election day

anxiety and keeping it at bay

Good morning, it is election day. This will be a short post.

Is this the most important election of our time? Sure feels like it. Four years of another Trump presidency would surely kill us all, metaphorically or not, for some of us. Four years of that loser in the White House feels like hell is coming. Not exaggerating.

I am not going to tell you who to vote for even though I have no problem telling you how much I hate Trump. The thing is, I am not enamored of Kamala Harris, either, genocidally speaking. But that’s neither here nor there, nor is this the space I want to use to talk about withholding votes and obliterating nearly an entire population of people.

I am progressive? No, that’s not right. I am a socialist, damn near a communist. I believe in health care for all, welfare rights, safety nets, feeding the poor and housing the homeless and helping the jobless. I believe in trans rights and gay marriage and all the things that Trump would want to push back on. I believe abortion is health care and women deserve the right to rule over their own bodies. You get it. You’ve been here long enough. You know me. You know where my conscience and my heart lie.

So let’s not talk about voting but about today. It’s going to be a tumultuous, anxiety driven, high noise kind of day. You’re nervous, you’re pacing already, you’re excited for change, you’re afraid of change. It’s a nerve wracking thing, to see the fate of your country held up like this, and to know that we are at the mercy of everyone else in this country who is casting a vote.

So let’s take some time today to breathe. I suggest having emergency supplies on hand, like your favorite snacks and your beverage of choice. Tonight, instead of starting to stare at the tv as soon as you get home from work (or all day as the case may be), I want you to put on music and do a crossword puzzle instead. Or watch a movie you’ve been meaning to see. Go out. Go out to dinner or go to the mall and walk around or meet some friends for coffee or drinks. Do anything but listen to pundits who don’t know what they are talking about or fret about polls or early results that mean nothing. You voted. There’s nothing else you can do. Take some deep breaths and have a night worth remembering just in case everything goes to shit overnight. Make a meal you always wanted to try. Open the good wine. Light a fire. Have your best neighbors over and play a board game. Watch the first season of Barry. Self medicate if you have to, whatever that means for you. For me, it means I stocked up on weed and sugar free popsicles. Now’s the time to let your vices shine.

So go forth and have a good day. Whether that looks like voting or not voting, that’s your decision. I just want everyone to stay safe, and stay sane and have just a little hope. What are we, without that?