It is tax season, let's get the rules straight...

Ok, here it is, 12:53 am on a Saturday and I am at the office. Yes, I realize I am blogging and not working, but I have a massive document printing, so I have the time. Being a CPA is like having a public target on your head. EVERYONE thinks they know more than you and they want to prove it to you. You would be shocked at the crap that comes out of peoples mouths. And, if I say, "no that is not deductible" the response is my sister-in-law's, cousins, hairdressers, CPA says it is. My new response is going to be, then you should hire them to do your taxes... I just thought it would be fun to bring up the things I hate, and maybe de-bunk a few of the questions I have been asked so far... I would like to add a disclaimer that most of these come from people who are not my clients... And if you have recently asked me a tax question, don't feel bad. If you weren't being a butt face about it, I probably didn't mind. If I acted like a butt face to you (and you would know) then I was probably annoyed. Here we go!

1) If you are filing a tax return on yourself (not an entity), it is due April 15th (before extensions)(or maybe April 18th, but we will get to that later). Just because you have a social security statement does not mean that the government gave you an early due date of Feb. 28. If you are the moron that started this rumor among our elderly citizens, you need to be punched. It is ridiculous and there are way too many elderly people worrying about this.

2) Yes, the filing date was pushed back to Feb. 14th this year. This means that the IRS didn't have all of the forms ready until then. This is because our politicians can't agree on anything and know nothing about tax law, so they enacted a bunch or new stuff way late in the year and most of it cause a revamping of a few of the forms. It does not mean the IRS was training more auditors or any other hair-brain thing. It just means that the forms weren't ready. Calm down.

3) Because of #2, the tax season got started a little late. This means tax preparers are getting a late start with the same deadline (one day extra in some cases). This means that by the end of March I will be grouchier than normal and the bags under my eyes will be a little bigger than normal. I realize this, so please don't point it out to me.

4) If you ask me to do your taxes and I say yes, that means get them to me before April 10th... Trust this, you do not want me to start your return after that point...

5) If you are playing stump the CPA with me and give the "my sister-in-law's, cousin's, hairdresser's, CPA says it is a deduction, " then you should go find this person (if they exist) and have them do your tax return. I am not going to let you take your dog's vet bill as an education expense, no matter how many people you know that have CPA's that do it... You and your sister-in-law's, cousin's, hairdresser's, CPA will get to know each other really well... in prison.

6) Tax season is a really busy time for CPA's, unless I really like you all the rest of theyear; I probably don't want to do your taxes for free. I do not have some unfulfilled desire to do pro bono work.

7) Asking me to bake cinnamon rolls, cookies, and brownies during tax season for your fundraiser will not make me happy. But for some reason, I will still do it.

8) Don't call me and say "I just have a quick question." The interpretation of that is "please don't send me a bill for this." I am a CPA, not a tax collector; I won't nickel and dime you :).

9) Let me re-iterate. I am a CPA, not a tax collector... You and me are on the same side. I pay taxes too. I pay bills too. I am here to help you pay the right amount of taxes, not so many that you have to sell you kidney to pay the debt, but also, not so few that the IRS comes looking for you and me. So, please, be honest and when I ask you something and don't hide stuff!!

10) Please do not try to educate me on tax law, loop holes, or secret credits. Chances are if you know about them, everyone does, or you have been misled.

11) Don't play stump the CPA with me. I don't know every nook and cranny in the law (but neither do you) and I don't claim to. But, I know where to find it. If there is something that affects your tax return and I AM DOING YOUR RETURN, then let's talk about it. If you see me at Wal-Mart and I am not your CPA, I do not care about your return. I just want to buy my eggs and toilet paper and get home in time for Private Practice or Teen Mom 2.

12) Here is a big one. The FEDERAL INDIVIDUAL return is due April 18th. The OKLAHOMA INDIVIDUAL RETURN is also due April 18th. If you are filing an Oklahoma partnership return, the Federal is due April 18th and the Oklahoma is still due on April 15th. This is subject to change, but as of yesterday, that is that.

13) This is meant to add humor to my life while I wait on the printer. It is not directed at any one person (Unless your name is Josh, Tyler, or TJ). It is mostly based on horror stories that I have heard about from others. Any tax advice contained in this communication was not intended or written to be used, and cannot be used for, the purpose of (i) avoiding tax related penalties under the Internal Revenue Code or (ii) promoting, marketing, or recommending to another party any tax-related matter addressed herein.

