The Blog

It seems so long ago (it was only last week) that we were cueing the fireworks and celebrating leaving 2020 in the rearview. But after all of the events of the past week, it seems wise that we might adjust to the fact that the world around us is not what it might have been in the past. Honestly, it’s … Read More

Say it with me again: it’s a whole new year. 2020 is in the rearview… And 2021 is starting with some very nice treats for regular families in the clunkily-named “Coronavirus Response and Relief Supplemental Appropriations Act of 2021”, also known as the “Consolidated Appropriations Act” or CAA for short (the CAA is the entire bill … the clunky name … Read More

These weeks are disjointed, these holiday weeks. As of this writing, there are only three days left in 2020, and this week contains New Year’s Eve and New Year’s Day. So if you want to make ANY 2020 moves (outside of IRA things, which can be retroactively applied after 12/31), time’s a wastin’. I hope that by the time you … Read More

This will be a different kind of note today than I normally post. Because the first thing to note is that a bona fide holiday miracle seems to have occurred: Congress agreed on another relief bill. Given this cultural climate, this might rank up there with the never-ending oil in the lamps of the Maccabees. (Obviously, I exaggerate … slightly.) … Read More

The clock is really ticking now on 2020. But before you celebrate, please — for the love of Pete — make SURE that you are getting whatever needs doing done NOW that might affect this year’s taxes. I’ve been banging this drum the last couple weeks, but I know how thick-headed I can sometimes be, so I’m just assuming you’re … Read More

Last month, I talked about [ENGBLOG]some potential moves NW Tucson taxpayers could make by the end of the year. I wanted to remind you of those possibilities before I get to what else I want to talk with you about… (paying off debt) Those were: Look ahead to 2021 — project what your income might be, then make withholding and … Read More

Is there such a thing any more as “conventional wisdom”? It’s a fair question to consider as we retreat further and further into our ideological silos as a society — only reading “news” from the slant that makes us feel smartest (“See, if [smart person I read] says it’s true, and I already think it’s true then it must be!”). … Read More

I think we all need this week. 2020 has been *so hard*, for so many in NW Tucson (and far beyond!). And it’s not over yet — from continued electoral fighting, to spikes in virus cases and increased governmental restrictions all over the place, and (of course) the murder hornets. But with the inexorable passing of time … Thanksgiving 2020 … Read More

Fatigue. Lockdowns, election politics, masks — we THOUGHT we might be done with these things by now … but nope. And I bet you’re tired of it all. Most NW Tucson people are, aside from the zealots on every side. And I get it. That doesn’t mean these things aren’t important (they obviously are), but a certain level of numbness … Read More

Here we are, a week past the election, and it’s looking like the year 2000 all over again, with a long, drawn-out process until there is final certification of this election. Back then, it took a full five weeks for all of the legal process to play out. Hopefully, by the end of this process, we can all accept the … Read More