obama phenomenon, obamanon.
here's my sighting, from four years ago:
halloween night, champaign, illinois. the usual trickle of fairies, box office characters, vampires, and sponge bobs. my friend and i were sitting in the driveway, drinking beers, and discussing our general angst regarding current affairs while passing out crunch bars and half smiling at the kids. some kids wouldn't even say what they were supposed to be, they just stuck their bags out and looked at you open-mouthed. most forgot to say thank you, and some, while cute, were so boring that we almost wanted to refuse them candy. three princesses in a row? come on. don't you kids know what sort of country you're growing up in?
then came obama. a very short obama wearing a clip-on tie and hush puppies. a kid of about 9 or 10, dressed in his suit, all by himself, approaching houses to get supporters and candy. he was wearing a homemade campaign button that didn't have a name, just "vote," but it couldn't have been more obvious.
we perked up. "are you obama for halloween??" proud smile, straight neck, chin high. parents at the end of the driveway, positively beaming. we gave him two pieces of candy and he closed his bag and said thank you, then gave him two more, then, as he walked away, we got up from our chairs and offered him the rest. he politely declined and we waved our appreciation at his parents as they turned with their mini-bama to the next house.
with renewed hope for the election that was just two days away, we sat out the rest of the night and chattered about possibilities. "i mean, the country is going to vote for kerry, right? how could we not? if we can't get bush out of office let's go to canada. happy halloween, guys. you're from canada, can we just go there, will they let us in? what should we bring? too bad obama is running for senate, he would be an awesome candidate. did you see that kid?"
two days later bush became president again and, instead of going to canada, i went to a therapist's office.
share your obamanon stories! do you find yourself having a candidate for the first time in your life? did you read a great quote from him and feel a tingling of hope? are you simply inspired that there's somebody like him on people's tvs on a regular basis, giving them something new to think about? do you think the "yes we can" music video is a bit over the top, but somehow emotionally engaging? i'd love to hear your hate-free opinions- i.e. please no lame attempts to convince me that obama is not a rock star. think of it this way, would you not pity the poor child whose parents convinced them to dress up like hillary for halloween? i think it was the kid's idea to be obama, and i suppose there are some ambitious little girls out there that feel empowered by a cackle, but they wouldn't get extra candy from me.
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4 comments:
You are a great writer and you should submit this to barakobama.com.
Nice work with the caucus. After ABC and NBC called Mo for Hillary, our guy nosed ahead with 10,000 votes and won!
From the Commonwealth, where we don't get to vote in a primary until May 20 (hmmm....that's an interesting date!) I was literally squirming on Big Fat Super Duper Tuesday with the angst of NOT being able to participate yet in this decision. I fear that my vote in May will be worthless at that point, although I hope it is worthless because the big O has sealed the deal. Yes, now that Kucinich is out, this mama is for Obama!
Four years ago when he spoke at the Democratic National Convention I was in tears....finally, FINALLY someone who sounded intelligent was emerging in the Democratic party. I've read his autobiography and was taken with what an interesting life he has had, and I have yet to see an interview with him or his wife where he doesn't impress me.
I talked to three differerent people in MO on Tues., (none of whom were in Spfld.,) and they all voted for The Cackler. I was really disappointed in their reasons, especially when they told me they were really on the fence about who to vote for.
The decision is really simple for me. Obama represents a new, rational, intelligent and dynamic change for this country. It would send a very strong message to the rest of the world that we WANT change, and we are sick of how badly Shrub and his cronies have maligned us. The Cackler has way too many negatives. We'll have another election filled with "Let's See What We Can Find Out About BIll Now" and I'm done with all that.
Mama for Obama!
I too feel the vid is over the top but emotionally engaging. I can;t stop singing it in my head. Damn that
Will.I.am and his hippidy hop.
I think you know where I was when the Bush shit hit the fan...
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