So, in the spirit of the Candidate-O-Rama's final night, I tried to upload the gadget from google that would have put up a live action update of the primaries.

It didn't work. Big surprise there.

On the other hand, I *am* willing to update my Candidate O Rama total to a whopping 205- a new high, thanks much- which I'm *certain* will be one of the top stories on MSNBC and CNN all evening. Seriously- it's a much hotter story than the candidates.

Seriously.

Today has been a wild ride of the sort that you can only imagine if you live in NH. Seriously. In the last 48 hours we've had billions of phone calls, and about 10 staffers show up at the door. If I weren't so exhausted, I'd declare myself officially over the top on my candidate-o-rama total, but I'm wiped. Too many papers to grade, too much work, still buried from the holiday trip to fly-over country and the most I can manage is the less-than-witty I'm bringing to this post. As a substitute for actual thought, I offer this list:

Nifty things about living in NH today:
Beautiful blue sky
Hearing a national newscaster refer to the weather as "surprisingly bearable"
Yard signs sprouting like the new state flower along all the roads
Staffers standing on every single corner, waving signs and smiling like lunatics at passing cars
Media people everywhere, doubling the size of my little town
Middle School kids downtown, taking straw polls for their math classes
My four year old knows what the words "primary," "candidate," "nominee," and "party" mean. (Though I think she believes that Barack, Hills, and John get together to drink tea...)
Being such an integral part of the political process when there's an actual, real race happening.

Must sleep. Must stop surfing CNN and WMUR and turn off the TV and go to bed. Must sleep.

One more check on the results and then I'm going to bed.

It's a good day to be an Obama Girl. Even though the Jayhawks won last night, I have a blazing headache heading in to day 4, the temp is hovering right around absolute zero (bonus points to anyone who remembers what *that* means- MU won in a bigger (and better, obviously) way on New Years Day,Obama rocked Iowa, and the snow is supposed to stop piling up for a few days. All in all the world is still a good place.

Finally, for all those so hip on bashing the caucus, here's a good piece on why the caucus is relevant and important.

of my fifteen minutes.

From the Concord Monitor

This one (Obama hears from working women in NH) has a video I'm the cute one on the left.

And of course, the local paper (This link may not work- try copying this into the browser http://www.sentinelsource.com/main.asp?SectionID=31&SubSectionID=37&ArticleID=169760)



Now I have to go clean my bathroom and put a load of wash in. This would be the non-glamourous part of my life.

I've been Baracked. Seriously. This was a major event in my little tiny life. First of all, I sat *right next* to the man during the round table. My left elbow- which was tapped four times and grasped once by the man himself- will never be washed again. He was totally unprepossessing, easy to talk with, very attentive and interested in what all of us had to say. He seemed to really get it- what it means to have enough but not quite enough to not be worried about what would happen if a job were lost or someone got sick. He was appalled at my experience of being told not to nurse my son. He was funny and charming, which I expected, but he also had a really good set of initiatives that are aimed at helping those of us who are right on the line- and those who are way below the line to begin with. The man had my vote before I walked in, but after today, he's got me as a devotee. Seriously. I'm a groupy.

Not to mention that I managed to plug the
Candidate-O-Rama (if the link won't work, because apparently it doesn't, and you don't know what Candidate O Rama is, click here: http://danadrives.livejournal.com/48840.html ) during one of the post- focus group interviews. (I was tapped by 3 tv stations and a newspaper- not that any are local, but still...) It was in response to the question, "How do you manage during the primary season, when every candidate is in your face all the time?" I probably should have said something erudite, but really- why? I'd made it all the way through at that point with nary a pop culture reference or a snarky remark. I was due. Plus the dude led off the interview with "What do you think?"- easily the lamest question ever. He deserved it.

And I calling this halfway between my turf and his turf and giving myself a whopping 40 points for htis shindig- brining my total to a 109 points! Go me, go me...

I know that *many* people are waiting with baited breath for the update on this , so here's the current tally:

Previous Total: 52

1.Edwards staffer who gave us a *tree* (okay, a seedling, but still): 7 points (2 extra points for the tree because, well...it was a tree! And a metaphor!)

2. Edwards staffer who took me to task for my Obama stance when he asked who I'd vote for: 5 points (no bonus points, but he was a brave guy, that's for sure)

3. Being polled by ABC news before and after the New Hampshire debate: 5 points (this isn't usually a category because it almost never happens, but maybe it *should* be because this is the second time this year it's happened.)

Grand total: 69 points. woot! woot! holla!

So fall is nearly upon us. Spent the *entire* day shopping yesterday- didn't get everything I needed, but did pretty well. Today I only need to get coffee (oh the horror of discovering that I only had enough to make 1/2 a pot this morning!) and a couple of Target things. Will make for an easy day. Took the kids to the library yesterday (our first Post-Reading-Program- Completion visit) and ended up with as many videos as books- which is okay because we *all* need some low-key vegetating today.

Discovered this today and couldn't help feeling good about it. Judy Blume certainly filled in a few blank spots for me, back in the day, and I had a mom who was willing to talk- can't imagine what fresh hell adolescents must have been for those with more reticent parents.

