I know that the word is good, that he’s up in the polls…but it truly isn’t over yet. I spent nearly three weeks trying to get an absentee vote to South Carolina, and finally did (thanks, Nick!), so I can relax a bit. But to those of you that have an easier time of it tomorrow: don’t forget, for God’s sake. And don’t be wishy-washy about it. Is there anyone still undecided? Seriously, write me, here, and I’ll help you decide. Heck. Call me at 843.853.7099. If I can answer, I will.

This is such an important one, folks. It’s vital. A change has to happen, and though they say that they’re “maverick”, nothing they say has convinced me that we won’t be cruising down the same depressing path that we’ve been on for eight years. You are guaranteed an immediate change with Obama in the White House. To prove that we as a country are not as conservative, not as complacent, not as race-obsessed as the rest of the world thinks we are. The man is 1. intelligent, and 2. passionate, which is already more than what we’ve had for almost ten years. I’m not necessarily saying that he’s going to save the world, or even this country, but it’d be a damn good start, in my opinion.

Whew. I can’t relax until tomorrow is done.

Cousin Tim is a Republican!

Actually, I just found this sign. I don’t know Tim Bivins, and am probably not related to him. But I do like the fine print at the bottom: “Paid for by the Citizens for Bivins”. I would love to have things paid for by the Citizens for Bivins! Honestly.

I’m seriously caught up in a Political Fever. I listened to my weekly dose of This American Life while walking the dogs. Ira’s program was about Pennsylvania, and how it’s a swingy state this year, and McCain is hitting it hard. There are lots of Democrats fighting for the Republican candidate, and plenty of Democrats going after the Red swatches of state. It’s still really fascinating to me how people could be undecided in this election. To me, it’s a no brainer. But I got to thinking about how some of my friends might be on the fence, too, and it’s unsettling.

I found this article. He doesn’t tell you who to vote for, just gives some ideas of how to make up your mind. I’ve been having a really really difficult time trying to get Charleston County, SC to send me an absentee ballot this year, and I’m really going to be cutting it close. I decided to stay an official South Carolinian just a little longer so that I could cast my vote for my candidate in a state that might need it more (or less, depending on how you see it), but the struggle to get it here, the stress, is kind of invigorating. If my ballot doesn’t get here in time, I’ve threatened to drive back to SC to vote. I don’t want anyone I know to not vote in November. I’d do anything to get people to vote, and have offered to drive people there myself on the 4th.

I knew who I was going to vote for before he officially decided to run for office; I’ve been an Obama fan ever since his speech at the 2004 Democratic Convention. It was a no-brainer for me. I don’t care “where he came from”. I don’t care about his “lack of experience”. If he actually became a Muslim in the next week and a half, I’d still vote for him. Whether it’s this year or another, Obama is going to make changes, has already done so, in my opinion, simply by the nature of who he is, and I hope that this country lets him give being President a shot.

But still…I’ve said many times, I remember being a McCain fan in 2000. If he can keep from leaving us with Palin, hang in there for at least four years, I’ll live. Four more years of the same Republican Party shenanigans could really do some major damage, but I’d imagine it’s going to be much easier for me to weather a total economic meltdown than most, because I’m very used to not making any money, anyway. Thanks to Dad, I know how to handle a gun, safely. And I’ve been putting off taking those Chinese lessons for too long.

The main thing is to vote. The main thing is to vote. The main thing.

In other news, I had my first official Chicago improv performance last night. With a group formed out of iO classes. We call ourselves “How to Fight Wolves”. We had a 20 minute set last night at a bar called Ginger’s. It was fun; it’s nice to just try and keep something very fun. Evan and I are moving right along with the book for Kiki, a main reason we’re here. And I finally start a job, in two weeks, as Tech Director for a dance company. Back on the road! But this time, behind the scenes, and not nearly as long. It has been so strange for me to be jobless for this long. A great learning experience, though. I’m a workaholic, I now know, and quitting cold turkey was just what the doctor ordered. But back to it!

Mmmm. Cold turkey.

Halloween Costume Party @ the Elks

Originally uploaded by macnab.

Doesn’t she look sufficiently calm-submissive?

I know this picture is funny. It’s a joke. And I’ve been kind of quiet about politics this year. Might be because the last time I got all political I got enough hate mail to…well…I got a lot of hate mail.

