5 days left

I am so excited for the election to finally come . . . and go. As far as I am concerned, November 4 could not get here faster. It almost feels like Christmas, you cannot wait for it to come, your excited for about 4 hours, and then its just a long day of eating and being trapped with your relatives. After all, the new President does not take office for over two months.

I am a little late in being excited to support my chosen candidate Barack Obama. Last night I purchased a ton of stuff off the campaign website. Win or lose, I figure this is one of the most historic elections I will ever experience. I am not sure beyond this pool of candidates if our country will ever be so excited to elect, or almost elect, a person who does not look like the predominant race.

Beyond the optics, though, I am so proud that as a country we got down to brass tacks and shunned the media's constant provocation to insert race. Amazingly, I really think the issues were the central theme of this election in a way that I cannot recall in past elections. This was an election where there seemed to be a daily crisis. From the Georgia-Russia conflict to the economic meltdown, the candidates have certainly had a platform to demonstrate their knowledge, temperament and leadership on real and pertinent issues.

As we wind down, or up, I hope that everyone will think critically about the issues and the candidates. I feel there are candidates that people can vote for and not just against. The next four years will be rough and will require a leader with intelligence, strength, diplomacy, integrity, and a great circle of advisers. I just so happen to think this person is Barack Obama.

Let me know whether you plan to vote and if you don't plan to vote, I would love to know why.