"Does it annoy those who don't have children to pay large school taxes?" Nope! People paid to put my kids through school, Actually, people paid to put ME through school! My kids are in private schools, so I'm paying to put them through (oops, no, forgot, this year DD is in public). But I have never minded the *concept* of paying for public education, bcs someone did it for me. Lots of someone's who had no children, even. And bcs as Steve & others point out, I benefit from a well-educated populace. In many ways. And I also live in NYC, where we waste--er, spend--$12,000 per pupil. THAT annoys me. I'm happy to pay--thrilled to pay, in fact. But I want the kids in my city to get a decent education, and I don't want to be fleeced. "Fire the administrators"--maybe (in NYC, it's "fire the janitors"). But a GOOD administrator will *make* a school. I know this, from having seen mediocre administrators, and mediocre and good bosses. The problem is, it's hard to find, and hard to BE, a good administrator.

My brother and I moved swiftly and surely to isolate our mother's assets when it became clear her failing health would preclude her independent life style. That was 2 1/2 years ago. She has a revocable trust now. Assets are protected, we have powers of attorney, and the chaos that follows any death will be minimized. She has "gifted" every year since her health "crashed and burned". Her home has been emptied of its contents and her assets have been directed to its maintenance. I can only tell you, that having an elderly, frail, mentally failing parent in your home and in your care is no day at the beach. To be perfectly honest, I hate the encroachment on my personal freedom. But she is my mother, she needs my help, and who better than I to see she is well cared for, indulged, given mental stimulation on a daily basis? "Baby boomers" need to pay attention to this issue... , laws governing "look back" and estate planning change every month/year; you need to pay attention to politics! "Look back" for Mum had we tried to put our names on the deed to her home in 2003 was 3 years. With the trust it was reduced to 7 mos.. Get thee to a lawyer specializing in ELDER LAW and estate planning, ASAP. Loop holes on inheritance and the transfer of potentially valuable real estate are being closed routinely, even as we're being told that we should reduce our expectation of social security and Medicare. Smarten up! move now and isolate the assets. You'll be glad you did.

Thanks for the words of (mostly) support. Here's an update: I decided to go to the source for information. I sent an email to the Archdiocese of Phila asking what the facts are on this issue. The next day I got back what I believe was a 'form letter email' if you will. It basically stated that at present there is no rule either way on the wedding procession and that there will not be until new Marriage Rite (from the Vatican) is published in english. I sent a follow up on an unanswered question - can an individual parish pastor decide on his own to forbid the father escorting his daughter - if that is her desire? I also asked if this practice is 'not a part of the Marriage Rite' in the future, will there be any wiggle room that would let the father and daughter walk together; or would it be a sin or invalidate the ceremony? I got no response for several days. Since the original query was answered so promptly, I decided that in case I was now being ignored, that I would resend the same email with a header ( second request, third request, etc.) every day until I heard from them. Well, after a week, I got a response, a personal one this time. The Marriage Rite is published with individual differences in different countries according to local practices / customs. Again, there is no current policy addressing who walks with whom; walking with my daughter is no sin and it would not invalidate the ceremony even after the Marriage Rite is published. I gave a copy of the emailed response to a friend of my wife. Her daughter is going through the same thing. It's my hope that she shoves the email right under my pastor's nose and calls him out on it, but I don't know how confrontational she is.

A few comments and then some of my personal advice to anyone reading this: To the OP, it sounds like someone did your taxes wrong. Sales of stuff you own is not counted in your AGI, certain gains are - but as you would have inherited the basis you really don't have any gains even if they would be counted (as Snidely pointed out). Many places give free tax assistance to low income individuals, call your state revenue department and ask. They will be happy to get you help. I am sorry, I don't like the whole follow your passion thing (pretend to be surprised) it is a great motto and works well on coffee cups, but it really should be about making smart decisions. If you are self motivating, a hard worker, and a decent planner then being self employed may be a great option for you. But on the other hand if you need the structured environment of a boss, then don't. I will come back to smart decisions. Now to anyone who is in the same position as the OP - my advice. Important vs. Urgent - Important decisions have a future effect on your life, while urgent decisions have an immediacy to them. As a species we are very good at focusing on urgent decisions, sociologist believe this is a survival instinct. However, rarely are urgent decisions - important decisions. Unfortunately, you seem to be faced with the most urgent decisions when you are in the worst shape to deal with them. For example, taking the time to really work hard at getting a better job is important. Picking a child with a cold up from school is an urgent decision. There are many others, even things like I have to find something to cook for dinner tonight. You have to deal with urgent decisions but you need to work hard to keep urgent decisions from drowning out important decisions. Smart decisions - Smart decisions are about honest self evaluation. Probably one of the hardest things you will ever do in your life is be honest with yourself. But once you are honest with yourself you can design strategies to get you to a better place. Many people are tempted to take that time and make a list of changes they need to make in themselves. Don't do that, design coping strategies. The coping strategies will change you. Be proud of your work, even if not where you work - One major pitfall I have seen too many people fall into, is the idea that a crappy jobs get crappy effort. If you work at Walmart then be the best damned Walmart worker they have ever seen. The quickest way out of a crappy job is not really to find a better job, it is to perform the hell out of the job you have. Before long someone will notice, and once someone notices other people will too. To wrap this up - Find out how you can make your life livable (even if barely) for the near future and better in the end. Find a realistic way of getting there. You don't have to be a doctor, every city has garbage collectors leading happy lives, putting back money for their kids' education, and cherishing their extra family time.