My Political Endorsement

Yesterday, I attended an Obama rally at Widener University. The weather was frigid and wet. I stood outside for almost 4 hours in order to hear, see, and support the man I hope becomes our country's next president.

A number of political and local leaders spoke before Obama took the stage. Shortly before 10am I could see security staff take the rooftops of nearby buildings. He was about to appear before the crowd. The mounting anticipation was palpable. Even though my body was cold, tired, and shivering I was excited and energized. The music swelled and people started cheering. Off to my right, Barack emerged through the crowd, shaking hands and smiling. I was taken off guard because suddenly I could not breathe and a lump formed in my throat.

The whole scene was truly awe inspiring - thousands of people standing in the 40 degree pouring rain to see this man who hopefully will bring the change our country needs. Our university's president told me later that he saw an older African-American man who was blind standing in the rain, with a smile on his face, listening to the words of Obama and said that he never thought that this day would arrive.

I tried to hear every word he said, but now as I think back I cannot honestly recall a single phrase but I can remember the feeling, the excitement, the momentum. All I hope will carry him to the White House next Tuesday. Our country is ready for change and yesterday that answer was blowing in the wind.

The Perfect Disguise

So, Halloween is probably my favorite of all holidays or at least a close second. Sure, the usual favorite - aka Christmas - is all about giving and being with loved ones which hopefully makes you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, but creating that feeling can be stressful e.g. figuring out what to get everyone for gifts, coming up with money for said gifts, baking goodies, decorating the house, hosting a holiday party. However, Halloween you get to pretend to be someone else, threaten to make someone smell your feet if they don't give you candy, and revel in giving people a good scare.

This year Jake and I have been trying to figure out what/who we should dress up as for Halloween. I have to say that being coupled can make this endeavor much more fun but maybe a little more difficult. I was searching the web for ideas and came across a website (and many more like it) with a special section of "sexy" costumes. These sexy costumes included things like sexy army cadet, sexy bull fighter, sexy Christmas elf, sexy cuddly lion, sexy Dorothy (as in Oz), sexy Eskimo, sexy fire woman, sexy head nurse, sexy honey bee, sexy Indian princess (also comes in pink), sexy missy claus, sexy referee...and this list goes on and on and on. So pretty much put sexy in front of anything and voila! you have your Halloween costume. So original.

Yeah I've heard that Halloween is every woman's excuse to dress like a slut but I don't feel the need this year to take that opportunity and I really haven't in years past. I like making people laugh, wonder who it is underneath that costume, or actually have to think about what the costume means. So this year we've decided it's going to be Hans and Franz and I definitely plan on annoying the heck out of everyone by talking in my best Arnold Schwarzenegger voice the entire night. We will pump *clap clap* you up!!

home. sweet. home?

This weekend I flew down to Florida to see a long time friend who is battling some really difficult self-induced health issues. I thought it might be the last time I would ever see him but fortunately when I left I had this unshakable feeling that it would definitely NOT be the last time and he still has a lot of life left that he wants to live out.

So that heart wrenching story aside, I was out in the middle of Florida - what a place!? I felt very out of my element...random little houses, trees covered in Spanish moss, a few alligators lurking around out there (I know they were there, even though I didn't see any), and lots of pick-up trucks with over sized wheels and McCain/Palin bumper stickers driving around. Very, very strange. It was a little like home only everyone's necks were a darker shade of red, hell that state is probably a little bit darker shade of red than Nodak.

home? where is home? I still call North Dakota home but in many ways it's not. Sure my family and many close friends still live there and there are plenty of things I miss like the open prairie and Old Dutch dill pickle chips but I have found that I have become accustomed to the way of life on the east coast. As my 11 am flight crossed NJ into Philadelphia and I could see that lovely skyline (framed in smoggy haze of course) I felt glad to be home. Even as the words crossed my mind, I could feel my heart question the thought. This is home? A place where people add an S to the word "you" because they think you is only singular and can't say a long A to save their lives. It's hard to be stuck between who I used to be and who I want to be and where that person should live. Home is, as they say, where the heart is. I'm not sure my heart is really here or there but it sure felt nice to feel the dirty Philly concrete beneath my feet.