Election Day

 Our polls opened at 7. Tim and I were up at 6, showered and waiting in line at 6:58. 

(and what a line it was!)

We waited behind a man with a "We the People" coat. A star spangled cap. Here, that is a code. He was a patriot, goddammit, and he was there to vote MAGA. It was interesting. A black girl checking us in gave him a wary side eye. He said something about "America!" to a blue haired 80 year old. She smiled benignly and agreed with him, that this still was America. 

It took us 35 minutes to work through the line, but we got there. We entered our votes on a machine, which printed out our ballot, which we dropped into a locked ballot box on the way out. The line was no shorter when we left than it was when we came in, and you know what? I'm glad for those lines. I think it was beautiful.

When we walked out the door, a woman with informational packets for a democratic candidate stood along the side walk. We smiled at her. "She got our vote," I said. The woman smiled and thanked us. "We understood the assignment." That is code too, and the code was received loud and clear. The three of us smiled at each other. That moment of solidarity was a small one, set against the backdrop of a divided country, but it felt good. 

As we drove home, Tim said, "I wonder what will happen to all those huge tRUMP signs along the highway?" A local business man had paid big money for big signs, and dozens of them are set around the county. He said, "They never come back and take them down."

I said, "No. They don't."

He said, "I'd like to take a razor knife to them tonight, slice them right down the middle, and leave them flapping in the wind for a few days." 

I said, "Seems appropriate." 

Inside, I was a little bit astonished. He's a quiet man, not given to public displays of anything, but it seems as if he's had his fill of that noisy man's flapping mouth too.