Whew! What a strange day this March 4 has proven to be. I'm quite glad that I voted early--I'd be utterly exhausted if I had to stand in line at the polls as well as everything else. Turns out I did quite enough standing as it is.
The Wife and I, in a fit of patriotic initiative, decided to attend the Democratic caucus this evening after the primary polls closed. Our precinct voting site was our children's school, so it was easy enough to head over and take the young 'uns so they could see the democratic process up close and personal. The polls were just closing as we arrived, and the Republican primary workers hightailed it out of there in no time flat. A grand total of 34 people turned out to caucus, with the goal of divvying up four delegates to the county convention at the end of the week. Signing in took forever, and the kids, tired of the democratic process' glacial pace, took to running up and down the halls. The actual caucus went pretty smoothly. Those gathered split 18-16 for Clinton/Obama, with The Wife throwing her lot to Hillary and myself backing Barak. "We cancel each other out," is one of The Wife's favorite phrases. Because the vote was so close, the delegates were split 2-2 between the candidates. Choosing delegates was easy for our group, as there were two folks quite enthused by the Obama campaign and two others eager to serve as alternates. The Wife reported that this was much the same for the Clinton camp, except for the fact that one busybody decided a vote couldn't be held unless the prospective delegates each gave a speech outlining how desperately they wanted to be a delegate, and loved Hillary with their heart and soul. Us Obama folk were kicked back and relaxing as the Hillary folk suffered through haphazard speeches. Yikes.
I couldn't help but be struck by the attitude differences between the two groups. The Obama supporters seemed just happy to be a part of the process, whereas at least a few of the Clinton supporters struck me as offended that anyone would support a candidate other than Hillary. I just don't get that defensive attitude. I don't know where it comes from. Go figure.
Upon returning home, I learned my brother had a close encounter of the political kind as well today. The Adobe Cafe is a modestly-priced Tex-Mex restaurant in New Braunfels. Not high-end casual dining, but decent enough food. He went there for lunch, and encountered a phalanx of Secret Service agents surrounding the place. He went in to find none other than Bill Clinton pressing the flesh. Thirty minutes later the ex-president would be in San Marcos, causing our News Service phones to ring off the hook. Seems like you can't throw a stick in Texas without hitting a politician these days. No biggie. Now that the primaries are finished, we won't see one--Republican or Democrat--from now through the general election unless they blow through for a fund raiser. Texas is gradually turning from red to purple, but it's not Virginia yet, not by a long shot.
Now Playing: Aerosmith Pandora's Box
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