Easter Tax Sunday Easter Sunday. Children collected colored eggs. Cadbury bunnies chewed cud. Cass and I filed taxes. Last year, when we filed year 2000 taxes, our pocketbook hurt. "I-got-kicked-in-the-crotch-and-let's-mail-the-video-to-America's-Funniest-Home-Videos" kind of hurt. We knew that as a married and renting couple with no kids in tow, taxes would be ugly. We didn't know it would get *that* ugly. I also mistakenly claimed "2" on tax exemption last year. This was apparently a horrible thing to do. As a result, we paid the sum of a state college tuition to the IRS. This year I had changed the exemption to "0", hoping things would be slightly better. Turbo tax whirled, processed, spit out the verdict. We still owed the amount of a year's college tuition. Sure, a cheaper state college this year, but still lofty fees. We went to H&R block, thinking that we must have made a stupid mistake. Maybe the IRS should pay US a small college tuition instead. Mona, the H&R block accountant, shook her head. We asked how much we owed her, she shook her head again. We went to the grocery store and I bought a donut with chocolate icing on it. I also bought "Tension Tamer" tea. I am drinking Tension Tamer tea right now. Tame my tension, tea! Tame it! I have this in perspective. I am glad that we make enough money to owe taxes. Life may feel more tense if we're in a situation where refunds are due us. I remembered graduate student days, when every year the IRS must have held his belly and laughed while examining my taxes. It was a wonder that he didn't draw a sympathetic face on my refund check. Even if he did, though, I would not have noticed in my haste to cash the darn thing so I could stock up on spaghetti-and-meatballs on sale for 99c. I wrote Mona a thank-you note for her time. Copyright (c) 2001-2009 by Jane Chin, All Rights Reserved. Back to Rate of Attrition