end of March already.....

I have a hard time believing that tomorrow is already March 31st, and a quarter of the year is gone. At the same time, that means I only have 15 more days until tax season ends. As much as I complain about my job, and for as much stress that I go through during these 11 weeks of February through mid April, I really do like doing what I do. Also, how can I complain when I only need to work a few hours each week after the tax season ends?

I did send out an email to clients last Monday reminding them of the 3 weeks remaining, and telling them that it was not too late to send in information. My buddy, John, up in New York, who I first shared an office with 20 years ago always laugh at that, "is it too late?" question. Of course we don't want the information on April 14th, but it is never too late. If an extension is needed, will file an extension.

I did receive an interesting email back from a client. Well, for one year a former client. He was a gentleman who normally visited the office, but with the move wasn't sure about sending the information, would he get the same advice, etc., so he went elsewhere. He wrote to to tell me this, and said it was a terrible experience, and asked if I would be willing to take him back as a client. I called him and we had a nice conversation, and I told him that I would of course work with him again.

I normally do not send a "goodbye" note to clients that do not return, mainly because there are usually only a couple each year, but this year will be different. I think I will send a note, tell them I understand it being "different", but also extend an olive branch that if they also had a bad experience, that I will work with them in future years. If I don't hear from them by the end of April, then I will purge their information from the office.

Otherwise, it has been, work, work, and more work.

Morgan was asked to read the story of Eeyore's Birthday at church for this weekend. That is three different services (Saturday night, and two on Sunday morning). We normally go to the Saturday evening service, but I also surprised her and showed up also at the first Sunday service at 9am. She did a wonderful job reading the story, and expressing the different characters of the story. Many people came up to her and complimented her on her voice, and the different voices she used.

The Hurricanes are struggling a bit this past week, and the 2-1 loss to the Tampa Bay Lightning on Saturday night stung a bit. The Canes have three games remaining, with the first being against the team on their heels, the Washington Capitals on Tuesday night in DC. They win that, they clinch the division, and the playoffs. They lose and those last 2 home games against the Lightning and Florida Panthers will be huge.

- Maybe two different tip jars? Or maybe no tipping at all for my $3 coffee.
- Do you want to know the calories in those "froo-froo" coffee drinks?
- I know Cassie watched. Who got slimed?
- Free Photoshop beta!

Until the next time.....

birthday week.....

First off, a very Happy Easter to all of you that observe the holiday. It is not all about bunnies, but about Him, and what He did for us.

Morgan and I went to our church's presentation of "Journey to the Cross" on Wednesday night. It was a very nice, and powerful presentation. Everytime I attend something at this church, I get more and more excited about it. The best part is the people and the connections we are making, and the feeling of belonging when we are there.

The big news this week was that Morgan's morning show was nominated for a Country Music Association award. As always, I love her and am very proud of her, and it all grows every single day.

Besides that activity it was work, work and more work. I can not remember a tax season where it seems the work on my desk has been at such a consistent pace, and I still have not got the "to do" pile to go away. That should happen this week, but when I see the email notes telling me, "I'm gathering my stuff. Sorry, I'm late", I am thinking these last 3 weeks might be the even more hectic. I just need to make sure I get enough rest, and take care of myself. So far, this tax season has been "painfree", and I would hate to ruin it by not paying attention to my body.

Cassie's friend left to go back to North Carolina last Tuesday. They spent Monday together at SeaWorld, and had a great time. I always find it funny how Cassie and Emily gravitated to each other in preschool, and have stayed together ever since.

This week was also my 42nd birthday (Friday). Cassie got me a videogame and a "chatpad" for my XBOX controller, while Morgan surprised me with tickets to Dodger Stadium, for us to see the Padres play the Dodgers on Saturday night, April 12th. Guess that will be a night I stop working early. ;-)

Just being with them for dinner and some quiet time at home was enough for me. Also, I will mention that Morgan got me a card that I really loved. I have saved every single card that she has ever given me (yes, I know), but this one I put on my night stand. It was perfect. Honey, I Love You!

The Hurricanes keep on playing well, and are really rolling during this late season run. Despite the injuries, they really look like a team that will be going deep into the playoffs. I hope I didn't just jinx them. ;-)

There was a nice story about Eric Staal's rise as a leader over at ESPN.com.

