Two years ago in May my husband and I relocated from Houston, TX to Newark DE. The move as most moves go was hardly fun and games. But we made it and are very happy to be here. That said there is much we miss about Houston and our friends and neighbors there. I especially miss my volunteer work at the Harris Co. Democratic Party Headquarters. Needless to say my heart swooned when Harris Co. flipped deep dark blue in November. We had hosted an election watch party at our home and when Houston flipped and U.S. Rep Culberson lost my husband and I hooted, hollered and did high fives. Our new friends and neighbors were a bit taken aback. They are a bit more reserved here in the East. I told them “we are used to losing.” And then my husband I and danced around the room. We stopped to cry when Beto lost. Everyone in the room groaned. Delaware Democrats love Beto.
I quickly found a Resistance group and asked my generous resister sisters if they would contribute to Beto’s campaign. We did that and wrote postcards on his behalf. A few of our old Houston friends moved here too. Diana, Jan, Stan, Julie and Ann. Julie and Ann are native Texans. All are in the resistance, of course. Stan was a well-known democratic political operative in Houston. He’s making his mark here in tiny little Delaware too.
There are differences, big differences between living in a blue vs. a red state. It’s easier to vote, for one thing. In fact, two months prior to an election we received notices in the mail of when and where to vote. We needed only our voter cards to vote. No one needed a photo ID. There are more services, too. It took merely a half hour to switch our driver’s licenses and get plates for the cars. For the most part the roads are in good shape.
We’ve been to several town hall meetings hosted by all of our local, state and federal reps. We have been able to speak directly to our elected officials. Which reminds me of my warrior friends in Houston who stand outside Senator Cornyn and Cruz’s offices every week, holding up protest signs. They do not have the same access to their elected officials, unfortunately.
I’ve been reading diaries here everyday, sharing, tweeting and making some comments. After a decade of blogging about Texas politics, it’s taking awhile for me to transition to a new kind of writing. Here’s the last piece I wrote for Daily Kos before moving. Uncanny how predictions about Trump turned out to be both true and worse. Impeach the emm effer already.
A bunch of us are going to the Women’s March on January 19. The great thing about this location is we are a mere 80 miles north east of DC. And there are trains.
