This week is the week that I finish my taxes.

I’ve been doing them for the past couple of months, since I got my T4 in the mail. It should have been a all-in-one-go type of tasks, but I find it really draining because there is so much that I don’t know and I have to learn about taxes. Bite sized chunks was all I could handle.

I know that I will end up owing likely quite a bit. I made some good online income last year, so I’ll owe taxes on all of that. Luckily, I did contribute to my RRSP, donate some money, and I have some write-offs as well, so that will help lower my taxes.

The end of the month is always quite busy for me. I have a whole bunch of freelancing projects that are due at the end of the month, plus some work stuff and other deadlines, so I’ve been scrambling. My tenant is moving back in (ie my brother, haha) at the beginning of April, and my fiancé’s birthday has just passed, so this weekend is going to be busy busy!

I have still been able to read a few awesome articles over the past few weeks. Here were some of my favorites.

Favourite Posts

I really enjoyed the post “Breaking Free of the Hold Stuff Has Over Me” on Money Misfit. I have never, ever been somebody who holds sentimental value in items, but I do like “stuff” (shoes, clothes, gadgets). It’s expensive and unnecessary.

My wedding approaches, so I really enjoyed “Don’t be a Money Moron” on DINKS Finance. I really enjoy the show Money Moron, and I think it scares my partner and I into keeping our lines of communication open.

Ryan reminds us that clothes don’t equal success, on Impersonal Finance. Ryan’s story is an interesting one, about buying children clothes from thrift stores, which I would be 100% behind. Why do we always have to have new in the Western world?

CBB at Canadian Budget Binder just posted about tattoos being the next advertising phenomenon. It reminds me of when I was a teenager and my boyfriend at the time said that he wanted to get a tattoo of the logo of the company he was working for as a server. I thought he was crazy. I don’t know if he ever ended up doing it but why let a company own space on your body?

On Blonde and Balanced, TK lists 5 awesome things about being 20. I am in my mid 20s, and many of the things listed don’t ring true for me (friends being my life, though I do appreciate them.. money being a secondary thought) but it’s still a nice read.

Brick by Brick Investing posted 4 things you need to know about self employment, which is an interesting read for those of us who are not 100% self employed.

Jessica at Mo’ Money Mo’ Houses asks whether long-term goals are getting in the way of your life.

As somebody who loves fashion and simplicity, I definitely enjoyed Save. Spend. Splurge’s post about getting a Parisian wardrobe. She has a 3 part series on her site, but my favourite had to be the ones with the pictures of must have’s ;).

My Contributions

Finally, I’ve also contributed a few articles to Credit Walk, such as the costs of flying out of US Airports, and a post about the best method of payment for Canadians travelling overseas, among others.