i voted today!

i know what you're thinking.

yeah. so. what's your point - so did, like, a hundred million other people.

but you see, this was my first time ever voting. ever. ever ever. like, as in never having done it before 8:30 this morning.

i know what you're thinking - and just read me out before you start judging the fact that i've been old enough to vote for 13 years without ever exercising my right to do so.

when i turned 18, i didn't feel like i was smart enough to make well educated decisions on the issues at play when the time came to vote. think about it - the internet wasn't around back then. i didn't read the paper. there just wasn't a lot for an 18 year old girl like myself to go on with this stuff.

i thought it would be irresponsible to vote just because i could. that's like taking the driver's test because you are now 16 - but never studying or spending time practicing or even paying attention as a passenger in the car.

"because i could" or "because i was old enough to do so" didn't seem like a good enough reason and i thought it would be more responsible to just wait until i was more mature and had more of a clue.

and perhaps, just a tiny bit, i felt kinda like my one vote didn't really matter.

so what took me so long? i don't know. i don't have a good argument for that. for awhile, i guess, the issues just weren't very important to me. and all that "hanging chad" nonsense was discouraging.

i kinda started paying attention around 2004. i was starting to get the itch - but i didn't act on it. then again in 2006, i seriously considered registering - but i debated the issue in my head for far too long and missed the deadline for the issue i was concerned about.

it was also rough for me because i felt like i was surrounded by people who's views were the opposite of mine. i kinda had it shoved down my throat quite a bit, in settings where it really wasn't appropriate. settings where politics really shouldn't be discussed and people really shouldn't be judging others based on political views. but there were times that i almost started to think that my views were wrong based on the environment i was in. i loved when i was able to get together with friends from college and have the opportunity to hear the other side of the coin for awhile...

so anyway, fast forward to 2007 when i finally made the decision to vote. i've spent all of 2008 trying to pay attention. i had some delays getting my registration in - so i missed all of the other voting opportunities - but made sure to make the deadline for today. i had my ideas of who i liked, but i did actually do research between the two to make sure i was comfortable with my gut decision. hell - i even visited the missouri GOP webpage and the missouri democrats webpage - so if that's not doing extensive research - i don't know what is.

and that brings me to 8:30 this morning when in only 10 minutes or less (because there was no line at my polling place) - i voted for the first time. and then i went to starbucks and got free coffee.

i'm not going to go too much into who i voted for and why. my cartoon for today only gives enough of a clue.

if you're reading this after i took the cartoon down - and you worked with me at WU and think you know who i voted for - you're probably wrong.

and if you went to college with me and think you know who i voted for - you're probably right.

and if you are of a blood relation to me - i'm most likely the political family outcast. i admit it. end of discussion. let's move on now.

wishing everyone a happy election day - no matter if you choose blue or red...