Tax Day.
Groan...
For as much as I love paint and words and creating messy things,
I despise record keeping and ledgers and the monotony of orderliness.
Calculating tax returns ranks right up there with the time I got a root canal.
The root canal was particularly memorable because not only did it hurt like heck, but while the perky, young, blonde endodontist with red manicured nails heartily shoved medical machinery, including a running drill and what might have been a catalytic converter into my mouth, she asked 'getting to know you' questions.
"Do you have kids?" her smile gleamed, sparkling with a million dollars of dental work. I was flat on my back, white-knuckled, having infected tooth pulp sucked out with a vacuum hose. I didn't feel much like small talk.
"Auhughmshix..." I attempted to smile, and held up six fingers.
"Ohmygosh! Imagine, six kids! How can you keep track! Ohmygosh if anyone asks you how many kids you have, you can just say half a dozen!!!!!" Her peals of laughter echoed loud enough for me to still hear today.
Needless to say, I did not reveal to this woman that I was five months pregnant with number seven. Better to let her imagine I swallowed a globe on my way in for the root canal.
Compared to Tax Day, which I have to endure every year, that root canal was nothing. Just a fleeting irritation.
But April 15 comes every year, with its infernal receipts and columns and calculations. I am not fond of April 15.
Today my son came home from school, dumped his math homework on the table and said, "Mom, is tomorrow April 15th?"
"Yes."
"Awesome! Will you make a cake to celebrate?"
"Are you nuts, Kid? Who celebrates Tax Day?"
"Mom!" he said, looking shocked with disbelief. "April 15th is Leonardo Da Vinci's birthday! How could you not know that? It's important!"
Well, who knew?
April 15 is special! I think I will go bake a gluten-free, sugar-free cake, after all.
Then we will really have something to smile about.
