Rain and Taxes

It's been beautifully rainy for several days now and, while I'm making real progress with the revision of Miss Birdie's book, I was forced to spend yesterday gathering and recording tax information, a task that I always manage to put off till the last minute.

I'm not talking about actually doing the taxes -- just getting things organized so the tax preparer doesn't seize up when she sees the stuff. Between the farm and depreciation schedules and a rental property and my alleged writing career with deductions for travel to conferences and printer ink and membership in professional organizations . . . well, it's way too much to expect of an English major.

I prepared for the ordeal with a hearty breakfast -- John made that gorgeous bread and I'll be sharing the recipe soon.

I didn't quite finish -- that will happen today. But once more I told myself that this year, I'll do better and have a tidy way of recording things -- better than a wad of cash register slips and illegible scribbled notes -- rnd trp Albemarle followed by an illegible number that may be mileage or amount spent on gas.

I'm better organized than in years past -- just look at all those envelopes with things like TAXES and CHARITY and FARM written on them. Unfortunately, I don't always put things in their proper places right away and part of this morning was spent catching up with the unsorted receipts from last October, November, and December.

And all the while I was toiling away, I was grinding my teeth, thinking of those %#$@% s at AIG and their millions in bonuses -- which I will have the privilege of helping to pay for, once all this gets sorted out.

One begin to feel like the French peasants, watching a useless aristocracy fritter away vast sums while ordinary people scratched for a living.

Enough whining! A Happy St. Patrick's Day to you all and here's a link to some fine pictures of Ireland's sacred sites, taken by a former writing student of mine. Slainte!