Okay, so yesterday I forgot to mention the very cool guy who has drawn a photo-image quality drawing of Barack's face and was taking it up and down the line having people sign it. He was also trying to get someone to give him an extra ticket so he could get in and give it to the Senator. I don't know what happened to him, but I hope he got in.
So, after a band called 'Golden Smog' plays (interesting group of 7 guys, 5 of which take turns playing lead guitar and singing, and then on the last song they sing and play together, it was really quite something) the candidate took the stage. Before this the mayor of Minneapolis (I think?) had been having people in the front rows call those they knew and he'd briefly encourage them to go caucus (I assume, I couldn't actually here what was going on). The speech was excellent; he was relaxed, energetic, and actually surprisingly funny. You don't get to see the quips on the news. You also don't get to hear the occasional stutter or correction that reminds you the candidates are human. There was a little name dropping, as the legacy of Minnesota's beloved (now deceased) Paul Wellstone still holds much sway. I was okay with this; he sometimes seems to good to be true, so a little bit of that just makes him seem more realistic. Also he picked up on the second the crowd had decided he's used it enough ( 3 times total, 1st time huge cheers, 2nd time big cheers, 3rd time very few and then we were done).
Despite these very minor things the speech was igniting. Once he got into his cadence it was hard not to jump out of your seat every 2 minutes and wave your big sign around. (Which I did, a LOT). :-) Among things addressed: universal healthcare, veteran's benefits, plan for withdrawl from Iraq by 2009/foreign policy, green energies/technologies/jobs, $4000 college tuition credit, Darfur, education/teachers salaries/No Child Left Behind, immigration, and last but not least being related to Dick Cheney. Of course there was more than this but this is what sticks out in my memory.
After the rally Kari and I got some most excellent thai food on campus, and then I headed over t0 stay with my friends Natalie and Robert (and Fiona, age 1, so cute she makes me want kids. But don't get your hopes up, mom). We chatted a bit before the family went to bed and Robert showed me an excellent new way to make bread, which involves making one large batch of dough that ages in fridge. You pull of a chunk and make a little loaf or two for the day. It's excellent, I tried it already. :)
Nat also showed me her vermicomposter, which I've wanted to try for a while, but for some reason Erich won't let me compost in the apartment. He actually made a rule dedicated solely to forbidding me from composting inside. He likens it to me forbidding him to smoke, which is clearly not the same since the worms don't stink (they really don't, if you do it correctly! they're awesome little guys, and they only thing I smell when I check them out is dirt) and also they are doing good work, and not polluting lungs and sending nasty little free radicals wearing tar clothing into my body.
For more on vermicomposting . This is one of many sites, you can do a simple google search. Anyway, we always have fun exchanging ideas for decreasing our impact; Nat introduced me to the Keeper a few years ago and most of you all know how much I love it.
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