I haven’t been posting too much about the election, even though (as with every campaign cycle) I’m completely overinvested and reading about 150 blogs on the topic (thanks google reader!). I have a tendency to get burnt out, and forget just how profound this election is. Which is why, when I found myself sitting in front of my computer on Monday night reading this story, I started crying. And I don’t just mean that I got choked up. Full-on, tears rolling down my face, sobbing.
Amanda Jones, 109, the daughter of a man born into slavery, has lived a life long enough to touch three centuries. And after voting consistently as a Democrat for 70 years, she has voted early for the country’s first black presidential nominee.
On the same note, meet Charles…
And, of course, Obama himself giving his closing argument speech. I particularly like how he manages to tie in, pretty seamlessly, the theme of his 2004 convention speech about red america and blue america. Talk about running a fabulous campaign that allows you to make a callback like that.
So then, of course, I had to find some stuff to make me laugh, because I’d end up crying the whole week over the stress of this election season…
The first one’s been around for a while, but it makes me crack up every time I see it. As a long-time Les Mis fan (instead of a sweet sixteen, I took my 5 best friends to the city to see the show, and I’m fairly certain I can still sing the entire soundtrack from beginning to end), this is just so spot on…
and finally, from the Obama campaign…all of this excitement is fantastic, but remember to ACTUALLY GO OUT AND VOTE NEXT TUESDAY. Seriously.
sad, sad news. The law firm where I got my start is officially dissolving. Sure, a group of us left a few years ago for greener pastures, but Thelen (or, really, to those of us who were around long enough in NY, Reid & Priest) was a really nice place to work. Heck, the people I work with now are the same ones I work with then – we essentially just switched offices (my boss would say that the era actually ended when Reid & Priest merged with Thelen Marrin, but the New York office remained largely intact at that point and day-to-day life was just about the same). Here’s hoping that the utility and energy folks that are still there land on their feet at another firm, and that someone steals the (really heavy) bronze bust of A.J. Priest before the doors get locked.
Today, I participated in the NYC MS Bike Ride. Altogether, including cycling from my apartment to the start point (and home at the end of the day), I biked slightly over 70 miles. I’m pretty sure that’s the longest trip I’ve ever taken. It was really great, even with the rain soaking me through for the first two hours of the morning, and I made it through the first 30 miles (around the entire circumference of manhattan) in 2 hours (plus 30 minutes at the rest stop). Then we hit palisades state park in New Jersey and it took us another 3 hours to get the next 15 miles. Of course, I’m pretty sure we walked up about 3 miles of hills. whatever. it’s still exercise. The idea that, a year ago, I would have been able to walk uphill for 3 miles (forget biking 70), I would have laughed in your face. So, all in all, a good day. Other than the rain. And the nasty spill I took leaving me with two bruised knees. But…no sunburn, and i hit 35 miles per hour in a screaming ride through the Lincoln Tunnel. That might have been the most awesome thing I’ve ever done. Here’s a map…