Have a great Saturday!!

Being on a Board....

I recently got involved with an organization here in Tulsa that is for young professionals. It is a networking type group that focused on issues in Tulsa. They also have a program that you can apply for to be an intern for the Board of Directors from numerous non-profit and not-for-profit agencies in Tulsa. I signed up about a month ago. I was chosen to serve on a board for an organization that helps adults with developmental issues. I went to board training last night and there was a lot to take in. Being on a board is a big responsibility. I am going to go to my first board meeting next month. I am really excited. I am supposed to go meet with the Executive Director sometime soon. I think this will be an interesting experience.

I will post more about it after I meet and learn more about the organization. Wish me luck!

V-Day...

I hate it... I hate all things lovey-dovey, so of course I hate Feb. 14. I hate the whole idea of it. And, just so you know, I hate that my sister volunteered herself (which somehow means me too) to make 40 decorated sugar cookies for Conner's V-day party... I think I still have some orange icing under my finger nails... because while we where decorating the cookies, my squeeze bottle of orange icing exploded. I mean really exploded, on the table, floor, about 4 cookies, and me.

They turned out looking all most professional looking. I should have taken pictures to post, but I was so tired of looking at them that I couldn't stand to take a picture. We even individually wrapped them in Valentine's bags. I hope they enjoy eating them as much as I enjoyed making them. Actually, nix that, because I did not enjoy making them at all and I want them to enjoy eating the cookies...

I got to work really early this morning... I am already tired. Is it April 18th yet? I am having motivation problems today. I hope everyone has a great Monday!!

More snow anyone??

Well, Oklahoma friends, get ready for round two! They are forecasting 8-12 inches in our area. I came to work today loaded with enough clothing to last the rest of the week... Which brings me to my rant...

I have not felt good all week and all week Josh has been saying that if I want to get to work on Wednesday, I should stay in Tulsa on Tuesday night. So, last night I pulled myself off of the couch and packed clothes for the week. I got mostly everything packed, but I knew there would be last minute stuff to throw in, so I left the suitcases out and went to bed. This morning I got up and 5:15 and got ready for work and finished packing. Josh woke up and was laying in bed watching the news. I still wasn't feeling great, but I told myself I could make it threw the day. I told Josh bye as I picked up the suitcase to leave. Now, I fully expected him to say "Let me help you with that," but instead he said "is that heavy?" from under the covers. I set the suitcase down and said "Yes, and I thought you would offer to carry it." He quickly got up to help, but informed me that if I want his help, I need to ask. We are past the stage of him offering...

I guess this isn't really a rant. He helped as soon as it became apparent that I wanted help. I guess I just shocked at how old we are. I mean, I always think of us as a young newly wed couple that tip-toes around each other. But, in fact, we are a not so young married couple and we don't cover up our flaws in front of each other. We are definitely out of the "newly wed" stage.

So, anyway, I guess we will be getting 8-12 more inches of snow tonight and tomorrow. I am guess I will be home bound tomorrow, because, after I spent all of that energy packing, I really feel like crap and just want to go home, crawl under my own covers, and sleep until it is finished snowing...

Stay warm!!

Snow Day X4!!

I can hardly believe the amount of snow that came down upon us over the past week. It was literally record breaking! I was going to go to Tulsa Monday night and stay so that I could get to work, but at the last minute, I decided to stay home and chance it... It turned out to be a good choice, since work was closed Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday.

On Tuesday, it seemed like the storm was going to take us down. The morning was started by the phone call from work saying the office was officially closed. It was downhill from there. Josh's 4-wheel drive went out in his truck and he hit a cattle guard. Luckily, he was able to get the farm truck and head back to work. I went with him to feed and check cows that afternoon. The hydraulics on the round bale spike was cold and he had to be worked on, but he got it working. We were in a pasture a few miles from the house and the truck died... and it would not start. I actually panicked a little. It was still snowing and blowing and I was thinking about the long walk back to the house in it. Josh called my dad and he told us how to fix it. So, we got the cows taken care of and headed home. I swore that we weren't leaving again, but later I wanted some peanut M&M's and we wanted to go see Craig and Brandy. As we pulled in the gas station, the stupid gas pedal stuck and we almost crashed. Josh turned the truck off really fast and was able to get the gas pedal fixed.... We went about our night and made it home safely.

So, that was our first day in the snow. The other days were not as eventful, mainly because I stayed home and cooked and cleaned. I figured that was the safest.