My short history: I have debts to clear. Student loans, some to the IRS, and a little more to credit cards. How I got here is boring. But how I get out of this will not be. With faith and resilience and a lot of creativity, I know that I can overcome my debts and find the financial and emotional freedom that I'm looking for.
I get wrapped up in paralyzing fear sometimes. Money and I are not the best of friends. In fact, when money tries to talk to me I usually turn away. You don't have to be Suze Orman or Dave Ramsey to know that this needs to change.
So there I was on the eve of the unholiest of American days, April 15. I alternated between wanting to get it over with and putting it off some more. Sure I could've filed an extension but that wouldn't have helped my need to face my finances head on. I need to get rid of these things that dangle around me all the time to use the mental space for more creative projects. I managed to take a deep breath and then go to IRS.gov. And there I saw the link to free file. The program was a little clunky and outdated but I had done my own taxes enough on TurboTax and H&R Block to know how to fill in the forms. What's more, I only paid $10 for the state portion while in the past I've paid $30. And last year, I also waited til the last minute and ended up having to pay $30 to file my federal.
Cost: federal=FREE, state=$10 Savings (over last year): $50 Payoff: a HUGE sense of relief for getting things done
