Procrastination and Taxes

Me:  “boy, I shoud really do my taxes.”  This was a good two weeks before the day that you absolutely must have your taxes done though, and it was a Friday night, so of course they didn’t get done.  Unless you consider going to H&R Block online, signing in, and putting my name and address in as doing taxes.  It just wasn’t last minute enough.  It didn’t feel right.  Besides, I was missing a W-2 and some other piece of paper from last summer.

Fast forward to Tuesday, April 14th at about midnight and you’ll find me sprawled on my living room floor with my laptop and a pile of papers that were totally unrelated to taxes but had been stuffed in a drawer and looked important.  Me again:  “I’m missing a W-2.  And some paper from last summer.  I think I should just do this tomorrow.  I can do that right?  That’d be ok and I wouldn’t get in trouble for doing it tomorrow, right?”  My boyfriend just shook his head. “I think you really should do it tonight.”  He had already finished his weeks ago.  Ok, ok.   Me to my roomate:  “I think I can claim you as a dependent.  We live together and sometimes I make dinner.  Man, I’m tired and I’m missing that paper from last summer and a W-2 so I’ll finish this tomorrow.  I promise.  What do you have to do to get an extension, anyways?”

April 15th at about 3PM I’m sitting in my car in front of our apartment with my laptop.  We didn’t want to pay for wireless so we snoop it from neighbors and for some reason this is the best place to get it.  I had found the W-2 and the mystery paper from last summer, which turned out to be a 1099-MISC, whatever that is, and was working away busily.  I just couldn’t find a home for the numbers in the 1099.  I called a friend, made some things up, hunted down my 2007 AGI (who actually keeps tax information from the previous year, anyways?), and E-filed my taxes right on time.

I wasn’t really surprised when both my federal and state tax returns were rejected the next day.  How long do I have before I have to fix that, anyways?