I am no expert on taxes or where my money goes, until I did research. I am still not an “expert.” In fact, I bought my first house last year. I thought this experience would be quite thrilling (it was) and much easier than renting (it isn’t). Growing up is hard to do!

Go ahead and call me Peter Pan, but since this house-buying process, I have things to worry about and pay that I didn’t even know existed. I am going to start with my tax bill, and then go from there.

I live in the village of Cazenovia, which I would highly recommend. I can walk anywhere I want, and am on the sewer system, but it comes with a price. According to my 2017 Town and County Tax Bill, all of my taxes went up. Keep in mind, I am in the middle class, and I have recorded all of my spending to the village. My county tax went up 2.4 percent, and my town tax went up 3 percent. I understand that taxes go up and down, I watch the news and took economics. However, I am more into literature than government.

I actually have a friend who works for the village of Cazenovia, makes a really good living, and enjoys his work. So please let the record state I am not saying I do not respect our Cazenovia town and village employees (especially cops, I really like all of you), but I am having a hard time with the money issue, and as we all know, I love money. What really puts a seed in my cherry is the three bills I had to pay this year that I can’t really grasp. Well, maybe one, but not three.

You see, I paid my taxes last year, and one morning about two weeks ago, I was in the shower and there was a knock at the door. (There is a point to me being in the shower.) A very nice gentleman said he was going to turn my water off if I did not pay the Village of Cazenovia Water/Sewer Bill. Pretty ironic that I was in the shower. I paid promptly and I went through my bills. How could I have a bill for water when I had paid a Madison County Sewer district bill for almost $300? In addition to those bills, I paid the Village of Cazenovia Water Department almost $80 for replacing a Meter Freeze Base Plate, and I don’t even know what a Meter Base Plate is.

I think the reality is that I am unclear why I am paying village taxes, county taxes, sewer/water bill and a Madison County Sewer bill. Now I am sure some of you will email my editor and say stop complaining, grow up, this is why they charged you, blah blah blah. As a young-ish woman trying to make her way in life and now care about bills, I had to voice my opinion.

I paid my village taxes, but I still have to pay a village sewer bill twice a year. I paid my county taxes, and I still have to pay a county sewer bill? Why isn’t that included in my regular tax bill? What do taxes pay for? Am I paying for 10 people to watch two people fix a pot hole? Also, my in-laws paid their taxes and they can’t even get their mailbox fixed after a plow hit it. I guess mail isn’t important. And if my meter freezes and I need a new meter, why should I pay more in labor than for the meter? Moreover, why do I have to pay for a meter? It’s the village’s property, not mine. I thought my tax money went to fix all of these “issues.”

Talk to you next week when I’m less angry and have more money!