It's tax season, so it might as well be cold.

Yes, it's that time of year. My typical day: wake up around 4:00 (alarm is set for 4:30. Get up, do my pushups and situps, shower, dress, make coffee, post here, get to work by 6:00.

There I read my tax news, eat a banana and a breakfast bar, post to the work blog, start doing work. Depending on the day and the urgency of the given project, I'm analysing the sale of a company, looking at a corporation or large partnership return, or signing off on 1040 or trust return. Yesterday I got a new Canadian client that needs to get a US return filed for their US activity. Eh?

About 7:30 pm I start to clean up my desk and decide on the next days projects. Leave work at 8:00, come home, have a snack, talk to Vickie, say goodnight to the boys, and get to bed by 10:00 - earlier if I can.

I vary the glamour on Tuesdays by helping at chess club at Bobby's school in the morning, and on Fridays by buying fresh bagels on the way in to the office.

There were snow flurries yesterday. I guiltily prefer crummy weather about now, so I don't feel I should be outside like the non-tax people. I know, making them unhappy shouldn't make me happy, but I don't control the weather, so it's not my fault anyway!

I tried to get a picture of the snow flurries yesterday downtown, but they didn't show up. I was at a stoplight, so I couldn't keep trying, but the picture does give you an idea of pre-dawn Des Moines:



At least, that's how it looks to me, until the coffee kicks in.

Now it's out to the cold, armed with hot coffee and a banana! 17 degrees...