The difference between Democrats and Republicans is that Democrats would never stop being friends with someone for being a Republican

Remember when I said I wasn't that political? My blog post earlier this month has got me thinking, and while I still don't consider myself political, I do think I am more historically-minded.

I was called yesterday by a lady I like and respect, asking me if I would join her in campaigning for Obama. Me? The person that didn't vote in the 2000 election because I didn't feel I was qualified to make such a decision? (Note to self: others dumber than you made the decision, so you are most definitely qualified.)

Debbie, the caller, said she spoke with another woman I like and respect and got my name from her. Wow. People think I'm smart? Maybe.

So, there is an Obama sign in my yard right now. I will be working next Saturday while pushing my adorable daughter in her stroller, hoping to secure hearts, minds, and votes for Barack Obama.

Why am I doing this? Again, politics is merely PR, but I like what I see in Barack Obama. It's the big picture of things. It's the hope he's given to people, much like another young senator in the 1960s...John F. Kennedy.

It's not a political thing for me. It's history in the making, and I'm going to be a part of history. And my young daughter will be part of history, too. I mean, how cool would it have been to have someone say "My mom campaigned for Kennedy in the 1960s and brought me along in the stroller?"

To me, John McCain is just more of the same. We need a change. Is change always good? No one knows until it happens. That's what I love about change.

Have I mentioned my husband is a Republican? He claims he's going to put a sign in the yard for McCain right next to my Obama sign. He doesn't remember to pick up milk or when his doctor appointments are. He said he's going to pick up a sign in Madison at J.B. Van Hollen's office.

Do I look worried?

I'm sure he'll talk about it, but actually do it? What's that word lawyers throw around...precedent. He's not going to do shit.

I want to make Annie a shirt for next Saturday that says "My Mama's for Obama. (My Dad's a pain and is for McCain.)"

Six years ago...

Six years ago right now, I was waiting for a room at Meriter Hospital in Madison. My water had broken at about 8:45 p.m. in the parking lot and I went to maternity triage. I called Jesse once I got there to tell him I was staying this time, and he got off work to come down. I remember being anxious and frustrated at the same time. I had been to the hospital three times before thinking I was in labor, and this time, I really was but the nurses had to verify my water had broken. Um, does the trail of water behind me or the soaked shorts and sandals confirm it for you? I know some women think their water has broken when they have only peed on themselves, but anyone who's been pregnant knows that the average full-term pregnant bladder only holds about a dropper-full of pee. After much conversation between nurses about "ferning," they let me stay.

I got to my room about midnight. Jesse went back to our apartment to get some things of his own and brought up mine when he got back. I called Stephanie, my best friend who was also a labor and delivery nurse in Chicago (incidentally, the one who told me I was probably leaking fluid and should get to the hospital). She came up about noon.

It was a long labor, so I won't bore anyone with the gory details. One of the things I remember most were the windows outside my room. The nurse started pitocin (the devil) at 6 a.m. By 10, I had strong contractions. Here I was in this beautiful, state-of-the-art room with TV, DVD, CD, VHS...and I wanted silence. I stared at those windows as a focal point. Just a few minutes ago, I was on Google Maps and they have this new feature called "Street View". I was able to see my labor windows again, which reminded me that it was tonight I went to the hospital.

Six years ago tonight, I was a very excited and scared individual. A mere 29 hours later, I had a son. I was only 23. Jesse and I had been married six days less than a year and we had a son.

Nate was born at 2:52 a.m. I couldn't sleep at all after that. After I had gotten sewn up and cleaned up, I just stared at him. Clueless but delirious. I remember those few days at the hospital very fondly.

I've had two children since then, and each very memorable and wonderful. But the first, my first, the feeling is almost unexplainable.

He was the science experiment, the test-market baby. If this went right, maybe we'd do it again.

And now, he's in first grade. Smart as a whip. Very beautiful still. It's true what I was warned: It goes by in a flash. I'm sure in a blink, he'll be graduating high school.

Look at us in the picture above. I look so young. And Nate looks adorable. I forgot just how dark his hair was. Such a good baby.

Politically Correct

I usually don't get too involved in politics, other than to maybe ruffle a few of my husband's feathers. I love that I live in the USA and anyone can have any view and vote on that view. It's kind of the laizez-faire approach to humanity.

However, I happened to catch Obama's speech at the Democratic National Convention. This is the only one I've ever seen (speech - in full, anyway - and convention coverage) and I was impressed. I think I saw something of the 1988 DNC when I was a kid, but that was only because it was raining and we were at Disney World. But I digress...

He certainly is a great speaker, isn't he? He knows how to tap into people's ideals and for me anyway, makes me want to believe every word of his speech. So what? I'm a smart, college-educated woman. I know that it's just politics and politics, for the most part, is an exercise in good PR. I take what he says with a grain of salt, just as everyone should do with every political speech. Even so, I feel like a cheesy 1960s movie or TV show with wide-eyed teenage girls clasping their hands under their chins and sighing, "Isn't he dreamy?"

I have friends of every political viewpoint. My family is all Republicans except for my step-mother. My husband is a Republican. I joke with all my liberal friends that I married him despite his politics.

I once asked my father about politics. I think I was like 9 or 10. He told me the difference between Democrats and Republicans was "one party thinks the government should help people and the other party thinks that the people should help themselves." It wasn't until I was in college did I realize which was which. I guess my dad's description was a pretty good one for a kid to understand, but this is also the man who became a Republican because his own father was a Democrat.

My mom is about as conservative as one can be. She once voted for Pat Buchanan. Nothing gets me more riled up about politics than my mother. Like I said earlier, I'm not that political and I believe everyone can have their own opinions without having to justify it others. Well, I guess to every rule there is an exception and mine lives 150 miles away.

It's not that I don't think my mom is entitled to her opinion, I just don't think she should mindlessly believe what her church tells her. This happens with books, movies, TV shows, etc. too. I just can't understand why a smart woman refuses to come up with her own ideas. I think this is the single most frustrating thing I have with my mom.

In my own mind, I believe you have to hear both sides before you can form an opinion. Maybe this stems from being a journalist. ("That liberal press!" My mother would say. Why is that so bad? Because we liberally let both sides present a case? Oh, my bad...) And in that spirit, I believe I will watch McCain's speech this week.

I fully admit I don't agree with McCain solely because he's a Republican and the Republicans are the people responsible for G.W. Bush. But I haven't given him a chance. I vow to hear him out, something other members of my family wouldn't dream of doing for the other side.

Last night I printed out a list of Presidents for Nate. Thanks Google. :) I noticed that in my life-time, there have been mostly Republican presidents. I was born under Carter, a Dem., but other than Carter it was Clinton. A time in my life I remember the country going well was when I was in high school and especially college. Those were the Clinton years. GWB was elected (or rather, appointed) my senior year. I left college, went in to the real world, and it's been tough. All under GWB. This could all just be a big coincidence, and I'm not so naive to think that it isn't. I am not blaming hard times on GWB. I take responsibility for all my own actions and decisions.

Let's see what McCain has to say this week. He's going to have a hard time matching the charisma that Obama had.