Short diary - I don't care.
With tears of joy in my 45 year old eyes, I grabbed my 4 and 7 year old a while ago and told them that Barack Obama is going to be the new president. With a full and grateful heart, I just finished tucking them into their beds, finally with a feeling of optimism and confidence for their futures.
They're just 4 and 7, but my son and daughter have been so interested in hearing me talk about the election, going all the way back through the primaries. They've put up with me interrupting their limited TV time so many evenings, as I watch KO and Rachel, muttering under my breath at the state of the nation and the tactics used against Obama. And tonight they seemed almost as thrilled as me to hear about each successive state going our way.
As we watched some CNN tonight, especially after John King went through his map math showing how it was theoretically impossible for any other outcome, I called them over to me to give them the good news. They were allowed to stay up late, but I finally decided it was final enough that they could get up to bed. Holding them in my arms, I told them "he's going to win". Their eyes lit and the cheers went up. I told them how happy I am that they will be able to grow up with a president they can respect - how special it is that they will know what it's like to have a good president.
I've long been interested in politics and rooted for the Democrats. There have always been important reasons, and there has almost always been disappointment in the election results. But NOT THIS TIME! Never before have I had such important and all-consuming reasons to hope for a successful outcome in a presidential election. My two most important reasons just went to bed filled with the enthusiasm of hope.
PS: I'd also like to take a moment to thank the DKos community. This site has been a daily refuge for me for quite a while now. It has definitely helped to take some of the edge off of the anxiety I've experienced each previous 4-year cycle.