True.
This past Tuesday was why I've watched election returns for President since 1976, and have voted in every election since I was old enough to do so:
The sight and sound and feel of living history.
I will not deny that I wept unashamedly (although the vodka may have helped).
I was waiting for you.
Thank you for this.
That is beautiful. I'm currently living in Portland, Maine, which is pro-Obama, but folks here were too New England reserved to throw a spontaneous street party. I guess I picked the wrong time to move out of Philly.
Lots of folks cheering in the pubs, though, so at least there was that.
This is a masterpiece. PLEEZ consider taking it and converting it to novel form - or a stage or screen play. It needs to be experienced with more permanency than an ephemeral blog post.
Thank you so much for sharing!
(Coincidentally, NaNoWriMo is in progress and there is still time to do a rush first draft. Hint. Hint. Link at my name.)
Beautiful.
You know...I had finally stopped bursting into tears of joy and relief over the weekend, and now I'm blubbing at work.
thanks for the snapshots, visual and otherwise.
Absolutely beautiful, LM. Thanks!
I hear you, Tata. I've cried at least several times a day every day since The Day and this gorgeous piece of writing just put me over the edge again this morning. A mesmerizing piece of work, and so emotionally powerful. Thanks!
So how do you think bush ahndled the spontainous celebration outside the whitehouse?
Hey, I'm in Portland, Maine, too! Well, OK, SOUTH Portland. Heck, if we got everyone in town out on the street it wouldn't look like the pics you posted!
I spent Election night talking my mother off the ledge in multiple phone calls. Her outright sheer terror of "voting problems" and their sway of an election had rendered her incapable of remembering or comprehending how the Electoral College functions, so when KY dropped into McCain's column and put him ahead she just came unglued. She lives in AZ and REALLY feared a McCain presidency. When Ohio fell, I was able to call her and tell her that we were THERE and I know she didn't believe me. I went downstairs and poured myself a LARGE alcoholic beverage, and just coasted until he finally took the stage in Chicago, and then this lilly-white 51 year old woman who grew up in the South, surrounded by everything one grows up surrounded by down there sat on her bed alone in her room and bawled.
Wednesday I just felt...sort of numb. The relaxing of a fear that has grown to nearly consume me of late left me feeling odd, almost battered, and weepy as hell. Your friend in the jogging suit said it most succinctly - that we look like a nation who has successfully ousted a dictator. I have been thinking that we were a nation of hostages, finally released, but I like his take better.
So for now, I am gonna shut up. I have no negative opinions on his cabinet choices. I am not going to kvetch about his priorities - at least not for a while. Because every time I begged him to get tough and wipe McCain out and he didn't, HE WAS RIGHT AND I WAS WRONG. About every f-ing thing. I'm no dummy - Obama and I share an IQ score - but he was right and I - and all the rest of us that were howling for blood - were wrong. So now I'm gonna shutup and just watch, and hope. That is something I haven't had for a long time.
Fan-fucking-TASTIC!!!
thank you for this.
Been waiting for this since 11:01 pm Tuesday.
You did not dissapoint. 
... and tears again. Just so beautiful, man. HUG.
My little town had similar gatherings and spilled out into the streets. I've spent the last few days 'tubing around and everywhere people were in the streets and in celebration. I love seeing the photos and video... small towns, big cities, everywhere... around the world. Just incredible... THAT moment. And yes, I LOVED that there's no way in holy hell that seeing the coverage of these celebrations didn't kick his swollen ego hard in the dangly bits.
Yes, sir.
we were a bit more sedate out in my small desert town. still, the phone calls, the repeated "can you believe this?"
we didn't cry, we're apaches and we don't play that.
sweatsuit brother, and platform brother have it handled.
yes.
this happened.
in my lifetime.
i was ready for it to happen during my children's lifetime, maybe even having to wait for my grandchildren's lifetime.
it happened now.
Folks. . . were just ready, I guess
infuckingdeed.
And he's hit the ground running, too:
-- He's taking the poor guys in Gitmo to the US for actual real trial in actual US courtrooms.
-- He's had his people reviewing Bush's EO and signing statements and is prepared to start dumping them the second he's sworn in.
(delurk)
LM, I have been looking forward to your account of Election Night, and my God you did not disappoint. Absolutely brilliant piece.
(back to lurking)
What Annie said!!!!
love you madly, my brother.
and because I dunno if haloscan't is working or not, I'll add: if you haven't started your book of essays, many of us will want to know why not.
LM,
That was brilliant, many thanks.
We had a great time in Sydney. The local Democrats Abroad chapter had a party at a night
club in Paddington which is sort of like Greenwich Village in NYC. There was probably a thousand people who showed up at one time or another. It started at about 10 AM and ended about 10 PM. I met a German women who I hadn't seen in ten years and made friends with a few others.
