Hail to the chief....and hold the hail

1. In case you missed it, I'm incredibly grateful that our president gets another term to do even half the things I think him capable of. And now the gloves are off, because there's no next term. Bring it.

2. I'm grateful to have the discerning sense to strive to be what I think (and don't argue with me on this, it's what *I* think) is an actual Christian. I.e., I try to be a good, accepting, compassionate person who is interested in humanity and tries not to repeat her mistakes when she inevitably makes them. Look, none of us have it "right" as far as religion is concerned. We just try our best to get through this life and make the world a little better than we found it. I identify myself as a Christian but it is only one tradition I draw from. And yeah, I learned that open-minded acceptance from Jesus.

3. I am grateful to live in a place where I can freely and without fear of prosecution say things like that. Especially as a woman. 

4. I am grateful to be living in the most connected age ever, where we can all express ourselves equally - even though that sometimes means I get in touch with what analysts would describe as my primitive homicidal rage. 

5. I am grateful that the mistakes of each generation do indeed fade like a radio station if you drive out of range.

I am also so grateful for my warm, dry, powered home tonight. Please, please keep those in the Northeast in your thoughts/prayers/vibes/mojo tonight as they batten down for yet another storm while still in the aftershocks of Sandy. It feels so unfair, and I'm holding hope for my friends up north tonight. 

Get out the vote (and then hide from it)

Today I am grateful to live in one heck of a great nation. Yes, we have our quirks and our pitfalls, but on the whole we're a caring lot. We're amazingly diverse and - although we still have a long way to go - relatively tolerant. I won't go so far to say we're the best country on Earth, because this is the only one I've lived in, and there are some other nations out there that do pretty well, too. But it's pretty good here, all things considered.

I am extremely grateful that I have the right and privilege of voting for those who govern me, and I sincerely thank the women before me that secured and protected that right.

I am so very grateful for the men and women who put their lives on the line every day to protect my rights. I don't always agree with the decisions we make with our military forces but I absolutely support those who serve.

I am grateful I got the chance to support the Wounded Warrior project a couple of weeks ago when I worked as a volunteer at the Tough Mudder Carolinas, a half marathon with 25 military-style obstacles which raises money for the WWP. A group of my crazy, badass friends ran the race and so, to support them I signed up to volunteer. I ended up working a lot harder than I'd anticipated, but had a lot of fun, too. It was great to be at the finish line when my friends came across. And WWP is a great charity.

I am also grateful today that I have the ability and sense of self preservation to insulate myself from the election tonight. Yes, that's right, I'm being a big chicken and avoiding anything to do with politics today. I can't handle the anxiety of it! The race is too close, and the way I see it, the outcomes potentially too dramatically different. So I'm off the grid - no Facebook, no CNN.com, no election returns on prime-time TV. I worked late, listened to my satellite radio music stations on the way home, and am now watching reruns of SVU on USA. If all else fails I'll go to the DVR. And tomorrow, I'll wake up, and with any luck...no, I don't want to jinx it. I did my civic duty (I voted last week, actually) and now am placing my faith in my fellow Americans to make good choices. Here's hoping.....!!!