The Taxman Cometh

On Saturday, El and I visited our favorite local beer and wine store. The store has a bar where you can sit for a bit and have a drink. I had a half pint of Bosteels Brewery's Pauwel Kwak and then a pint of North Coast Brewing's PranQster ale. Kwak is most well known for its interesting serving glass, but the store doesn't have those glasses. Both beers are Belgian (or Belgian-style), but the Kwak is a slightly darker amber ale while PranQster is a lighter golden ale. Both have average alcohol content for Belgian ales, 8.4% for the Kwak and 7.6% for the PranQster, and both are quite drinkable. While I was enjoying my beers, El did a sampling of various red wines. We also picked up a four-pack of Nemesis by Founders Brewing.

I got my federal tax refund back the other day. Of course, that means that I got my tax returns finished up and sent off a few weeks ago. For my federal taxes, I e-filed using Free File Fillable Forms. For my state taxes, I fell back on the old reliable pen-and-paper method.

As an aside, I recently discovered that taxes are the source for an interesting idiom, Morton's fork.

Like most people (almost everybody, I guess), I hate paying taxes. For most of the year, I am pretty much apolitical. I haven't voted since I voted for Ross Perot when he ran the second time in 1996 (which was a much worse performance than in 1992 when he withdrew and then reentered the race). However, the day that I work up my tax returns is the one day that I am a hard-core conservative Republican, perhaps even... (gasp!) a teabagger! On that day, I appreciate family values like the (financial) benefits of getting married and the true purposes of spawning deductions... err... kids and buying a tax break... I mean a house.

As the credits roll on this post, let's cue The Beatles.

That's Just Brilliant (-er)

I am currently working on my tax returns. Or avoiding working on my tax returns by typing this post. I have always done my taxes myself, no CPA or tax prep software. In the past, I have always used the old-fashioned pen-and-paper method, although this year I am looking into e-filing using free online forms.

Last year, my company sent out two copies of our 2008 W-2s. When I received my W-2s in mid-January this year instead of early February as usual, I just assumed the company was on the ball. I got an early start on my taxes a few weekends ago, but since I didn't have all the info, I put it aside to finish up later. When I received another set of W-2s in the mail, I didn't think any of it since we'd seen that show before. Only later did I noticed that the first set of W-2s that I had received weren't for 2009, but were yet another copy of my 2008 W-2s. Yes, I had started working on my 2009 returns using 2008 W-2s. Needless to say, I have now started over using my 2009 W-2s.

That's Just Brilliant

Allow me to share a personal "D'oh!" moment. Yesterday, I was checking the balance of my checking account, and I noticed something wrong. For all but one of my credit cards, I pay the balance in full every month. When I paid the bill for the other card a few days ago, I must have accidentally selected the option to pay the statement balance instead of just the minimum payment. Instead of paying the $40 minimum payment, I paid the full two grand balance. Fortunately, my checking account is linked to my second mortgage for overdraft protection. However, the only thing on that one card was a balance transfer from several years ago that was at a fixed 3.9% rate for the life of the balance. Most of my credit card debit from college was on that card, and for almost a decade now, I have been paying the minimum payment. With all the recent changes in the credit card industry, that might have been the last balance transfer offer without a cutoff date. The 3.9% rate on this card was a better rate than my first or second mortgage or my consolidated student loan. Now instead two grand with a fixed 3.9% rate, I have two extra grand on my second mortgage with a variable rate currently at 4.25%. Yes, I know it is not a really big deal, but it is enough to get me annoyed with myself.