Cadiz, Ohio

So I literally boarded a plane at the crack of Dawn Saturday morning knowing only that my buddy Jared was (hopefully) meeting me at the Pittsburgh airport, that I was told to bring comfortable shoes and that I would have a bed to sleep in.
That being said, I arrived bright, early and only mildly suffering from last night's festivities, ( a special thank you to our new friends out in Arlington for their amazing Halloween festivities last night).
I was promptly picked up by our other fearless leader, Carter, a former Navy Seal turned Obama Campaign worker, and we headed directly out to the Cadiz, Ohio campaign headquarters.
The Obama headquarters, run by my buddy Jared and Carter, are located smack in the middle of this one-horse town. Cadiz has clearly suffered throughout the past (I'd love just say 8 years) but I think it goes way beyond that. The local industry is mining, and factory closures, lay-offs and housing foreclosures have plagued Harrison County for years.
Before round one of canvassing, we needed to get lunch, so, we headed to the best lunch-restaurant in town: the local hospital cafeteria. I am not kidding. Despite the nice looking, chunky steak and potato stew, I opted for a crispy, buttery grilled cheese (straight up American on Wonder)!

After our refueling stop, I was given a list addresses in the nearby area to canvass. I was instructed to knock on doors and politely inquire whether or not the inhabitant was leaning towards voting for our candidate. It was then my duty to answer questions. No, Senator Obama is NOT a Muslim, Socialist, terrorist. I quelled fears. He will NOT take away your semi-automatic weapons. Note: I was not allowed to ask why they had semi-automatic assault weapons, and/or congratulate said person on their incredibly intelligent and fantastic choice for POTUS! yay!

Around 4 that afternoon, Jared took Sandy (a fellow Bay Area native) and I to the "Pig Roast" hosted by the Harrison County Democrats and attended by Congressman Zack Space, Senator Sherrod Brown, Governor Ted Strickland and former Senator and Astronaut, John Glenn. The men all gave fiery speeches, rallying support for Senator Obama. Gov. Strickland's hand shake left a lasting impression, he really has mastered the grasp-your hand-grip-your-shoulder-make-you-feel-important move. I frankly was most impressed with former Senator John Glenn who at 87 came out cracking jokes, telling stories and generally inspiring all in attendance with anecdotes from his time in the Senate and as an astronaut. The politicos were on a tight schedule, so after a quick round of photo's they all popped right back into their campaign trail RVs and hit the road. Leaving me to try to hit-up those still awe-struck by the speeches to come volunteer at the office the next day.





The final highlight of day one came over late-night left-over pulled pork (from the Democratic pig-roast) sandwiches, potato salad and green bean casserole, when all of us jumped on a conference call with nearly 20,000 other Obama volunteers to listen to a few words of encouragement from the man himself! Yes, I personally took a call from Senator Obama! Bliss!!