Told ya'!

Back in January 2007, via this blog, I said that Barack Obama was someone to watch. I'm so excited that he has secured the Democratic nomination and will be on the ballot in November when we vote for President! If you recall, I was also able to see Senator Obama speak in person in February when he visited T-Town. That's a day I'll never forget; sitting with Buddy Bill, The College Kid, and my police officer friend, in a crowd of 9,000 that was more diverse than our group.

In just a few short days, Buddy Bill and I will be taking ninety (yes, 90!!) 7th graders to Washington, DC to see our nation's capital. We'll see some touristy sites, but the students will also see (and tour!!!) The White House, The U.S. Capitol, Mount Vernon (George Washington's estate), Arlington National Cemetery, The Vietnam War Memorial, The Lincoln Memorial, The U.S. Naval Academy, Gettysburg Battlefield, The National Archives... Our itinerary is packed. Coming home, the kids are tired, but they have a new appreciation for what Americans have been able to accomplish in just a couple hundred years. The United States.

Really, when we look at the big picture of world history, America is still in its infancy. Look at what we've done together since George Washington first took office! There are women and African American people right now who never dreamed that either would be able to run for President, much less actually be on the ballot, in their lifetimes. (There was a time when neither could vote!) Yet here it is. A brand new chapter is being written right before our eyes. It's history in the making.

Take the time to write some of it down. Save news articles in a scrapbook for your future grandchildren. Just as the current generation sees MP3 players and cell phones as a part of everyday life and has no clue about life without them, future generations will take all of this for granted as well.

Lucky, lucky them.

Ohio is Ready!

Tomorrow is our Democratic Primary Election. Approximately 15,000 people have voted early here in the Buckeye state. Here in Toledo, the Lucas County Board of Elections stayed open not only on Saturday, but also on SUNDAY to accommodate those who wished to vote early. Normally we have a couple thousand absentee ballots. But 15,000? You know who was touting early voting, right? It's exciting to see people excited about voting! Watch a cool music video here Yes We Can and here We Are The Ones. Be sure to read at the bottom how the videos came about.

Mother Nature did this to us last week:

Snowy tree in my front yard

It was great packing snow, and Mayhem's snowman wore handknits from my beginner days of knitting. He has no face, because, as Mayhem put it, "He's in the witness protection program."

You never saw me!

Today it was sixty degrees, and nearly all traces of that 8" of snow have disappeared. But guess what? Just in time for Election Day, an ice storm is predicted. The rain has started, and will turn to ice after midnight, followed by 1"-3" of snow, as temps drop into the 20's overnight. I'll go vote anyway, no matter what the weather.

Buddy Bill's College Kid has paid me the ultimate compliment. I have been asked to knit a pair of socks for him in his fraternity colors. You know that project will be jumping to the head of the line, right?

GET OUT AND VOTE!!!

10,000 Maniacs

The doors weren't supposed to open until 2:15 PM, but we arrived at The University of Toledo to get in line well before noon to hear Barack Obama speak. He was scheduled to take the stage at 4:20 Sunday afternoon. Already at 11:45 AM, the line wrapped around the building, which I knew from my research could seat 9,000 comfortably. We found out later that 10,000 were allowed inside, and an estimated 5,000 people were turned away!

We watched the arena fill up, and I saw people from all walks of life, including this young boy with his sign:

Everyone waited patiently for Senator Obama. Nobody fought over seats. People helped those who had trouble with stairs and bleachers.

Hooray for Buddy Bill and his political geekiness and love for the news. The preferred seating tickets he procured put us in a seating area with access to the floor if we wanted. (We didn't.) His sense of urgency to arrive early (others were there much earlier!) put us in the 8th row! Close enough to take photos like this, once Senator Obama arrived.

Senator Obama arrived on time, and began speaking only 10 minutes late. It wasn't a speech. He spoke TO us, not AT us, even though the place was packed to the rafters. Literally. "Cute baby," he said to a woman several rows away from him, "I have to make sure to kiss that baby." (I could almost see the Secret Service guys drawing straws to see who was checking the diaper for a bomb!) We aren't red states or blue states, we're The United States. And I thought about who I was sitting with - Buddy Bill; many years older than I am, retired and fighting insurance and retirement issues, his College Kid and a college friend; with worries about loans and future jobs, my friend W; a Toledo Police Officer who is also a minority and spends her days dealing with crime, drug dealers and the effects of this lousy economy, and me; a school counselor trying to help kids who are almost homeless sometimes, in an auto town that's losing jobs like crazy. All of us united by this same man.

And there was this reminder someone in attendance:

I was just a tiny part of the big picture, and you can't even see the thousands of people behind me.
Powerful. Postive. And yes, hopeful. Because where would be without hope?

Relevant - finally!

We matter! We really matter!Courtesy of The Toledo Blade - Kirk

I'll give you the Obama report later!!

A Whole Lot Going On!

First, thanks for all the birthday wishes, everyone! You're the best!

It's Parent/Teacher conference time at school again. That means that Thursday evening I had to stay late at the junior high. Sarah (who really needs to update her blog!) enticed me - with beer and knitting - to meet her at a friend's bar afterward. We had a wonderful time with our Piddleloop bags, knitting socks, beer, fried pickles and her boyfriend Eric. Knitting and beer were much more fun than telling lots of parents that their lovely kids might not be making it out of 8th grade this year.

If you've paid attention to the news at all, you know that Ohio has become very important politically and T-Town has played host, or will, to all the big candidates by Sunday. McCain was here Thursday. Hillary is here tonight, on my school's campus, no less. More exciting to me, is that Barack Obama will be here Sunday! Buddy Bill went downtown this morning, bright and early, and waited in line for preferential seating tickets. Bill's College Kid is coming in tonight for the weekend and will be joining us at the rally with another college friend.

In the knitting department, I am trying to catch up on my socks. I have started the February socks, finally, even though I am still working on January's. Since I need to speed up - well, I think I do, anyway - I have decided to try a new trick. We'll see if knitting socks on two circular needles helps me out any. I have the cuff done, now on to the pattern. I tried this method once before, about a year ago, and ditched it quickly. This time it seems be going better. So far.

My weekend will be knitting, housework, and watching The Simpson's Movie with the kids and then Barack Obama on Sunday. Wish my brother Rudi luck - he's doing the Polar Bear Plunge for Special Olympics tomorrow. Jumping into Lake Erie in February on purpose! Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr.