💰Canada Revenue Agency😓

 Let me vent! This is quite a story.

After recreating new CRA accounts for both of us, our passwords came in the mail. The agent was horrified when I told her that I did his taxes, and demanded we get this permission signed and uploaded right away. Despite this, CRA kept emailing JB saying he had to respond to them. JB had signed a paper saying that I could do his taxes. 

After checking our mail, finally a new one-time passcode. It just isn't simple. Logging on, they had to send me a text code, and THEN I could log in with the new passcode. I found the 'letters' CRA claimed we hadn't responded to, unopened on his account.

I spent a half hour yesterday reading and printing mysterious messages from Canada Revenue Agency on our online MyAccount. Apparently we will owe 6-digits for 2020 taxes, since we did not respond to messages on MyAccount that we didn't know we had. I had suspected that they'd want the hard copy receipts, but since most of them were mine from laser eye surgery, I expected them to tell me. 

When you do up you taxes on TurboTax, the program automatically divided receipts between both of our tax accounts. It's only fair, since we share finances. That's why it's JB's account that required medical receipts.

What a complicated system. I don't know how some seniors get this done if they don't have someone to help them.

I spent another two hours gathering and reprinting medical receipts for 2020, crafting a letter, and totalling medical receipts. I uploaded the letter to his account, and we will snail mail the receipts to CRA. 

Sadly, the address of our tax office is in St. John's, Newfoundland. They've just had a major storm, as well as New brunswick.

Terrible washouts out east

UPDATE: CRA phoned Thurs., Nov. 25th. 

I had another CRA phone call, the real deal when they quote their first name and employee number. They demanded I tell them the plan for repaying the $10,000 they say we owe. 

I spent 15 minutes explaining the situation. 

1. We didn't get their 'letters' on the website. 
2. I borrowed from the Line of Credit and paid the amount owing from my 2019 error. It will take 5 - 10 days for them to receive our payment. $194.37 in interest for 2019's mistake.
3. I have printed a letter outlining what has happened, that I've paid the 2019 overdue amount,  and uploaded it to JB's tax return. 
4. I have copied my medical receipts from 2020, they are mostly mine, and snail mailed them to CRA in Newfoundland. Also, it will take until Dec. 1st to get our paperwork. 

UPDATE: Nov. 28

I accidentally paid the 2019 amount we need to pay back from my line of credit to Joe's VISA not his CRA account. I phoned right away, and asked them to cancel that. Today, Sunday, the amount has gone into JB's VISA. I paid the right amount to his CRA account.

So, if they cancel the VISA amount, I'll have to repay the actual November VISA amount prior to the due date, or we will be charged interest on that!

UPDATE: Nov. 29

Our package of receipts for our 2021 taxes made it to the Newfoundland office, despite NL flooding. Whew!

UPDATE: Dec. 3 – Still waiting for RBC to reverse the mistaken payment I made. 

UPDATE: By now, I figured I had no choice, and I could claim medical receipts from 2020 in 2021. I paid off the final $3000, to make it a grand total of $10,000+. 

UPDATE: March 26th

I had a couple of anxiety attacks this week. I've been wrestling with taxes, again. And I can't figure out how to plug in to TurboTax my change from a LIRA to a RIF. At 65 you have to switch them over. So far, the program tells me we owe $44,000+ in taxes. I signed up for the extra money for extra support (you don't pay them till you finish, though), and they were useless. The woman I spoke to sent an email with directions, but they do not work. "I'm not a tax expert," she told me. 

 I think I am still missing a tax receipt. I contacted our financial planner, and he sent a couple I was missing. They don't have to send them until the end of March, legally. Taxes should be done by the end of April. I'm not ready to give up, but I am close. The frustration is terrible, and triggers me after I've wrestled with Canada Revenue for this past year. I took my meds, and we relaxed watching tennis and curling. I want to conquer this tax year, but the jury is out.

UPDATE : March 27th

I began using TurboTax on Saturday to figure out our 2021 taxes. Problem was, converting my LIRA to a RIF. I worked through it, and TurboTax said we owed $44,000+ in taxes. Crikey. Sunday I gave up.

