I am still at home this morning because the power has not been restored to our company. We are thankful to be high and dry where our house is located. Some of our neighbors did not fair as well. Our prayers go out to them, to so many others, and sadly, to those who have lost loved ones during this rain event. The photo was taken yesterday on one end of our subdivision. May God provide is my prayer.
Amen.
Okay. Now that the tax season is officially over and done with for this year we can get on with the rest of our life. I'm talking about the tax deadline that was last Friday but got moved to yesterday, Monday. (Except for those who were granted an extension and I think that deadline is moved out to October.) Hello and welcome. It's
Tuesday, April 19, 2016. I asked about an extension one time. My tax return was a little more complicated back in the day and I thought delaying it would be a good idea. In the process, I found out something. If you ask for an extension you have to pay the estimated amount of what you think you will owe by the regular deadline. When you do file later and it is discovered you owe more, you will pay interest on the amount you didn't initially pay. And, if you have a refund coming based on your estimated payment, well, they will not pay interest for holding your money. Having found out the particulars, I promptly discarded my thoughts of filing an extension. In the case of the IRS, I suppose the saying about how the devil is in the details does make a little more sense. I'm sure we all aware that federal taxes are only one part of our total tax burden. Our total tax load includes all the state and local levies that we must pay. Here's a statistic that got my attention: "In 2014, federal, state and local governments collected a combined total of $4.7 trillion in taxes or an average of $38,317 for every household in the U.S." (Source: http://www.justfacts.com/taxes.asp) That made me wince. What about you?
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| I can hardly wait! |
Lately, I have been craving some lime candy. Sorry. I may be diabetic but that doesn't mean that I check my craving capability at the door. I've spoken before about the nearly total absence of lime candy on the shelf. You can find green but most of the time they are not lime. They are either green apple or sour green apple. I can buy a box of Mike and Ike Original Fruits Jelly Beans and they have true lime jellies inside. I typically pour them out and isolate the lime ones. It's a form of rationing. What can I say? I like lime candies. I have ordered me a one pound package of lime slices candy, (photo above), from Nuts.com. These are like the typical orange slice candy but they are lime flavored. Not spearmint. The thought alone makes me shudder. They should be here this week. I will be careful and only eat them sparingly. That's at least my starting goal. The other day the wife made me aware that a Debbie Swiss Roll was missing. She asked if I knew anything about it. The moment of truth had arrived. I thought about George Washington and the cherry tree story. There was no denying the facts in this case. Yes. It was missing. And, yes, I did know something about it. I thought about telling her that someone had left it out on the counter, but, I didn't see where that would get me anywhere, so, I confessed. It was missing and I had eaten it. It was pretty good. I'm not sure it was worth all that drama but as best I recall it was pretty good. (Joking aside, I am happy that she is concerned about my health and well-being.)
The other day I received an email from the professional photographer we've been doing Santa photos with for many years. She said that believe it or not people are already asking about getting on the 2016 schedule. She also indicated she is almost certain they will add an additional Saturday to our schedule. She wanted to know when she could get on my schedule. I told her I typically start putting dates down in August. She also reminded me that for many of her families I'm the only Santa the children have made photos with. I thought about recommending she consider offering something in the summer so people can have their photos in time to use them for the upcoming season. Typically, because of processing, there is quite a delay before they get their photographs. But, then I thought about donning that suit in July I decided maybe I should let things play out on their own. On the membership page for the International Brotherhood of Real Bearded Santas, I do see a few of my brothers in red are already busy doing special promotional photos, film appearances, and product commercials for advertising. Others are engaged in running Santa training seminars. Some are developing interactive Skype services where they can engage one on one with children for a fee. Lots of ideas and lots of opportunities but I think I will wait. And, as we all know, it will be here before you know it. I apologize for the lime slice photo that caused some of you to salivate. I just did quite a bit of that myself, just thinking about it. Take care and may God bless us all is my prayer.
Amen. ....More later.
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