Herban Sprawl

It’s another gorgeous day here in The Star City of the South. The cats let me sleep in and for the first time in weeks, I am not feeling a sense of urgency and fear. For those who are still glum about the election outcome, I offer you my hand in friendship, but must remind you, eight and then four years ago, you weren’t as kind to me. If I forget my manners and behave a little jubilantly, I apologize. Not.

Now it’s time to get down to business and return to life as we knew it…the drudge of going to work, cleaning up cat barfage, wondering what to make for Thanksgiving, and all that.

My brother-in-law sent pictures of our visit to Montpelier and my shock at my size gave me a massive jolt. Knees or no, I have to get myself moving so I can work off the Buick I am carrying around my middle! Eegad! I believe I’ll get Shannon to devise my exercise plan. She’s had enough joint injuries to know what I’ll need to do!  I have less than a year to trim down for #1 Nephew’s Big Fat Chicago Wedding!

This should keep me busy… And if that isn’t enough, there are the books I want to read, the needlepoint project I’d like to finish before I’m sixty and so on and so on!

Arun commented that I had a positive attitude in the campaign office. (Thank you, Dear. I just flat out loved being with all you young people!) I hope I can maintain that as I try to figure out what to do about my size big chubbiness on a size small frame!

This morning, Byron’s ride left him high and dry, so we scrambled around, looking for alternatives. Luckily, just as he was about to seal the deal on a Greyhound ticket, Arun called. He and Travis would retrieve him and he now had a way home to D.C. What a relief! I sure didn’t want Byron stranded here!

Arun and Travis were the two young men I saw that morning, walking along Church Avenue on their way into Tudor’s Biscuits. Like many of the other young people, they were so wonderful - they took time out of their lives to come help us and we needed them so badly. We needed to learn the way of the community organization that is now going to be the wave of the future. This is how things are going to get done in this country, so the rest of us have some remedial work to do to learn the system!

Byron and Cathy drove down from D.C. and hit the neighborhoods in The Independent Republic of Salem. Cathy had to return to work, but Byron, a retired veteran of the American diplomatic corps, remained to continue to get out the vote. We gave him the truck so he could get around and he returned every day to provide laps for cats, put up his feet and get rested for the next day’s work.

Carter was the man with the directions and the answers. All rested with Carter - A cheery-faced young man who ran a tight ship, he made sure everything followed the campaign’s rules and regulations. Community organizing is not a by-the-seat-of-the-pants kind of operation. There was then the tier of paid staffers who were deployed to our area to shore up our end of the Shenandoah Valley. Finally, the tier of young people who volunteered their time to be here.

I wrote previously of the way they worked together cooperatively. Even when things were out of sync, I never saw anyone do more than get stressed. I will admit, I was pretty worried about Ryan’s eye getting so red, and while I trotted off to the convenience store for some eyedrops, I was mentally planning ahead for a call to my optometrist. However,the drops did the trick and he was able to pop his contact back in and carry on. Good thing, too, because his precincts were very conservative. He and Patrick and their tribe of canvassers managed a pretty creditable split. He might look at the numbers and not be terribly happy, but I know the people up there. I am here to state most emphatically, his precincts did way better than I anticipated.

Katie had the area around where I live. She, too, had an uphill battle. There are pockets of extreme affluence around here and they are not about to have their wealth tapped into by an Obama shift in tax laws. To be sure, our neighborhood has seen an influx of young families, but again, they are heavily churched, and they aren’t breaking down the doors of the Unitarian Universalist church down the street! Her precincts did much better than I had expected, as well.

What does this tell me? The organization that the Democratic party employed worked. Sending us people who were trained to campaign is something that is done all the time, but as I watched where the McCain campaign deployed their troops, I could see that they were busy trying to cut their losses. They had a hard time competing with a juggernaut that was trained how to train and then how to manage. These young people trained us, mobilized us and energized us. They shared ownership with us.

Thanking us for putting them up and seeing to their needs was really sweet, but we’re the ones who owe them. Virginia turned blue and it’s because they burst into town and led us on our merry way.

This morning, we are buoyant and cheered. I listened to the Sage of Public T.V., Bill Moyers as he was being interviewed by Terri Gross. He was so hopeful and his feelings are the same we of an age all share. He was also diplomatic as he sketched out why he thought John McCain lost. American has changed, and if we didn’t realize it before, we sure do now. This election alone has changed the way the world views us. No longer can they judge us by the way the current administration has done business. Now they know we don’t share that vision.

I’m not sure what anyone else is doing to celebrate this moment, but I have a kitchen that has not been functional for the past two weeks, and I need to get myself reorganized. I have a lot of campaign stuff that I have collected that I promised to share with Kay, who lives outside Chicago.

