Tax Day

Things have been incredibly busy lately and I'm anxious for a bit of down-time. What with the semester winding down, taxes to file, and coming down with the flu immediately after my return from London, I've been a bit of a mess. I am currently trying to write an article about this Canadian horror film trilogy, Ginger Snaps, and I'll be teaching a class for high school students all next week. In other words, things are only going to get worse!

As many of you know, yesterday was American tax day. And given that my non-citizen status makes me ineligible for the usual tax credits, I'm usually one of those people who is still completing calculations at 10pm, licking the envelope at 11pm, and rushing down to the post-office just before midnight to drop it off curb-side where, if you're lucky, they have USPS employees working late to assist the procrastinators like myself. This year, I was proud of myself for managing to get my taxes completed and in the mail by about 3pm . However, I was disappointed to discover that I owed about twice as much as I did last year. Sigh. Part of the problem was that I received some fellowship money to attend a theory program at Cornell last summer and I received it as salary but without taxes taken off in advance. I was a little stressed by the whole process and Aviva recognized that a good laugh might make it seem more managable. So she sent me this really funny Hallmark e-card called "the screaming banshee does her taxes." Below is a capture of the opening image. It's hilarious and I encourage everyone to check it out at hallmark.com. Canadian taxes aren't due for another two weeks so it can still provide some levity for fellow Canucks who may be struggling to file taxes.

Aviva's parents came for a short visit yesterday, and because it happened to be her father's birthday we went out for dinner to this barbeque joint called Sticky Lips. The food is super and really inexpensive. I love it because they also have lots of fish and vegetarian options on the menu. I had tasty blackened salmon, collard greens with black-eyed peas, and smashed potatoes. Yummy. We also started the meal with deep-fried pickles and fried green tomatoes. I know. Terribly unhealthy but ooooh so good. If you've never tried deep-friend pickles and think it sounds disgusting, don't knock 'em till you've tried 'em. They are super tasty--though you have to eat them very carefully. The pickle juice turns molten once they are deep-fried and it can burn the living hell out of your mouth. I've only eaten them twice and both times I've burned blisters onto the roof of my mouth. I also made Fred a birthday cake--a flourless chocolate espresso cake decorated with espresso beans and rasberries. Aviva bought Fred this really cool Guatemalan jaguar mask from Animas Traders, which he's planning to hang on his office door, and a cubicle "action" figure set. The action figure, named Ted, comes complete with his own cubicle walls, a motivational poster, and an in/out box. Fred and Rita also brought back tons of fun little souvenirs from their recent trips to Australian, Fiji, and Venice, including mini-koala bears, a stuffed wombat, a fish-shaped pot-holder, and a tiny Venetian parasol. We then watched a hilarious video of Rita improving a folk song with some folk singer they met in Australia. They sang improvised barbed lyrics back and forth until he finally admitted defeat.

Ok. Back to writing about blood, oozing bodies, and teenage werewolves living in the Canadian suburbs. More later.