While most working slugs will enjoy Easter Sunday, eat a couple of chocolate bunnies and head back to the grind stone tomorrow, Michigan's "hard-charging" legislature will take one more week off for good behavior before returning to the state capitol.

       It's not as if they have anything to do so why not another five days of R and R?

       Lawmakers returned here on January 14th and proceeded to take the next few weeks off.  They returned to hear the governor's State of the State message on February 3rd.  She then sent them her new budget a couple of days later.  Lawmakers did hang around for several weeks working on this and that and than everyone left on April 2nd for a two week Spring break.

       Sorta takes your breath away doesn't it.

       In fairness, they did tackle some issues and teed them up for possible passage later this year and by far their biggest accomplishment was spending $800 million in Obama-bucks to repair the roads.  And they got it done ahead of the deadline.

        During this break time, key lawmakers and the Granholm administration have been working the budget deficit, which is mushrooming by the minute.  Last January the red ink was $300 million deep. It's now almost a billion smackers.

        And if this economy stays in the tank, who knows how many services will be cut and how much of the federal stimulus money will be used to balance the books?

        But there is no sense worrying about that stuff until next week.  It can wait. So lawmakers, enjoy that extra five days at the beach.