It should be a surprise to no one given my “north wing” political views that I’m not a big fan of taxes. I just don’t get the justification for the government to take approximately a third of my income. It certainly didn’t make my work a third easier. And that’s just income taxes. Every time I buy something, there’s sales tax. Every time I trade in the stock market, there’s capital gains taxes.
For some reason, it always seems like my taxes are complicated, too. This year, it’s worse. In 2004, I moved from the house I own in Virginia as a primary residence to a rental property in Pennsylvania. My business gave approximately half of its assets to my business partner in order for me to buy him out. I had the usual number of miscellaneous interest and dividend incomes. Carolyn and I moved for her work, etc. etc. It seems like everything short of breathing has a “tax consequence.”
But, finally, all of the information I can think of and print out from my online bank has been gathered up and put in the hands of a tax professional. It’s out of my hands. I both want a refund, because I could use the money, and I don’t want a refund as that means that the government got to play with money of mine that they didn’t claim. And yet, they won’t be paying me “penalties and interest” for having had my money now will they? Yuck, blah, ick. But now away from me. Letting go. Deep breaths. Someone else’s job.