Storms and Participating in the Democratic Process!

Me, in D.C., on the steps of the U.S. Supreme Court, with the Capitol Building behind me.

Steve and I weathered both of the big recent storms just fine.  I lost power (and heat... and eventually water..) for the better part of a week, but since Steve's apartment had power, we were able to stay there.  All in all, it wasn't that bad, and it was nothing short of wonderful to have so much down time together.

My storm-induced staycation let me do something I've wanted to do for a LONG time... clean out my closet!  I needed to do this to make room for Steve to move in, and now it is officially done.   As most of you guys know, I pretty well cleaned out my closet as I lost weight, by sending clothes to other bandsters through the Sisterhood of the Traveling XL Dress.  But I still had a bunch of things in there that needed to go!  It felt so good to get it all in order and to switch out my closet from summer to winter wear (that's what folks in NYC do, since we have such limited closet space...). 

In other news, I feel like I really have had a very U.S.A.-focused two weeks.  During the Sandy aftermath, I listened nonstop to discussions of the election and the storm on a little battery-operated radio that Steve gave me.  Then, on election day, I stood in the cold for 2 1/2 hours (mostly outside -- my feet were completely numb with cold by the end) in order to vote.  And, I also went to Washington, D.C. to see oral argument in a Supreme Court case.  All in all, I feel like I really got to participate in (or at least watch) all three branches of the government -- voting for the Executive and Legslative branch reps, and watching the highest court in our Judiciary branch.  Not too shabby!

I also made time to donate some supplies (a big box of diapers and wipes) to the folks in Staten Island who are suffering in the aftermath of Sandy.  They made it incredibly easy by registering on A-ma-z-o-n, so I was able to just click and donate.  It was really important to me to do something, since I feel very grateful to have made it through the same storm safely and with relatively little trouble.

By the way, on election day, I took some time out to think about what I was up to last election day.  I was just 12 days post-op then, and hadn't even gone through Bandster Hell yet.  Say what you will about Obama and how the nation has fared during the last four years, but I sure as heck am not complaining about how those years went!! :)  Can you imagine??  If I hadn't had my surgery, those years would have been so different, I am sure.  I wonder if I'd be at 270 today, or if I would have found a way to lose a bit of the weight, or at least maintain.  Anyway, it doesn't matter.  That's not what happened.  Did I mention how grateful I am??  WHEW.