Do a Little Dance

I did my little Obama victory dance this morning when I turned on the radio… then did an even bigger dance when I saw the results from the electoral college. WooHoo!  And I was very pleased to find that the two questions on the ballot here in Connecticut fell the way I voted. There will be no Connecticut Constitutional Convention (try saying that three times fast) and 17-year-olds who will be eligible to vote in the general election will now be allowed to vote in the party primary. I’m not sure how it works in other states, but in CT you’re allowed to register at 17 if you turn 18 before election day. It mostly serves those people with late October birthdays.

Hehe… one of the pollworkers asked me if it was my first time voting. I thought that was cute, since it’s not even my first presidential election, let alone my first time voting. Turning 26 in a few months, I’m beginning to appreciate my generally youthful appearance, so being taken for 18 is a wonderful thing.  Okay, back to the business at hand.

I’ve heard a lot of criticism of Obama for his apparently socialist leanings. Hell, that was a big part of why I voted for him!  I consider that a big argument in his favor.  After all, one of the most respected leaders of the 20th century implemented the most socially progressive policies our country has ever seen.  During a failing economy, I might add.  And we as a country liked it so much that we elected him to an unprecendented third term!  So a hint of socialis may be just what we need. I watched a video that one diarist posted that said "everyone" is coming to America for our healthcare system. Maybe from developing countries, but not from our fellows in the "first" world. You know, those damn socialist Europeans.  So socialism has failed? On what planet? Communism has failed.  To equate the two is to be woefully misinformed, but I won’t pursue that at present. I’m not in the mood to rant, but celebrate.  We stand on the threshold of history. It’s an exciting time.

And I’d like the thank the majority (6/10) of my fellow women for not falling for the gimmicky Sarah Palin.  Her role in this campaign has been ludicrous and at times downright painful.

My attempts at domesticity have been largely successful.  The kitchen looks great, the bed is made, and the dishes are getting done every night.  The cats are largely peaceful, and soon we can take the door between the living room and kitchen off its hinges again.  And then we can get rid of the temporary litter box in the living room, too.  I don’t know why, but it’s way ickier than the one in the bathroom that rarely ever smells or gets gross.  Maybe because the one in the bathroom is bigger.  And Karma hardly uses the one in the living room anymore anyway, now that she has access to the other one.  The cats have spoken.  This would be a great endorsement for Arm n’ Hammer litter.

Am I really writing about kitty litter? That just has to stop.

I’ve applied to 6 jobs so far, all secretarial, most of them offering upwards of $45K in terms of salary. Of course, one is only offering $30K, so that will be the only one that calls me back. LOL.  On my original agenda for today I would have applied for three more jobs, but I just discovered that the book I’m currently reading was due back yesterday. Yikes! They did NOT tell me it was only a 7-day loan when I took it out, which kind of ticks me off.  I still haven’t heard about the other book I requested, so I’m wondering if they actually put it through. I’ll have to check when I drop off the movies today. Other than cleaning the bathroom, I’ll be doing a lot of reading to try to finish my current book and minimize my late fee.  It’s not like it’s much money, but it’s annoying because it means I can’t use the self check-out and will have to wait in line to return my books instead of just dropping them on the counter like I usually do.

My novel is coming along nicely.  I’m trying something new this year and breaking it into more concrete chapters.  Unlike last year when I just kept typing and put little ~’s between the major shifts in scene or time.  I still have those, but they’re within the chapter structure to indicate a scene shift, but not necessarily a time shift.  I’m currently at 6,762 words and in the midst of Chapter 2, which is rather closer to being the third chapter, since I have a Prologue as well.  I’m pretty pleased with it so far, although I’m not too sure how to get my characters out of Edinburgh and into the country without breaking up the group.  And it’s absolutely necessary for them to leave Edinburgh.  Eventually I’ll probably go into more details about the city and the political, religious, and social climate of the time (1689), but for now I’ll have to leave it pretty bare bones.  I’m not familiar enough with the Glorious Revolution or the dynamics of Catholics to Presbyterians at the time. And let’s not forget that Isaac Newton had just published his Principia and John Locke was entering the scene with his emphasis on Empiricism versus Descartes’ Rationalism.  I should think that all of this would have a pretty big impact on a man who has thrown himself into secular studies after disillusionment with the Church (and he was quite definitely Catholic before) and his very cerebral daughter, but I’m not entirely sure what that impact is.  When I move towards editing I’ll have quite a lot of research to do.  Eager as I am to move towards the wholly fantasical sections, the challenge of the historical bits is really pretty intriguing.

Anyway, I must be off to the grocery store before I can start on today’s task, which encompasses the bathroom and the hallway and stairs.  Then of course, my writing, and some serious reading.  TTFN.

~Liz

P.S. One thing I forgot to mention in my excitement over Obama’s victory is a nagging fear.  So many people have become so fired up during this campaign that threats of violence have become almost commonplace.  I hope to God that Obama is allowed to serve his country as he so fervently wishes to do, but part of me is sick with the thought that someone might try to get in his way, even at the cost of a man’s life.  And I’m afraid of what may happen if the more intemperant naysayers follow through on their threats. ~L