"Don't Speak for Me Sarah Palin" to the tune of "Evita"

Awesome.

*pee pants*

This was my favorite part of the concert.  Vogue.  The picture above was taken by P.  The video below was not.  I should point out that she has had time to practice since starting her tour in Europe.  The singing was WAY better than this.  That, or it was so loud you couldn't tell... 

Don't interrupt...RUDE!

I haven't laughed this hard in a while.

We're so gay...

Sometimes a picture is worth a thousand words.

P.S. The back of my t-shirt said "Get stupid...McCain...Get stupid...Palin". I'm so controversial!

Another celebrity endorsement

So you may have heard that we went to see Madonna on Sunday. But as you would expect from Madonna, she gave us her two cents worth on a number of issues via her background videos, especially this one that played during a costume change. Not only did it feature the above picture of Obama (which prompted, I might add, loud, unanimous cheers) but in the first half of the video (what I like to call the "Get Stupid" portion), pictures of McCain, Bush, Romney, etc were flashed on the screen with the words "get stupid" (from her song "Give It 2 Me"). Obama was part of what I call the "The Time Is Now" portion.

Oh, the thrill of seeing celebrities come together for a common cause

HA especially @ "I lika Bone-o"

More pics

Oh, heck--just view my pics online

Another historic event with Barack

I hope I'm not getting too braggy about this stuff.

Once again, living in Denver pays off. Yesterday Dave convinced me we should volunteer for the Obama rally today. I didn't want to. I wanted to camp out and end up right behind him and on tv (and mouth the words "I am so right, MOM!")

But Dave and I went to the volunteer training and as soon as we got out of the car, I was swept up in something bigger than myself. People poured into Manuel High School from all directions. We entered the gymnasium to see 1,200 volunteers. All sitting quietly, waiting for instructions. We immediately saw several friends from different groups.

The assembly started with a story told by one of Colorado's lead volunteer organizers. Very early on in his candidacy, he got to spend the day with Barack Obama. He spent the entire day before trying to think of questions he wanted to ask the Senator. But as soon as he introduced himself, and for the entire day, Mr. Obama asked all the questions ("Where are you from?" "What do your parents do?" "What are your issues?" etc.) He said that the character of this campaign comes from the boss himself--a genuine interest in serving one's community. Indeed, the motto posted in all of the campaign offices is "Respect. Empower. Include."

So, as if they didn't have me THEN, they made a more direct appeal: Barack Obama NEEDS our help.

Our training: Smile. A lot. Be friendly. Be helpful. Don't yell. Don't run.

And then some details, but those are the instructions that stuck with me.

As you have probably heard, the number of people who came to the rally in my hometown broke not only all local records, but national records for attendance at a political rally. As Dave pointed out, this is not about politics: this is about a movement for change.

As a side note, Dave and I being the hams we chatted with the people waiting in line, encouraging them to vote early and to volunteer. Dave told them, "You are the change we've been waiting for!" Loudest laughter: mine.

Downtown Denver Vote Early Rally

Laura Dern spoke, then introduced her husband, Ben Harper, who sounded AWESOME!!

Tax Savings

My tax savings under Senator Obama's plan: $250.

And yours?

http://taxcut.barackobama.com/

*exasperated*

I find it fascinating that the people asking others to vote "Yes" on Prop 8 in CA are so passionate about it.  I guess I understand your having such a strong opinion relative to your children if you think homosexuality is immoral.  Obviously I don't agree with that view.  But the 18 and 19 year old?  Where did they come from?

Picture Essay

I loved that he cleaned up after himself before leaving an ice cream shop in Wapello, Iowa. He didn't have to. The event was over and the press had left. He is used to taking care of things himself and I think this is one of the qualities that makes Obama different from so many other political candidates I've encountered. Nov. 7, 2007.

See more photos here.

A Trip Down Memory Lane

Ron Howard, my new hero, plugs Barack Obama by doing sketches with his former co-stars, Andy Griffith and Henry Winkler.

See more Ron Howard videos at Funny or Die

Probably the Funniest Video I have EVER seen

Especially for David: a dance-off between the candidates!

Hate to Bring it Down, But...

This is Bobo, a 6 year old Yorkie who was burned by his owner. He died today after really, truly valiant efforts to save him. Read the story here.

You Can't Judge a Book By Its Cover

Are candidate bumper stickers as prevalent in other parts of the country? Time spent in the late summer on the Western Slope of Colorado, I didn't notice many, but there are, as you might expect, a bunch in Denver. I am often surprised by the types of vehicles sporting Obama stickers. This morning: a beat up gray pick up hiked up on big tires. I just would not have expected them to be an Obama supporter. But, then again, I just read this post on another blog:

Ben Smith received an interesting e-mail. It's from an Obama canvasser in Southern Ohio and deserves repeating.

In the first house I visited, a huge Confederate flag that completely filled my field of view was tacked to the living room wall. Couldn't take my eyes off it as I launched into my standard Obama talk. The guy stopped me mid-sentence, "We're with Obama. He's the only one for the working man. Most of us around here are GM and GM is with Obama."

His neighbor was a postal worker. I almost missed the ceramic black lawn jockey on his porch, a relic of bygone days in many other parts of the state, but what was unmistakable was the household's political allegiance: a "Postal Workers Back Obama" yard sign was planted on the front lawn.