Well, I think I am going to try and get a short ride in today. The weather is absolutely gorgeous today, and will be this way for the next six months. I am starting to understand why I hear from more people that the only reason they stay in San Diego is the weather. Four dollar gas, and housing can negate it somewhat, but I do understand.

- Guess people still like Dr. Seuss.
- Is your favorite show coming back?
- There wouldn't be an iPod big enough.
- My bracket is busted

Until the next time.....

4 more weeks.....

So, 30 more days as of today until April 15th. The pile has been shrinking, but I have also had many other contact me that say they are sending their information, so this could be a very tough last few weeks. That's OK, but it will mean I will need to stay in the office a little more, but Morgan and Cassie are used to it. Kind of.

Very uneventful week, besides working, so not much to say. We did have Cassie's best friend from North Carolina stay with us on Friday and Saturday. She and her mom visited family in Arizona, then they drove here. Her mom dropped her off, and we went to Legoland on Saturday. Then her mom picked up her and Cassie, and will take them to their hotel until tomorrow when Morgan will meet up with them to visit SeaWorld.

On Wednesday night, Morgan and I will be attending our church's "Journey to the Cross" presentation. They have 15 different time slots next Wednesday and Thursday for 45 people to attend at each time, and they expect all the slots to be filled. We have been told it is an amazing presentation.

Last night at church, Pastor Harry spoke about "doors" and how they open up for us, and when they do, we need to go through them. He said there is a reason you are were you are at, right now, and that is because of the doors presented to each of us.

He told us how he was a student, and was just accepted to law school. He was also six months married, barely making it on his wife's income while he went to school. Also, he had only returned to Christ only six months earlier. Then a "well to do"classmate asked him to tell him about Jesus, and when he went and took that step through the door, it changed his life and brought him to the path that lead him to become a Pastor. I always feel so good when we leave the church for services or any other reason we are there, and I know Morgan feels the same.

We sent Flat Stanley to Kellie's son, Wesley, back in North Carolina. We hope we took enough pictures and gave Stanley enough of an adventure during his time with us. As you can see, Stanley took advantage of the San Diego weather to take a dip in the pool.

The Hurricanes have been winning, though they did stumble a bit on Friday night in Buffalo. As I write this, they are up 3-1 on the Ottawa Senators after two periods, and both ex-Senators, Joe Corvo and Patrick Eaves have scored against their former teammates. Hopefully they will keep it up in the third period and close out the victory.

Well, off to relax for the remainder of the day so I can get ready for the week ahead. I'll probably just update on Sunday morning until the end of tax season.

- I hope the Dodgers' sign me for my 60th birthday.

- People, "The IRS does not send out private emails!"

- I know its blank, but, you going to fill a bracket?

Until the next time.....

time to write.....

It's been since Wednesday night since I had time to write, and even though I really have no time now, I really need to get caught up here with what is going on.

Cassie battled a bit of a cold all week, but only missed school on Tuesday. Her sinuses were the main culprit (she's got mine), and she was "stuffed up" and had a hard time breathing all week, but really felt well otherwise. She has her first GATE (gifted and talented) activity coming up this week, and it is a trip to Legoland. What's up with that? Actually, they will be going to a special place there and will have to build certain working items.

Then on Friday afternoon, she has a friend from North Carolina coming to stay for the weekend. Emily and her mom, Tracie will be in Arizona visiting a cousin, then will be staying in San Diego for the weekend. We are planning on Legoland for Saturday, as Emily is a big Lego fan. Then on Monday, we are going to try or SeaWorld, so that will be a day we keep Cassie from school.

Morgan lost another 3+ pounds this week, and has gotten a total weight loss of 124 pounds as of today. I am extremely proud of her. She has been asked by the people of San Diego Magazine if she would be willing to have a story written about her concerning her weight loss. She told them, yes, and guess it is a wait and see as to when they will start the process.

Morgan has made a connection with the media contact over at the San Diego Padres, so that we can get tickets for a couple of games. If we lived closer to downtown, I would love to go more, but if we can get a game or two a month, that would be great. I am also waiting until after tax season, but I want to make a trip up to Los Angeles to see the Dodgers play. I have seen them plenty of times back in New York at Shea Stadium, but I have never been to Dodger Stadium. I think that will be an "alone" trip, as Morgan and Cassie didn't really give a big "thumbs up" to making that trip.

