California Tax Rebate Journal

Day 72:
Hi. It's been a while since I've written, but I feel pretty good about our chances today. I mean, the last 71 days seemed pretty likely too, but somehow, today feels different. I just know it'll come soon.

Besides, I've been thinking about it, and a lot of those days weren't actually business days, so it really hasn't been as long as it seems. Plus, California state workers get 13 paid holidays a year, plus paid personal and sick days, so it's really even less than that. I've pretty much convinced the others that the last few years were a fluke. I mean, we've only been waiting three times as long for our rebates, so who are we to complain?

I've finally decided against adjusting the day count to the day I actually filed my state tax return. I think the starting date is arbitrary, and it doesn't really matter, you know?

I understand our legislators and state workers are busy, I mean, they actually broke the hiring freeze to hire 3200 more workers, so things MUST be moving forward. It's not like they'd just sit on their hands...

Supplies and morale are low. Smitty got on his soapbox again, complaining about how they took that extra tax money starting a year and a half ago, and have been collecting interest on it while they've been raising taxes and fees. The others got him to shut up after a while, but his words are starting to sink in.

What if our politicians really don't feel ashamed for taking more than they were supposed to, and try urgently to return the money to their constituents? I mean, I'm not that cynical, but what if they just wanted to take as much money as possible, for as long as possible, without regard for the people who earned it? If you were to even THINK about following that line of reasoning, you'd have no choice but to conclude that the entire state is broken! That just can't be.

Looking forward to tomorrow. I'm sure it'll come soon.