DON’T you always find that something happens on a Friday that you can’t do anything about until Monday and it hangs over your head all weekend like the sword of Damocles?

In my case it was a letter from the taxman. Quite the most pompous, arrogant letter I think I’ve ever had in my whole life.

It began thanking me ‘for contacting us about the interest we charged you for not paying the tax you owe on time’ and then lecturing me about them charging interest to ‘make sure we are being fair to customers who pay their tax on time’.

And they give me the dates when I should have paid my tax and that I had no real right to contact them because they weren’t at fault.

I wonder which jobsworth wrote it? I have no way of knowing because it wasn’t signed. Let me tell you the story behind it.

Well, over two years ago, the tax people told me I owed them an extra £3,000. My business accountant told me to ignore it because I didn’t and they’d appeal and it would be sorted.

But HMRC slapped a late penalty on and daily interest. The bill was growing daily, the aggressive letters were flying at me, and so I paid up, little knowing that it would take them two years to refund me because guess what… I HAD been charged in error.

No apology and they didn’t refund me the interest I’d paid on money I didn’t owe in the first place, so my accountant raised another appeal in February this year to get it back.

We were told it would be sorted by OCTOBER. And this supercilious, condescending letter is a result of them ‘sorting it’.

Another error on their part, as the person who wrote it might have found if they’d had a brain. How am I liable for interest on money they charged by mistake?

It reminds me of a mini Post Office scandal because what if that demand had been £50,000? And I was expected to pay up to stop the daily interest payments (you will note that it only works one way, I can’t charge HMRC interest on money of mine they shouldn’t have had) and then fight for years to get it back.

Then fight some more because they can’t do their jobs properly.

“Happens all the time,” sighed my accountant. Knowing that I’m not alone is of no comfort. It shouldn’t be happening and especially not to people like me who have ALWAYS paid their taxes on time and to the full.

I truly hope Mrs Karma finds that letter-writer and makes them stick their finger through the toilet paper at wiping point, and just after they’ve lost the most effective part of themselves down the pan.

I have a provincial newspaper featured in my books called The Daily Trumpet, more renowned for its mistakes than for its news delivery (based on a certain West Yorkshire paper in case you were wondering).

People paid me last year for having their names featured in Trumpet entries in my novel for charity.

And there will be a whole book of these ‘bloops’ out for Christmas. I am always astounded at the joy people get from being ridiculed in the Trumpet, but it’s raised a stack of cash so everyone wins and they are the best fun to write.

If you are interested in being featured, please do check out the news page of my website, millyjohnson.co.uk. I’ll be delighted to write you in so you can show off, all for Yorkshire Cat Rescue.

Thank you.