An ominous wind...

Two mornings in a row it's been blowing. You know the wind. It's the same wind as the beginning of the Halloween movies.

That cold north wind that cuts through everything and blows a few dry leaves along the pavement. Trees with leaves shiver in the cold northern blast.

And, tension hangs in the air like fog. So thick, it seems you could cut it with a knife.

An ominous wind.

Okay, so I'm a modern man and not usually bent to paranoia, but I couldn't help myself looking around dark shrubs, looking for a man in a hockey mask. And, the dog did too. I'm not sure which of us was scaring one another the most by being skittish.
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Now, to the election fiasco.

Who else is sick to death of hearing candidates talk about their opponents? Jeez! Can't they hear that America is calling for a change? I don't think we quite know how to make things change, but it's clear we're ready for it. And, the politicians are frantically sticking with the same. No more same. We need change. And, I'm not talking about a change of political party in power. I'm talking about a change in behavior and willingness to work together. Willingness to find out how alike we are and to behave like adults. Adults who have been given the most important jobs in our nation. Adults who have been hired to shape our today and our tomorrow. Neither party can claim that they've been willing to do much of that recently.

And, I hope that the desperation that I have heard from the politicians this election is a sign that the old ways are ending and that a new way of government is on the way. A new way of government that allows for compromise. I'm still blown away by the way John Stewart expressed it at the end of his rally on Saturday. In summary, politicians say they can't compromise, but that's just not true. We the people do it every day. We compromise with people that are different than us at work, at home, at church. John's example was three lanes of traffic funnelling down to one lane. It doesn't matter what the other person's bumper sticker says and it doesn't matter if their car is better or worse than mine. There has to be an order that everyone has to follow, or none of us will go anyplace. That order requires that drivers compromise and let one another go ahead until it's their own turn.

If people would just stop acting like 4 year olds and understand that nobody gets everything they want. Everybody has to give a little. Me, I give. I continue to live in a state where one of the parties includes illegalizing homosexuality again, as part of their platform. And, that's a big one to compromise on. But, do I move away? Do I carry a gun? No. Because that's not part of compromise. I try to effect change, but I don't pack up my toys and stop playing just because I'm not getting everything I want.

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Boy, did I miss my older Americans this morning. My polling place is usually staffed by a very efficient blue haired crowd. They run the station like a well oiled and tuned machine; you might wait for a machine to vote on, but you don't wait to get signed in.

Today, it was staffed by a much younger and much less efficient group of volunteers and while I certainly respect those that can and choose to volunteer so I can execute my civic duty, These 3 guys couldn't hold a conversation and didn't understand the process they were executing. Which is a shame since they'd been open for a couple of hours. I can only imagine what it will be like if they get busy.

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Whew! that can only be described as a series of diatribes.

Have a great Tuesday and if you haven't done so already, GO VOTE! It really is important.

Lane