DEAREST READER...
Gather 'round.
Lady Budgetdown would like to tell you about the approximately 15 minutes she spent tonight correcting something that WASN'T WRONG.
I was researching school bond proposals for the November ballot and trying to determine whether voters in both Shiawassee and Genesee counties participate in the Durand Area Schools bond election.
Normal evening activities.
You know.
As one does. 😂
During that search, I stumbled across a May news article reporting results from several Mid-Michigan school elections.
And there it was:
MERIDIAN PUBLIC SCHOOLS BOND PROPOSAL: PASSED. 😳
Well. That was a problem.
Because I had JUST published a post explaining that Meridian's May bond proposal FAILED and that the district is returning to voters in November with a smaller $13.95 million proposal.
So naturally...
I freaked out.
I deleted the post.
Started retracing the research.
Wondered how I had managed to screw this up.
And then I did what Lady Budgetdown apparently should have done before allowing a news article to send her spectacles flying across the room:
I CHECKED THE ACTUAL OFFICIAL RECORD.
Meridian's May 5, 2026 bond proposal:
YES — 986
NO — 1,317
FAILED.
The post I deleted?
IT WAS RIGHT.
The news article?
IT WAS WRONG.
😂😂😂
So yes, dearest reader, Lady Budgetdown managed to fact-check herself INTO an error tonight.
And if that isn't the most ridiculous demonstration imaginable of why I keep talking about RECEIPTS, I don't know what is.
A newspaper article is a source.
A Facebook post is a source.
A campaign flyer is a source.
A school district presentation is a source.
But when the question is:
DID THE BOND ACTUALLY PASS?
Give me the official election record.
THAT is the receipt. 🧾
This is also why you will frequently see Treasury documents, audits, budgets, board minutes, election records and other primary documents attached to what I publish.
Not because journalists are evil.
Not because school districts are evil.
Not because every secondary source is unreliable.
Because PEOPLE MAKE MISTAKES.
News organizations make mistakes.
School districts make mistakes.
Lady Budgetdown makes mistakes.
And apparently Lady Budgetdown can even make a mistake by believing somebody else's mistake while attempting to correct a mistake she hadn't actually made. 😂
Try diagramming that one.
So the Meridian post will be returning shortly from its completely unnecessary trip to the trash bin.
And tonight's lesson from the ledger is a simple one:
DON'T JUST SHOW ME WHO SAID IT.
SHOW ME THE RECEIPT.
Because receipts aren't very useful if we only keep the convenient ones.
And apparently they're also rather useful when Lady Budgetdown needs to prove HERSELF wrong...
about being wrong.
Good grief. 👓😂
And with that, I am calling it a day and will pick up tomorrow where I left off tonight.
With receipts and respect.
#LadyBudgetdown #WithReceiptsAndRespect #ShowMeTheReceipts #TheReceipts #MichiganSchools #SchoolBonds #MeridianPublicSchools #ElectionResults #PublicMoneyPublicQuestions #FactCheckTheFactCheck #PrimarySources #TaxpayerTransparency