The Morning After

I woke up early this morning to get in line for my delegate credential and it was wonderful to see that the enthusiasm among delegates has not waned. We are all a bit tired from the festivities last night, but we are invigorated by the thought of placing Barack and Michelle in the White House. Sentiments were similar about her absolute qualifications for the job of first lady and most of us read about the previous evening's events in the morning papers. While breakfast was being served, we sipped our coffee and read the Denver Post, USA Today or the Washington Post's stories about Michelle Obama's speech. The coverage was positive! There is still much work to be done on the campaign, but the coverage was positive in terms of her accomplishment -- she brought the reality of the Obama experience into greater focus. She did a phenomenal job of raising the momentum of the Obama campaign even as John McCain continues to attack Obama on the outside. By the way, the convention is a good way to forget all about those negative attacks on Obama because everyone (almost everyone) here is on the Obama train! As Americans, we may sometimes feel as though politicians are out-of-touch with what is going on in our lives, but it is apparent to me that the Colorado delegates at this convention feel a close connection to the Obamas because their story resembles ours. What a class act the Obamas are....even their daughters look like "first girls" or "first children", whatever it is you call the offspring of the President and his wife (smile).

Media coverage of last night's events also included a few distractions from the positive ambience of the DNC such as an uprising at the city and county building, transportation snafus, and a few odd occurrences. Overall, the convention is being well-handled, in my opinion, but that is also because I was prepared to wait in lines and to walk wherever I was going. Today, I wised up and went back to wearing my socks and sneakers with my business casual outfits because I did so much walking yesterday. Also, I plan to carry some snacks in my bag to tonight's convention because I starved waiting for Michelle Obama to appear before the crowd. Now, anyone who knows me knows that I didn't really "starve" because I've got plenty of "nutrition" on me, but the point is that the activities on the floor of the convention are so exciting with the lights and the cameras and the reporters asking me for comments that I didn't want to fight the crowd to go get some nachos at the concession stand on the second floor eventhough I was hungry. Do you think I'll get away with hiding the nachos in my bag? I can see it now...."Who's dripping cheese all over the convention floor?" "Are those jalapenos in your purse?" "Allison, why do you smell like beef and sour cream?" Ha, ha, ha!

Speaking of the media, I have never felt so stalked in my whole life....I'm loving the attention, but we were literally posted up in defensive position at the convention by hundreds of photographers who were taking our pictures and doing live broadcasts from the floor. I gave about 10 reporters my name and provided comments to 4 radio stations and 5 or 6 people with microphones. Even the BBC had reporters and photographers sitting in the aisles at our feet. I think we were the most photographed delegation at the convention and rightly so! We are the host convention and we deserve the spotlight, not only for our devotion to the Obama campaign but for the work that we have done to become the representatives of our congressional district and/or state. Right now, the spotlight is on Colorado to deliver a Democratic turnout to the polls in November, too. We are considered to be a swing state in this election and we are expected to swing BLUE. Some of the Colorado delegation members, including me, wore cowboy hats last night as a sign of western hospitality. I love my cowboy hat, by the way, and I loved wearing it last night. Most people don't know that many of the cowboys who settled the west were African-American/Black. I've been told that Jesse James was Black too! My family has a long Western tradition, even my Dad was born in Junction City, KS and his Dad, although born in Arkansas, was a Buffalo Soldier in the 9th Calvary stationed in Fort Carson, CO and that is what brought him to the West when my father was still a baby. My grandmother told me the story of how my grandfather looked out the kitchen window of the house they bought on Las Animas street in Colorado Springs one day and told her that he wanted to look at those mountains for the rest of his life. He did.