Easing P's Fears

Dave sent Megan the following to help ease her near-constant anxiety about fluxuating poll numbers:

Two words: We're okay

Attached is the poll comparing 2008 to the previous two races, along with the most recent electoral college graph (read about the state-to-state details here)

This graph shows the poll numbers for each of the Democratic candidates leading up to Election Day, 2000, 2004, and 2008. For Gore and Kerry, the Xs show the actual percentage after votes were counted (or not, as the case may be).


Obviously, Barack Obama's lead is unprecedented among Democratic candidates.

Feel better?

Obama rally in Grant Park on election night!

So in the Red Eye this morning (the free daily put out by the Chicago Tribune) they mentioned that Obama is planning a rally in Grant Park on election night. They are planning the event now with huge needs for security, etc. They are expecting 100,000 people but I'll bet there will be even more. I HAVE TO BE THERE!

Now that I'm saying this, being the superstitious pessimist that I am, I now believe that I have jinxed the Obama campaign. No one wants to be too cocky and...*other cliches*

BUT I do have to say if I were John McCain and Sarah Palin, I'd be pretty worried right now. With only 12 days to go, here's how MSNBC's Chuck Todd breaks down the polls in swing states:

Those for Obama: Indiana (51- 41%), Iowa (52-39%), Michigan (58-36%), Minnesota (57-38%), Ohio (53-41% - remember 2004?!?), Pennsylvania (52-41%), Wisconsin (53-40%), Nevada (51-46%), North Carolina (51-47%), Virginia (56-44%).

McCain's only lead in a "swing state" (I put it in quotations to indicate that West Virginia hasn't been in this position in the last 2 election cycles but it did go Democratic in '88, '92, and '96): West Virginia (44-53%).

So now that I'm putting these numbers up here, I feel sick. Because I don't want to get too hopeful. As perhaps I did in 2004. I woke up the morning after that election night and had myself a good cry as I "looked forward to" another 4 years of W. I won't stop feeling anxious until it's all over after Nov. 4th. We all know that Republicans have gotten quite good at stealing elections.

Yes We Carve

I tell ya... people are clever and talented. I will not be attempting any of these as I threaten to cut myself everytime I chop vegetables.

Also, if you're like me and plan to redecorate your entire house in an Obama theme (kidding!...or AM I...), you can download and print really creative posters here.

Because I never (ever) get sick of it...

Just in case you are as intimately familiar with the real video, you can see it here. Click Madonna looking at the camera in a similar pink outfit.

*giggle*

Guess what happens this weekend!

This.

The only bad thing is, I was planning on taking the Monday after the concert off.  Turns out, I have an all day meeting that I have to be at on Monday morning.  *groan*

This is Sand

Have you heard about this website?

If you click on the square in the upper left of the screen, it gives you directions, but the gist is this: if you double-click, sand starts falling from the cursor. To change the color, type "c" and click on the color you'd like. You end up making art out of the sand that falls to the bottom of your screen. It's quite zen, really...

Scared of the Dark

That's right, I'm scared of the dark. I have always been scared of the dark. I believe it all started with "Howard the Duck" when I was a little boy. But that's for another post.

Recently, P went to Omaha to visit his parents. I wanted to post this then, but was afraid someone would see I was home alone and come attack me in my sleep. This is how my nights go when I'm home alone:

1. I turn each and every light on in the house.

2. I sit on the couch so that I have a strategic advantage. I can look down the entire length of the apartment. I find myself looking down the hall CONSTANTLY.

3. I stay up as late as possible for two reasons - first, that way I make myself super tired so I can fall right to sleep. Second, I don't have to face trying to fall asleep until I absolutely have to.

4. When I finally DO go to bed, I leave at least one light on all night. That way I can make out any shadow monsters on the walls and get the hell out of there.

5. I am super grumpy due to lack of sleep. I also have bloodshot eyes.

I should point out that I'm much less scared of someone breaking in than I am of some sort of ghost-like thing showing up. I lock the apartment up nice and tight even when I'm NOT home alone (thanks to my father for that sickness). And, I have one cat that I'm convinced will go for the jugular of a real person who is stupid enough to break in.

Matters certainly aren't helped by my watching shows like "Ghost Hunters" on SciFi. That is one of my favorite shows of all time. But you KNOW I'm scared when I cannot even watch that when I'm home alone. And P wonders why I can't watch "The Strangers"... my worst nightmare on film.

Well, time for bed. But first I need to check behind the shower curtain to make sure no one is ready to pounce. Wish me luck!

Watching the Elk

Here is a pic I took of the elk in Estes Park a couple of weeks ago:

The Stock Market

I cannot bring myself to look at my retirement account statements. I am one of those people that obediently put my money away, but was never very sure of whether I was well-invested in the right stocks and whathaveyou.

But it's hard to avoid some information and it's enough to scare the bejeezus out of me--someone who has another 30+ years until retirement. I cannot imagine how anyone in their 50s or 60s who planned well feels right now.

As an example of what I am referring to (assuming you're like me and have avoided the financial stories out of confusion, fear and avoidance of feeling completely ignorant):

GM stock is down from $40/sh last year to $5.50 today.
Last year, Apple was at $167. Today: $89.

Today's chart for Citibank stock looks like this:


*GULP*

People are so Clever

Oh, Tina Fey... J'Adore

7-Election

Some pretty interesting results via the 7-11 7-Election campaign.  I just got mine, and might I suggest the pumpkin spice latte?  *sip*

Obama's Constructive Criticism Ad

This is funny. I didn't know The Onion had videos!



Obama Runs Constructive Criticism Ad Against McCain