She tromped the wilds of Beloit, Wisconsin yesterday, getting out the vote, then turned around and went downtown for the big celebration. She reported that the whoop that went up when Virginia turned blue was pretty huge. Thank you, Windy City! We did the best we could, and we are grateful for the help you sent us! Truly, we are.

Now it’s time to settle down and revel in the fact that the Republicans have to do some serious self-examination. Tina Fey got the big break she so richly deserves and we’ll now find out which Goodwill gets Sarah Palin & family’s gladrags. It has taken a long time for us to bridge that gap between the 1960s and now, in terms of race. The Americans who want to take us backward in time are going to have to figure out how to get along with the rest of us instead of the other way around.

Thank you to those who worked so hard to bring us to this glorious moment in our nation’s history. This is change we have needed. This is change we must embrace in order to rebuild our country’s reputation. The young people are leading the way, so we must have taught them better than we thought ! I’m not too old and cranky to let them lead… I like being the one who can give good directions and who to call for a red eye!

We did it!!!!!!! Virginia, as ever being dragged kicking and screaming out of the 19th Century, got with the program. Our little corner of the state was pretty red, but there, big as life was Roanoke - as blue as Virginia bluebells in spring!

I was “on call” all day, taking people to the polls and running errands - inputting data (Chicago called and said our office had nearly error-free reporting), and generally being the utility player. Our office was full of party faithful, making the calls, picking up packets and hitting the neighborhoods, the whiz kids on their computers sending in the reports and making sure the precincts had what they needed.

When I got in after dropping off the last voter, the laptops were out, the news programs were on and everyone was glued to the results - well, except for Carter, who conked out; Victoria, who schnozzed off; and Katie, who grabbed a power nap. It was utterly incredible. Big Kitty and I joined up with the local Dems and partied for a bit, but as of the time we left for home, there was no word on Virginia. I wish we’d been there when they announced Virginia had gone for Obama. I would have loved to have seen the kids. They worked so damn hard!!!!

At home, Byron, our “operative” from D.C., and Simon were on the sofa, watching the returns. We joined in and switched from channel to channel.
Okay, I have to say it. I am elated, yes, but I am relieved. Saracuda goes back to Alaska and they can secede now. Cindy McCain can have her separate life back, and John McCain can cross running for President off his life’s list of things to do.

I cannot wait until I see The House Goddess on Friday….. She is going to be so full of herself. Truth to tell, I think our whole country is about to start feeling better.

To all of you who pitched in and helped with this historical event, thank you from the bottom of my heart. To those of you whose home states remain red, you’ll be next. Our dear friend, Bishop Anthony (aka Father Tony) had this to say:
I just got home from 2 hours in line to vote! It was a wonderful moving
experience that nearly brought me to tears as I looked out over the very
long line of voters. Last presidential election I was in and out in less
than 20 minutes. This time I got to stand in history for 2 hours!

We made history. When the little kids get to the chapter about this election in their texts, we can say we were there and were a part of it. Imagine that.

And that’s the way it is, Tuesday, November 4th, 2008. The day the United States of America had record voter turnout and elected a truly remarkable president and vice-president.

This is The Day. Maybe it was the Gore debacle, but this one has me sweating bullets. I don’t much care about the polls. It’s raining outside and the lines are going to be long.

To all of you who have endured my endless complaining about that other guy and his intergalactic running mate, I offer my apologies.

Meanwhile, do your part. Vote, help someone else get to the polls, bring the people standing in line a bottle of water, hand out the leftover trick or treat candy - whatever.

For those of you who do it, PRAY!

Nervously yours,

The Herban Sprawler

Don’t talk about naval tradition. It’s nothing but rum, sodomy, and the lash.

Winston Churchill

Gee. John McCain was in the Navy…………

Big Kitty has been the lucky recipient of a shoeboxful of Republican hate mail, decrying the terrible Democrats. They come from at least two different mailing lists because of the way his name appears. In addition, every evening we receive at least one robocall from the Republicans, and those are mighty scary.

What is annoying is that we can trace this targeting to the fact that Big Kitty is an electrician. A tradesman with a master’s in psychology, to be sure, but a guy who makes his living wearing a shirt with his name on it.

Big Kitty is also a yella dog Democrat, and as leftist as they come - a true Swede in that he believes we need universal health care and a government that takes care of its citizens. Apparently the Republican profilers don’t dig any deeper than the way a fella makes a living.

This is what annoys me about that kind of thinking. You never know who you are talking to. Just because a guy is an Italian, don’t take for granted that he’s a Catholic. Just because someone is a teacher, don’t take for granted she went to some dumbed down teacher’s college. Just because a person is a business owner, don’t take for granted that the person is a Republican. People can surprise you.