UPDATE: March 28th

Finally, I had a message that they would accept our medical receipts for 2020, if I uploaded them. This is good news, although we sent them via Canada Post, tracked and securely delivered to a Newfoundland office a year ago. 

I showed JB how to lay out the receipts for me, in order to scan them all. There were 14, but the most important ones were the cataract surgery I had. My $300/month healthcare plan doesn't cover this, nor does it cover my anxiety meds. 

You should have seen us! He was down the hallway in the office, and I'd yell down saying, 'next' and he'd replace it. He'd yell back, 'OK' and I'd scan them remotely on my laptop app.

He is trouble!

 Can you see who I am complaining about?! 

Josephine and Isabelle named all the fishies for us. The trick is to get photos of them.

• Percy is the large one.
• Whitey is the one that lost its goldfish orange colour.
• Sour Cream – orange and white face.
• Cow – orange and white spots.
• Moustachio – orange spot on hip and nose.
• Rainbow death murderer – orange.

There you are!

I guess you noticed my boy. The cardboard Caitlin brought over helped keep Cinnamon out for a week or so. Percy is fascinated, and thinks Cinnamon might feed him. Hah! I'm up for plan D. 

I hesitate to put something with weight on top, maybe a book would do. I found a heavy book, but I think Cinn would just whack it off! 

Maybe carve out the styrofoam and try nestle it in. Voilà! So far so good, but Cinnamon will come in for breakfast soon, and we'll see what happens.

Maybe put the book back on top!

🕷️TICKS 2021

JB found a tick in the bathroom sink. Probably mine. They tend to climb up small trees, and hop onto victims, like me.

We've done well in 2021, if you compare the graph over the years. I wonder when they invented the goop for cats? I think 2017. It took longer to formulate than the Bravecto for cats. Daisy was the champ and brought in 121 herself in 2016. 

With winter coming, it'll stop the ticks, at least. They'll be buried under... nope, the graupel won't do it! We have had these long ribbon streams of clouds, dropping graupel, and then sunshine!

I drove JB into the GP's office, couldn't go in, of course. He had his Lupron injection for his cancer treatment. He has a sore hip, which is not necessarily usual. It depends upon who gives it to him, his state of mind and body, as well. We're done for another three months.

Today is a cold one. It was cold overnight, and the furnace is working hard. Once the light dawns I'll check on the heater in the birdbath. I'm sure the goldfish pond is frozen. 

We've prescriptions to pick up in town. It took JB 3 calls to the drug store, 4 calls to our GPs office to get it right. Long story, basically miscommunication, but he managed to have his Lupron injection yesterday morning, and we made it through the day. I ended it with a massage. Such a relief.

Chores and walkies!

 JB went walkies with the cats. He took his little camera and captured some moments. They are a bit fast for the camera, but rather than artsy, you get the picture!

I caught the event on the trailcam. This was fun to see. They have good times! The doe and juvenile were feeding on the pumpkin when they heard someone coming!

It's been a tad chilly, and gloves are required some of the time. I love these, they are perfect when I want to plug in the garage door code, or insert or remove an SD card. 

Sunday was productive. It warmed up, the sun came out, on a Sunday, and I worked in a sweatshirt. First job was to clean the car window. After that, I looked at the floor mats and decided something had to be done. The dustbuster was hauled out, plugged in, and off I went. Washing the floor mats helped. I'm still not satisfied, but it is much better. next job, the dashcam.

I had a helper! 

I had a challenge to reattach the dashcam to the windshield, now that it is clean. It just fell off and was dangling. It took three tries. I gave up. I decided to use some double-sided carpet tape. So far, so good.

The wetland is getting wetter and wetter, the frogpond is looking good. The water protects the hibernating critters. Although Cinnamon and I spotted TWO frogs in the goldfish pond. He was excited.

I decided to clear the leaves off of the dock. If I walked up to the house, I'd forget what I was after (a rake) so I used my foot! In these freeze/thaw temperatures it doesn't do the wood any good.