About six of us were milling about outside at around 9 PM when some Brazillian drummers were just walking by. They started drumming when they saw we were wearing Obama/Biden T-shirts and we then danced. Then they marched up the street, we followed and more people, about two dozen, joined in, bopping and dancing and then we ended up in a pub where the patrons, sitting very sedate, suddenly joined us in the dancing that went on to at at least 1 AM. I said to a few people that I have waited eight years for this night and that nothing was going to stop me from dancing. A party for the ages.
Yes, it did feel like we were witnessing the overthrow of some dictator. The only thing missing was some statue to topple. So what color is assigned to THIS revolution ?
Brilliant post. I'm making the trip in January from Toronto (probably driving). I want to experience history in Washington DC on the 20th of January.
It would be great to meet up with anonymous faces from all over blogistan.
SWEATSUIT BROTHER: Man...you don't see people celebratin' like that in this country over an election. That's the shit people be doin' where they overthrow a dictator and whatnot.
You mean we didn't?
Still getting chills. I hit the panic button on both our cars when it was announced, set the lights and horns a-wailin' to wake up the McCain people across the street.
Not for too long, though. don't wanna be disrespectful. Just Snoopy dancing all week.
November 4th was my MIL's birthday. We sent her a text message:"We all chipped in and got you a new President!"
I was at home with 49 friends -- two cases of Snow Cap and a fifth of George Dickel. By the time I fell asleep there were far fewer friends there.
I didn't even turn on the TV. I just sat at the computer, in my sweats, watching the results roll in. I whooped and hollered and said FUCK YEAH! I called people, people called me, we had a great time.
I thought of all my black neighbors in West Philadelphia 45 years ago, all my classmates, my teachers, my teammates, my co-workers, picketing Woolworth's, marching with MLK, the works.
All their faces flashed before my mind's eye. I thought of where they might be, if they were alive -- some I knew weren't -- and how they might be feeling, what they might be doing.
In my mind I reached out to them. I laughed, and I cried, that we had seen this day, that a black man could be elected president, and that this white 65-year-old cared so much that this had happened.
I stayed up very late, getting drunker by the minute, to see if our Governor in WA would be re-elected. She was -- in a landslide -- a giant FUCK YOU to the right wing.
I leaped out of bed at 6 in the morning, without a hint of a hangover, because our work is just beginning, and savor the moment, my ass! We had better get about our business RIGHT FUCKING NOW!
But it feels so good. Oh, mama! It feels so good!
Really, really nice to read. Thanks for taking me back to the feeling that night. I did my share of crying like crazy in front of the tv, watching the crowds, but you took me right back & made me feel it again.
Wonderfully moving essay. I laughed out loud that you called the dog a son of a bitch and was near tears through most of the rest of it. I have had a difficult time releasing the tension and finding the relief in this. I know it is there. I know it is real. This essay was a big help. I am sure that I will read it a few more times. I am certainly lookinf forward to 01.20.09.
Almost a week and it was starting to fade. My rightwing friends barely paused in RSS-feeding the latest GOP talking points, grumblers on the left as well. Thanks for bringing it back.
emails from non-american friends. Welcome back. We missed you.
People made sure to dig up or buy those flags "just in case." I know I did.
Thanks.
Things change...
Cicero IL:
Obama 79.39%
McCain 19.71%
When they overthrow a dictator the billy club wielders stand around impotent.
Yeah I've been waiting for this for awhile too. Thanks, LM.
Just Snoopy dancing all week.
(lol) that sez it 4 me 2
LM,
I luvz reading all the kindly folks who write here and near to the GNB, but I gotta say, when a piece of writing gives me the same sensation as riding a rollercoaster at 6Flags, it's something else!
Thanks for sharing this
Cheers!
Things change...
Cicero IL:
Obama 79.39%
McCain 19.71%
Cicero is a heavily Latino suburb now.
I saw a table of stats that stunned even me. Obama won EVERY region of Illinois.
He won Chicago (duh)
He won Suburban Cook County (duh)
He won Lake County
He won DuPage County
He won Will County
He won Downstate.
Dj its the down state thats amazing...
I wish Gilly could have seen it.
Thanks dood, I am crying again. Wonderful post
Outstanding, LM.
And fuck those fucking cops! May their sour grapes give them an eight-year case of indigestion.
No champagne here, though. Mrs. Fate is allergic to yeast, so fermented beverages are right out -- but chilled limoncello made for a nice alternative.
I'm old enough to have dim memories of legal racism and "Whites Only" signs, so Obama's election by this big a margin is pretty damn awe-inspiring.
This has been a long time coming -- too long, really -- but I'm pleased that it's happened somewhat sooner than I expected. Yeah, I expected to see a black president in my lifetime, just not in this decade. (I figured demographics would have taken care of it with a few more years.)
