The Weak in Review (Typo intended.)

Halloween used to be my favorite holiday. I am at work. My viking helmet with yellow braids is out in the car in case I get festive ... or we start drinking early.

I don't think I'll get into the spirit of things until after the election.

Was driving in morning before last and some idiot was on the "sign corner", Six Mile Cypress & 41. Apparently this intersection is where you go when you have something important to tell the world.

Or local traffic.

Some months back - when Officer Andrew Widman was killed by a Cuban criminal who had slipped through the system - the cops were on every corner with signs. People were honking in support of our police force and the outflow of compassion for Widman's family BLEW ME AWAY.

I thought "I have moved to a place with heart."

At work, I told the girls and one sat on the floor with the newspaper article about his widow and small children. She cried. That's how we are. We give a shit.

But the other morning there was a jackass with a giant "Nobama!" sign. I had a mascara wand in one hand and steering wheel in the other; still, I managed to flip him off without losing control of the vehicle.

I told the girls at work. Our new Jamaican model (I love her, she's awesome) said "He might have tracked you down and hurt you" and I said "the newspapers would read 'McCain Supporter Kicks Ass of South Fort Myers Grandmother" and I would be fine with that.

"Grandmother" sounds so innocuous. Snort. I am the world's worst Buddhist. Maybe I can return to that peaceful place after the election ...

My day doesn't usually end well when a flipped bird is my first public act; but that one did. Wound up at a very nice dinner at Bonefish after a wine tasting around the corner. Some of us needed a little sobering up.

Damned if two from our group aren't extremely bright Republicans. I sat there thinking (note commendable restraint) Republicans are either wealthy, fundamentalist zealots or stupid.

These two have been very political for a very long time, while I am a neophyte. When they attacked, I knew I was in over my head. I finally said "Insanity is doing the same things over and over and expecting different results."

To my surprise, that shut them down.

One of the Republican guys DID say something really interesting. "It seems like all intelligent women hate Palin."

It was a fun night, AWESOME crabcakes, superb service and no raised voices or bloodshed. Most important, I managed to get out for less than $20 with a nice tip. God money is so tight.
Yesterday I lived on fiber bars - that's all I had at home.

Needed to leave work a little early due to unanticipated bloat.

Last night I made Mexican Wedding Balls for our company Halloween party ... those little round white cookies with butter, nuts and confectioner's sugar. Dropped the bag in my kitchen and it exploded into a white cloud that looked like the final desk scene in Scarface.

I was up cleaning past midnight ...

Hard times, presidential debates, mean-spirited lunatics and me - the word whore.

(Photo from the anti-Palin rally in Wasilla, Alaska. "Somehow" this event escaped media coverage. Want more? Write me, I'll send you a link.)

I sleep with the TV on. Like you - every morning this week I awakened to some of the worst news I have ever heard. Strange concepts ... bailing out the mega-wealthy by breaking the backs of American workers. Six and seven figure exit payments to the bankers who brought it on, some who should be going to jail.

Terms like "another depression - worse than the last."

I never paid attention before. I told a friend this morning - sometimes I will switch off the news to watch reruns of Friends because you MAX OUT ON IT.

Who in their right mind will buy non-essential goods in this economy? Some will bury their heads in the sand and pretend nothing is happening. Check the morning shows ... candy ass chicks are still aspiring to designer handbags that cost the average mortgage payment.

I work at an ad agency ... try being a person of conscience coming up with words that convince hard-working people to part with their money. For the most part, the demographic of our clients is my own age group. The people who survived Nam, the assasination of Kennedy, who lived large in the 80s and are scrambling to survive now as they (we) age with dwindling funds and limited prospects.

As I listen to the giant swooshing sound of my karma going down the toilet, I placate my inner word whore with the thought that if people don't buy these unnecessary things, there won't be jobs.

IF AND WHEN YOU BUY, PLEASE BUY AMERICAN MADE!!!

I know, it's hard to find American made goods these days. You want four more years of this bullshit?

I posted the Democratic Debate Watch to my singles group. (I founded the group, started with 7 lonely people on July 4, 2007; now we have about 205 people.)

I am a paid professional when it comes to words. First I went to meetup.com to make sure it was kosher to post political events. Then I took great pains to be fair. I invited Democrats and undecideds, gave the details and welcomed Republicans to post their own events. I asked that members of my group RSVP to the event portion of http://www.barackobama.com/ instead of my meetup group. Because I thought people would take shots, as people do.

I was blown away by the number of mean-spirited remarks I endured. I know some of these people. I wrote them "I have Republican friends; we treat each other with honor and respect." None of them bothered to read the details I provided in the posting, they saw what they wanted to see, accused me of being biased, of having invited Republicans to a Democratic event (that was a total lie) and censorship when they attempted to copy the entire group with their inflammatory remarks.

As of Thursday I had to cancel the event on that board because McCain was off to Washington as if Washington would be hopeless without him. If you post an event on Meetup and it is cancelled at the last minute, people are stranded.

