Dear Diary - My Passion is.........

Dear Diary,

We, the people, sit here today on pins and needles, more like sleeping in a rose bush full of thorns waiting to know if the Obama Stimulus Plan will be passed and/or will work. As grown men and women all dressed up in their fancy suits and ties hold the future of America in their hands we sit back and listen, watch the mud sling, we receive emails from our National Association of Realtors " for our voices to be heard ", we hoard what money we have and we pray that someone will listen to the guy who is being more conservative wearing the JCPenny pin stripped suit rather than the guy wearing some fancy suit of some designers name I can't pronounce anyway.

Diary, my passion has always been to live freely, within my means and to help people. To both give and receive inspiring advice, to set goals, to be proud of being an American. To support our troops who fight everyday for our freedoms ( I wear Red on Fridays ). To inspire my children and other children to always be who and what they want to be. To adopt one family each year and show them Christmas miracles still exist. To volunteer at a woman's shelter and help if only one woman understand just how empowering she should feel because leaving was a brave and courageous thing to do. To live freely in knowing that I live in America, in the American dream and someone " in it " will always have my back and look out for me and my family.

Today, televisions have been brought into our homes to keep us advised, more like to keep us in a panic. The old saying of " Believe nothing you hear and only half of what you see " has become an " old wives tale. " Many, sit glued to their televisions feeding themselves the doom and gloom of our nation heeding every bit of advice from some telecaster who doesn't appear to know anything more than we do. This my friend is like taking financial advice from someone pending their bankruptcy court date. Better yet it's like walking into a marriage counselors office whom might I add has been divorced four times. We listen to our Government and Media tell us we should set up lemon-aid stands to make extra earnings but yet I don't see our Government selling watermelons on the side of the street to reduce our national deficit. This is all like walking into an AA Meeting and the door prize is a 6-pack of beer.

At this point it no longer matters " Who is to blame ", " When it all started or why ". The fact is it did happen and no stimulas package to date has put a dent in what the American people actually need. What great timing to put money in our pockets with the Bush Administrations Stimulas. Our food prices were at an all time high, fuel prices exceeded $4.00 per gallon ( now calculate that $4.00 per gallon and hold it up against the minimum wage worker...need I say anymore ) and we were already seeing increases in the cost to run our electricity.

Mr. Government Officials, my money went right into my savings account, creating a stronger reserve account for " the, well...... unknown ".

Now, had you handed us our very  small, might I ad very small check during the Holiday rush....we might have bought our children the actual Rock Band version of Guitar Hero rather than the knock off Aerosmith Version. We might have bought a new Christmas dress or suit rather than digging through our closet's to see what we haven't worn in years. We might have even bought a 20 pound Turkey rather than a 15 pound turkey. To date my small check was given back to our oil industry as well as Tyson, Betty Crocker, Butterball, Campbell's and Little Debbie. I'm sorry for the losses Goody's, Best Buy and Circuit City took throughout the Holiday season but many took your advice : We went into hiding in total panic.

Diary, " They ", our Government, seem to think that a bunch of tax cuts, extra money for food stamps and extensions of unemployment benefits will create jobs and will open the housing market. I couldn't DISAGREE more. I wish someone would explain how a buyer tax credit is going to help our housing economy " open up " if the buyer desperately seeking to purchase a home cannot obtain a loan because Banks want to cut out Mortgage Brokers because Banks have upped the anti on lending criteria and because well, banks can do and say whatever they want, whenever they want and have ZERO accountability for it.

You should instead be teaching how a little hard work never hurt anyone and that a callous is a sign of hard work..like my Daddy's hands. You should be teaching the Food Stamp Recipient the power of their OWN dollar not looking to the middle class to continue paying for a person who has figured out they receive more by staying home and doing nothing. I don't understand how you can extend benefits, call it a stimulus and swear that this will return our economy to normal and yet kick a woman out of a hospital bed 24 hours after she has given birth ???? 

True Story

Last night at my daughters basketball practice I was speaking to a parent who found out that her and her husband made to much money and ended up owing Uncle Sam. Now, believe me when I tell you their income was NOTHING to smile about. In the end they were having to pay Uncle Sam all because she took on a part time job to help pay the increasing household bills which ended up costing her more in the long run because of child care expenses. In the process she also lost Health Care for her children through the State of TN, known as Cover Kids ( a program when you do not qualify for Medicaid ). All because of her part time job. She was told by a GOVERNMENT worker that she should CLAIM a separation from her husband whereas she would then be able to receive : Medicaid, Food Stamps and Schooling since she had been denied a government grant to finish her degree. Best part she was also told she could receive unemployment benefits by saying " the result of quiting her job was because of her separation and lack of child care".  Do I need to say any more on extending food stamps and/or unemployment.

Our Government should be taking lessons from Housewives. Take Carol Brady for example. A single mother with three children, then married with six. When Mike brought home his paycheck every Friday she didn't give herself a raise and neglect to purchase food. When Mike got a raise she didn't go purchase a bigger, fancier car because the government said we needed to stimulate the economy. She didn't go in debt because they earned a few dollars more. When you went to the bank to purchase your home you went with documents in hand and money in the bank. She never worried about debt to income ratio because way back when you were taught to save not to obtain more and more " On Credit ". Carol Brady was the divider of 4.3 weeks in a month and knew every week what she needed to have and what was leftover. If her automobile needed tires she paid for tires she didn't trade in her vehicle for a lease. When Mike received a " bonus " they didn't take fancy vacations and fly out on a private jet. Way back when there was a more practical approach.

Getting Back to Basics

How do you live in these times ? The same way you did BEFORE the Government started putting televisions in peoples homes and creating panic. You have choices. You can be the divider of 4.3 weeks in a month or you can eagerly spend all of your hard earned cash on the Hybrid because the Government says this is what you should be doing. You can take your raise or bonus and invest in your future, purchase a home or you can panic and hem it to your curtains like my great grandmother did. You can learn the power of a dollar and build a savings account or you can be a puppet to the government and spend it all at Wal-Mart because the government has you fearing one more store will shut down. You can get out their and plow your own land or cross your arms wondering what's the use ? You can get up everyday and live the American Dream in peace or you can turn on the news that is costing you more electricity by running your television only to listen to a bunch of doom and gloom or you can get up, go to work and appreciate the power of your earnings. You can worry about supporting Kroger or Publix or you can build your own garden.

Simply, you can get out there and live. Live life to it's fullest. To be inspiring or be inspired or you can make excuses to not live , to live in fear, in panic and do what our banks continue to do : give raises to yourself, not hold yourself accountable, take fancy trips you cannot afford and of course you can always leave on a jet plane only to come back later apologize and do it all over again:

As for me I will believe in " Old Wives Tales ", I will build my own garden, plow my own land, drive a paid off mini van with good, clean tires. I will work hard, I will invest in my future. I will preserve my credit and live within my means. I will give hope because I have hope. I will dream because without a dream I am stuck exactly where I am today. I will be the dictator of my life. I will not allow my home or vehicle to define me. I will inspire because I want to be inspired. I will give so that I can receive. 

 I am my own government.