Tax Man

[susandennis]

I paid off my estimated taxes for the year yesterday. Yes, I paid federal income tax for next year's income. It seems ridiculous. But, if I don't pay it, then I get fined. I could wait and pay half in September and half in January but it's going to earn me about a buck 50 in savings so why not just pay it off so I don't have to think about it. So I did.

Now my big bills are: Mariner ticket in October, HOA for the year) in December, more (maybe) federal taxes in February and also real estate taxes then, too. Also there's the annual car maintenance (July-ish) and long term care insurance (Jan). That's what my savings is for.My savings also needs to cover Biggie's surgery/jumping bills, any surprise condo assessments, and surprise city taxes like the $3k I got hit with last year.

This is the point in the year - mid-year - when, if I've planned correctly, I can see my way through the next 12 months without money stress. This past year, I have planned correctly. It's an enormously satisfying feeling.

The sun is out today but it's still fairly cool. I have the shades set to fall at sunrise so that when I come home from swimming the living room isn't already baked. My windows face due east. So my terrace is a hot spot right now but I'm safe.

I'm kind of thinking about a minor grocery run today. I'd like to have a stalk of celery or maybe two. But, if I go, I'll get way more than that and I don't really need way more than that. I'm still eating out of the freezer and doing pretty well. I think I'll just stay that course for now. It's breakfast burrito making day.

I finally finished Tina Brown's Palace Papers. Interesting. She basically loves the queen, has come round to being fine with Camila, thinks Kate is perfection and is done with Megan. She up on Will and down on Harry. And omg, poor Andrew had best just go bury himself in a beer hall in Iowa.

I've been skunked by John Grisham once again. I've loved his legal novels since the first one. They are the best stories told spectacularly well. I didn't realize he wrote other novels until one time I picked up one of his books called Playing for Pizza. I figured it was a metaphor. I was mid way through before I thought... hmmm this is a long game metaphor. Then I got to the end to discover it was not a metaphor at all. It was about a guy playing football in Italy. ????

So this time I start reading his latest novel - Sparring Partners. It brings back characters from some of his other books. I'm reading, I'm enjoying and then, all of a sudden, the story stops. Ends. Turns out this books is three different long short stories, not one novel. grrrr. Oh well. Won't kill me but I don't like being had.

Comments

You may well have had this in mind

[ng_moonmoth]

At least your tax stuff is less onerous than the situation that inspired Paul McCartney's rant on the topic.

Re: You may well have had this in mind

[susandennis]

ha!

[halfmoon_mollie1]

One of the profs I used to work with was in Grisham's law school class and had his book '1L' (signed). I did like playing for pizza...he is an excellent writer.

[fauxklore]

One L is Scott Turow, not John Grisham. I thought it was a good read.

[halfmoon_mollie1]

You are absolutely right and I feel really stupid. I thought it was a good read but I worked at SU College of Law for some 30 years.

(is very embarrassed.)

[greghousesgf]

I think some books need to come with a big warning label saying THIS BOOK IS NOWHERE NEAR AS GOOD AS THE OTHER BOOKS BY THE SAME AUTHOR

[susandennis]

hahaha OMG you are so right. it should be law!!

[loganberrybunny]

Tina Brown's views seem to chime fairly well with those of the UK public in general. Poor beer hall in Iowa, though. What has it done to deserve Prince Andrew?

[susandennis]

hhahah I did wonder how in line her take was. We're so out of it over here. And really I think Iowa would be fine with him. They would think his accent was cute. And it's where we keep dumb and dumber anyway.

[susandennis]

by the way, your Mariners played a great game last night. they are on kind of a mini-streak of good.

[loganberrybunny]

I must admit my attention has been diverted by the cricket recently, but I'm happy to hear that (what I must apparently now call) my Mariners have come up with the goods! :)

[msconduct]

Yes, Andrew should be forced to live in the bottom of a well.

[ringsandcoffee]

I absolutely loved The Client and The Pelican Brief. I didn't read another John Grisham book until The Rooster Bar, at my mother's insistence. I found it...kind of terrible? Ha. Maybe not terrible, but I kept reading because I just kept waiting for the bottom to fall out from under the characters. And it didn't happen.

[kaishin108]

That is wild about his books. Yes, I would feel 'had' too.