Morgan also has been working on her website for her voiceover work. She has really set it up nicely, and is excited about it. As a matter of fact, she will be doing some voiceover work for our church, probably sometime this week. Besides her friend and voice coach, these were the first "outsiders" she had sent the website link to for viewing.

I don't have enough time to get into what a tragedy this is over at UNC. My thoughts and prayers are with the girl's family. Looks like just another random act in this world we live in. No sense at all.

The Hurricanes won a couple of more games this week to take a nice lead in the Southeast division as they head down this homestretch with less than a dozen games remaining in the regular season. I'm really enjoying them work hard, despite all the injuries.

I was also very happy to see Erik Cole and Scotty Walker stand up to the Minnesota Wild after that terrible boarding hit on Eric Staal. Luckily, Staal was not seriously injured, but when are guys going to stop hitting guys from behind?

This tax season has been tough on me. The uncertainty of which clients are staying. Then wondering if the clients that have stayed are happy that they did, has been taking a toll on me. Add to it the time difference factor (the one thing I really don't like, whether it be trying to stay in contact with people, or as silly as watching a live event), plus the one thing I did not think would bother me, isolation. I actually miss people coming into my office. I didn't like them staying long, but I do miss it. I know that none of this should bother me, and I should just let it go, and let it play out, but I am having a hard time doing that.

In fact, so much so, that I told Morgan about it today, and wanted to know if we were any closer to making a decision to leaving when this contact is up at the end of next year. It made her extremely nervous and worried for me to ask that, but I am not ready to go. I just hate uncertainty. I hate not knowing what we will be discussing next October/November, and if we will be staying for more time, or have to pack up and come back east. My nervousness being that if we are coming back, do I have enough business to sustain us until I get back growth. I know these are all things I have no control over, and that I need to "let go", and let God decide, but when you mixed all of this into the normal stress of tax season, I don't think, or speak rationally.

Morgan and I had a good discussion about it, and I do feel better about things. In the end, as long as Morgan, Cassie and I are together, and we have our faith, all will be OK. I just need to "let go". I'm working on it. :-) I am just truly sorry that I made Morgan feel bad today by me letting my feelings out. That was not my intention, and I feel terrible that it has upset her day.

Morgan and I attended a marriage/children workshop at church on Saturday afternoon (No, not because of above). We were broken up into group (under 12 year old, teenagers, and empty nesters) as discussed parenting and our marriages. It was really nice and Morgan and I both took different pieces from it.

Then at service last night, Pastor Harry spoke about being "a day late, and a dollar short, and how accumulating all your "things" won't mean anything, because at the end they all go "back in the box". Different then what I had heard at others preaching about the subject, Pastor Harry said that we could have and even want items. Just don't put the love of those items, or the pursuit of them, in front of your love for God. His message hit home much better than the other times where I have heard that I had to give up everything, to show that you love God.

If we do have to move away from the area, I think Morgan and I will probably miss our church the most of all the things we would leave behind. I know that might be strange to say after only attending services these past 3 months, but I know it will be true.

Well, if you made it, God Bless You. You truly are a friend, or just board out of your mind. :-) Not sure if I will get any free time during the week, but I'll try to get one midweek update in.

- Got a snow shovel for the state?
- Finally, Apple letting more apps onto the iPhone.
- Roll a 20 sided die in his memory.

Until the next time.....

accountant geek.....

Quick shout to Mike (guns1ing3r), and some prayers for his family. Just saw over a post on GG.com, that his dad is in the hospital after suffering a heart attack, plus he is having some other family troubles involving his sister. Gone through the "dad thing", and I'm thinking about you and your family.

Also, a quick birthday wish to Casey. It was actually Tuesday, March 4th, and I did text him and email him at about 12:30am his time, but I figure he can get another one here. Happy Birthday, buddy.

This might be my only posting of the week, and I have been going non-stop, and can seem to get the pile down. I think part of this is me over compensating and speaking with my clients longer on the phone to make up for the time they would have normally been sitting with me. That's not all of them, as many never came to the house, but usually all the "gab" would be while they were sitting at my desk, and I was preparing the return. Now I speak with them, after I have completed it to go over it. Ugh! It is just getting frustrating trying to juggle and walk on egg shells to make sure all is going right.