BK has a more sanguine attitude than I. He says that for every brochure they mail and robocall they pay for, that is that much less money they have to spend to brainwash a less discerning voter. What a guy!

It is a sunny autumn morning in downtown Roanoke, VA. Two young men are engaged in conversation as they walk into the restaurant for breakfast biscuits. They could be anyone’s kids, but what separates them from the other twenty-somethings who populate our downtown is that these are political operatives who are running the so-called ground campaign for a presidential candidate. The place they call home is somewhere else in these United States.

You wouldn’t know them from the regular residents. They look the same, they walk around with cell phones plastered to their ears, and they carry bags with the ubiquitous laptops slung over their shoulders. They don’t wear identifying campaign “bling,” and they don’t stick out. They are unfailingly polite and you never hear the barrage of profanity that peppers the speech of their demographic.

These are the kids who were taught by means of cooperative learning in school, so they are well suited for this candidate’s method of organizing. They acknowledge the prickly among them, but they don’t make a big deal out of it and they just do what they do without fanfare and without visible friction. If the candidate seems terminally laid-back, so, too, do his operatives.

I’ve been volunteering in one of those offices because I don’t want this election to be decided by the Supreme Court again. I don’t think that is where candidates should pick up their wins. With my arthritic knees and a Johnny-come-lately case of tendonitis in my elbow, my skills as a receptionist and temp secretary are handy for them. I stuff big manila envelopes, repack the door-to-door folders for the canvassers, empty the trash and do whatever I can to keep the place tidy enough for this work to be done.

Those of us who have been moaning about the general lackadaisical behavior of a younger generation can relax a little. This group is nothing short of stellar. Not only is their demeanor especially remarkable, but they are constantly busy without being told what to do. They voluntarily help each other and they don’t have an ego about any job being beneath them. You can chalk that up to the way they are trained for these positions, or you can thank the teachers who showed them how to work cooperatively. Either way, I can assure you, they are hard workers and they are committed to making this a better world.

I learned that they aren’t allowed to talk to the press. I understand that completely. There are too many slick reporters out there who will seize on an errant remark and make a mountain out of a molehill. Likewise, trade secrets need to be kept within the family. Volunteers, unless they are the ‘operative’ sort, aren’t told much beyond what they need to do to accomplish any given task, be it manning the phone bank or going door-to-door. The beauty of it is that everything runs like clockwork.

But who are these young people? The ones I have worked with have earned my respect and I have to fight my auntly tendency to patronize them because, to be completely honest, I could just scoop them all up and hug them to death. One works as an engineer for a leading dot com that we all use every day of our lives. Another works in a law firm that litigates environmental cases. Yet another works in the office of a firm that manufactures wooden pallets. Some of them are professional political operatives, living like gypsies as they travel from campaign location to campaign location. There are many more of them, but you get the picture.

Those who have other nine to five jobs are taking vacation time or leaves of absence. They bunk with those of us who have opened our homes to them, but they feed themselves, pouring a fair amount of lucre into the downtown restaurants and coffee shops. They use their own cell phones and laptops and supply their own transportation. The compensation for the paid staff is comparable to that of the typical cash-strapped non-profit. How much reimbursement for expenses is a closely guarded secret, but it probably isn’t much. This is a labor of love, after all.

I haven’t heard one single grammar gaffe. (Thank their teachers and their parents!) I haven’t witnessed any ego outbursts. The worst thing is that there can be a tendency to micromanage, but this is important work and taking it seriously cannot be faulted. There is no time to lose and it needs to be done right the first time around. I will admit to flashing a teacher “look,” however and feeling alternately elated and guilty that I still had my chops! (Truth is, while I was being given directions, I already had my strategy mapped out because it’s a task I could do in my sleep. I just wanted him to go do what he does so well and leave me to do what I do so well. No biggie.)

What one does hear is the gratitude being expressed openly and honestly. The camaraderie that has developed between the operatives and the local resident volunteers is solid. Everyone has a goal and everyone is focused on that goal. Young people on the phone recruiting more volunteers are personable and welcoming, but it doesn’t end there. When you show up to do your shift, they let you know how much you are appreciated. The energy is good and the people truly do respect one another. You can’t fake that.

Additionally, the thing that is stressed is training. This is a hallmark of community organizing. Young people understand the necessity of training, and the numbers of them who have volunteered for, or been employed by, this campaign will take that back into the workplace. If businesses routinely engaged in that level of training for their employees, turnover would absolutely be lowered and productivity would go up.

As statistics affirm get-out-the-vote efforts (GOTV), young adults transform political apathy into patriotic activism. To coin their expressions, they’re “rock stars” and “awesome.” Really!