I'm not one for writing diaries, I prefer to read what the rest of you write and spread the word elsewhere on the internet and in the analog world; but today is such an historic occasion, I feel compelled to share my rather mundane, but no less personally exciting, experience with my fellow Kossacks.
Polls opened here in Kentucky at 6 am, and a few minutes after 6 I was out my door (having reconfirmed that I vote in District 116 and jotting down the names of the candidates I support in the nonpartisan local races) and walked to my polling place. It was still dark out when I left and i took the opportunity of the short stroll to think about a few things: first on my mind was how much I love this country and how we are able to remove a corrupt, criminal administration and put in a new one not by violent revolution, but by coming together as citizens and making our voices heard (sappy, I know, I have a Capraesque taint on my soul); the second thing on my mind was how long I've been advocating for Obama and a Democratic revolution in Congress (four years on Obama, since the famed DNC speech), and now it's looking to come to fruition. The closer I got to the doors of the high school that served as my polling place, the bigger my grin stretched. I thought about the historic nature of this election, wondered what the Founding Fathers and past Presidents would think about where we've come as a nation, thought about all the people I wish were still here with us to see this day.
When I finally walked through the doors and saw the huge lines, I had to contain my laughter. In the past two presidential elections I voted during the afternoon, at about 2 PM, and there have never been lines like what I was seeing this morning; two long lines were going out doors and out of the building on the side of the school opposite of where I had walked, and this was at about 6:15 in the morning. Thankfully the lines were for people who didn't know what district they were voting in, I had wisely checked the tubes before leaving the house and the line for my district only had about 8 people in it. The large room that was used for polling was packed, but everybody seemed friendly and chatty and not too put out by the crowding or wait.
After thanking the two ladies who were checking IDs and handing out the ballots and waiting about 10 minutes for one of the little booths to be free, I was filling in the little circle next to Barack Obama and Joe Biden's names and feeling a wave of satisfaction wash through my mind; the feeling was just as good as I was filling in the circle next to Lunsford and giving a last minute evil eye to McConnell. When i went to slip my ballot into the scanner machine I noticed the older gentleman overseeing had been there for the primary and said hi.
As I was walking back home, I saw that the sky was beginning to grow light and figured it was a propitious metaphor; then I laughed at myself for being such a geek. Now, after 4 years of researching and reading, convincing friends and family, arguing against nutty reactionaries, donating what I could, cheering on my fellow Dems, and generally becoming a political junkie, I can finally take a much deserved rest.... well, not quite yet, because a little later in the morning I'm going with my parents and younger sister to take my grandparents and other older relatives to vote, and then I have to call up the rest of my relatives and friends and make sure they've voted or are going to vote or if they need a ride to vote. Then I can rest, but just for a little bit, because tonight, I, and Democrats and sane, rational people everywhere will be partying! And then it's down to the business of making sure the people we're voting in today achieve some progress.