Giving Thanks

Another Thanksgiving in progress...and for a change we're celebrating with family in Ohio. Lucky for us it's a beautiful day, not a cloud in the sky, and we're getting ready to enjoy a great dinner (and I'm not cooking, yay!)

Since I'll be having dinner with probably four of my 10 readers (give or take one or two), it'll be nice to be with people in real time and not cyberspace.

Hope everyone has a great holiday! More to come!!!

GHWB Defends GWB

Just came across this story on a cursory review of my favorite blogs. I don't know about you, but I have been wondering how Papa Bush handles the criticism of his son. Here's a link to find out more.

It would have been fun to be in that audience, eh?

All dried up, and no place to go

Where have I been for the past week or so? Nowhere. Just haven't had much to say, I guess, not that you want to read about that.

I am not certain that I'm all that thrilled with Blogger Beta, which I upgraded to last weekend (kinda accidentally...don't ask). Now I can't post YouTube videos at will, which pisses me off. Once I figured that out, I felt burned out on the whole damn thing. So it goes.

We're leaving early Sunday morning for our week in Ohio, where one of our sweet nieces is getting married the day after Thanksgiving. Good times. I love that our family is expanding at long last. We've had too many contractions over recent years.

Still basking in the afterglow of the midterm elections...

Still basking in the afterglow of the possibility the Sox may sign the best available starting pitcher on the planet in the weeks ahead...

Life is good.

The New Reality

Browing Boston.com this morning, I came across this headline:

"Warrantless wiretaps unlikely to be OK'd"

Talk about shock and awe...I stood up at my computer and literally applauded. It's been a long, long time since headlines were so fabulous.

Keep 'em coming.

Take a Guess

In recent years, Bobbers and I have taken more of an interest in the food that goes into our bodies. In that vein, I offer this short quiz where you get to test your knowledge of restaurant food. It's one of those tests that you think you should know the answers to, but you find out that you actually don't.

Enjoy.

A Veteran's Tale

With all the happiness and relief brought about by Tuesday's election results, I was truly brought back down to earth by a veterans' tale I saw on CNN today. It moved me more than anything I've seen in a while, but I think it's critical for all of us to recognize the sacrifices of our young'uns serving in Iraq.

I'd love to hear your thoughts on this very special young man after you've seen the video.

I Think I'm .... Speechless

Whew! What a freakin' good day! The Democrats actually did it! And to top it off, Mr. Incompetency resigned.

Damn.

I mean...DAMN!

I won't presume to do a full-out political analysis of the election. There are many more expert at that than me, and you'll decide which of those experts you want to read.

I will say that it the election results represent, for me, a giant step back toward behavior that is more respectful of the US Constitution. What has worried me in recent years has been the incompetence, the bravado, the sense that the Administration is above the law and unaccountable (I guess this means we can take a second look at the torture bill, the illegal wiretaps now!).

I have also been concerned that the rest of the world feels such hatred toward America. Today, my friend Gerard from Belgium IM'd me to ask if it was true that the Democrats had taken over the Congress, asking whether I thought this would signal a change in Iraq? "Too many dead people," he said. At the time, Rumsfeld hadn't resigned and it was not as clear that we're likely to take over the Senate, so all I could say was "I hope so." Now I feel a little more confident about this, needless to say.

In the days ahead I hope the Democrats will use their newfound power wisely. Because they have been so badly mistreated in the minority, I suspect they'll move ahead cautiously...like an abused spouse might after moving out of the house.

In the meantime, I will soak this victory in, be thankful that the dollars and time I contributed were not for naught. (Just heard the Virginia Republicans say "we should let all the votes be counted!" Channeling Al Gore, I suppose.)

Most of all, I am very much looking forward to the State of the Union address. I'll have my popcorn ready and sit back and enjoy watching Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi sitting next to Cheney as the Chimp delivers his speech.

Damn.

I mean, DAMN.

Happy Election Day

Well, to some of us, this day feels much like Christmas. And hopefully tonight we get some presents, and not the coal.

Been watching some coverage on MSNBC and CNN and their endless pundits and journalists, and they are increasingly talking about how badly the Republicans are doing today. On what basis do they make these statements, I wonder (as I well remember we thought the Chimp lost both his elections early in the day)? I guess we'll find out soon.

This morning, as I waited in our town garage for Bobbers to finish voting, I recalled my first Election Day experience. I was a kindergartener and my Mom, one of the millions of postwar stay-at-home mothers, had volunteered to work at the poll in our school. As a kid, I enjoyed seeing her at school that day, especially watching the grown-ups eating lunch in our cafeteria. It may be the fog of memory, but I seem to recall that this was a sunny, warm day, which means this election could have been the presidential primary, which was held in Ohio on May 3, 1960 (you gotta love Google, eh?).

Anyway, I distinctly remember hearing the word "poll" for the first time, and learning exactly what that meant. And, for me, this introduction seemed to propel me, seemingly by osmosis even at this tender age, to learning about the political landscape that year. Of course, Senator Kennedy was a significant figure that year, especially in Catholic families like ours. There was a personal harbinger of things to come as I think he and his family were responsible for introducing me to a faraway placed called Massachusetts.

Anyway, it's 8:00 and time for the first poll results.

::fingers crossed::

My Sentiments Exactly

This poor kid! I hope the baby's parents are reported to Social Services as this truly is abuse:



Well, tomorrow is the Big Day. My prayer is that this country wakes up from its collective stupor and decides that some checks and balances are in order. At the very least, we won't have to look at these commercials much longer. AND, we'll all be able to answer our phones. Even though I'm making some of the calls myself, it is amazing to see how many people (from Planned Parenthood, Massachusetts Democratic Party, Moveon, etc.) have called me, as well.

There's been so much going on that I haven't had a chance to do much original posts, but I hope to get back to that soon. However, now that Election Day is near, I am thinking about why I enjoy politics and all the election craziness so much? It's a question that occurs to me every other November when it feels as if I am the only one I know who actually seems to enjoy this stuff.

For me, finding the political blogs (Daily Kos, My DD, Americablog, Firedoglake, etc) was an awakening. For the first time, I found like-minded people who are as entranced by the ins and outs of elections as I am. I think that's why when I think about blogging, these are the sites that amaze and inspire me. To tell you the honest truth, I'm not so interested in people's everyday life (no offense) as I am in watching history being written as we live it.

So, enjoy the day, in whatever way you'd like. I personally will be watching the returns and ticking off each Congressional District and Senate seat on my own personal tally sheet and cheering for my fellow Democrats across the country. (And, I will also be welcoming our new Massachusetts governor, the first African American one, Deval Patrick.)

Shocked, Shocked, Shocked

Can you believe that Saddam Hussein was found guilty of crimes against humanity? I never would have thought it.

Using the Cell Phone for Good

Tonight, I'm volunteering to make calls for Moveon.org's "Call for Change" program. People from all over the country are making phone calls to voters in districts with close races. I've made 12 calls so far on behalf of Jim Webb, Democrat running for the Senate against "Mr. Macaca." So far only 3 people actually picked up the phone (out of 11 calls made), but they've been nice and what the hell? They don't know who I am and I'd like to think I am making a small contribution.

Besides, since I never use all my cell phone minutes, I might as well donate them, eh?

So, for those of you reading this in Ohio's first or second Congressional District, I may be calling YOU soon. LOL!