One Day My Mind Opened Up
Monday, November 20, 2006
Deck The--Apartment?
To start with I had a crazy weekend, in fact today is when I'll be able to put it to rest. A co-worker kinda invited me to his house again to watch the Ohio State-Michigan football game and a DVD. The game and the DVD were awesome, but I got a surprise when I left his house--my car was gone.
"OK," I think "retrace my steps, I may have just forgotten where I parked--nothing. I ask my friend for help, still no car. So I assume the worst, my car's been stolen, now my car has a kinda "lock up" mode so I figure "can't go far". I call 911 and find that my car had been towed:(
But I'm undaunted. I ride my bicycle to church services, get home and get to cleaning up my apartment a bit and doing my laundry. I also put up what few Christmas decorations I have.
I gotta admit, even with my simple decorations, the place looks kinda nice. And with me heading out to visit the folks for T-Day. . . ¶ 8:04 AM
To start with I had a crazy weekend, in fact today is when I'll be able to put it to rest. A co-worker kinda invited me to his house again to watch the Ohio State-Michigan football game and a DVD. The game and the DVD were awesome, but I got a surprise when I left his house--my car was gone.
"OK," I think "retrace my steps, I may have just forgotten where I parked--nothing. I ask my friend for help, still no car. So I assume the worst, my car's been stolen, now my car has a kinda "lock up" mode so I figure "can't go far". I call 911 and find that my car had been towed:(
But I'm undaunted. I ride my bicycle to church services, get home and get to cleaning up my apartment a bit and doing my laundry. I also put up what few Christmas decorations I have.
I gotta admit, even with my simple decorations, the place looks kinda nice. And with me heading out to visit the folks for T-Day. . . ¶ 8:04 AM
Monday, November 06, 2006
Getting The Bug
"How Bad Have You Got It" was a slogan that NASCAR used for a campaign. But you "Have it", there needs to be a point where you "catch it".
Well it was ten years ago that I really caught the "politics bug". Now my journey towards progressive ideas had begun in 1990, with that being the 20th anniversary of Earth Day. My time in Rochester NY put me in contact with many new ideas and the infant internet gave me access to resources and information I would have been unable to find.
But it was while I was in Nashua that I think I got to see that politics is participatory and can be a lot of fun. Soon after I moved into my dump of an apartment, I saw that the Democratic Party had set up shop in a nearby space. Now you need to understand that while New Hampshire has a deserved reputation as a conservative place, it's also got a real independent streak; and Democratic Leaders may have seen an opportunity. So I began putting time in.
Actually the core of the office were from Minnesota I believe, but there was a good cadre of local people as well. Including one from a poetry group I was working with.
And I did a variety of tasks; dropping off leaflets, calling folks, holding signs, and acting as a walking garbage disposal (my appetite for justice at that time was matched only by--well--my appetite. To the point that if everyone put in $5 for food I'd have to put in $7). I also got to meet several candidates, having a tea with one and dazzling another by repeating an excerpt of a speech she had given a few days earlier--word for word!
I'll also admit that there was a social component to this as well. These people became my friends, and I think I did likewise.
And we actually did ok--we batted .500, New Hampshire ended up in Clinton's column and we elected the first Democratic Governor in years.
I also think this work kept me sane for those first few months. ¶ 11:11 PM
"How Bad Have You Got It" was a slogan that NASCAR used for a campaign. But you "Have it", there needs to be a point where you "catch it".
Well it was ten years ago that I really caught the "politics bug". Now my journey towards progressive ideas had begun in 1990, with that being the 20th anniversary of Earth Day. My time in Rochester NY put me in contact with many new ideas and the infant internet gave me access to resources and information I would have been unable to find.
But it was while I was in Nashua that I think I got to see that politics is participatory and can be a lot of fun. Soon after I moved into my dump of an apartment, I saw that the Democratic Party had set up shop in a nearby space. Now you need to understand that while New Hampshire has a deserved reputation as a conservative place, it's also got a real independent streak; and Democratic Leaders may have seen an opportunity. So I began putting time in.
Actually the core of the office were from Minnesota I believe, but there was a good cadre of local people as well. Including one from a poetry group I was working with.
And I did a variety of tasks; dropping off leaflets, calling folks, holding signs, and acting as a walking garbage disposal (my appetite for justice at that time was matched only by--well--my appetite. To the point that if everyone put in $5 for food I'd have to put in $7). I also got to meet several candidates, having a tea with one and dazzling another by repeating an excerpt of a speech she had given a few days earlier--word for word!
I'll also admit that there was a social component to this as well. These people became my friends, and I think I did likewise.
And we actually did ok--we batted .500, New Hampshire ended up in Clinton's column and we elected the first Democratic Governor in years.
I also think this work kept me sane for those first few months. ¶ 11:11 PM
Saturday, November 04, 2006
I'm a Bit Surprised
¶ 6:27 PM
| You Are 28% Politically Radical |
 You've got a few unusual political ideas, but overall you're a pretty mainstream person. Chances are that you're turned off by both the radical right and looney left. |
