Saturday, September 13th 8:55 AM
I wake up to the sound of my 2 youngest children arguing in the bathroom. My 5 year old was taking too long . . . never mind, too much information.
I get up, no Diet Coke, my wife got the last can, no coffee made (OK, I admit, I'm a caffeine user, too much blood in my caffeine stream and I don't work well) and so I must wait until after I leave the house to get that first jolt of caffeine.
Shave, shower, shake head, dress, tell my wife I don't know when I'll be home.
9:50 AM
In car and heading for our soon-to-be headquarters. An old Burger King restaurant across from the local Walmart / strip mall in town. A positively dynamite location - but 1st pick up 2 cans of Monster Energy drink.
10:05 AM
Arrive at HQ, good crowd - 6 teenagers, about as many adults. After some visiting we get down to business and divide up and map out where we will go. I get to go out with 3 of the teens. We cover a sizeable corner of town in spite of some rain. It started raining lightly and steadily at 11 AM and never really quit the entire time . . . all the way up to 8 PM but I am getting ahead of myself.
We get way too far from our cars and at 11:30 at the rain starts getting heavier, we start working back toward the cars. By 11:50 it is coming down harder, at this point we are just walking back to the car (a mile away) as fast as we can. I have 2 teenagers with me but their ringleader is still out working. I drive around the neighborhood and track him down and we head back to HQ for the promised Pizza (teenagers will work for Pizza you know!) lunch.
12:15 Noon-ish
We roll in and eat and visit. Some locals see us all there and stop in for campaign signs (Don Friske for Assembly, Tom Tiffany for State Senate, Dan Mielke for Congress but hence - no McCain signs yet - Sigh!) and I give several out before going back out to do more doors.
1 PM
The literature drop resumes. More doors, more rain, I am keeping pace with a 20 year old after keeping pace with 3 teenagers - and I'm 42 and not too fit for my age. I'm wearing a hooded, knit Brewers jacket and still getting soaked. It's muggy so I can wear my hood (to keep the lenses of my glasses dry) and sweat or I can be cooler but not be able to see too well, hmm... decisions, decisions...
2:50
We head back, the county party holds a meeting at 3 PM and then we clean. Floors are mopped, bugs are killed, power switches are deciphered, more signs are handed out and then we go out again to drop more literature.
4 PM
Rain, rain, go away . . . This is the last and longest jaunt out. I head out with a candidate staffer (Gary) who I've knocked many, many doors with and we 1st grab some soda then proceed to disburse more literature. We cover a lot of pockets, not too many big, long streets (the kind I like) until the very end. The weather vacillates between raining and misting. Either way it is umbrella weather but it is hard to hold and umbrella when you are distributing literature. We joked that what we needed were some of those goofy looking hats with an umbrella on top . . .
. . . but then people would stare at us like we were weirdos and not vote for our candidate . . . this in a state where people wear Cheese hats on their heads, but I digress.
7 PM
One last long street to do, 2 actually but 2 other guys are going to do that one. We finally are near the finish line, all but 1 or 2 small pockets will be done - and in one day! Most people are inside watching TV, kicking back in their recliners (like I want to be) and taking it easy. I'm out in the dark sticking literature in peoples doors with my right big toe and my back saying, "ENOUGH!"
8 PM
WE ARE DONE! The 2 other guys give us a ride back to Gary's car in their pickup. We all exchange pleasantries then Gary and I go out for a bite at a nearby Mexican restaurant and DRY OUT. You could wring us out like rags. We are pretty much soaked to the bone. What we really need is a fireplace-type restaurant but chips, salsa and burgers are welcome treats. WE have earned them!
9 PM
We're full and we are talked out, we go our separate ways. I get home to an unusaully clean, dark and quiet house. My wife Kris is reading a mystery novel, all is quiet - she must have ran the kids ragged cleaning and playing. I describe my long day for about 5 minutes until I 'get the hint' that she is unwinding from her long day.
I descend to my office, read emails and write this.