One of the few pleasures in living in this red state right now is that I can laugh at the goobers for having backed a crowd of grifters and incompetents who fucked things up so thoroughly and publicly that the country just elected their worst nightmare: an uppity Knee-grow! Even worse: A virile, articulate, charismatic, intelligent one!
They loved Bush because he made them feel good about being ignorant, fearful, spiteful Pig People. I guarantee you that many of them will hate Obama with white-hot intensity, not just because he's got a "D" after his name, but because he's a living rebuke to some of their most deeply-held prejudices.
Interesting times ahead.
Dammit: Forgot to add, I also hope to see a woman president in my lifetime -- so long as she's nothing like Sarah Palin.
A true masterpiece, for which I have waited. Many thanks, LM.
Note well that President-Elect Obama won by the third biggest Democratic popular vote margin in the history of the party: only FDR and LBJ topped him.
I've been waiting for you L.M.
And damn well worth the wait.
Thank you thank you.
Awesome, awesome, awesome post. Have I said how awesome it was?
I wish I had been in a big city the night of the election just to feel the electricity running through people. I would have paid big money to see all those elated people and revel in the festivities with them. I envy you and the others who got to do that.
Not only in America, but the pictures from across the WORLD show how much this win was celebrated. When was the last time that happened? Obama's win alone will start the road to lots of healing between nations of the world who felt bullied or marginealized by the U.S.
Seriously, I have seen more smiles on people's faces this past week then I have seen in a long time. Almost everyone I see has been in a good mood. People have been begging Wegmans, Barnes and Noble and other stores to let them know when the new "Time" and "Newsweek" are coming out so they can get copies.
Let's just hope the good times last.
Wow. Thanks for this, just thanks.
The energy you've captured, the essence of this new found pride, the way New York vocalizes and shares their awe and excitement with strangers. I feel it all the way from New Zealand!!!
I wish Gilly could have seen it.
Thanks dood, I am crying again. Wonderful post
SnarkyShark | 11.10.08 - 4:44 pm | #
Oh he was. And what a group he celebrated with. Gilly, MLK, Rosa Parks, RFK, JFK, Emmit Till, Gandhi, Booker T Washington, George Washington Carver, Hunter S Thompson, the Founding Fathers, Abe Lincoln, Teddy Roosevelt, Ralph Bunche and so so many others in a afterlife equivalent to the celebration at Grant Park. Late to the party, but welcomed with open arms was dear old Toot.
Antarctica, the news shots pouring in from all over the world were like the last scene in the re-cut "Return of the Jedi"--people celebrating all over the planet, going nuts. Yes, movie ref is intentional--the emperor is DEAD! :D
We missed you up here in "Da Boogie Down" LoLo - don't worry, we held it down for ya.
Prof Fate,
an eight-year case of indigestion
heh indeedy - whenever someone asks "whadja think about the 'lection?"
I say "I'm lookin forward to the next EIGHT years
oh heckyeahh!! )
Like everyone else, I've been waiting for LM's definitive Cronkite on The Day.
It was so very worth the wait
Thank you SO MUCH for this!
I've seen videos of similar gatherings in the streets of San Francisco, where I am originally from, and have wished that I could've been there.
I now live in Vancouver, BC and watched the results unfold from a packed gallery, full of Canadians with all eyes and ears glued to the various broadcasts that lined the walls. Perhaps it wasn't Times Square, but the energy in that intimate space was palpable and full of cautious HOPE.
As the news flashed across the screens...'Victory For Obama'...the gallery erupted into joyous celebration. The cheers and hollers were intense, pulling me up into a deafening roar that I was at once thrilled and surprised by. I suppose I just wasn't expecting to feel so much elation in the company of people who generally don't care much for the States. Yet, here it was....this was REAL...people were crying and hugging one another. This was an incredible, HISTORICAL moment!
And there I sat, blending right into the crowd, my American accent having softened over the 4 years that I've been here. My country of origin had become an embarrassing secret and the subject of many heated, political conversations. But THAT NIGHT.....as those around me unabashedly reveled in the news, I was bursting at the seems....anonymously patriotic. I was overflowing with this new, rather unfamiliar feeling.
I wanted to jump up onto a chair and exclaim with gusto...'I'M PROUD TO BE AN AMERICAN!' I yelled it out once, but the sound of shared elation was such that my little voice was lost in the din. So, instead, I turned to my friend with tears in my eyes and joyfully confessed my sentiments...
'For the first time in 8 years...I am PROUD to be an American....'
Zipporah -- We have also experienced the embarrassment of being an American in other countries. I don't know if it would help there, but we certainly found that in New Zealand we got much better reactions if we said we are from California. Apparently we Northern Californians aren't the only ones who feel like we're a separate country from the rest of the US.
This made my heart happy all over again. Thanks so much.
LM, yours was the word we were all waiting for and man, it was worth it. Thank you so much for this chronicle. I so wanted to be somewhere like NYC for The Big Night, and now vicariously, through you, I was.
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