So I got a wild hair yesterday, after reading WesClarkJr's "Enough" diary (apparently the latest in a series that I had thus far missed). I went to the DFALink page and saw there was only the original LA Westside rally scheduled in this city, so I posted one of my own - on the eastside of Los Angeles, in my neighborhood of Los Feliz.
Then I sent out an invite to my local peeps... so having committed myself thusly, I bought supplies to make some signs, knowing that I, at least, would have to be there.
Here's my experience as a party of one:
That's right... no one I contacted could make it. As I made my way to the busy intersection I had chosen to stake out, I stopped to talk to a guy who had just parked his van and was drawing a sign. Could it be... was I not alone? Alas, he was trying to sell his guitar. But when he saw my signs, he said he would try to come over for awhile and join me.
With some trepidation, I chose my spot, put down one of my three signs and stood holding the two others - "Enough" and "Honk For Impeachment". Within seconds, I got some very enthusiastic honking. In fact, as the hour wore on, I became more energized even though my arms were aching and I was getting sunburned. So many drivers expressing so much support, drivers leaning wildly to the passenger side windows to give me a thumbs-up, heading right for that busy intersection... yikes, I was afraid there would be an accident. Anyway, this being Los Angeles, I wasn't surprised so much by the honking, as by how diverse the supporters were... drivers of new Porsches, beat-up Hondas, and SUV's; people of all ages and ethnicities, the soccer mom with a load of kids in the back, the city bus driver, and a bus passenger who tapped on his window until I looked over to give me an intense thumbs-up. Smiles and cheers from bicyclists and passers-by. Oh, and the guy who pointed his video camera at me and, with a heavy accent, said it was for Swiss TV. That would be cool to wind up on a European broadcast, but I'll probably never know - I don't think they're on my cable line-up.
Okay, there were two detractors - someone three lanes over flipped me off, and one elderly woman shook her finger at me from a closed car window. But those are pretty good odds, considering the amount of traffic flowing through there in an hour! We are not alone, even when we are. Profound, eh?
I wanted to be able to post a pic but, sadly, there was no one there to take it. (Guitar Boy never showed up.) So if you're in my neck of the woods, please come on out next Sunday from noon to 1:00... this has been linked to before, but go here and here for more info and to sign up, wherever you live. Or schedule your own event, even if you're solo!
So how was your "Enough!" rally?