Proud

Watching the polls come in last night was unlike anything I've ever experienced before.

In previous years, Matt and I would sit in front of the TV -- flipping between CNN and Comedy Central -- and watch the results come in. We'd refresh the various websites during the commercials, and (for pretty much all our married life) drink and curse a lot.

Last night was similar in some ways: We had the TV on (CNN early, then Comedy Central from about 8:30 until 11 or so, and then back to CNN) and we were refreshing our various websites (I had a tab for CNN and a tab for Google News; Matt had four or five sites going, I think).

But Matt was also on Instant Messenger, and we were both on Twitter. Occasionally one of us would read aloud something that had been said by someone we knew the other didn't follow. And it didn't feel like the two of us were sitting alone, clutching our hands and holding our breath. It felt like a community, clutching our hands and holding our breath. A community that prayed for the best, a community that cursed and celebrated. A community that reached all over the country.

When Virginia was finally called, I saw it first on Twitter from someone I follow who lives in California. It was several minutes later that Google News showed it, and almost ten minutes more before CNN posted it -- and in the meantime, I'd seen three or four other twitters confirming it from various sources.

It was amazing.

I couldn't stop holding my breath until I'd seen McCain's concession speech, and after that, I couldn't do anything but wait to see Obama's speech. I only got five hours of sleep last night, but it was worth it. I went to bed filled with hope and optimism.

Could I have asked for a better birthday present?

(Well, yes. I could ask for all those stupid damn "marriage definition" initiatives to have failed, as well. But on the bright side, many of those races came in closer than I would have expected them to -- at least it's moving in the right direction. It'll take time, but we'll get there in the end.)