1. I voted...did you? I hope so. I saw a sign on a business today that said, "Vote so you can complain." I like that. You certainly can't complain about our political system if you're not taking part in it.
2. Nickelodeon has been doing a great job of getting the little ones involved in the election process. They have presented the candidates in an interesting way for the kids and Builder Boy has noticed. Of course, we're trying to do our part in teaching him the importance, even at such a young age, of civic responsibility. If you ask him who he's voting for, he'll tell you John McCain. If you ask him why, he'll tell you, "because of his speeches" and then proceed to tell you about McCain's dog and cat. Hey, whatever it takes to get him involved. He attended a rally with us the day after Palin was announced as McCain's running mate...while I can't say he enjoyed it, he did find it interesting and asked a lot of questions (this was after numerous meltdowns about how hot it was, how long it was taking, that he was sooo thirsty, etc.).
3. No matter who you are voting for, it is clear that this is an historical and monumental election. No matter which ticket wins, history is being made. But I guess history is made with each election, we're just breaking more barriers this year.
4. As I was driving home from voting today, I noticed that in the hour since I had driven by a McCain sign, someone had knocked it off its posts. I stopped the car, got out and fixed it. Someone driving by yelled, "Just throw it away" in a not very kind tone. This infuriates me...I don't go around ripping down Obama signs or yelling things at Obama supporters. THIS IS AMERICA. We all have the right to vote for whomever we like. Instead of being divisive, let's support the fact that we live in such a great country. Let's applaud anyone who votes, who makes their voice heard through voting.
5. I was very saddened to hear that Obama's grandmother had died. Again, no matter which side you stand on, this is such sorrowful news for him and his family during a time that is already stressful. To not have her there today as he awaits news of election results must add such a layer of sadness that I can't even imagine. Watching him speak last night, you could see the sadness behind his eyes. It must be so incredibly tough.
6. Two weeks ago, in broad daylight, someone spray painted the side of a Victorian house in our neighborhood using red engine paint with Obama "stuff" and some profanities about McCain. No one saw who did it (naturally), but this old woman now has a massive cleanup and expensive repaint of her house. She had no political signs in her yard and keeps to herself. Shame on the person who did this.
7. For the record, I hate the expression, "Get out the vote." It just sounds weird to me. Get out AND vote, okay. Get out THE vote-it just sounds odd. It's kind of like saying, "My bad." Don't even get me started on that one...
8. From the time that Builder Boy got up today until just a few minutes ago when he fell asleep, he did not shut up. He was a motor mouth the entire day. It was a bit like Chinese torture. I'm not kidding, the whole darn day. When I told him this, he laughed and just kept on going. He did have lots of questions for me...questions that are difficult to explain to a four year old. For example, last week, he asked me why God made bad people. Hmmm...so I dive into how God made us all equal and he made us so we could make choices. Some people make good choices while others make bad choices...the phone then rang. THANK YOU, GOD, for ringing the phone for me because trying to explain free will to a kid was hard!!! These were the types of questions I was getting today.
9. As I voted today and I looked at the names of all the candidates, I have to admit that I got a little teary...a black man for President and a woman for Vice President? Wow! Cool! And more emotionally overwhelming than I thought it would be.
How about that for a random thoughts post? Tonight (or tomorrow if its too close to call) is an exciting time in our country. I'm hoping that it will be viewed by all that way no matter what happens. I am glad it is over. The political calls will stop (they will stop, won't they???) and we can move on. Happy Election Day, everyone. We're making history!