O-H? I-O! Fired UP! Ready to Go!
There was a man tapping on our front storm door yesterday, and usually I shoo them away. daMrs likes to keep the front door open all the time, 10 feet from the couch, which is a point of contention: it makes it harder to pretend to be not at home to Jehovah’s Witnesses, but she likes the light and – happy wife…
Mikey, Captain of Team Fierce
Thus, with Mikey, Marshall, J-Jay and Jack all barking at the intruder, I got up to shoo him away, until I saw all the Hillary bling. So I pointed my finger down and rotated it in a half circle, the universal sign for “Go to the Back Door.”
This gentleman looked like a short, grizzled version of Mr. Cub, Ernie Banks. He was canvassing the neighborhood doing GOTV (get out the vote) activities for Hillary and the Ohio Democratic Party. Looking at his phone, he confirmed that My Legal Name III, and daMrs indeed lived in the household. Were we still supporting Democrats? I showed him the tat.
I don’t shave on Saturday
“Oh, HELLO!” he beamed. daMrs and I got matching tattoos of the Obama rising “O” symbol exactly 8 years ago Monday, which was a few days after Barack Obama was elected President. We met on the campaign. I was running two counties for Obama here in Ohio. She came in to volunteer. Which is why this Cubs fan now lives in Ohio.
“Are you going to vote early, or vote on Tuesday?” he continued after loving the story. I always vote on Election Day, except 8 years ago, when I was so busy winning Ohio single-handedly and falling in love that I forgot to vote absentee back in Illinois.
He tapped our info into the app on his phone. ON HIS PHONE. I was about to relate how, 8 years ago, we had to print out all these maps and… “This isn’t 8 years ago, the man has a job to do. Let him go do it!” the non-nostalgic part of my brain yelled through the fog of self-important reminiscence.
I thanked him for all his hard work, we fist-bumped, and I encouraged him that we’re gonna win. And I believe we are going to win Ohio, because the GOP has nothing like this guy in Ohio, not in any great numbers, and not so fired up: those OH GOPsters who are in the field don’t all like the OH Trumpsters, and vice versa.
When these folks come to your door, answer it and let them know when you’re intending to vote. It will help them to know whom they have to bug and when, in case they haven’t voted yet. Thank them profusely, it’s all the pay most of them get. Then send them on their way to get the job done; time is short and every 3 minutes spent with you is one less door they can knock. But when a Republican canvasser comes to your door, still answer it; but then do this:
“Lemme tell ya ’bout 8 years ago…”
Picture it: Defiance, Ohio, 2008…
I recall reading a fiction book about politics in Great Britain – one of the characters had recently changed parties and was going door to door for support. One voter said that she wasn’t sure how she was going to vote, and asked the candidate in. Instead, the candidate thanked her, handed her some literature, and went on.
The candidate’s companion asked why the candidate didn’t go in and talk to the voter. The candidate replied that when he was in the other party, the party had trained their voters to always try to invite the opposition’s candidates into their homes so as to waste as much of their time as possible.
1I voted over a week ago. I never wait until the last day.
2This is just a wonderful story! Thank You!
3RepubAnon, one day I was sitting on my porch when two women came up to lobby me against the referendum to build a new library via a swap of the old library – a converted historical mansion – and its land in the middle of a park for land on the edge of the park.
First, this was very bad staff work because I ran for Park Board (and won) IN SUPPORT OF THE SWAP. I literally wrote the campaign literature in favor of the referendum. I was one of the most visible proponents of the new library in town.
Second, this was bad training, because I began asking questions, in an aw-shucks-Socrates kind of way, and the women sat there with me for a half hour trying to do persuasion. By the end of the half hour, one of them left and moved to the next house.
The other left to go home because *I* had convinced *her*!
It IS a common tactic, sometimes even an effective one, but I never had it work so well before, nor ever since.
We won, BTW here’s the OLD library being renovated for use as a park space http://www.panoramio.com/photo/21999849
Here’s the NEW library http://www.lohananderson.com/projects/interiors/97-elmhurst-public-library
I’m very proud of this accomplishment.