🐻SNUGGLE Bears

OK, Joseph Brian decided he wanted to put his train set out. It is a good distraction from health worries, for both of us. I was awake from 2 - 5 a.m., and had to get the garbage out for pickup. I took some meds, finally, at 3 a.m., but they didn't work too well. I popped out of bed and did the garbage. The day has begun.

I figured out a base: the card table, the box that held the deck top, with the styrofoam inside, and an old painting under to provide more width. I was quite pleased!

I ordered these kits a number of years ago (Feb., 2013), and they had to be assembled. If you look closely, my school house is a bit crooked. It was the first one I assembled, and it was pretty crooked. I did better with JB's train station!

The pièce de résistance were  🐻SNUGGLE Bears looking at the whole ensemble! 

We aren't having company anytime soon, and it warms the cockles of our hearts to look at the bears! We anticipate the kids coming over Dec. 26th for my birthday, as I turn 65! I've ordered my present and it arrived, a new trailcam. None of us are out shopping much. 

 The kids are happy that their other grandmother is visiting for a month from New Brunswick for Christmas. They will be busy. She makes cookies with them, and does all that Christmassy stuff we can't do! 

Josephine makes cookies in 2013
with mémère!

 

Blast from the past: We had so much fun! See the schoolhouse on the coffee table?!

Have you heard of PocketHealth?

We are really concerned with health and healthcare. COVID–19 has truly complicated the process of healthcare, which we understand, but this is a new mystery. We have been managing prostate cancer since 2011, his robotic surgery was Jan., 2014 (see photo, left!) in Ottawa. It metastasized, they found it, and watch it with tests, and treatment began Oct. 8, 2014. So far, so good. 

Joseph Brian (JB) takes a PSA test quarterly, prior to his Lupron injection. If any numbers change, we will take a different approach. I've tracked his test results. We used to have to meet with a doctor to have them interpret the results. Now, LifeLabs (a for-profit) uploads the data to a website, often within 24 hours. It is such a relief – you just want to know. The trick was figuring out how to access LifeLabs online to make an appointment due to COVID. That was a lesson.

When there was an imaging scan at Smiths Falls Hospital, they would put the results on a DVD, and we would take it to our doctor in Ottawa Health Unit. The rules are that we have the tests in our Health Unit, if possible, and then meet up with the doctor in Ottawa.

Our test results, called imaging results, used to be sent electronically (or faxed?) from our healthcare unit here in Lanark West's LGLDHU to both our local GP, and the urologist/surgeon in Ottawa's health unit. Or, we would take a copy with us if we could. We have learned to make copies of all tests. Our GP in Perth has been really good supporting us with this.

LGLDHU COVID cases are rising

We are in the Lanark West area
of the 5 that make up our unit.
(There are 34 health units in Ontario.) 

From October 2013 until 2019, JB has had 21 tests. They established baseline data and found the metastasis: 

• 5 Bone Density Scans,
• 8 CT Scans, 
• 4 ultrasounds, 
• a cystoscopy, 
• a colonoscopy (2013), 
• 2 MRIs. (2013 and 2015).  

The imaging tests can happen here in Perth, or Smiths Falls, or in an Ottawa hospital, in enough time for the results to get to our surgeon. Following that, we meet with the urologist/surgeon in Ottawa (Dr. Cagiannos). Treating and managing prostate cancer is not easy. The most important thing we've found is to ensure that Dr. C. has the data prior to our appointment with him in Ottawa. It is crucial.

Apparently, JB's health records are now being put into a new site called PocketHealth. They were the ones demanding his vaccine status. We didn't give the hospital permission for them to release our health records to PocketHealth. It turns out, in order to share our health records with various providers, we register online with PocketHealth, and have to pay $5 a pop to forward it. 

Why do we have to pay to access our health records? We have universal healthcare, and have not paid anything for tests. We do pay for hospital parking ($13/visit), which is another issue.