But Palin isn’t a joke, to me. This woman scares me even more than Bush did, eight years ago. I don’t mind the NRA thing, I guess; my father was a hunter, too. And I like that she even mentions special-needs children. But anyone that is against rights for gays, anti-abortion, and wants to teach “optional” creationism in schools just shouldn’t have that much power in this country. I appreciate the fact that she takes a stand, but…creationism? And the possibility that she would be in the White House as VP is even more scary knowing that Mr. McCain might not live for another eight years, bless his heart.

Hey. I’m sad that Barack didn’t pick Hillary as his running mate, too. I would love a woman as Vice President, I would love a woman as President. But not this one. Please, please, not this one.

I’ve been a fan of Barack Obama since 2004. I never expected him to run, never expected him to get this far. But now that he is, it’s the most exciting thing to happen to our country in almost a decade, and I’m really worried about how close the race is.

I tend to get preachy. I won’t. But I truly want to understand how people could be apathetic about this election. I saw a bumper sticker on a car yesterday that listed the candidates and had a checked box beside “None of the Above”. What? And I also want to understand how people who were Hillary supporters would vote for McCain. Isn’t that taking it a bit far? Why would this country want even one more year of the same brand of politics we’ve been enduring for the last eight?

I have actually been a McCain supporter, in the past. When he was more forward-thinking, back in 2000. Before he took on more of the current administration’s backwards policies. But now…and after picking ultra-Conservative nut Palin…I can’t be, any more. I can’t wait for Bush to be gone, but we have the option to replace him with people that are interested in growing, and not staying the same.

This is a great site with some facts. If you’re feeling apathetic. And if you are, well, get over it. Apathy is so 2000. and 2004.

Thanks, for the most part, to everyone that is sending me updates on Joan Osborne’s cover of Cathedrals. It is neat, of course. It’s also a little disconcerting to think that after my playing it every night for more than six years, it would be attributed to someone else…but that’s the name of the game, I guess.

Here’s another version, that I like. Her name is Heidi Talbot, and she was in Cherish the Ladies, an all-female trad Irish group that is led by my one-and-only tin whistle teacher, Joanie Madden. That’s pretty darned cool. I especially like the string arrangements that come in towards the last minute of the song. Jay-influenced, but steppin’ out.

Gregory, I didn’t know that Jump was from Delaware, either. Wacky!

I don’t think I’ve ever seen this one, before. This photo is definitely not the way I remember him; he didn’t have much gray hair until the first round of chemotherapy, and I guess this one was taken between then and when the cancer came back. It’s funny looking, to me. He looks so much more like my grandfather in this picture than I ever picture him, mentally.

Then again, photographs do have a way of distorting reality. Right?

I am feeling sentimental today because a friend of mine lost her brother in a car accident. Ever since my dad died, I’ve been really funny about how I react when I hear that a friend has lost a family member or friend. Sometimes I make a big deal about it. Sometimes I don’t. But I always feel the same; without fail I rush back to the day that Dad died. When I say that I know how she is feeling right now, I am amazed at how viscerally I actually remember the feeling. That feeling of being wrapped in what feels like an enormous invisible blanket of fog. Breathing is difficult. Rooms spin. You can actually feel this fog on your skin; it tingles a little. Through it, everything is distorted. You are rendered dyslexic, and seem to acquire an attention deficit disorder; you can’t focus on anything but the now, and every second feels like an hour. You almost sob with relief when you get through a day. And boy. It takes so long to fade away. So goddamned long. It does fade, though. It really does.

Joss Whedon became one of my top ten heroes when he wrote and directed “the Body”, an episode of Buffy the Vampire Slayer that dealt with Buffy’s mother’s death. It’s the truest artistic depiction of what the feeling of losing someone is like that I’ve seen, believe it or not. Fortunately, one can’t fully appreciate the filmwork until they’ve experienced a death so close to them. But watching it now is oddly comforting. It’s proof that I’m not alone, that I am not the only one that has been that close to a death.

(Crys, you’re not alone, today.)

This is Henry.

Originally uploaded by macnab.

Pretty song.

Rock drums: boo.
Cheezy guitar solo: boo, too.

Joan’s red pumps: absolutely fabulous.

Interesting concept.

Upon reading this, my brother Evan wanted to know whether the ballet would include this in Hootie’s History: the forming of a South Carolina boutique label with Atlantic Records called Breaking, their signing of another South Carolina band, Jump, Little Children, and the subsequent emotional and financial torture they (and their lawyers) eventually put said band through, which in part influenced Jump’s eventual demise as a group.

Now that’s a dance piece I’d go see!

Or… maybe it’s a rock musical I’d like to write?

I live in the Midwest, now.

Originally uploaded by macnab.

Pop, Isle 11.