7-election?

I don't know how much more of this I'm going to be able to take. Can't a person even buy a Slurpee anymore – or a caffeine-free Diet Pepsi for that matter – without being asked to weigh in on "the big issues"?

Around here everyone seems nervous, despite an almost universal agreement that there's no frickin way anyone but Obama is going to win. Concerns about Florida-style election fraud abound, along with a general faltering of confidence in the voting system in general and even some doubt as to whether he'll actually be able to – or be allowed to – make the changes he keeps talking about even if he does take office.

Still, hope feels good. Yesterday I spied this portrait displayed high up in a tree in a neighborhood not far from mine ...



A closer look:



That was gratifying to see. My favorite thing about this election is that it seems to have motivated so many people to sit up, take notice, and get involved for a change – something that never seemed to happen, at least not to this degree, in any other election in recent memory. I'm loving all the homemade t-shirts, posters, buttons, signs and stickers.

All the same I'll be glad when it's over. One can stand only so much excitement, especially at such an already-busy time of year.