Holy cow, it’s dusty in here! November 26, 2008

But I have had nothing to say.

I don’t know if my orgasmic reaction to Obama’s win sent me into a nigh month-long petit mort or what, but whatever it was: I’m back.

So, to get you caught up on all things Beege:

*We bought a new car! Well, new to us. It’s a 2004 Kia Optima. We didn’t get a great deal on it, but it seems to be a good car, and we got a very reasonable payment, so: now we’re a two car family. As freaked out as I got over the idea of taking out a car loan, it HAS been nice not having to share the CR-V (and by “share” I mean: me begging for rides from my parents whenever I didn’t work 8-5 and I could just go to work and come home with M). It’s a 5-speed, and I love that, since I love driving a standard.

*Sarah is allergic to something. We know not what. We’re using the same soaps, detergents and shampoos that we’ve used her entire life. She hasn’t eaten anything that she hasn’t eaten for pretty much the entire time she’s been eating solids. But for the better part of a week, her little body has been one gigantic hive. Poor baby…I wish I knew how to make it better. We took her in last Friday, and he said to bring her back on Tuesday if it wasn’t better…it’s better. But it’s not gone. We didn’t go back to him, and I’m sort of second-guessing myself on that, but: she’s finally starting to act like herself again. That’s what I’m most thankful for this Thanksgiving.

*My brother got engaged! This is fabulous news, as I had told him that if he didn’t propose to Girlfriend, he was out of the family and Girlfriend was in. They asked M and I to do their wedding. Girlfriend said she couldn’t imagine anything better than to have two people with such a strong, loving, meaningful marriage presiding over her marriage to Brother. Awww…she got me with that one. 🙂

Now I get to go sing and rock my sweet babe to sleep. I’m home for bedtime so rarely thanks to my present occupation as Shopgirl, and with the holiday season just a scant 36 hours away: will be home even less. I’m going to go snuggle my Boog into my lap, feel her curls tickle my cheek, and sing her favorite lullaby until her bright blue eyes begin to drift closed…motherhood is grand. 🙂

Thanksgiving blessings to all of you, my friends!

Oh. My. God. November 5, 2008

He did it.

He did it well. He did it handily.

McCain’s concession speech was everything I expected from him. All the things he talked about being on the campaign trail (and wasn’t) was heard in that speech. It was refined, gracious, pointed, and I hope to God that together these two men can help heal what’s wrong with our country.

I appreciated Obama’s gravity in his acceptance speech. His words that last night was not the change we seek, but only the potential starting point of the change we seek rang so true to me. He could have been all, “Yeah, boys! First brother in the Oval Office, yo!” and dancing all over the stage. No one would have begrudged him that. But he accepted the weighty responsibility the American people gave him with dignity. I appreciated that he spoke of working to earn the support of those who voted for McCain–after decades of “You lost so suck it!” politics, having someone acknowledge the pain and disappointment of not having the person you thought best for the job get the job, and vow to do work that is worthy of your support was remarkable.

I got choked up, listening to African American commentators, prounounce past lumps in their throat that this is a different America for them now, and that now, when they tell their children they can be anything–even President–they are no longer lying. That being an American is different for African Americans now. I cried, watching Jesse Jackson (I wanted him and his Rainbow Coalition to win, too, 20-some-years-ago) and Oprah, and a young girl from Spellman who was so overcome she could only fall to her knees and weep. I rejoiced that this was not an election won by the African American vote, but by the American vote. I rejoiced over the mosaic of faces that gathered in Grant Park last night–because that’s the America I know and love. Not red. Not blue. Just America. America rising up and saying, “Enough. You don’t get to make us afraid anymore. We are bigger than what we are afraid of. We are more than a demographic. We are more than an ethnicity. We are America. And tonight, we’re going to begin the work of reminding the world what that means again.”

I feel like since 9/11, we’ve been like a little old lady in her house in the dark. She’s got a gun, she’s telling all the bumps in the night that she’s got a gun and she’s not afraid to use it…but she is. We’ve been erratic, shooting at shadows, going after things that aren’t the immediate threat, allowing our leaders to hold us in a state of fear of it happening again. But last night? “If you seek to tear us down, we will destroy you.” America will be strong again. She will. It will take a lot–a LOT–of work. And tears. And mistakes. But we can do it. But WE have to do it. We’ve been too docile, willing to let government pat us on the head and say, “This is a big scary thing. Let us take care of it. We’re the government, we know what we’re doing. Don’t worry.”

No more. Enough.

I’m so proud of what we did last night. I’m so proud that our President-elect had the guts to run.

This morning? I can hear America singing.

Proud. November 4, 2008

I’ve been watching MSNBC since about 7 this morning.

Overall, I’d have to say that this has been a mistake and extremely unedifying.

BUT.

The images of Americans standing in lines that wrap around city blocks in order to vote? I don’t care who they were there to vote for. I’m so damn proud that people are taking this election so seriously. This election is different than any in my memory. There seems to be such a sense of winds of change.

Tomorrow I may care very much who those people stood in line for hours to vote for. But for right now? I’m just glad that we’re all taking this as seriously as we are. Tonight, America freaking rocks, and I love her.