Taxing and relaxing

I worked on the dreaded taxes over the weekend (with R's help, of course), and things were going all right until I got to the state of Delaware, primarily because the tax software I'm using doesn't handle a part-year residence in this state. So I printed the forms, attempted to fill them out by hand, and got about half way through before declaring incompetence. What it comes down to is the question of what is the most advantageous way for us to file: as joint residents, joint non-residents, single residents, or single non-residents. The instructions say we can take our pick, but the only way to find out the best option is to fill out the forms each way and compare. This whole process is complicated by the fact that I live in Delaware but work in Pennsylvania and that R worked for the same company the whole year but in two different states. Despite having a job in the financial business world, I really never developed much comfort with handling money. Accounting is not my strong subject. I will be able to file our federal, Alabama, and Pennsylvania returns using the software, but as for Delaware, I think I might take it into H&R Block.

On Friday night we watched Babel, which was decent, yet a little tiring. It fit in well with the director's prior films, Amores Perros and 21 Grams, and I say that because by the time I was done watching all them, I was exhausted and down and didn't really feel like discussing them. All three are well made and well acted, yet they do not contain something that I like about movies: the joy. I also finally completed Seven Samurai over the weekend, which was a solo project for me since R made the choice to not get involved from the beginning. It was an admirable movie but also draining due to it's sheer length, clocking in at 208 minutes. Still, I have been wanting to see it for a while and am glad I finally did. I like watching older movies because you are able to see the wheels working. They are not as seamless as today's slick, yet often soulless productions. Sometimes I like to witness the very basic principles of filmmaking in use, especially when the sum ends up being more than its parts. It gives me hope for my own filmmaking aspirations.

The premiere of Jack of Clubs is quickly approaching. We will be attending the April 12th screening at Theater N. The hype is building. Follow this link for the latest article on the film found in Out & About. And if you haven't yet checked out the collection of photos in my gallery that were taken by a talented photographer named Evan Krape over the course of four days on the movie's set, take a look here.