The End
Jim
I wake up to the sound of my 2 youngest children arguing in the bathroom. My 5 year old was taking too long . . . never mind, too much information.
I get up, no Diet Coke, my wife got the last can, no coffee made (OK, I admit, I'm a caffeine user, too much blood in my caffeine stream and I don't work well) and so I must wait until after I leave the house to get that first jolt of caffeine.
Shave, shower, shake head, dress, tell my wife I don't know when I'll be home.
9:50 AM
In car and heading for our soon-to-be headquarters. An old Burger King restaurant across from the local Walmart / strip mall in town. A positively dynamite location - but 1st pick up 2 cans of Monster Energy drink.
10:05 AM
Arrive at HQ, good crowd - 6 teenagers, about as many adults. After some visiting we get down to business and divide up and map out where we will go. I get to go out with 3 of the teens. We cover a sizeable corner of town in spite of some rain. It started raining lightly and steadily at 11 AM and never really quit the entire time . . . all the way up to 8 PM but I am getting ahead of myself.
We get way too far from our cars and at 11:30 at the rain starts getting heavier, we start working back toward the cars. By 11:50 it is coming down harder, at this point we are just walking back to the car (a mile away) as fast as we can. I have 2 teenagers with me but their ringleader is still out working. I drive around the neighborhood and track him down and we head back to HQ for the promised Pizza (teenagers will work for Pizza you know!) lunch.
12:15 Noon-ish
We roll in and eat and visit. Some locals see us all there and stop in for campaign signs (Don Friske for Assembly, Tom Tiffany for State Senate, Dan Mielke for Congress but hence - no McCain signs yet - Sigh!) and I give several out before going back out to do more doors.
1 PM
The literature drop resumes. More doors, more rain, I am keeping pace with a 20 year old after keeping pace with 3 teenagers - and I'm 42 and not too fit for my age. I'm wearing a hooded, knit Brewers jacket and still getting soaked. It's muggy so I can wear my hood (to keep the lenses of my glasses dry) and sweat or I can be cooler but not be able to see too well, hmm... decisions, decisions...
2:50
We head back, the county party holds a meeting at 3 PM and then we clean. Floors are mopped, bugs are killed, power switches are deciphered, more signs are handed out and then we go out again to drop more literature.
4 PM
Rain, rain, go away . . . This is the last and longest jaunt out. I head out with a candidate staffer (Gary) who I've knocked many, many doors with and we 1st grab some soda then proceed to disburse more literature. We cover a lot of pockets, not too many big, long streets (the kind I like) until the very end. The weather vacillates between raining and misting. Either way it is umbrella weather but it is hard to hold and umbrella when you are distributing literature. We joked that what we needed were some of those goofy looking hats with an umbrella on top . . .
. . . but then people would stare at us like we were weirdos and not vote for our candidate . . . this in a state where people wear Cheese hats on their heads, but I digress.
7 PM
One last long street to do, 2 actually but 2 other guys are going to do that one. We finally are near the finish line, all but 1 or 2 small pockets will be done - and in one day! Most people are inside watching TV, kicking back in their recliners (like I want to be) and taking it easy. I'm out in the dark sticking literature in peoples doors with my right big toe and my back saying, "ENOUGH!"
8 PM
WE ARE DONE! The 2 other guys give us a ride back to Gary's car in their pickup. We all exchange pleasantries then Gary and I go out for a bite at a nearby Mexican restaurant and DRY OUT. You could wring us out like rags. We are pretty much soaked to the bone. What we really need is a fireplace-type restaurant but chips, salsa and burgers are welcome treats. WE have earned them!
9 PM
We're full and we are talked out, we go our separate ways. I get home to an unusaully clean, dark and quiet house. My wife Kris is reading a mystery novel, all is quiet - she must have ran the kids ragged cleaning and playing. I describe my long day for about 5 minutes until I 'get the hint' that she is unwinding from her long day.
I descend to my office, read emails and write this.
The End
Jim
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