Every member of the team has a few outstanding items, like returns and extensions, that absolutely must be finished by the end of the day. At the same time, excitement flows through the halls as everyone is about the complete their hardest-worked week of the entire year. Some people have vacations planned for the week after April 15th, and others are just happy to get back on a regular schedule.
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I completed extensions for most of the day, but at 4:00 PM is when my April 15th began to take off. Follow along:
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4:00 PM - Extensions finished, time to begin stuffing envelopes.
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4:30 PM - Envelopes are stuffed, ready to make Post Office run number one.
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4:40 PM - The post office nearest the firm is closing at 5:00 PM, so I will stuff my back-pack with hundreds of pieces of mail (it was raining) and scurry down the street.
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4:55 PM - Remarkably, there was no line at the post office, and the clerk was kind enough to "circle-stamp" all the envelopes right in front of me. The circle-stamp reads "April 15th" on it. Score one for the clients.
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5:05 PM - Back at the firm, reporting the good news (the mail made it). Time to rest for a moment as my hair dries out.
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5:08 PM - Cleared the minesweeper basic level in 16 seconds flat. See below.
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5:10 PM - Time to learn some new software before the next task arrives at my desk. I've decided to run the training tutorials in QuickBooks. Knowing this program will help in my current position later on.
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6:30 PM - Begin reading Form 1040 instructions. There are some things about the by-hand mathematics of taxes that I want to figure out. I'll only get through a few pages of this tome, but at least it's pretty understandable.
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7:15 PM - Things are beginning to wind down. The time has come to choose who will be making the late-night downtown post office run.
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The only post office in and around DC that was open until midnight this year was the one next to Union station, at 2 Massachusetts Ave, NE, Washington, DC. Other offices were open until 8:00 PM, but because of the economy, the USPS has made cuts. Normally, two members of the firm must make the late-night downtown post office run, but this year's journey was absolute horror because of the fact that everyone in a 50 mile radius was having to come to DC to mail their taxes given all the early closings elsewhere.
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8:00 PM - I and another junior member of the team have been chosen for the "honor" of going to the post office.
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9:00 PM - After some more reading and a cup of coffee, we leave for the post office.
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I will add that the early closing of post offices everywhere other than DC was not well publicized, and a completely reckless act on the part of the US Postal Service. The chaos that the USPS caused in downtown DC should be illegal. It was pouring rain, the cars were not moving ANYWHERE, and drunkards from the Irish pub across the street from the post office were dancing in the roadways.
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Two people make the late-night post office run in DC because one drives while the other gets out and takes the mail as close to the front doors of the office as possible. I was the driver. I waited briefly on F street for my partner to return from the delivery, and when I wanted to leave, I couldn't. Still in front of the pub, someone was dancing around near my rear bumper, and I couldn't back out. It. Was. Crazy.
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This, my first April 15th, was one to remember. Not like my first day of high school, where in my first class all the teacher gave us to do was pop bubble wrap.
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I am glad the tax season is over. School is beginning to heat up, with projects and exams coming quickly.
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