Tributum Newsletter #53

Hello

While the current lower levels of load shedding are to be enjoyed (have we as SAFA’s not become too happy with too little?) the conspiracy theorist in me is going nuts. But more on that later. We have reached the halfway mark. That is if you measure time on a calendar year basis. And some metrics in our lives are anyway. School years for parents, leave days and pay checks remaining to Christmas bonus (wait, you still get a Christmas bonus?), visits to or from family, etc.

But life is not measured in calendar years, life is measured over time with birthdays keeping count of years, months, days minutes and seconds. None of us know how much or little we will get and whether we will see another New Year or birthday. So let us not confuse movement, or the passing of time, with progress. Remember – we cannot add time to our lives, but we can add life to our time. Find what you love and fill every minute with 60 seconds of distance run, while you can. “YOLO” like the younger generation will say.

As for the conspiracy theorist in me it seems almost too good to be true that Eskom is experiencing fewer breakdowns when we use more energy than when we use less. Or have the syndicates been told to ease up on sabotage just long enough to show how wrong Andre de Ruiter was? But stopping the bleeding and curing the patient are two very different things. Hopefully the damage already done is not permanent. Not to even mention the National Health Insurance and getting stranded on the tarmac in Poland…

Hopefully you all know that tax filing season for individuals starts on 7 July. Assumption is the mother of all FUBAR so here are a few to avoid:

• Don’t assume you don’t need to file a tax return – rather file even if nothing is owed or refundable.
• Don’t assume you will be auto assessed. Check efiling regularly.
• Don’t assume your auto assessment will be correct – check it.
• Don’t assume you are a provisional taxpayer. Don’t miss the filing deadline. Don’t rack up late submission penalties.
• Don’t assume that the person helping you with your taxes have you as their highest priority. Check in with them to make sure it gets done.

Hopefully your refund is paid out by the time the next newsletter comes out. Until then, keep breathing.