Another hallmark of fall: The politicians are back from vacation. Good citizens are standing at Main Street intersections holding a gaggle of campaign placards, trying to get passing drivers to honk their horns. Glad-handling candidates swarm radio and TV studios and local diners like locusts. I'll admit, I've been a political junkie since high school, and as early as 9th grade volunteered to work the phones for a state Attorney General hopeful. But this year, I'm doing something a little different -- with my Filofax, that is. A couple weeks ago, a casual remark from my mother-in-law made me realize that I had no idea who I was going to vote for in this year's gubernatorial primary, nor even what date it was! It was time to extend and dust off my political antenna.
One morning, my antenna was piqued by the clock radio, stirring me from NPR Dreamland. One of the gubernatorial candidates was being interviewed, and I liked what I heard. THIS was my guy! I grabbed the pocket Filo on my nightstand to mark down who I wanted to vote for -- but when? Darn you, NPR Interviewer, say the primary date!
No luck. Repeating the candidate's name like a 10-digit phone number, I shuffled into my slippers and scampered down to the computer. Googled until I found the civic-minded .gov site listing primary dates. Aha! I wrote my favored candidate's name in my Filofax calendar ON the primary date. (Killing 2 birds with one stone gives me such an endorphin rush!)
Update: Since then, a lawn sign notified me which way I wanted to vote (or rather, which way I didn't want to vote) on a state referendum. Another entry on my calendar. By the time Primary Day rolls around, I may have the full ticket filled out in my Filo. I hope they let me bring it into the voting booth with me...
This is so civic-minded and noble.
ReplyDeleteIn the past few months, I have met both of the DC mayoral candidates who squared off in the Democratic primary yesterday. (In DC, the Democratic primary is effectively the general election, because Republicans are rare and only come out at night.) One of the two candidates literally knocked on our door to ask for our support. The other, also literally, flagged me down on the street to curry my support. She was accompanied by the current mayor and a former deputy attorney general, whom I also met. I was carrying a case of Tropicana Fruit Punch, a two-liter bottle of diet ginger ale, and some Babybel cheeses. (On the way back from Safeway, natch.)
Having received all of this attention, what did I do yesterday?
I failed to vote. That's what I did. They wasted their time on me. Losers.
Well, don't let this post make it look as if I've managed to vote in every election available to me. I've certainly missed elections due to work, illness, and that old favorite -- life.
ReplyDelete< pious hope>
Maybe someday we Americans will realize that how we vote is essential to our way of life.
< /pious hope>