it’s that time again

it’s story and non-related picture night! woo!

in order to introduce tonight’s topic, i have to divulge a little-ish secret. it’s nothing like, i’m really a tall, hairy dude named sal, or anything like that. do y’all recall the veteran i wrote about here? sure you do. he’s a nice guy with a crazy brain, courtesy of america’s military system.

we’re what you’d call dating. as in, each other.

hey look! a ninja on a pig!

my ninja-mobile is in the shop. this is the loaner.

cliff notes – he quit working where i work, and at the end of october he plans to move in with his mother. who happens to live in another state. now, normally a grown-ass man moving back in with his mother is not the most attractive thing going, you know? there’s nothing wrong with going back home. but it seems kinda, you know, substandard. like saying, i can’t hack it in the real world, so i’m going back where they still cut the crust of my sandwiches. which is not what is being said. essentially, he has such incredibly bad post traumatic stress from being in iraq that he’s more than a little worried for his personal safety. he told me that when he first got back, he woke up a few times in his kitchen with a bottle of bleach/ drain cleaner/ whatever in his hands, and had to get to the emergency room just to make sure he didn’t actually drink out of whatever jug of death… anyway, he’s not fully able to take care of himself. so, his mom has insisted he move back home, where she can keep an eye on him and such.

i’m dating a tall glass of crazy. it seems appropriate on a cosmic level.

anyway. here’s a dog’s butt from seattle.

i really didn't need to see the brown eye

so, election season. the vet is a registered republican, and i’m officially not affiliated with any party. although between you and me, he’s not really a republican, and i tend to vote with a serious democratic lean. we watched the first presidential debate together, which is easily one of the least romantic dates in the history of the ever ever. i did bet him that mccain would be unable to get through the first hour without referring to himself as a ‘maverick’. the veteran said hooey to that, and when mccain unleashed the ‘m’ word, i glanced at the clock (35 minutes in, if you’re curious). the vet winced.

now, originally my veteran was going to vote for mccain. largely because they’ve both been through war, and the vet was thinking that mccain would have some good ideas for getting the hell out of iraq. oh yeah… the veteran does not approve of our being there. he’s one of those guys that went because it’s their job, got incredibly tweaked in the head after his second extended tour, and had to be discharged for medical reasons we’re not going to be discussing. after the biden/ palin debate, he said the words every woman wants to hear: you’re right. i’m voting for obama.

and also: that woman scares the crap outta me.

and also also: why won’t the republicans look at the democrats during the debate?

aw. little mini-pumpkins on a stick.

little nubs of autumn

my point in all this is pretty simple. elections are coming. like, lightning fast. honestly, i’m not here to tell you who to vote for. i made a choice a long time ago to keep politics off my blog, and i’m still sticking to that. but kids… i can’t tell you how important it is that you get out there and vote your ass off. get informed, get a pen, and get going. here in oregon, we have the mail-in ballots, which is endlessly cool to me. the veteran has filled his out, i’ve filled mine out. so, that’s two votes for obama.

the vet says, vote for the smart guy. and vote with the knitters.

see? there’s hope for him and his shell-shocked brain.

vote vote vote.