Yep, Tax time again. How'd we do this year, Uncle Sam? Time to bite the bullet. (Waving white flag) Frayed nerves, costly mistakes, and hurt feelings litter the landscape. Here's some ammunition to keep you from surrendering and aimed on the simple life. Good luck in this years campaign.

Trading Services
Develop a neighborhood skill that people ask for and you've just saved on taxes. If you make a list of backyard experts who trade services, you'll become a Simple Living hero in your community. Trading services is a 100% tax write off.

As word spreads and you get more people in the network, create a neighborhood newsletter for sale for a few bucks a month with success stories, who's offering what services for trade and who's willing to give good references for those services.  You'll not only make some money doing what you do best (writing), but help others as well. This lifestyle is the least non-taxing there is. Every time you trade a service you save yourself and a friend from giving money to Uncle Sam.

Barter
Yep, this is the original way of selling and still is tax free. You have an apple tree? Trade apples, apple pies baked fresh for neighborhood working mom's, etc. for free night outs with your honey, while a neighbor feeds your kids and gets to know them. You and your mate renew quality time together for free. It's a win-win situation.

List items for trade in your newsletter. Everyone seems to have a closet full they don't know what to do with. You can even do feature articles on what's worth trading and what's a waste of time. Listing Second Hand Stores and what they are willing to pay (or trade) will help stimulate people's creative imaginations as well as subscriptions to your Simple Living Neighborhood Network Newsletter.

Live in an isolated area? Most online sites are geared for small business bartering.  If you have a home business,  Auto-Barter  has rigorous standards for secure bartering among members that looks trustworthy. One of the few personal bartering sites I found that looked interesting is Trade-Away. It offers a wide variety of personal items for sale/trade in an attractive format.

Financial Resources
I use Quicken to sort out my tax deductibles. The online site features financial news, loan calculators, financial resources, stock quotes, track bills, retirement planning and more, all in one convenient time saving location. It connects with my online free banking service.

Banking
My local bank is online with free services to track my deposits, checks, credit cards, loans and savings plans. I can download information into Quicken to graph and chart or just keep tabs on taxables. I save on paying interest charges by paying off credit card debt immediately online, myself. If your bank doesn't offer these services for free. Take a look at Wells Fargo. They're just about everywhere and were about the first online banking service so know what they're doing.

When life becomes too taxing, keep it simple. Start small with a friend or two, but don't forget sharing the simple life with your neighbors. It develops the best in "community", as well as savings on next years income tax. Simple Living, it's having the time of your life.