Uggh - it's tax season! Render unto Caeser what is Caeser's!

I'm admitting right up front here that I've been really angry over the last few days! I believe, though, that it's righteous indignation!

My family and I been doing everything in the right way - I've been trying to build a solid part-time business to gain additional income in order to pay off all of our debt, and start building up our 3-6 month emergency fund. I know (in the back of my brain) that there will be taxes associated with this additional income and I try to plan for that eventuality. I try to keep up with my quarterly tax filing the best I can (I have to file quarterly because I'm a minister and a business owner). I save all of my receipts and take all deductions that are due me, my family, and my business.

Over the last week, I've been spending a lot of time getting all of my personal and business paperwork together to do my taxes. During the evenings Monday through Thursday, I totaled up all my receipts and prepared all my numbers to enter into TurboTax on Friday.

So on Friday, I entered all of my numbers into TurboTax and definitely got sticker shock on my Federal taxes this year! I think my additional business income threw us into another tax bracket! What we owe in federal and state taxes this year on April 15 will totally wipe out all of our savings! We'll be back working on Baby Step 1!

I know what we have been working on and trying to accomplish over the last 3 years will be worth it in the end, but the government has really stolen my joy over the last week! I feel that I have totally been ripped off. My family and I are living a comfortable, debt-free, old used cars, no big flat screen TV kind of life, I'm trying to provide for my family to give us a stronger financial foundation, and then the government swoops in and takes away all of our savings!

I wish everyone had to pay quarterly taxes like we do, so that you can all experience the actual pain of paying the government. The majority of you out there that have your taxes deducted from your paychecks can't really comprehend how painful our tax burden has become. If everyone had to file quarterly taxes, there would be a revolution in this country!

Larry