SOFA, The Society of Financial Awareness, will share tips for getting yourself financially fit. SOFA is a volunteer organization of licensed financial planners who donate their time to educate the public on the finer points of making your money grow and work for you. Please join us on Thursday, March 31 at 7:00PM in the Community Room for this interesting program. No registration is needed.

Looking to get out of the rat race? Striving for less? Check out these books for great minimalist tips:

Philosophy of Simplicity

Enough already!: clearing mental clutter to become the best you by Peter Walsh

Simplexity: why simple things become complex (and how complex things can be made simple) by Jeffrey Kluger

Practice random acts of kindness: bring more peace, love, and compassion into the world by the editors of Random Acts of Kindness; foreword by Harold Kushner; preface to the new edition by Will Glennon

Give it up: my year of learning to live better with less by Mary Carlomagno

The Wayne Metropolitan Community Action Agency and the Wayne County Asset Building Coalition are offering free tax preparation services for families with incomes under $48,300. Call (734) 284-6999 for a list of participating locations or to schedule an appointment.

The IRS announced today that it is now ready to accept all income tax returns. "The IRS is now accepting all the 1040 forms," IRS Commissioner Doug Shulman said. "We worked hard to update our systems and get the changes in place as quickly as possible. We appreciate the patience of those impacted by the delay. We urge taxpayers to use e-file with direct deposit, and they can get their refunds within days." In late December 2010, the IRS announced it would delay processing of some tax returns in order to update processing systems to accommodate the late tax law changes. These tax law provisions were extended by the Tax Relief, Unemployment Insurance Reauthorization and Job Creation Act of 2010, which became law on December 17.

The new frugality : how to consume less, save more, and live better by Chris Farrell — Are you looking for small changes you can make in your everyday life to save money? Perhaps to streamline things so that life feels less complicated? This book has many great tips based on a philosophy of living with a "margin of safety" and living a more sustainable lifestyle. Many of the ideas here seem like common sense but that you might not have thought about.

Four quick things every citizen should know from Governor Rick Snyder's new Dollars & Sense: How State and Local Governments in Michigan Spend Your Money guide to the public's checkbook. State Treasurer Andy Dillon says Lansing is about to experience "shock therapy."

Living large on less: a guide to saving without sacrifice by Christina Spence — Just about everyone is doing more with less these days, and this book is a great guide to many aspects of balancing one's personal budget and making the most of the dollars we do have. One of the most important steps here is to make a budget that actually works for you. You can use spreadsheets, personal finance software, or an online service like Mint.com to track your spending and make some of the adjustments suggested here. The ideas range from quick fixes to challenges that offer a trial run at a larger change.