Stoopid taxes

I did a number of things over the weekend, only a few of which involved writing, unfortunately. The Big Event was gathering all of the household tax information together and preparing the various schedules and forms in advance of this week's arrival of my W2 from the university. Filling out my Schedule C was quite depressing, as my writing income was meagre indeed compared to the (admittedly modest) return I filed last year, buoyed as it was by the book advance from Nebraska. And the requirements for filing Lisa's daycare income are Byzantine. But the hard part is done. At least, that's the plan.

And no, going to H&R Block or some other firm isn't realistic. For the amount of refund we're getting back, it just doesn't make financial sense. And yes, I've tried TurboTax. Once. It refused to understand certain basic writerly deductions and would've cost me a good bit had I used its recommended return.

If all goes to plan, there should be enough of a return to allow us to make a downpayment on a replacement vehicle for the old, decrepit Neon, before said car finally gives up the ghost and leaves me stranded somewhere unpleasant. A nice, late-model used car with low mileage. Having bought both new and used vehicles in the past, I can't imagine ever buying new again. That depreciation is a killer.

On the bright side, I removed the packets of flavoring agents from my aging mead, and took a small sample of each. Wow. These, I think, are going to be fantastic. The holiday spice metheglin was a concern, but the cinnamon, ginger, allspice and nutmeg have blended together very smoothly indeed. And it's got a nice, neutral balance--not overly dry, but not sweet, either. Excellent. And the raspberry melomel is grooving. It's a tad dry--the tart raspberry taste is somewhat out of place without a little sweetness--so I'll add a bare touch of additional honey in the next few days. But man, oh, man. These are going to be most extraordinary once they've aged a little. That harsh medicinal edge on the plain meads I've fermented is almost non-existant...

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