Taxes

I'm taking a break from taxes.

I must make it perfectly clear, I do not do my own taxes. I hyperventilate at the sight of them. I send them to a wonderful woman who happily deals with all that.

I am in one room and my son is in the adjoining room. He is muttering, peeping, and asking me questions like, "Why don't they speak English?" and "Is there a reason these forms are so confusing?" For which I have no good answer. Maybe tax people think differently from us?

I'm glad I can help him a little. Maybe just being here while he works on them is useful. So many of my answers are, "Uh, have you looked at the instructions?" I used to do his taxes when he was in college. I needed them for financial aid forms, he was someplace else, I had the W-2's, eh I just did them.

The deadline for financial aid is coming up, so now, I'm doing my daughter's taxes. 1040ez really is that. State forms are more complex. I've completed one, but have yet to look at the state we don't live in, where she worked as a summer camp counselor. The camp is probably required to take out state income tax, but I wish they wouldn't. I have to go to a lot of effort to get her $67.43 back!

Time to go get the paperbag, just in case I need to breathe into it!