Wednesday, January 30, 2013

And Counting...

I went to Bob Newhart's School of Accountancy; as long as I'm in the ball park, (he actually said, "within a buck or two," I think,) I'm fine, and since mine is such a tiny business, (I'm not legally required to file, that's how small I am,) I don't even bother claiming many things I'm entitled to. I just want to file my returns in order to be in the system and participate as an active, contributing member of the society, though my contribution is almost exclusively by way of consumption and not by income tax payment. Anyhoo, I've been dithering and working and dithering and working on my tax returns since Monday as it has to be filed before I go.

The thing is, it was actually nice in the days where I stuffed a year's worth of receipts in a rice cracker tin and waded through it once a year. Most things were paid with checks, so if I covered invoices, receipts and check stubs, I was almost done. Nowadays I write about five checks a year, but pay with credit card, electronic transfer, and PayPal, and cash once in a blue moon. And I collect paper receipts, emails, PDF downloads from websites' account history, and tiny, colorful Post It notes on which I scribble illegible dates, amounts and items/services purchased. And then there are currency conversions that doesn't show up on Visa until a few days later. (There is a fix to the last problem; I just haven't bothered to buy things from overseas NZ$.)

Briefly I set up a debit card so I could pay almost everything to do with MegWeaves with it, but the bank fee was too much for this business so I canceled that. 

A lot of bother would go away if I used fewer methods of payment, or opened a proper business bank account with credit card, or at least went though the bits more frequently than once a year. But it hasn't happened; I wonder if I am secretly enjoying this annual masochistic conundrum.

Anyhoo, later.

2 comments:

  1. Before you know it, it'll all be over -- the annual accounting, that is. 2011 was my last year filing an annual tax return, and I only did it that year because I was eligible for some kind of earned income credit for the work I did at Sequoia Humane the first half of 2011. I've thought back many times recently to the days, 20 plus years ago, when I had to strategize business expenses against earned income and all that jazz, and figure depreciation on my car, home office/studio expense, yada yada yada.
    My point is, all of a sudden, it seemed, I didn't have to do it any more. So if you're willing to just give a couple days every year and you don't even need to do it, really, then don't bother changing your system. Just ride it out.

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  2. Hi, Connie. As you know I'm always a few steps behind you. It's really not a big deal, except that I just loathe the task. Plus, doing this in the heat of usually Dec/Jan summer is probably not good. I think I might work on the next one in August or so, then I may be less frustrated!

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