On Friday morning I got a notice from the New York Times that McCain WOULD be at the debate. So around noon I sent out an email with a link to the news story on the New York Times. I suggested everyone watch the debate. There was no mention of Democrats or Republicans, just those who might realize they HAVE A STAKE IN THE FUTURE OF THIS COUNTRY.

And I heaved a sigh of relief, knowing there was no way ANYONE could take offense.

And again with the venom, as if suggesting people watch the debates was somehow offensive. All non-organizer emails must be approved by the organizer (me) so I was able to head them off. One of the most vicious attackers "quit" the group saying there was "too much drama".

One Democratic event posted on a singles site and one email to the group suggesting they watch at home was "too much drama" for this bitch.

It's a singles group. You quickly find out why some people are SINGLE.

Frustated beyond belief, I wasn't sure I would attend the debate because the first "Obama watch event" had been a reality check; bigots and rednecks were out in force. The organizer had accidentally chosen a hostile venue. (See previous posts.) So I was a little nervous about this one.
I walked in to an alternate universe ... people of every age, color and persuasion. Not the blinding white of the Republican Convention.

I was intellectually "home" for the first time in a long time. If I could find a church like this, I would go just to hang out. Good people from all walks of life on the SAME PAGE. I was early enough to snag a barstool where I could easily see the TV. Next to me was a Phillipino (?) woman my age. Then came an adorable young gay guy. We shared our two barstools with him, rubbing shoulders during the debate, laughing, yelling and booing for all we had.

A middle-aged woman with giant hooters walked by on her way to the john. My new gay friend said "those have to be fake" and I said "no, I think they're original equipment." He asked why ... I said "they're structurally unsound." He's like "oh, so you're saying it's the bra?" And I said YEAH.

More people attended than expected, many stood throughout and two women near us got tanked and had to be shooshed; but on the whole it was a major success. We all walked out smiling and energized.

Like everyone, I've been giving everything a lot of thought this week. And I came to some conclusions. Understand that I'm not the sharpest knife in the drawer when it comes to this stuff.

But here's what I think.

A vote for McCain is a vote for President Palin because his age, health, and the stress of the election compounded with the heat of the presidency will certainly kill him. And Palin? I was wondering what people see in her.

Anti-choice, against informing kids about birth control (abstinence doesn't work for her family - why would it work for anyone else?) born again, pro-war, pro-aerial hunting of wolves and bears ...

So who is for Palin?

Fundamentalist Christians. You know what? I have a few born again friends I love dearly. I recently received an email from one of them - it contained photos of dead and aborted babies. As if I were a baby killer because I believe in the right of people to make their own choices.

Palin is ALSO pro-war.

Where are the photos of America's sons and daughters coming back from Iraq in BOXES?

I thought church and state were supposed to be separate ... how long will that last with President Palin?

McSame and Saracuda; how stupid do we look to the rest of the world?

This old take on The Sixth Sense is about the only humor that fits this country in these deathly serious times.

I was on the Southwest Florida Obama board and I forwarded an email on registering young voters - for a measly $12 donation you get a free shirt. (Here's a link:)

https://pol.moveon.org/newobamatshirts/index.html?id=13949-9283835-ta6o9Tx&t=5&enc_min=UmFuZG9tSVZKVNfJ1DjuVNcvnAiF7eA%2Bp0liNwxQol4%3D-agLtdoweCfd1OBb3eQ%2FTcw

A Canadian wrote back complaining that MoveOn.org wouldn't take his information. I wrote back he should probably go to Obama's main site.

I don't know what I was thinking - it took a few email exchanges to realize HE DOESN'T EVEN LIVE IN THIS COUNTRY AND HE CARES ENOUGH TO DONATE.

So I asked him - what do Canadians think of this presidential race? This is what he wrote.

"I'll tell you what they think.....they think it's a completely disgraceful show, mostly on the part of McCain and the joke that Palin is.....I'd say the support for Obama here is very, very heavy.....over 90%...if not 95%.....I've come up with a plan for that $12.00 donation for the t-shirt.....make 3 separate donations but have them sent to my sister's and nephew's home address.....just have to confirm their complete mailing address:))).....personally my wife, my son and I can't stand to watch Palin at all.....we know all about Alaska since it was part of Canada once upon a time.....it's Eskimo country.....with a very small population....not really in touch with mainstream america......her voice annoys us to the point we have to change the channel when we hear her speaking......and as for McCain, we watch him because it's better than the stuff they have on the comedy channel!!!!!!!!!!!!!lol.......I've donated personally $250.00 towards the Obama campaign and I'm in about 35 state groups across the U.S.......this includes all the battleground states.....so when I pass blogs on they reach all 35 state groups....the internet is a wonderful tool.......to easily reach to as many people as you can.........like Florida:))!!!!!!!!!!!!!!......"

Well said my Canadian friend.

There for a while, I had forgotten the whole world has a huge stake in what happens here.

As a single mom raised by a single mom ...