I write this on election night, November 7, from my Beige University dorm room, getting minute-by-minute updates from home. Online, I'm able to track the votes coming in for Dad against Ms. Caudal. (Right now he has a narrow lead.) Via text messaging, Rudy is filling me in on what's going on with Danielle's delivery.
To set everyone's places, Rudy, Gran and Coney are back at our house, and Dad, Kell, Elanor, Danielle and Mr. Fennec are at Ms. Caudal's tree. Kell's updating Rudy on the delivery via cell phone, and Rudy's relaying the news to me. Funny how technology can keep us so connected, yet I feel so distant from the action.
It was me who discovered that Ms. Caudal had been a midwife; a calling that led her going into the education field. She hasn't practiced in years, and it didn't come up in the campaign. I just hope her skills aren't too rusty.
Doing opposition research on Ms. Caudal I didn't find much to criticize, other than her enthusiastic support of high stakes testing. She calls it accountability, but there are ways to make schools responsive without subjecting 4th and 8th graders to abusive all-or-nothing trials. (That's out of Dad's campaign speech.) We'll soon see if the majority of voters agree.
