Book excerpt: Ever wondered how your tax money is really spent? Discover how the federal government works and what the lives of civil servants and their jobs are really like. Ramona Swann's 30-year career spanned assignments at the Departments of Defense, Transportation, Agriculture and Energy in a navigation up the civil service career ladder that plays out like a dark comedy. Ramona's world was one of excessive waste, tangled rules, indecipherable regulations and, of course, ever present politics. Confessions offers the taxpayer a view from the inside of government, complete with arrogance, misappropriation and even the rare unsung hero. As a whistleblower she did what she thought was right and suffered the inevitable consequences. Her life became a struggle against alcoholism, divorce and finally a battle to regain her integrity while serving a nation she loves. Ramona Swann was born in 1954 in the small town of Puyallup, Washington. At 24 she began her 30-year federal career when she enlisted in the Air Force. Ramona currently lives in Vancouver, Washington where she is enjoying retirement and considering writing a second memoir titled, Confessions: Rants and Exploits of a retired civil servant.