Yes We Did!

America, we did it! We entered the 21st century!

I am happy to be able to add another post to this blog in celebration of Barack Obama's victory yesterday!

After cite check last night (we had cite check, which I feel is un-American on Election Night!) I joined Simon (best man) & Erik at the apartment with 15 minutes to spare before the election was called for Obama. Thank goodness we got let out early!

In preparation for President-Elect Obama's acceptance speech, we popped open the bubbly! See pictures below for the celebration.

Highlights from his victory speech:

We are, and always will be, the United States of America.

It's been a long time coming, but tonight, because of what we did on this date in this election at this defining moment change has come to America.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces, to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of the world, our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand.

That's the true genius of America: that America can change. Our union can be perfected. What we've already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

This is our time, to put our people back to work and open doors of opportunity for our kids; to restore prosperity and promote the cause of peace; to reclaim the American dream and reaffirm that fundamental truth, that, out of many, we are one; that while we breathe, we hope. And where we are met with cynicism and doubts and those who tell us that we can't, we will respond with that timeless creed that sums up the spirit of a people: Yes, we can.

Election 2008!!

This morning, we attempted to get up at 6am to vote at 7:30am. This did not happen. Instead, we slept in until about 7:30am and voted at 8:30am. This actually worked to our advantage because, as I was told by a polling place volunteer, we successfully got there during a lull between the people who had to be at work by 8am and the students who will probably not get there until later in the morning. Yes! The entire voting process only took us 15 minutes from registering at the table and getting our ballots to walking out the door. Erik and I were voters #403 and #399 respectively.

This was Erik's first time and my second time voting – I voted in a mid-term election in Nashville, TN in 2006. Apparently I was too liberal for Nashvegas (or to be technically accurate Tennessee) because none of the things I voted for passed. Hopefully, I didn't just jinx Senator Obama. Something tells me I didn't - considering I'm voting in Illinois!

As is obvious by the picture above, Erik and I are both dorks. We brought my camera to capture our taking part in history. Whatever your political persuasion, this is a pretty historical election - we have the first black man to be on a major party ticket - and as president at that! - and the first woman to be on a major party ticket as VP. That being said, Erik and I voted for Senator Obama (as is evidenced by the pictures below).


Hopefully, I will be able to add a post tomorrow or later tonight with us toasting the champagne I have chilling in the fridge to celebrate the Obama-Biden victory! (Fingers majorly crossed).

Us at Our Best

We celebrated Halloween on Friday night at one of Erik's engineering grad school friends' place. Despite the fact that neither Erik or I are really that into Halloween and dressing up, we made a fabulous showing (in my honest opinion). As you can see from the picture, Erik was a tavern wench and I was symbolizing the "walk of shame." If you don't know, ask someone who went to undergrad in the U.S. - most will be aware of this phenomenon.

We were both pretty nervous to show our faces in public dressed like this. It was our task to bring playing cards and dice to the party. We stole them from our Cranium game and took a deck we already had so as not to have to go into Meijer dressed like this! Needless to say the second we showed up at the party, we went right to the keg. ;)