A new day dawns

I stayed up late last night watching the election news. An historic election. I was struck by the contrast of the people who gathered to hear the candidates speak one last time. The small McCain crowd was by invitation only at the exclusive Biltmore Hotel. Numerous times when McCain spoke there were cat-calls and boos when President-elect Obama's name was mentioned. In contrast, the large Obama crowd was gathered at a public park, open to any who wanted to be there. When he was speaking, the crowd was hushed and respectful, except near the end when it was echoing his "Yes, we can!".

I am hopeful for America for the first time in many years. Does the election of our first Black president mean that race prejudice is gone? I don't think so, but I believe it means that we are now able to look past a person's skin color to other qualities. Race prejudice will linger for a while longer like a brain-dead accident victim on life support. Someday, it will give up the fight and let go. We can help it by speaking out when we see and hear disparaging remarks and racial slurs.

Recently when I was in Houston, I stopped at a gas station. After a few minutes I became aware of an altercation going on between a white man and a black woman. I have no idea what precipitated the argument and in truth, that doesn't matter. What matters is the white man drove off while spouting vile and hateful racial epitaphs. To me, it doesn't matter what caused it to get started, there is no place in polite society for the phrases he used.

I've thought of that situation many times since then and wish that I had stepped up to tell him that he was out of line speaking that way. I think fear held me back at the time. I've wished that I had at least spoken to the woman to let her know that not all white people are like that. I didn't, but I'm hopeful for the future that such incidents will become fewer and fewer as we become a more respectful and soft spoken nation. I know it can be that way because I saw that last night as a man gave his first remarks as President-elect to a mixed race, mixed sex, mixed socioeconomic, hushed and respectful crowd.

Random thoughts on a beautiful Fall day

We took our annual October vacation a few weeks ago and I've been on the road since then. We visited the Olympic National Forest. An truly awesome place where one can feel what it might have been like 200 years ago. I want to go back. I will go back. I didn't post any pictures because there was no internet where we were. No phones in the rooms, no cell phone signal, no tv... just quiet and time to be alone with each other and our thoughts.

The election is a few days a way and I am so hopeful and fearful at the same time. America will be a very different place on November 5 ... well, actually January 20, 2009 (the end of an error and hopefully not the start of another error)

I fixed the bird feeder so that the squirrels could not get into it and boy are they pissed!!!

I planted tomatoes hoping for a Fall crop. The plants are healthy and blooming. But no tomatoes. I'm concerned that there are no pollinators (dead bee colony syndrome) and worry about what that would mean for all of the food sources across the world.

Found a bee in my kitchen and ever so gently captured it and released it on one of the tomato blooms.