Sorry if others have noted this, but I just got back from casting my proud and enthusiastic votes for Barack Obama and Jim Martin here in DeKalb County, Georgia and I am pumped. Why? I waited in line for nearly thirty minutes. It was packed, absolutely packed.
I have an international flight to catch this afternoon so the wait was not exactly convenient, but the energy was amazing. No parking (I had to improvise a space), and hundreds of people in a line that snaked into the heretofore unknown to me depths of the building (the one across from the jail on Memorial, for those who know the area). Better yet, it was a fast moving line, but despite the speed, it just kept getting longer and longer while I was there. You'd think we were all at Disney :-)
Yes, today is a holiday and many people don't have to work, but it seems that what many people have chosen to do with their time is vote. Which is great news for us because DeKalb County is strong Obama and Martin territory. FWIW, I'd guess that at least 80% of the voters I saw were African-American. I only saw one voter being turned away and it seemed that her recent registration may not yet have been processed. The poll worker who handled it was being incredibly kind and helpful and reassuring, and made sure the woman knew how to follow up.
Hooray for votes in the bag!
UPDATE (10/13): Wow, on and off the Rec List while I was on a 20 hour plane ride! Sorry I wasn't around to engage with everyone. Thanks for all the tips and thanks even more for you hard work and enthusiasm about the election.