Snow day! I’ve behaved this winter and gone to work (risking life and limb) during snow and ice storms just so that I could have a day like today – when I just don’t feel like going to work and can use bad weather as an excuse.
This happened overnight and very early this morning I shoveled the deck, the steps and the sidewalk and had decided to brave it and go to work. When I was finished shoveling, it started snowing again. So I mentally said “fuck it” to work and grabbed my camera to see if I could capture some snowflakes. It sort of worked.
I plan on using the day to study (yuck), burn a few cd’s, watch television and play with the fucking cat who is feeling neglected, ignored and unloved. (She is only one of those things). Right now, though, I’m sipping coffee and watching it snow. When I’m inside looking out, I love snow. I love the majesty of it, the crispness of it. Snow, even when it’s wet and mushy, always looks crisp to me. Looks are not everything, but certainly the most important thing. Right?
I’ve got a nice smile, passable looks, and a certain charm when I need it. I’ve always used those things to my advantage without embarrassment or even a decent hesitation. Maybe because I’m not a beauty queen, I don’t feel guilty for using the assets I have. (Or maybe I’m just a user.) My “inside” has never matched my “outside” and it never bothered me – before yesterday. I am beginning to fit a demographic that makes me cringe, if you’ll forgive the pun.
When I went to vote, I had to show my voter registration card and then the lady looked up my name and I had to sign the book and verify that all the information was correct. Then the next woman handed out the ballots. For my friends not living in the States, in my state’s primary election, a voter has to declare a party and then receives a ballot for that party. I’ve never voted in a primary before and so I wasn’t sure what (if anything) I needed to do. The second woman had three stacks of ballots in front of her, perforated tear-off cards: Libertarian, Republican and Democrat. She had her hand on one ballot, ready to tear it off and hand it to me. I smiled and asked for the other party’s ballot.
In her defense, the ballot she had her hand on was the closest to her – so maybe she just had her hand on the stack and was absent-mindedly playing with the ballots, waiting for me to ask for one.
But I really think it’s because I’m starting to look like a … person who is probably affiliated with a certain political party. You thought I was going to tell you, didn’t you? If you’ve read closely, you probably already know.
Um-… wait a minute. Voting is supposed to be anonymous, and if you have to ask for a certain party’s ballot… wtf??
It is anonymous. No one knows the candidate I picked.
In a general election, you get a ballot that has all the candidates names on it. That will happen in November – and that’s the “real” election.
This is a primary election, where each party decides who its candidate will be. So actually, there are two elections happening … one for Democrats and one for Republicans. You can only vote in one primary, so you have to ask for that party’s ballot.
The vote itself is still anonymous because there are 2 people in the democratic race (Obama and Clinton) and 4 people in the republican race (McCain, Huckabee, Romney and Ron Paul). So the only thing anyone knows is which party primary you’re voting in.
Some states have totally separate primaries on different days, so you automatically get the ballot for that party. My state just happens to have it on the same day, which just means I have to ask for a certain ballot.
Still confused? Me too!
You don’t love your cat?
How could you, Cap?!?!
I’m heartless, Cowboy. Haven’t you figured that out yet? lol
(she is ignored – because of homework – not neglected or unloved. mostly she is tolerated.)
Uh, okay. That’s still pretty crazy, but thanks for the explanation!
Huh. I don’t have that problem yet. With the wild hair and the Harley-Davidson sweatshirt, they just look surprised that I’m there AT ALL.
Heh… somebody thought you looked like a Libertarian. *snort*
Annie, good point! They may even let you vote twice just because you showed up. lol
Wende … hahahahahahahahahaha If I were having a contest for the best comment, yours would have won. Unfortunately, I’m not. So you didn’t. But still … hahahahahahahahahaha
Your friend not living in the States is still confused. You have elections to elect the candidates who will be in the “real” election? Like, seriously?
I am so glad I live in a country that was once a penal colony. For the first time in my life I realise the loveliness of a constitutional monarchy!
As many people know, we have a two-party system. But each party is going to have multiple people wanting to run under it, so the parties decided that it would be better to back just ONE person and focus all their votes that way, rather than spread their votes out across three or four people.
The primary elections are the way that the parties decide which candidate will be the one they back.
The other candidates can still run, of course, but they won’t have the backing of the party, and it would be a rare instance for those people to win.
I get that. Here, the party chooses their leader. They vote – not the public. If someone chooses to step aside then the deputy leader of that party becomes the leader.
It’s very simple. Very, very simple.