Panorama of my town

Panorama of my town

Monday, August 25, 2008

Conventation Day 1 - Its all about the Women!!

I am exhausted and my feet hurt. Up at 5:45AM. But, what a GREAT day!!! I am ready to run for public office! I am motivated. I want to be part of the solution! I listened to about 50 elected women from all over the country today. I am SO sold! I am SO pumped!

It was an estrogen fill day, let me tell you. Started with morning Roundtable discussion (see this article http://www.politicswest.com/node/27558/print) - today's policy discussion was on health and wellness. It is so clear to me just how behind the times my state is when it comes to implementing solid and sound preventative care policies in Georgia. We do so little to encourage good healthy life style and food choices to our children. We make so few walking trails. Colorado is a leader in this area. I learned a lot at this session. And have a new found respect for people running around in bicycle spandex.

My 2nd session was almost overwhelming to me. The UNconventional Women's Forum
(the list of all the women who spoke is to long for me to list here - see this article http://www.prnewswire.com/cgi-bin/stories.pl?ACCT=109&STORY=/www/story/08-19-2008/0004869974&EDATE=). I was moved the most by Barbara Boxer. DO WATCH a recent documentary entitled '14 Women'. This is the year of women for the DNC.

By 3PM, the headiness of the day’s experience was so great I needed a drink. Cousin Debbie and I found a bar just down the street so I could have a rum and Coke and she a margarita. Whew! I could barely articulate where my head was while we were sitting there. I felt the weight of history. I felt the pressure of obligation. I have so much and feel an overwhelming draw to public service.

As if this was not enough, we crashed The NOW Reception at the University Club (which was being harassed by a barrage of anti-abortion protestor with those horrific photos of mutilated fetus’ – like that is going to do anything to improve the lives of women). Hung out with newly re-elected GA State Rep for 59th district, Margaret Kaiser and Atlanta’s own "Able Mable" Thomas and listened to 20 of the most incredible and intelligent women in Congress and State legislatures from all over the USA I have ever heard, and they were telling me that I need to run for public office. I AM READY – TAKE ME!!!!

Cousin Debbie did remind me that there were a few missing faces at our ‘all women’s day event’ – we didn’t see Hilary or Pelosi. And then I realized we didn’t see Shirley Franklin either (the USA’s most popular female Mayor). Hhmmm..

I did hear my first controversial rumor. ‘Don’t eat any food at the Pepsi Center because infiltrators have gotten into the Center and put animal feces in the food.’ Personally, I suspect this is one of those urban myths circulated by wanna-be infiltrators who couldn’t actually get inside.

BTW – did you notice I didn’t do any volunteering today….me, too. That’s because I lost my volunteer spot ‘cause I wanted to party too much and the volunteer coordinator wouldn’t work around my play schedule. The worst part of this all is I don't have tickets to see Obama on Thursday. Now I gotta find a good bar to watch the speech. So finding just the right bar is my new purpose in life.

1 comment:

MikiD said...

Wonderful blog! Keep it up. Love the pictures and love you.
Mom