Candidate-O-Rama continues- I'm up to 52 points thanks to an Edwards staffer. Thinking about going to the Edwards event tomorrow, but it's at the football field which will be hot and the kids don't do great there and I'd be on my own anyway because TMOTH is back at school....Think I'll be content to stand at 52 points right now. Besides, it's a long time 'til the primary.

Wish I had more to share, but all othe other topics I can think of are single-post worthy. I promise to be better about updating. Eventually. Really. As soon as I get the pre-back to school work done.

That's what's going on. There's just too much for me to share it all effectively. So, to summarize, this story about the teacher in space leading her first class sent me right back to high school where I heard someone talking about the Challenger exploding when I was coming down the stairs to go to biology. I choked up thinking that, for Hunter Frye (the kid featured in the story), that isn't a part of his reality at all.

I'm doing a workshop this week in a school that has this totally automated "bathroom of the future" thing going on. Everything- lights, flushing, paper towels...they all just do their thing on their own. Makes me feel like a widget on an assembly line- plus it's just freaky when the lights go off while you're still, um, *engaged*- you know?

Took the kids to Storyland last weekend. Camped, had a bear in our campsite, went three days without a shower, got cranky...you know, the usual.

And the Candidate-O-Rama continues with my new total at a whopping 47 points- one Obama staffer (7 points because he actually *called* first- so that's worth bonus points because he was calling to make an appointment) and an Obama speaking event for which I gave myself extra points. (15) I was 10 feet from the man, for pete's sake. It deserved more points than the time I stood in the back of a 700 person auditorium to hear Edwards talk.

Reasons why I think I'm a good mom right now:

1. I waited until 11:30 yesterday morning to really crack the Harry Potter I'd gotten from the library at 10:00.
2. I took the kids upstairs to the kid's section at the library and got their books first- then picked up the aforementioned Harry Potter.
3. We had a picnic yesterday and went to the park (with that same HP in the car while I did a duel swing pushing that I *think* may have qualified as an Olympic event.)
4. Last night Harry switched from his normal "I want to thank God for video games/ Monster Trucks/ Figure 8 Trailer Racing" to "I want to thank God for our nice warm house, our nice neighbors, and all the people who love us" *totally* without prompting.
5. We're leaving for the beach tomorrow for 4 days of camping.

Reasons why I'm a bad mom today.
1. Everyone under the age of 7 has cried nonstop all day due, from my perspective, to the intensive maternal neglect perpetrated by my from 11:30 yesterday (see #1 above) until 2:30 this morning.
2. The kids watched tv this morning instead of getting outside to play in the *gorgeous* weather because I stayed up until 2:30 this morning.
3. I napped on the sofa, sort of, while the kids watched too much TV.
4. At nap time, I left Molly to cry herself to sleep in her bed because she wouldn't stop crying no matter what I did and I just couldn't deal.


I guess so long as the score is 5/4 for Good Mom, I'm still in the clear. Bad mom's only 1 game out though, so I'm going to have to dig deep tomorrow.

By the way, for those playing along at home, my current Candidate-O-Rama total is 25 points right now, thanks to the Obama, Hilary, and Dodd staffers who have been lurking in the neighborhood. I've been struggling with whether or not to include parade interactions, but I think...no. It would just be too easy to rack up the points.

So after spending two days down with a nasty headache, I'm back on my feet. I'm struggling a bit to deal with some things at work that have me feeling unjustly accused and unable to respond without seeming defensive, so I'm sure that's where the headache is coming from. Last night I had a weird but cathartic dream that has left me feeling somehow lighter this morning. Not totally better, but at least lighter.

But that's not the real reason for my post. The *real* reason is that primary season is upon us here in New Hampshire and it's time to start my Candidate-O-Rama. The rules are simple. I give myself points for every candidate interaction, with a goal of beating last year's score of 175 points. If I win, then I go for ice cream. If I lose, I'll probably go for ice cream anyway- but it won't be celebratory ice cream. Here's how the points go:

1. Personal interaction with candidate on my turf- 50 points (John Kerry showed up in my driveway once, while I was covered with mud and squirting Harry with the hose. I was so proud...)
2. Personal interaction with candidate on his/her turf- 25 points (Usually at a small campaign event like a house party.)
3. Personal interaction with candidate's spouse in any setting- 15 points.
4. Large scale interaction with candidate- 10 points. (Like speaking gigs)
5. Personal interaction with candidate's staff on my turf- 5 points (This makes up the bulk of the points, since staffers wander the streets of New Hampshire like lost puppies searching for homes. Yesterday one approached me in the garden- TMOTH had one interrupt an outdoor birthday party that Harry attended.)
6. Phone calls- 0 points (Because, really- wouldn't that just be too easy?)

Current count: 10 points.

Stayed tuned political fans. Until the primary brings us to a frenzied climax of political process, the points will just keep racking up. I may actually volunteer for a candidate this year, just to ensure that I get a higher score. I"m craving moose tracks...