What on earth is worth waiting in line 2 hours and 20 minutes?
Very little as far as I'm concerned. A new Star Wars comes to mind, but that's about it.
And voting.
Today I waited in a very long line outside our local library for early voting. I'm flying to the Grand Canyon on election day so I won't be able to vote at my nice little precinct with the sweet men from the VFW. Given the choice between mailing in an absentee ballot and waiting in a long line, I chose the line. There's something about the image of hanging chads that makes me want to physically put my ballot in the machine myself. I'm from Florida.
Fortunately, I had been fully warned by people who had already waited in line (and our local media's airing the same footage of the same line over and over) so I knew what was ahead of me.
Confession: I'm a wee bit delusional from time to time. I actually thought deep down that the line wouldn't be long when I got there. I was wrong.
Here's the good news: it was cool and overcast. Also, everyone in line came prepared to wait so people were downright pleasant. My preparation included new podcasts on my iPod and sending my little ones to spend the morning with my dad. I figured they would have much more fun at the Lego store than in line with me and they agreed.
I was bummed that they couldn't be with me for the actual vote, but they'll go with PB on the 4th to see democracy in action. I gave them a mini-civics lesson while I filled out my sample ballot. I explained that some votes are like choosing between ice cream and spinach, a no brainer. Others are like choosing between spinach and broccoli, I'm not crazy about either so I'll go with the one I can stomach the most. (Yes, I chose vegetables as the negatives in my analogy. It's called knowing your audience.)
So I've done my civic duty now. I don't have to fret about the outcome because it's out of my hands and in the hands of God anyway.
Polls show Florida is neck and neck right now. Excellent. What could possibly go wrong? They say all the bugs have been worked out, but it is Florida after all. Something tells me that a big, old hole in the ground will be a great place to be post-election.
Today I waited in a very long line outside our local library for early voting. I'm flying to the Grand Canyon on election day so I won't be able to vote at my nice little precinct with the sweet men from the VFW. Given the choice between mailing in an absentee ballot and waiting in a long line, I chose the line. There's something about the image of hanging chads that makes me want to physically put my ballot in the machine myself. I'm from Florida.
Fortunately, I had been fully warned by people who had already waited in line (and our local media's airing the same footage of the same line over and over) so I knew what was ahead of me.
Confession: I'm a wee bit delusional from time to time. I actually thought deep down that the line wouldn't be long when I got there. I was wrong.
Here's the good news: it was cool and overcast. Also, everyone in line came prepared to wait so people were downright pleasant. My preparation included new podcasts on my iPod and sending my little ones to spend the morning with my dad. I figured they would have much more fun at the Lego store than in line with me and they agreed.
I was bummed that they couldn't be with me for the actual vote, but they'll go with PB on the 4th to see democracy in action. I gave them a mini-civics lesson while I filled out my sample ballot. I explained that some votes are like choosing between ice cream and spinach, a no brainer. Others are like choosing between spinach and broccoli, I'm not crazy about either so I'll go with the one I can stomach the most. (Yes, I chose vegetables as the negatives in my analogy. It's called knowing your audience.)
So I've done my civic duty now. I don't have to fret about the outcome because it's out of my hands and in the hands of God anyway.
Polls show Florida is neck and neck right now. Excellent. What could possibly go wrong? They say all the bugs have been worked out, but it is Florida after all. Something tells me that a big, old hole in the ground will be a great place to be post-election.
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6 comments:
Two hours and twenty minutes. My absentee ballot...which is sitting on the kitchen counter...looks mighty purty right now.
Wow! I was thinking of early voting to avoid the lines. I haven't heard that our lines are that bad though. We'll see...
wow... maybe they won't be that bad next week....
Keep in mind these early voting locations cover a BUNCH of precincts and that's why the lines are so long. Your local precinct shouldn't be that bad on the 4th. So unless you're neurotic like me, I'd say skip the early voting and just show up on election day.
I love the analogies :-). I notice there were no "choosing between ice cream and chocolate", LOL. Nope, no chance of have to pick between two candidates you just LOVE ;-).
Wouldn't it be wonderful if we could have that choice?
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