Who ARE these people?

This past week Wait Wait Don't Tell Me did some funny bits at the beginning about undecided voters.  And I have been wondering, can there really be undecided voters at this point?  I don't think so.  Unless they are morons or have just woken from a coma.

Here's some more thoughts on the undecided from one of my favorite commentators on society.

"For as long as I can remember, just as we move into the final weeks of the Presidential campaign the focus shifts to the undecided voters. 'Who are they?' the news anchors ask. 'And how might they determine the outcome of this election?'

Then you’ll see this man or woman— someone, I always think, who looks very happy to be on TV. 'Well, Charlie,' they say, 'I’ve gone back and forth on the issues and whatnot, but I just can’t seem to make up my mind!' Some insist that there’s very little difference between candidate A and candidate B. Others claim that they’re with A on defense and health care but are leaning toward B when it comes to the economy.

I look at these people and can’t quite believe that they exist. Are they professional actors? I wonder. Or are they simply laymen who want a lot of attention?

To put them in perspective, I think of being on an airplane. The flight attendant comes down the aisle with her food cart and, eventually, parks it beside my seat. 'Can I interest you in the chicken?' she asks. 'Or would you prefer the platter of shit with bits of broken glass in it?'

To be undecided in this election is to pause for a moment and then ask how the chicken is cooked.

I mean, really, what’s to be confused about?...

I wonder if, in the end, the undecideds aren’t the biggest pessimists of all. Here they could order the airline chicken, but, then again, hmm. 'Isn’t that adding an extra step?' they ask themselves. 'If it’s all going to be chewed up and swallowed, why not cut to the chase, and go with the platter of shit?'

Ah, though, that’s where the broken glass comes in."

Read the rest of David Sedaris' essay in the Oct. 27th issue of The New Yorker.

I, by the way, am not undecided.  Not in the slightest, though I admit to some indecision during the primaries.

But now, I am fully committed to my candidate.  And for the first time in my life I have voted for someone who not only has a really good chance of winning, but whom I really really like.  A lot.  Yes, I voted for Barak Obama, instead of voting for the Democrat because he is not the Republican.  

I cannot wait to see what he is going to do when he is President.

And I cannot wait to have my library back from the insanity of being a place to  vote.  I must retire before the next Presidential election hits the libraries.

Curb Appeal Updates

The new door has been stained.

Tired of dealing with plants that look great one day and wild and weedy the next, we are beginning to replace groundcover with stones, for a more zen like look.

Mark is working on the abundent ferns and vines -- begone, I say, the rocks are coming.

Eventually the front will get there too, some plants will remain but weedblock cloth and stones will prevail.

It's a bit chilly in the house this morning...

so I was able to capture a glimpse of the rare and elusive cuddling-poodle-boys.

Comment on The Caucus

I love this comment on a post on the cost of Palin's hair & makeup on the NY Times' political blog, The Caucus.

$150,000 for the latest fashions.
$55,000 for beauty care.
$25,000 to have your family come along.
Defeat on Election Day, priceless.

Dear Red States

I love this, but please, can Florida come too?  

We're really really trying, and I'm hopeful.

And I voted today!  

Yes I Did!

The Planter's Ball

We celebrated the beginning of the season at our farm last night, even though two city sewage line breaks that flooded our creek and well with sewage made our fields unuseable this year, and forced the heartbreaking plowing under of early crops. Luckily we have other fields available, the organic farmers are a supportive community and our farm will have a good season even if it starts later than usual.

We had a great potluck dinner; the vegan and vegetarian tables were overflowing with tasty dishes.

Jen and Mark are taking a break before tackling dessert.

The Urban Gypsies play regularly at Sweetwater Organic Farm parties, they do everything from bluegrass to roots rock and are easy to dance or hula hoop to.

Kaiser had a great time playing with his new farm friend.

Turn it Off

This ad is wonderful, more about parenting and literacy than getting him elected.  

I can even use it in the Every Child Ready to Read workshops when Obama is president!

(The version I saw on TV here is for FL, not NC.  And I don't know why the quality of the video is so bad, looks just fine on YouTube and on Obama's site....)

