Juggling acts: Taxes, freelancing, and loss

The confusing, convoluted process that the government makes you go through to file your freelancing taxes never ceases to amaze me. I marvel at this particular one every year:

In order to complete Form 1040, I need to first complete Schedule C, to determine net business income.

In order to complete Schedule C, I need to first complete Form 4562, to determine the deduction I get to take for business equipment.

However, in order to complete Form 4562, I need to know our total gross income for the year, from the 1040.

Why could they not make this a more linear, logical process?

I had the worst April 15th of my entire life, as I had to file taxes and euthanize my beloved cat, who has been with me for 11 years this month, on the same day. As you may know from previous years, I don't usually file at the last minute, but part of the reason has been my intense focus on Prince — I've been force-feeding him for the last 5 months, and although he seemed happy up until he suddenly got dramatically worse a couple of days ago, taking care of him took up a lot of my focus and my energy.

Taxes and freelancing must go on, though. I am not taking any official break from work, though I plan to take it easy over the next few days, and of course the IRS waits for no cat. Check back for a link to my Pony Tales Blog, where I plan to write a longer post on losing Prince.