From our local hospital website, which no one told us about: 

• Pocket Health - Download details on how you can access your imaging records

Please note that Perth & Smiths Falls District Hospital no longer releases imaging records via CD and provides imaging records to patients and their care providers only through secure, online access. If you wish to pick up an Access Page which will provide your care provider with secure online access to your imaging records, please visit the Diagnostic Imaging Department from 8:15am–3:45pm weekdays, or we can fax this access page directly to your care provider. If you prefer not to visit the hospital, you can also easily access and share your imaging records online by visiting Pocket Health.

PocketHealth is a for-profit, and in the news: 

• Entrepreneurs build one-of-a-kind medical platform
• PocketHealth raises $9.2 million in financing.

The best information we got came from a drawing by Dr. C! I labelled it to better understand it.

Lupron injections quarterly

medical imaging: results on a DVD

one of his scans

Saturday's Critters

It's fun watching the deer on the trailcams. It takes my mind off arguing with Canada Revenue Agency in my head at 4 a.m. (They aren't listening anyway!) We now await snail mail for the evidence of the money we must pay. 

The pumpkins are being gobbled up.

   

 I've set out the pumpkins in front of the trailcam. The doe really gets into it. The juveniles are a hoot, bounding around after momma. 

   

 The buck, Carl, is still following the doe around waiting for her to go into heat. It only happens for 24 hours, they tell me, se he as to be ready. It is rutting season, as they call it. 

   

 In the meantime, this juvenile thinks it'd like a quick drink, but momma isn't having any of that. She's been weaned! Carl soon enters the picture, too. He manages to take several bites out of the large pumpkin, and twists the pumpkin just as the footage ends. He saunters off into the forest. 

 

For the first time (I think, but I turn 65 next month, so I could be wrong), we've 3 Chad coyotes on the trailcam at once. The temperatures are below freezing, so they are getting hungrier out there. We've snow on the way, as well. They aren't like city coyotes, which can be bold as brass. We've seldom seen them in the daytime or in person in the ten years we have been here, they tend to avoid our back and front yards.

For more critters, visit Eileen's fabulous Saturday's Critters # 414!

It's crazy times out there

Horrid news from out west in the flooding. Lots of people are coming to the aid of those trapped, homeless, without heat or water.

I keep trying to look for the positives in the disaster in British Columbia. They are sending in the military, and neighbours are helping neighbours, if possible. One dude was transporting 76 dogs and cats for adoption, and he posted on Facebook for help since he was stranded in the floods. They were headed to the lower mainland to new owners. People have stepped up and the animals have been fostered until they can get to their destination in Vancouver.

They've partially opened a few of the highways, but others will be weeks or months. 

B.C. bridge

We took a big drive to Carleton Place to fetch some more supplements for JB. OK, not such a big drive, 40 minutes. This dude I watched in the rear view mirror. He passed us on the highway into town and the truck that was tailgating me, at the same time. There was oncoming traffic approaching. Only to be stuck at the red light in front of us. I must admit I wished him some harm as he sped up and away. I just don't need the stress. 

We stopped at the library, thank goodness for murder mysteries to take my mind off things. I just finished Tumbled Graves, by Brenda Chapman. It's in a series and is A Stonechild and Rouleau mystery #3. We picked up #4.

We made it to our destination, and while Joseph Brian was picking up his stuff I spotted a huge build beside the RA centre where our naturopath works: Stoneridge Manor Long-term Care. I haven't been here in ages, often JB drives in on his own.

It must be cold up there on the roof. We were to have flurries yesterday, and a cold front has moved in. Thankfully, we didn't have to cope with that. The snow has melted, for now. JB popped into the store and bought us a lasagna and chili for our respective dinners. 

I have to switch up the bears, since I couldn't see the bird feeders for the bear's head. 

While I was arguing with CRA in my head at 4 a.m., I missed seeing the partial lunar eclipse. That could have been fun, if it wasn't so cold out. 

Let us see what today brings. I hope it will be more good news about people getting rescued, and getting water and hydro back. In the meantime, I put up our Christmas tree. I hope it gives you a giggle.