The Map Keeps Getting Prettier

The New York Times election map has been changing color lately.
I can't wait to see the FL yellow turning blue.
You can click on each state to find out the facts, and you can make the colors change if you are so inclined.

The Mask Slips

"For the nitwits who vote for the man or woman they'd most like to have over for dinner...I suggest you take a look at how well your 401(k) is doing, or how easy it will be to meet the mortgage this month, or whether the college fund you've been trying to build for your kids is as robust as you'd like it to be....Voting has consequences."

What I want to know is, who in the world would actually rather have a batty old man over for dinner than an eloquent, intelligent middle aged man.  Really.  One thing is for sure, they are not people I would want to have over for dinner.

You can read the rest of Bob Herbert's excellent and important column from today's Times here.

And check out Gail Collins' clever column today too.

In the Future, We Will Be Hipsters

Not only did we pull our money out of the market before it collapsed, and put it into real estate in one of the few places in the country that hasn't "cratered", but we actually bought our apartment in Brooklyn's new hipster hangout!

Sarah Killed the Moose

And yesterday she killed a blue whale.

How very Alaskan of Sarah.

Final Day of Driveway & Wall Work!

Another very long day of work, but the guys are now finally done.  

It's raining, but not hard enough to wash away the last of the sand yet.

Our new retaining wall.

Our new mailbox surround.  And all the stuff that will be removed tomorrow.

Soon the doors will be stained and hopefully soon Mark will get the changes done we have planned in the landscaping, and then we will be done.

Except for one thing.

We need a fabulous new mat outside our front door.

Ideas anyone?

Third Day of Driveway, and Wall, Work

The guys worked for a really long time today.  EVERYTHING is covered with a thick layer of cement dust from all the pavers that had to be cut.  The driveway, the front door, the trees, there is some on the roof, in the yard, and our neighbor's roof, trees and yard.  So it's a little hard to see what it will look like, but it still looks great.  The low walls around the landscaping right up against the house are done.
The retaining wall will get higher and be capped off like the ones in the front, making a top people could actually sit on.
Tomorrow the job will pretty much be finished.  The low wall around the mailbox will be built, everything else finished off, concrete poured around the sides of the driveway, the pavers covered with sand and then washed, to push the sand down in between.  It will be beautiful when washed, and we can choose, for more money, to have it sealed in about a month if we want, to keep that beautiful just washed look for a few years.  I think maybe we will do that, and maybe do the pool deck at the same time.  We'll see how much we feel like spending another couple of thousand dollars.

Monday, hopefully, all the pallets and the dumpster will be removed.  Mark will still have to figure out what to do with the old wood wall, and we will have a lot of pavers and some of the wall stones left so we might do something with the totally overgrown pond area in the back....

I am so happy with how this is turning out.  And the neighborhood likes it too -- the contracter has three appointments from people on our block who have stopped by!

Obama in a red state

Barbara and Steve live in Alpharetta, a very red suburb of Atlanta.

But their Obama/Biden sign is not the only one out there!

Who's Gonna Build Your Wall?

This is one of the most played songs on my iPod.  Take a listen if you don't know it already, great message, and the kind of song that you have to sing along to, loud.  

Click "Listen Now" to hear the NPR story or "Hear the Song" to just do that, and please excuse the brief NPR commercial.

And who do you think is building our wall?

Second Day of Driveway Work

They laid a lot of the driveway pavers today and took down the crumbling wall.  

They say they will complete the job tomorrow!

First day of driveway work

The work on the driveway began today.  All the concrete, and some of the retaining wall, was removed.  The driveway is all sand.

There's a big dumpster full of concrete and piles of pavers on pallets.  

Tomorrow the retaining wall will be removed, so will some of the plants, and the new wall will begin to be built.

While I was out taking pictures I met a neighbor who lives on the street behind us.  Jim has recently retired and he told me he's bored so I invited him to volunteer at the library.  He was walking Tara, his yorkie/bichon mix.  Such a cute and friendly pup, but I wonder which parent gave her the color.  Love her white goatee!