been sharper.  Today a man brought in his college student son to have his tax return prepared, an extra easy one.  While in conversation with the dad about his son's finances, I immediately perceived a possible education credit that the father could take, since his son was still his dependent; in 5 minutes of checking I found that the father, who had already filed his tax return, had an additional $1,400 refund coming for 2011.  I will prepare an amended return for him tomorrow.  Found money, baby.  I asked him, "Aren't you glad you came in today?"

Taxes and More Taxes

Sorry for the lack of blogging this week.  It has been one tax return after another.

No Super Bowl for me today.  Just more taxes.

Mastering the Internal Revenue Code

Last night I finished a three month tax course in individual income tax; it was the best tax course I have taken in my decades of bean counting.  I received an overall grade of 97% of all possible points in the course.  Yes, I am ready for the tax season.  One thing I noticed while studying the nitty-gritty of tax rules for ordinary citizens:  the tax rules are ridiculously complex, serpentine, ambiguous and difficult.  There are a million rules and two million exceptions to those rules.  There is no way in hell that any normal, bright and educated citizen could possibly do his own taxes and get it right.

Still, I enjoyed the course.  It was a study in madness, and now I am in a position to (1) do tax returns and (2) write horror novels.

Revolt and Reaction: the Tax Day Tea Parties

Tea parties were held all over the country today. These "parties" are actually taxpayer demonstrations against the excesses of the Obama administration, namely his new trillions of dollars in debt, his higher taxes and his plans to substantially increase the size of government.

Reports coming in on the radio and internet indicate the tea parties were a raging success, with thousands of people attending.

Some observations:

1. The mainstream (Democrat) media has studiously ignored the tea parties, even though many have already been held throughout the nation. It is media bias in action, again. They can influence opinion not only by the spin on what they choose to report, but on what they refuse to report.

2. The now politicized Homeland Security Department announced a widespread, rightwing terrorist threat to the nation. They released the following information:

Rightwing extremism in the United States can be broadly divided into those
groups, movements, and adherents that are primarily hate-oriented (based on
hatred of particular religious, racial or ethnic groups), and those that are
mainly antigovernment, rejecting federal authority in favor of state or local
authority, or rejecting government authority entirely. It may include groups and
individuals that are dedicated to a single issue, such as opposition to abortion
or immigration.

Many rightwing extremists are antagonistic toward the new presidential administration and its perceived stance on a range of issues, including immigration and citizenship, the expansion of social programs to minorities, and restrictions on firearms ownership and use. Rightwing extremists are increasingly galvanized by these concerns and leverage them as drivers for recruitment.

Oh God, they're on to us!

This B.S. from Homeland Security is nothing but Democrat talking points; now they are coming from the federal government itself rather than from James Carville. Many conservatives believe this "terrorist alert" was issued the day before the tea parties in order to provide a false context to the tea party movement. John at Power Line stated: "It's hard to avoid the conclusion that this Homeland Security report is politically motivated, and reflects the authors' political prejudices more than an objective evaluation of a significant terrorist threat."

3. Texas Governor Rick Perry spoke at a tea party in Austin and supported Texan state sovereignty, stating (correctly) that Texas has a right to secede from the Union in the event the United States abandons its founding principles of limited government. Various states are now proposing or passing resolutions emphasizing their sovereign status and support of the 10th Amendment.

The spirit of REBELLION is alive and well and lives in the hearts of many Americans. We will not sit still for Obama's planned transformation of our country into a bankrupt, socialist tyranny.

An Amazing Coincidence

My nephew, Loco Weed, spent the weekend so I could do his taxes. Between the federal and state, he is getting a refund of $4,843.

By some amazing coincidence, that was also the exact amount of my fee. Who could have guessed?