At least yesterday, I had a total accountant/geek happiness. It started when a client sent a large Excel spreadsheet with stock sales for the year. Normally, I would have to print the sheet, and then input the transactions. With my program, I was able to copy the sheet to the clipboard, import it into my program, and tell the program which column went in which place in the program. Couple of clicks and it worked, and probably saved me 30 minutes. Who knew you could get excited over a spreadsheet? ;-)

But, no. The accountant excitement did not stop there. My new scanner arrived. Before dinner, I set it up, and did a couple of tests. Then after dinner, I played with some settings, and was able to scan different size papers, and some with 2 sides of print, and they all were crystal clear. This will save me tons of time the rest of tax season. Another "geek happy dance".

The Hurricanes doubled up the Atlanta Thrashers 6-3 tonight in Atlanta. They literally did double them, as the score for each period was 2-1 in favor of the Canes. Eric Staal had another 2 goals and an assist, and Joe Corvo had a goal, and was a plus 3 for the game. Way to keep it rolling, boys.

- Yes, but are they happy?
- All this for no cover on the oil tank?
- Prayers for Patrick Swayze.

Until the next time.....

piling up.....

When I left the office last Saturday night, I only had one "untouched" folder on my desk. Everyone else was completed or in the "pile of shame". As of noon today, there are now 25 in the untouched pile, and I worked all week! Of course, this is a good thing, as a tax accountant with no work before April 15th is not a good thing, but it shows how the "waves" of work coming in can sometimes overwhelm me during this time of year.

Again, a good thing, but it is human nature to work at "pace", so when I see two folders, your thoughts tell you that you have time, then the email "dings", the postman knocks, UPS man drops off, and the next thing you know is that you are flooded, and wonder if you will ever get the work completed.

That is the feeling I have right now. Because of the move, the clients that normally dropped off, or came into the office for appointments, are having to adjust for "my move". Some have had no questions or problems at all, while others needed some coaxing, and still others are possibly still thinking about it, or have already made a decision and have found another accountant. Also, the ones that used to come in for their appointment, were used to coming in and taking home their return the same day. Now they have to get used to getting the return anywhere from 2 days to 10 days later (depending on the backlog). All of this is over worrying on my part (what a surprise!), but that's me (really???).

I know all will work out. The pile will shrink to nothing in 6 weeks, the clients who liked having a relationship with me will continue to do so, while the others who just had me as their "tax return preparer", will move on to someone else to just "do the job". And, that's OK. When all this shakes out, and we are ready to return back east, my client base will be people who like working with me, and what I do for them. Even though that will be less then what I started with, it will be a great starting base to grow with as we start the final phase of my tax accounting career.

Final phase? I'm getting old. :-)

All of this actually ties into our church service last night. It was titled, Prophetic Economics. Some of what Pastor Harry described, was that in order to get your "house" in order, sometimes God makes/wants you to move from your current position or place to eventually find a better place. And even though you may question the "drought/hardship" God puts you through, if you hold the course, He will bring you to a better place.

While Harry was speaking, Morgan elbowed me in the ribs, and gave me that look. The one that says, "he's talking about you/me/us". She grasps these better then me. I still don't feel God is talking to me, as I am way down on the totem pole. But, when I look at it closely, I realize that God has spoken and lead me to good places.

When we got home, Morgan mentioned this again to me. She said to think back to 2004, when we first arrived in San Diego. I needed to reach the lowest point in my life, and a hardship of living apart from Morgan to get me back to church, discover Jesus, and straighten out my life, which in turn, made our family much better and stronger.

Now, it might be happening again. We may have been led to this move to let go of the large house, the large client base, and the "extras", in order to condense and prioritize the things in our lives, including the three of us to a much tighter family. This includes the fact that we all now attend the same church and services, which we did not do back in NC. Kellie has said since the beginning that we were brought out here again for a reason, and she is probably right (like she is on most of these things).

The Hurricanes beat up on the Tampa Bay Lightning 5-1 last night. The boys are really playing good hockey, and I'm glad to see them come together despite the many injuries. There really is not a dominant team in the Eastern Conference as all have injury or other problems, so if they keep this up, they might make some noise come April and June.

- We actually looked at Denver as a place to live back in 1997.
- Does this advertising work, or get lost in the "noise" of the events?
- I like Windows XP.

Until the next time.....