Took me two days!

I saw it on Amazon and preordered it. 

It came. 

I dropped all else and just read and read. 

This was so good and was well enjoyed as Father Tim and Cynthia Kav'na visit Ireland with new characters to interact with. Jan Karon calls this book her "dark haired child".  One hopes she will keep writing and writing.   We love the folks from Mitford!  We also love a good cry, along the way.

Well, we voted as well as if we lived in Chicago!

I received a sample ballot in the mail and thoughtfully pre-marked it for T. to use when we went to the polls.  This morning, we got up - not so early as I had planned... but once we were dressed and had everything we needed, we headed out to vote.  Doing our civic duty, don't you know. 

We got to the polling place after 9:00a.m.  We showed our picture and signature identifications and went into the elections office where we both signed the electronic machines and got our receipts.  Stepping to the next window as instructed, we picked up our full size official ballot.  We went to a vacant pair of side-by-side voting booths and opened out our ballots.  T. asked me if we had to mark both sides?  I nodded yes and whispered for him to take out his sample ballot and start voting.  He did so and I got down to marking the little circles with the provided pen on my own ballot.  So far, so good - until T. got to the end of the line on his sample ballot.  It didn't correspond exactly to the official ballot and he'd  lost his place.  I glanced over and found the slot he needed to mark next and pointed to it.  He said he didn't see it.  I touched the space on the ballot.  He couldn't find the same spot on the sample.  I touched that space.  He lined things up and proceeded to mark the next group. 

We continued in this manner until the end of the ballot - I thought surely someone would come over and quietly ask me to stop interfering with the voting.  I was as much up in T.'s voting booth as I was in mine, trying to guide him along.  We still needed to flip the ballot and vote the back side. 

Flip.

T:  "Do we have to mark ALL of these, too?

ME:  (Oh, dear - did anybody hear that?  I'm sure they did.  Pretty soon I expect to be dragged out of here in handcuffs!)

I raised my head and looked over the edge of the booth at T.'s ballot and told him,  "Ok, just mark them the same way the back of your sample ballot shows".    He started down the row, got to the end of the line and looked up at me - I put my finger on the next row and then on the spot on the sample ballot where that vote was cast.  We continued to the end.  There were three columns on the back.  When we were done, T. wanted to know what to do with his sample ballot.  I crumpled it into a ball and then, thinking better of it - I told him to just fold it back up and put it in his pocket.  He smoothed it out and did so. 

We put our official ballots in the  privacy folder and went to the machine to cast our votes.  T.'s ballot rolled into the opening.  The lady gave him his "I VOTED" sticker and turned to me.  I started to ask her for two stickers - but I held my tongue, smiled and took my one  sticker and we exited the polling place.  I felt better for having done my duty as a citizen.  I was also grateful to have escaped censure for disrupting a polling place!  I wonder what the fine would have been.

Bittersweet

Today's date is one I usually mark quietly.  Mother was born 10/10/10.  At least that's the date she always celebrated as having been born.  Then, when she thought she was about to turn 65, she contacted Social Security to find out how to document her age; not having a birth certificate.  They offered the information on the types of proof they would accept, one being pages from a family Bible.  Mom knew who had her family's Bible.  She contacted the cousin and was able to get a  photocopy of the page where her birth date was recorded.  She sent it off to the Social Security folks who came back with the indisputable fact that the date had been written over and what had been Oct. 10, 1910 looked more like Oct. 10, 1908.  She didn't care which date was used, as long as she was still able to draw her benefits.  Until she died, she continued to celebrate the year as 1910. 

Today, she would have turned 100 years.

Just a game?

Football season is upon us.  It is also along-side us, overhead, under foot and blocking the way to the ladies room at work.  You cannot get away from it.  Fans on all sides discussing their team - either the real one or the fantasy one, filling in statistics and reliving the weekend slaughter or gigantic win, depending on which team one favors.  I work with a bunch of Gator fans.  We won't be mentioning the name Alabama or the words Crimson,  Roll or Tide in the same sentence on Monday.  They know I root for the U of M when they play.  Few know I'm a Tide fan.  Gotta be!  Mom being raised around Lanette and that area in 'Bama - right across the border from La Grange in Georgia.  She took me to a game when I was younger.  In the old Orange Bowl.  On a cold night.  The stands were filled with red clad visitors  and rumbled with the chant, Roll Tide - accompanied by the arm roll.  I get chills just recalling the awesome feeling. 

Sorry, guys but when you're moaning about the loss of game on Monday... I will be smiling inside.  Oh, yes.