Back in 1980ish, I was living in a small Southern town. The main post office is on a four-lane boulevard that connects several towns over a thirty-mile or so stretch. These were the days when nothing was opened on Sunday, and all commerce–except restaurants–ended by six every other day of the week.
I was driving through town about ten one night when I noticed a crowd of people inside the post office. This was so far beyond normal that I circled back to find out what was going on. The post office was open until midnight for people who needed to make sure their tax returns had an April 15 date stamped on them.
There’s not much to do in small Southern towns, so this began a tradition for me. Every tax day, I’d drive by the post office of wherever I happened to be living and watch people frantically completing their tax returns before midnight. It was like a once-annually social club. People laughed, talked, helped each other fill out forms. They wrote out checks and bitched about taxes, or congratulated whoever was getting refunds.
Even in Houston, there are certain post offices that keep employees working until midnight to take mail by hand as people drive through. But even with machines that will dispense dated stamps, I haven’t seen a crowd at our two closest post offices in a long time. I think Turbo Tax put an end to tax socials.
you know, i’ve never had the tax day ritual of hanging out at the post office, but reading this makes me wish i had!
it is a little sad that it’s not how it used to be…tho i filed online..ha
You young whippersnappers and your newfangled ways…
I LOVE TurboTax!
I am old enough to remember the old rituals and young enough to be damn glad they are gone. My husband updated our computer and got rid of a lot of old files on what was then our only family computer about five years ago. He somehow deleted or corrupted the TurboTax file from the previous year – which meant that I had to manually enter all that information myself again.
Things were not very pleasant at my house for about a week after that. 😉
But it’s never happened again.
That’s all I have to say about that.
Shawn Lea
http://everythingandnothing.typepad.com
Re: I LOVE TurboTax!
LOL, oh, the joys of two people dealing with household money matters. Even with Turbo Tax, it’s best that Tom and I don’t do our own taxes. His stuff is straightforward, but I have two separate self-employment headaches. Then there’s all the house stuff.
I just save every single scrap of paper all year and give it to our Amazing Tax Woman in February. She preserves our marriage! Ironic, since she’s in the very situation that naysayers say is a threat to my marriage. She has a wife and adopted children.