taxes

I started doing my taxes by myself when I got my first job and then added Sylvain's to mine when we got married. It has never been something I have particularly liked, just something that had to be done. I've never complained about it but must admit as the years have passed I have come to dread it more and more each year.

Anyways, this week I did ours. I gathered up everything.. then started.. then procrastinated and stopped and then started again to finally finish them today. Well, almost finished them today.. unfortunately, I'm still going to have to deal with them tomorrow.

When completely finished, I went to file them via internet. Since the last 3 years I have been using software to do the taxes, not that it is any easier but you can't upload via the internet otherwise. The software does a review of the taxes. I have done a joint return and the software says no errors. Great!!

When you actualy file, you must file individually.. so I upload Sylain's Federal and Provincial returns (yes, I have to file one for each .. argh!! ) and everything is fine.I get the receipt from both governments.

The software then says that my return has an error..it says I have an amount that I have overridden and I must cancel the override or I'm not able to send file via the internet. Of course, I haven't overridden any number on my return but as a fool I check it anyways... of course, I'm human and must be wrong and the software must be right. Nope .. nothing.. I ask it to cancel the overrides but it just keeps giving me the same error. So I try to get it to ignore the overrides and then it says .. if you do that you will not longer be able to file your return by internet. The only reason I'm using this stupid software in the first place is to do exactly that.

I visit the company's support page online... hey!! they have "Live Help". I get a rep right away and he was courteous but as lost as I was. He keeps telling me to recheck everything over and over because I must have made an error. He has no idea how to fix it.

I end up having to send my tax return to the company for him to review and re-email me in 10 minutes. 10 minutes, 20, 30.. yep, you guessed it.. an hour later and still no email. Now I return to "live help" to find that "Dean" my representative has gone home and was not thoughtful enough to email me and say.. "hey, there!! Don't wait around .. I'm not here anymore."

Tomorrow I have to try and contact them again.. if my new friend, Dean, doesn't work only on the weekends, I may finally get these done quickly. If not, I am going to have to go through the whole rigamaroll of explaining everything all over to someone else.

They say that the only things that never change in life are death and taxes. Hmmm.. when you finally do go.. I wonder if they screw up and say.. "Sorry.. the gates are closed right now.. Pete's gone home for the night .. Could you come back tomorrow?"