Soaker. Or not.

Looks like another all-day rain today, and I will definitely be hitting the rowing machine. There's enough water out there I could probably row through some of the ditches around here, if the ditch was wide enough. And if I had a rowboat.

I cleaned the garage yesterday. Didn't really de-clutter it much, but moved things around and swept. It was quite Halloween-y at times. I would move, say, a box and a dozen of those big black spiders would leap around, indignant at my disturbing their sleep! They are TRULY CREEPY, especially when a dozen of them start skittering around in front of you at the same time.

ICK.

Actually, another look at the radar shows it will probably stop raining, but it doesn't seem like the clouds are going to disperse. A cloudy-day walk is fine, though.

Either way, I'll be doing some kind of intentional activity today and I will enjoy it. Not for what will happen eventually, but because I truly do like how I feel when I move and use my limbs and muscles. Working in the garage yesterday was most satisfying. The amount of pine straw and dirt and dead bugs in there was disgusting, and each swish of the broom made me feel good.

Congressman Nick Rahall (D-WV03). AND ME!

Last night was fun – West Virginia's annual Jefferson-Jackson Dinner in Charleston. Three of my very good friends received awards and I swear I knew half the people there. SO DIFFERENT from my first 10 years of living here in the Mountain State, when I didn't know a soul and couldn't figure out how to meet anyone.

My gratitude to our local group of Democratic Women knows no bounds. The woman who was president in 2009 had to step down and the group voted me to be the new leader of the pack. I went to district and annual meetings, got to know women at the state level and was elected to a state board position last year. Being a small cog in this wheel of Democratic politics in West Virginia is rewarding and gratifying and gives me purpose.

Believe me, Democratic women get things done. And I know it's the same in your state, as well.

Check them out. Plug in. Get involved. Change America, one county/parish/district/state at a time.

It figures …

So. The day I post about not posting as much, I get an e-mail announcing one of my previous posts is going to be featured on BlogHer.

So if you're visiting from that link, welcome! I used to post every day but life has been getting in the way. And that post about Facebook connecting me with the outside world? Well, my connections with the outside world are keeping me Too. Busy. To. Blog.

At least to blog as much as I used to. Heh.

But it's all good.

Getting back on the nutrition-and-exercise horse is going well so far. I had the opportunity yesterday to fall into a pan of free pepperoni rolls, but I resisted. There was cake, too, which I also resisted. The meeting I went to was mid-afternoon, not one of my usual eating times. I had a couple meatballs, because I was a little hungry, but instead of dwelling on what I couldn't have, I enjoyed what I could.

Aaaaand … I took a walk yesterday morning before I went to the meeting. So, yay me!

Congressman Nick Rahall (WV-03) rallying the
troops at a Democratic strategy session in Beckley.
He'd done so much for southern WV and we can't
afford to lose his experience and seniority.

The strategy session was all about GOTV – get out the vote – and we were somewhat astonished to learn that Democratic women is the voter group that had dropped most dramatically from 2010 to 2012. We need to find those women and learn why they're no longer interested in the process.

And then get them interested again.

It's a challenge, but one I'm up for. It's probably happening where you live, as well. If so, I hope you'll share your ideas, plans and successes in getting women to vote and in getting Democrats to vote for Democrats.

'Cause I gotta tell you – in a blue state turning red, it ain't easy.

A pretty perfect day

Yesterday turned out to be super, weather-wise, and super event-wise as well. We could have had a better turnout, but WV's future Senator made quite a splash, both on the train trip to Hinton and once she got to town.

For those of you who don't know, Hinton used to be a railroad town. My husband remembers the railroad heydays here, and his mother remembers taking trips to Washington, DC, on trains pulled by steam engines. Hinton still has a depot and trains run through here all the time, mostly carrying coal. Passenger trains come and go only a couple times a week.

Hinton's Railroad Days are two weekends celebrating the town's railroad heritage. A passenger train arrives both days of both weekends, from Huntington, WV, with passengers from West Virginia and several surrounding states. We meet a lot of folks from Ohio, Indiana, Kentucky and Pennsylvania.

Natalie Tennant rode the train into town, but left by car for another campaign event in Beckley, just north of Hinton. She was here for a good three hours, giving her stump speech at Democratic Headquarters and then meeting and greeting folks in the downtown area with a group of supporters.

Granted, people visiting Democratic headquarters are going to be like-minded, but we were pleased at how much support Natalie has here in southern West Virginia. Especially when you read stories like this one, which links our southern counties to the rest of the red-state South.

Today is the last day of this year's event. The next year will be a busy one as we work to elect Natalie Tennant to the seat Jay Rockefeller will be vacating. We here in Summers County also will be working to keep Third District Congressman Rahall in Congress, as he faces a tough challenger next year.

Yes, it seems like campaigning is 24/7/365, thanks to cable news and the internets. But legislators clearly can "accomplish" something – they managed to shut down the government entirely for nearly three weeks. I'm not willing to put anyone back in office who voted for that lame-brained, damaging and wasteful scheme.

I hope you're not either.