it gets me every time

it's been a while--i've been travelling (and recovering from travelling), and i'm just not one of those people who can post on location. i admire those who can: "i'm in [fabulous location x] looking at [awesome crap y] and i HAD to post about it!" but i'm lazy and self-indulgent when i travel-i'd rather take the time to peruse unknown bookstores and pretend that i'm independently wealthy. i'll try to share travel stories later. for now, i have a rekindled obsession and i want to share.

funny that travelling and gardens and old friends, three of my all-time favorite things, didn't motivate me to post, but the election did. we went to orlando this past weekend-i went for the trade show, KGB came along because he'd rather lose a limb than miss an opportunity to visit orlando-and we watched the debate on friday night. i'll leave my reaction to it aside for now.
more importantly, it lit a long-dormant fire. don't get me wrong, the upcoming election has been on my mind since W was re-elected in 04. i still don't know how that happened, and it's one of a very few times in my life that something so indirectly connected to my life has elicited such a visceral emotional reaction from me. i cried when kerry lost, i felt sick, was relatively inconsolable for a solid week. i looked up apartment rental prices in london, costa rica, toronto. W's victory upset me more than my divorce did a year later.


i didn't even like kerry that much-i was just so very disappointed in the country. that's what i get for having idealistic tendencies, i guess. non-stupid people always underestimate the damaging power of stupid individuals. consequently, i was over politics. done with worrying about who'd get elected where, over trying to explain to people why it's important, through with checking out c-span to see what was up in the legislature. i let the cynicism get to me. chalk it up to post-traumatic stress syndrome.


W's reign has taught me several valuable lessons; not the least of which is that if you value your way of life, you can't leave things like elections up to chance and the midwest. but until friday, i was done-i made my donation to the obama campaign, got my t-shirt, and planned to vote quietly come november. but the debate friday night, coupled with a few key conversations with some friends, has rekindled the fire. it's election time, and i have named the puppy. regardless of political affiliation, regardless of how deeply you've been hurt by other elections or impeachment hearings (or lack thereof), regardless of your opinions of the 'system', vote. vote. please. fuck the electoral college-your vote counts.


and if you need motivation, or just entertainment:
SNL's parody of Palin with Couric--it's a parody at first, but then they show the real clip, so watch it even if you saw it on snl. it's frightening to see that what you thought was a joke is just a mimicry. she's actually that dumb.
Palin on foreign policy. this pissed me off so much i can't even talk about it. it's beyond insulting.

you have until october 6th to get your license and registration updated. for florida types, you can even do it online and mail it in. make sure your driver license and voter registration match-if they don't, you can update your license online too. it all takes about ten minutes, unless you're illiterate or mentally challenged. in either case, find a friend.