Sometimes I get the distinct impression from people who don't work for the U.S. government that they think we feds have it easy: good benefits (not as good as they used to be), good pay (we generally make less than our private counterparts), lifetime employment (unless you go through a Reduction-In-Force--I've been there). The taxpayer thinks we waste her hard-earned money (we pay taxes, too!). Yes, there were the episodes with the expensive toilet seats and hammers, but here's an example of how frugal, inventive, and creative the average federal worker is! Instead of requisitioning a rubber door stop topping out at $6.99 MSRP, a civil servant in my office fashioned a custom-made Anti-Door-Closer (ADC in government parlance) complete with a door-knob loop from just $.24 of green duct tape (that's 2 yards at $4.99/55 yards). Savings to you: $6.75. And, he/she even tied a lovely bow in it.
