(Courtesy of Laurie’s Facebook page.)

Stimulus Payment Information
This year, taxpayers will receive an Economic Stimulus Payment. This is a very exciting new program that I will explain using the Q and A format:

Q. What is an Economic Stimulus Payment?
A. It is money that the federal government will send to taxpayers.

Q. Where will the government get this money?
A. From taxpayers.

Q. So the government is giving me back my own money?
A. Only a smidgen.

Q. What is the purpose of this payment?
A. The plan is that you will use the money to purchase a high-definition TV set, thus stimulating the economy.

Q. But isn’t that stimulating the economy of China ?
A. Shut up.

Below is some helpful advice on how to best help the US economy by spending your stimulus check wisely:

If you spend that money at Wal-Mart, all the money will go to China .
If you spend it on gasoline it will go to the Arabs.
If you purchase a computer it will go to India .
If you purchase fruit and vegetables it will go to Mexico , Honduras , and Guatemala (unless you buy organic).
If you buy a car it will go to Japan .
If you purchase useless crap it will go to Taiwan .

And none of it will help the American economy.

We need to keep that money here in America .

You can keep the money in America by spending it at yard sales, going to a baseball game, or spend it on prostitutes, beer and wine (domestic ONLY), or tattoos, since those are the only businesses still in the US.

So fortunately we are still in the Christmastide and thus wishes for a Merry Christmas are still appropriate.  For those that do not know, there are really 12 days of Christmas between the actual nativity and the arrival of the three kings to meet the blessed child.  As it is so, we continue to celebrate Christmas with family and friends ending with a brunch tomorrow with my brother Ted, his wife Jessica and daughter Maya.

The Rolanti Family hopes that 2009 will be better for everyone!  There are already potential signs of it being a better year, but that will be for another post, on another day.

As we gather together for turkey with family and friends let us keep in mind that this holiday is giving thanks to the God Almighty for all of the generosity and good things He has given us. Not everyone has the luxury and gifts we have and even in difficult times whether it be financially, emotionally or physically, we can look to God for guidance everyday and give thanks.

So as you sit down to the table either outloud or in the silence of your heart praise God and thank him for all that you have and all that He offers now and in the future.

May you and your families have a blessed Thanksgiving!

Love,

The Rolanti Family

This weekend our quaint little town of Milford, NH celebrated the annual Great Pumpkin Festival on the Oval with music, giant pumpkins, arts, crafts, pumpkin carving, a scary trail walk and, for the first time, a Woodland Storybook Walk sponsored by our own Pine Hill Waldorf School. Events continue all day today (Sunday) so come on down! More information can be found at http://www.milfordnh.com.

Updated with photos:

It was said with flowers, two cards, a lovely breakfast, a romantic letter, a fantastic dinner and is culminating in a spa weekend away with no kids at Newfound Lake but most importantly it is being said with love. My wife Sarah and I love each other so much and we look forward to the future until death does us part.

In a stunning turn of events, the House of Representatives failed to pass the “Emergency Economic Stability Act of 2008″, also known as the Bailout Bill.  This was a plan that was forged by two financial experts, the Secretary of the Treasury Henry Paulson, who spent years on Wall Street and managed one of the biggest investment banks (still in business) Goldman Sachs, and the Chairman of the Federal Reserve, Ben Bernanke.  Now regardless of what anyone says, these two men run the U.S. Economy, not the President, so stop putting the blame on Bush.  Additionally, Paulson put out a framework to re-build the financial markets months ago and Congress side-stepped it.  So after a week of expanding a 3-page document to 109-page document with all of the features the Republicans and Democrats wanted, they failed to pass the bill.  Now what did this do?  It caused the Stock Market to fall in the greatest one day point drop in HISTORY!!!  Now ABC News put it very clearly…the bill was for $700 Billion dollars…the total amount lost due to the market drop was between $1.1 and 1.4 TRILLION DOLLARS!!!  And because Congress is on leave until Thursday (so much for 9-5 jobs or actually doing work for the people instead of this freakin’ campaigning) the markets have time to fret some more and lose more.  

Now I’m ready to place some blame: New Hampshire’s two House representatives, Carol Shea-Porter of the first district and Paul Hodes of the second district, both voted against the bill.  Now get this, Paul Hodes is on the Financial Services Committee whose leader Rep. Barney Frank of Massachusetts was one of the key sponsors and authors of the bill.  This is an embarassment unto itself but the thought that they couldn’t at least resolve their concerns with another key author, NH Senator Judd Gregg, is truly amazing.  Both of them should be recalled for ineptness or at least voted out in November.

Now there is discussion that says Congress was inundated with calls from Americans telling them not to vote for the bill.  What Americans do not understand is just how serious this problem is.  Just wait until tomorrow morning when they wake up to see the global markets falling as rapidly as the DJIA did today…Oh, it already is, the Hong Kong Hang Seng index opened down 5.5%.  As David Calloway of MarketWatch puts it, “Congress calls Wall Street’s bluff ,and we all lose our shirts.”

Overall, we needs to dissolve government: Congress and the White House.  We need experts not lawyers, we need real people not bureaucrats, we need them now!!!

Well, camping with two kids is not as easy as by one’s self. The air mattress Sarah and I had punctured, the nighttime temperature was about 35 degrees and then we woke up at 6am to a flock of crows sqawking about something. After breakfast, another ordeal, we found water in the tent, likely from a little girl trying to drink from a large water bottle.

So Saturday did improve. It was a cool but bright Fall day in Maine and we hit LL Bean today and grabbed lunch before having a nap in the church parking lot. After church we went back and cooked a delicious turkey chili and went to bed on a more comfortable, new mattress and sleeping bag.

Sunday started off ok, but the fire would not get started so off to shower and breakfast. Finally we ended the day in Portsmouth at the Fairy House tour — http://gallery.me.com/rolantifamily.

Today was Olivia’s 2nd birthday and she received lots of nice gifts including a doll house, a soccer ball, utensils, and a pretty dress and purse from Uncle Dennis and Auntie Beth.

So Jamie started MCAA Soccer today and scored two goals today — one for his team and one for the other team. We’re working on that.

Well after shucking, cooking and freezing a bushel of corn, cooking and freezing green beans and canning 30 quarts of tomatoes, AND making 10 quiches, we are finally relaxing by spending time with our friends the Cushna’s and then attending the Francestown Labor Day parade. This years theme is Classic Movies, can you find your favorite?