apprehension...

It's 7:32 on the night of Election Day, and things are NOT looking good - already Bush is ahead 34-3. Augh I hate this part...the waiting. I suppose in the end it doesn't even matter who wins, though - I was thinking of just becoming an expatriate either way. But I think I'd be much less inclined to do so if Kerry wins. Oh, god, please let Kerry win...

Well, to take my mind off things a bit, I'm learning to "knit in the round" using two-pointed needles (NOT an easy task, let me tell you!) in preparation for the stockings I'm planning on knitting next (those wristbands turned out awesome), and of course reading more of Made in America:

So, who knew that a "turnpike" is so named "because the way was blocked by a studded pole, or pike, which was turned to allow passage once a toll was paid"? Or that things were originally priced at $1.99 because the ringing of the cash register's opening drawer when cashiers were forced to make change was hoped to discourage them from stealing? (Later on, it was realized that $1.99 seems cheaper than $2, and the method stuck.) Or that the cotton gin is not at all related to an alcoholic drink in name, but instead "gin" is a shortening of "engine"? I guess that one is kind of intuitive, but I know I never stopped to consider it before.

Gah I encounter so many more neat tidbits that I wish I could put up here, but then I'd be essentially rewriting Bryson's book, so I'll try to avoid that! Hehe.

I'm also just beginning to read The Mists of Avalon, another one of those classics that I've always meant to read - and have even owned for years - and just never got around to. So now's the time! It's a very engaging book; I can see why it spent so long as a best-seller. I am still only about 50 or so pages in, but I am definitely enjoying it.

I'm sure there'll be more updates from me as the night wears on...only less than 2 hours until the polls close in many states...eep! =