Beware the Ides of March!

According to Wikipedia, and I quote: The Ides of March is a day on the Roman calendar that corresponds to March 15. It was marked by several religious observations and was notable for the Romans as a deadline for settling debts. In 44 BC, it became notorious as the date of the assassination of Julius Caesar.

From what I remember of the tale, Caesar was warned not to go the Senate that day.  His wife had a nightmare on the fourteenth of March that it would be dangerous for Caesar to do so.  He ignored her warning as superstitious nonsense.  This is a perfect example of what happens when a man fails to heed the counsel of his wife! He was stabbed to death on the floor of the senate.  Hence the statement "Beware the Ides of March" from the play "Julius Caesar" by William Shakespeare.

Beginning in 1861, when Abraham Lincoln established the first federal income tax, the phrase took on a new meaning.  For almost 100 years, the tax deadline date was March 15 - the Ides of March! 

In 1955, the deadline was moved from March to April.  I think I know why.  The tax code, which began as a simple thing has become so complex that it fills volumes!  I believe that something is wrong when it takes the average citizen hours upon hours and a PhD in mathematics to plow through it!

Last year I paid a tax pro several hundred dollars and ended up owing a couple of thousand dollars!  The two years before that, I hired a CPA, who also charge big bucks, and was audited - and fined - both years!  So this year, I bought a $50 tax program at Costco and spent that last 4 days going through a year's worth of financial junk (which I hate) just to get it finished.  Hallelujah!  According to Turbo Tax, I'm getting a refund.

They say the devil is in the details, but I think he is in the US Tax Code!  

I seriously need ideas for better organization of my tax-applicable documents!  Keeping receipts in a shoe box isn't hacking it anymore!

Help!  Don't leave me hanging!

Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ides_of_March

Gebara Education copyright March 14, 2018