Three resolutions

[lblanchard]

I have made three new resolutions:

No caffeine after 3:30.

No internets after 9:00 p.m.

Half an hour's soothing reading before lights-out.

The night before last I read until drowsy, then came upstairs to set up the coffee and foolishly went to the internets, where I saw some upsetting commentary about our imminent property tax hikes (about which I may or may not have written previously, but they're estimated to be in the range of 5x or 10x). It kept me awake; in fact, I practially had a panic attack lying in the dark.

Yesterday I tested my new resolutions, re-reading a charming collection of gardening essays before lights-out, and slept very well.

And now I think I'll go for a little ride in the clear and breezy morning. Winds are out of the north northwest according to Weather Underground, so I should have a stiff head-wind on the way home to make things interesting. (Update: Down the Lakes and back. Winds weren't too bad.)

Comments

[pondhopper.livejournal.com]

Early morning and after 9 PM is when I do most of my internetting!
And I can have no caffeine after 12 noon!
Reading...yes. I so agree.
:)

I see what you mean about the panic attack, though. (Saw your post on FB about that great house for sale and the taxes). Our taxes have been steadily going up and even more now that all the public administrations are yelling bankruptcy in Spain. That is one of the things keeping me awake...and since we have only one salary these days which has had three cuts made to it in the last two years...the math makes for nightmares sometimes.

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

I'm on the internet all day for work, so it's awfully easy to take a break now and then.

Yeah, the tax thing is very scary. We'd be facing total taxes of about $20,000 for the city alone if they don't change their plans -- more than we'd owe the feds. Plus I pay for my own health insurance.

Roy doesn't want to go to that "great house for sale" so that's out.

[halfmoon-mollie.livejournal.com]

Doctors advise...especially the computer thing, not before bed because there's something about the way the light affects your brain...blah blah. Same thing with television.

A charming collection of gardening essays sounds wonderfully restful, way better than being kept awake by tax news.

Hope you enjoyed your ride.

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

The ride was great. The sky was blue, the humidity was low, and the wind hadn't picked up yet.

[chakolate.livejournal.com]

OMG - 5 to 10 times?? Are they making any concessions for those on fixed incomes?

One of the things that determined whether I wanted to buy my building last summer was finding out that in Chicago, if you're over 65, you can have your property taxes frozen, or if you're so inclined, you can just not pay them, and let your heirs deal with them when they inherit.

Plus I just got a notice that my evaluation went down by about 25% - it's still evaluated at 50K more than I paid, but it's better than 110K more.

[lblanchard.livejournal.com]

As far as I know, there's no concession for elder folks and I know there's going to be wailing and gnashing of teeth about poor black granny being priced out of the ancestral hovel because those evil white gentrifiers moved in and raised everybody's property values. There's apparently some law in Pennsylvania that forbids any kind of breaks based on age or income.

We're not wild about the leap in taxes, but we can if we like sell these two places for a bundle and then go buy something a lot less expensive out there in flyover country where they do the dance of the low-sloping foreheads and everyone clings bitterly to their guns and their religion. (Must.stop.now. I've been reading two much of the bicoastal disdain for the heartland lately.)