It’s your checkbook. You ought to at least look at the register every once in awhile.

After all, you wrote about $126 million worth of checks in 2008.

All right, you personally didn’t write about $126 million worth of checks. Chances are you would have a nicer car or a bigger boat if you had.

No, what we’re talking about here is the city’s checkbook. So, if you’re a Lawrence resident, it’s your checkbook, too. With that in mind, the Journal-World has reviewed the list of 1,815 vendors that the city made payments to in 2008.

Here’s a look at what we found:

• The city spent $126,833,860.74 in 2008, not including the city’s annual payroll of $46,718,279.19. Add both of those numbers together, and that essentially gives you a complete picture of where the city’s money went last year.

• The list of places that the city’s money ends up literally runs the gamut from A — $10,247.37 to AA Wheel & Truck Supply — to Z — $36,726 to the Lawrence-based convenience store chain Zarco 66.

• College football and basketball teams strive to crack the Top 25. In the world of city vendors, the Top 26 is the promised land. The city had 26 different vendor accounts that received $1 million or more in city payments in 2008. Those 26 accounts actually received a total of $95.1 million, or about 75 percent of the city’s vendor spending for the year.

• Of those 26 accounts, only 12 were actual private, for-profit companies. Several of the accounts are to other governmental entities — such as $9.4 million for federal and state payroll taxes. The tax man cometh even to City Hall.

• The largest single vendor account the city made a payment to was — get this — the state of Kansas. The city sent $16,778,843.59 to the state’s treasury. No, it is not some sort of reverse bailout. Instead, state law requires the city to make its bond payments through the state treasury. A bond is just the government’s way of saying debt. So, the city had to fork over $16.7 million in 2008 to keep current on all its debt. See, the city’s budget is a lot like your household budget — the banker gets his share.

• Topeka-based CAS Construction was the private company that received the largest payment from the city in 2008. The company received $8,177,450.97 for its work to expand the Clinton Water Treatment Plant.

• The biggest payment made to a Lawrence-based company went to LRM Industries, a longtime concrete and asphalt company that received $2.56 million for its work on city streets. Some may argue that the honor should go to MV Transportation Inc., the private company that operates the city’s transit system. MV — which received $2.67 million — certainly has large local operations, but its corporate headquarters are in California.

• The city’s electric bill totaled $2.57 million in 2008. The payment to Westar Energy was the 11th largest payment made by the city last year.

• The city spent $48,403.99 with Lawrence-based Scotch Fabric Care for cleaning of police, fire and utility department uniforms.

• The local Vanderbilt’s store also benefited from the city’s clothing needs. The city spent $45,411.72 to buy work boots and jeans for public works, parks and utility department employees.

• The Parks and Recreation Department spent $30,430 to lease space from G-Force Athletics for gymnastics classes.

• No, somebody at City Hall isn’t feeding their golfing habit, but the city did write a couple of sizable checks to Nike Golf — for $16,799 — and Callaway Golf — for $16,212. The payments were for merchandise resold at the city-owned Eagle Bend Golf Course.

• The city did do $15,349 worth of business with Maceli’s, a downtown catering firm. Staff members said the expenses were for multiple events, including buying food for out-of-town police officers who helped with patrols during the NCAA Tournament celebrations in 2008. Other events included graduation ceremonies for the fire and police departments, an awards reception for an arts program, and a city-sponsored meeting of the Eastern Kansas Governmental Finance Officers Association.

• The city paid $13,720 to the Kansas University Parking Department, but it wasn’t for overdue parking fines. Instead, that is how much the city paid the university for providing shuttle service from downtown on KU football games.

• $9,625 went to Lawrence-based Cycle Works for the purchase of new spin bicycles for the Lawrence Community Building.

• Keeping the city’s vehicle fleet cost $6,400. The city doesn’t have its own car wash bay. Instead, it contracts with the local Raco Car Wash locations.

• The city not only spends money on land, but also some on water. It paid the Clinton Lake Marina $5,215 for rental of a slip to house a fire/medical rescue boat.

• Here’s the answer to a question that may be on your mind: How much beer does it take to play the city’s Eagle Bend Golf Course? $5,000. That’s how much the city paid Lawrence-based O’Malley Beverage of Kansas for beer that was resold at the golf course.

• And finally, the city spent $1,528 with Walgreen’s drug store. The reason? City staff members said the payments were for pharmacy costs related to worker’s compensation claims.

Another acceptable answer would have been aspirin for the city employees who have to process $126 million worth of city payments.