Gary, your comment on the disparity in taxes is true for Prop 13 as well and is frequently raised as a deficiency in the program. But there's no free lunch and you can't have it both ways. Do you want people on fixed incomes to be taxed out of their homes whenever a real estate bubble causes home values to soar? Those who buy a new home know precisely what their tax burden will be when they purchase, and what it will be going forward. That's a tremendous benefit for those wanting financial stability in their lives. The same cannot be said for allowing property taxes to swing in the winds of changing property values. Prop 13 continues to be wildly popular with Californians. Sierra, you're right in pointing out that the state government has aggressively pursued finding other sources of taxes. But imagine if property taxes had not been curtailed by Prop 13 during the recent bubble. The state would have enacted even more new programs that they'd then be unwilling to shut down when property tax revenues declined and we'd have been in an even bigger mess (hard to imagine...but true). What the state needs is an ability to constrain the pace of spending to something close to the growth in (legal) population...but regrettably it ain't gonna happen.

When I was very ill with depression, I became overwhelmingly behind in my paperwork. Here is the simple filing system that helped me get caught up! I file routine stuff by date. I have 12 file folders - one for each month. I rotate them so that this month's folder is always at the front and I keep it in front for a few days into the next month. Anything bill that is automatically paid just goes into that folder the minute I open it. The envelope and anything else in the envelope just goes into recycling after I have glanced at it to see what it is. At the end of the year, all the folders have stuff in them. I just reuse them for the next year. I make a big brown envelope with the year written on it and as I move each month's folder to the front, I immediately put last year's stuff into the brown envelope. This means that when tax time comes, I have all that stuff in a folder by year and I can go through it and remove anything needed for tax purposes. I used to keep back copies of bills for a few years but truly I have rarely needed them. If I need one urgently, I can get it from the company. So now I only keep them for a couple of years. Because they are in their own envelopes, by year, I can just take the whole envelope and shred it some time when I'm feeling industrious. When I was getting caught up, I just filed EVERYTHING in the monthly folders. After things settled down, I broke out a few categories. I have an INCOME TAX file that I put stuff in that I know is tax related; I have a file for savings/investments that I track regularly and I have a file called 'cards' where I keep additional copies of car insurance cards, health insurance cards etc. I find it easier to keep up this personally simplified filing system. I rarely need stuff from the monthly files but if I do, I can usually recall approx. when I did what so it's not that hard to go through them. Good luck getting caught up. I have a friend who is a professional accountant and believe me, he is used to folks who are in a panic about their finances and there are huge numbers of these folks. So I would advise you to get a professional tax prep. person to help you if it doesn't work with your sister as they are non-judgmental and used to dealing with folks who have your kind of concerns.

How to Find Legal Help Please determine which legal service is appropriate for you: If you are low income, and: * have a civil legal problem * do not live in King County Call CLEAR Intake (toll free) 1-888-201-1014 for legal assistance The Northwest Justice Project has developed a client intake system called CLEAR. The system allows low-income individuals to be referred to legal assistance in their community by calling a toll-free number. Certain cases can be referred to Northwest Justice Project offices, local volunteer lawyer programs, law school clinics or other resources in the caller's community. When seeking assistance, please call CLEAR Intake (toll free) 1-888-201-1014 before calling other legal services programs. For self-help legal information on a variety of topics, go to www.WashingtonLawHelp.org If you are low income, and: * have a civil legal problem * live in King County Visit the Northwest Justice Project's King County legal service providers directory for assistance. For self-help legal information on a variety of topics, go to www.WashingtonLawHelp.org If you are not low income: There are Lawyer Referral Services throughout the state, and there may be one in your area. Lawyer Referral Services are for the general public; there are no financial eligibility requirements. The lawyers charge their regular fees for services after the initial consultation. These are not low-cost or reduced-fee attorney panels. If you live in Spokane County, you may be eligible for low cost legal services depending on your income and type of legal problem. Please call CLEAR Intake (toll free) 1-888-201-1014 for legal assistance. For self-help legal information on a variety of topics, go to www.WashingtonLawHelp.org Here is a link that might be useful: WA Bar Association

If you hire me for a sink job, I'm giving you a fixed price whether or not I take a beating. Two important things: Make sure 1) your pricing reflects ALL your cost, fixed and variable and 2) that you might lose a potential client if you hold firm to your no breakdown policy. Using a single $ amount to adjust for pricing mistakes or b/c you’re guessing some of the costs is not Wise or biz savvy. If a customer does his research and your price is within a 20% range up/down, they might not insist on breakdown. I might be more insistent on requesting a breakdown if overall number sounds off, otherwise, maybe yes maybe no. In a large project, you bet I will insist on a detailed quote. ive read and enjoyed many of your posts so can’t imagine your not knowing your costs or having problems detailing items.