4Ernie Banks had a perm? A white one at that?
5Great story. Love the tats and Mikey.
6Primo… you should be proud of your work. The old building is beautiful but not practical as a library. The new one with its Frank Lloyd Wright vibe is very impressive. Libraries are one of the few indicators of true civilization. Good job. Good story.
7Things are looking better for Ohio!
Early voting was extended last night for Clark County, NV. That’s the Democratic stronghold, Las Vegas. Latinos coming out strong for Hilz and Catherine Cortez Masto. Our favorite ladies are edging ahead of Despicable Donnie and Horrid Heck, the forced birther. Waiting for the Reno numbers from 50/50 Washoe County. If Reno goes for Hilz and Catherine, our day will become that much better.
Keep helping people to the polls on Tuesday to bring in the win for Hilz, a Democratic Senate, and a big enough chunk of the House to send Lyin’ Ryan to the bar more often than Boehner! Think about that Ryan – nice lunches with Nancy, Steny, Elijah Cummings and John Lewis to work out reasonable plans or you can waste your time riding herd on your Crazy Cat Caucus. What are the Tea Baggers calling themselves this cycle?
8What are the Tea Baggers calling themselves this cycle?
9Anonymous. Some of them live in my neighborhood but their lawns et al are absent Trump signs. I think they know they have lost control to someone worse than they are.
I will be driving my brother, who recently had his hip replaced, to vote on Tuesday. Here in PA, we don’t have early voting. He wouldn’t hear of using an absentee ballot because he was convinced he’d be driving and walking without a cane by then. No such luck. He’s a Democrat so I can’t hold his wishful thinking against him, and this is one way I can make sure he votes!
10I’d be happy to drive people to the polls (we voted early) but my hybrid is a two-seater, so it would be a lengthy process unless I lay ’em down in back and strap some to the hood. I’d rather strap a few gutted GOPs to the hood, like that sumbitch judge in JJ’s next entry.
11Primo, An interesting ‘boy meets girl’ story (or the obverse).
It’s quite similar to that of a slightly more famous couple who courted one another (see what I did there?) in a political setting. Y’all might have heard of them, WJ and HR Clin… Clint..something…?
Only the first couple to “each” be POTUS of America!
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Heeey Donald, you apricot cheeto-faced shitgibbon, Mr. LOSER, how’s Vlad gonna ‘take care’ of ya now? Choose your poison carefully…
12.
Damn, I sure hope it works out that way…otherwise ITEOTWAWKI…
And Bernie and Jane Sanders!
13Sweet story. No early voting in NY. My friend/current employer voted absentee because she was supposed to be in CA delivering a paper to one of her professional organizations, but is in too much pain to attend. She’s glad she voted absentee; going to the polls would be too much. I hope we have great turnout, and I want a LANDSLIDE for Hillz.
14That is a great story Primo, and congrats on the library too.
I like to wait till election day to vote. The room in city hall used for early voting was packed yesterday and 3 pimply faced high school boys were waiting outside it to cast their first ever votes. I congratulated them and encouraged them to keep it up.
I asked the manager of my building if I could give rides to the polls and she approved. However, there is a clique of crazy, conspiracy loving tea bagger extremists here. I’m not giving them rides. I’m a private citizen, I can do that. I’ll go directly to the non crazies and offer them rides.
15Along these lines, even though I’m perfectly capable of driving, I’m thinking of accepting that nice Republican cavasser’s offer of a ride to the polls. The time spent driving me means less time they’ll have for giving a ride to one of their own!
16I am a nurse anesthetist and more often than I would like, patients talk to me about “Obamacare” and assume that I am against it. I then pull up a chair and tell them about my melanoma diagnosis and the fact that I, as someone self-employed, am now able to get insurance because of Obamacare. I tell them that Obamacare is saving my life and I will forever be grateful to President Obama for looking out for me. Then they shut up. Every. Time. What I say is true and they cannot, to my face, refute anything that I am telling them.
If a Trumpian knocks on my door, I will be happy to pull out medical bills, lab results, show him/her my scars and make sure that I am the only door they knock on that day.
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