Today's canvass was a bit of a bummer. No big deal; I try to do different things each week, which pretty much guarantees that some days won't turn out as well as others. Again I thought I was going to be clipboarding and wore the wrong shoes. This time I intended to bring my walking shoes in case they changed the plan on me, but at the last minute I forgot, and ended up with blisters again. The canvass was way up north off Guess Road in an area that's still somewhat rural, on the edge of the Orange County line. The houses were so far apart that I had to drive to each one, I couldn't park and then walk around the neighborhood. Two of the addresses on my list were horse farms! So I ended up being out for a really long time with poor results, and this particular volunteer coordinator is getting worse at acting encouraging if you didn't really do that well. She actually made a grumbling noise when I told her I only had one registration. So now I'm sharing the joy and grumbling at you.
I want to make a request of people who don't want to deal with canvassers: If you aren't going to answer the door, don't walk around the living room. Don't pull open the blinds to peek out. If your dog barks, don't shush it. If your TV is on, don't turn it off. I can convince myself that you left the TV on to keep the dog company, and that there are three cars in your driveway because you went out in the fourth. Just don't make it too obvious that you're standing right behind the door refusing to answer. And really, if you don't answer I'm going to check off "not home" and someone else will be there in couple of weeks. If you really want the visits to stop, come to the door and say you support the other guy.
Only a couple of people did that to me today. One of them was so damned obvious: the front door was open, the TV was on and I could hear people walking around! I was really peeved until I watched the TV for a moment and realized that it was tuned to Fox News. No way are they going to vote for Obama; they did me a favor by not talking to me.
The afternoon did yield the funniest thing a voter has ever said to me. It was an older man who said he was registered, and when I asked if he minded telling me who he supports, first he said Obama, and then he added, "Anyone but Dole!" They're both cranky, elderly war heroes with lackluster campaigns: it's a mistake anyone could make. I didn't want him to feel foolish so I just said "I know exactly what you mean."
2 Comments
do you think there's any chance he meant *elizabeth* dole?
It's possible, but the way he said "I support Obama ... anyone but Dole!" made it clear that he meant for President. He was older, which made me suspect he was thinking of Bob Dole in 96. Either way I think that Liddy Dole's name being in the news must have caused the confusion.