AND THE CLOCK STRIKES 12....

So why the heck am I still up? I'm exhausted! I didn't drink coffee after 12 noon. This whole "pace yourself" thing is pretty difficult I must say...

So I'm sitting here reading other people's blogs and I sez to myself, "Self" I sez, "you haven't written in your blog in a very long time. Why is that?"

"Because I'm pacing myself" sez I. "I need to rest up for the Final Battle."

Fourth of July weekend was lots of fund MAINLY because daughter Betsy and her S.O. Andrew Fippinger (AKA "Fipp") were visiting from the West Coast. Who doesn't like driving to Albania at 11PM to meet a flight that was supposed to arrive at 7:30 PM.

The reason for the trip was so that Betsy could help me buy the MOG dress. (If you don't know who the MOG is, you don't have a kid getting married....) But we got to bed at 2:30 AM and had to be up at 9AM to go to church. We usually aren't that obsessive about church, but it was the first time Betsy had been home in six months, and the priest at our church had never met Fipp. So we all dragged ourselves out of bed and I made strawberry crepes as an inducement to get out of bed. (Maybe we should put the recipe on the campaign website....we already have Peter Marchetti's Italian Cookies and are just about to add "Margie Ware's Campaign Trail Mix." But I digress....

So we did church and then Bean and I booked it to Manchester, VT. PLEASE DO NOT TELL THE RESIDENTS OF SENATE DISTRICT ONE THAT I BOUGHT MY MOG DRESS OUT OF STATE. But one of the "learnings" of the trip was that when you pay women a liveable wage to make you a dress from scratch....GUESS WHAT!? IT AIN'T CHEAP! But I will look gorgeous and now I really DO have to win the election because I need to have places to wear this dress for many years to come. Deval, you better have one Kick Ass Inaugural Ball is all I can say. 'Cause I already have the dress....

Monday I took the day off from work for an attitude adjustment. I was starting to fall into negative thinking patterns, which was not good, especially since almost all the news coming my way has been good. So that's a clue that one needs to kick back. So I hung with Betsy, kissed some babies that belonged to friends of hers and made Margie Ware's Campaign Trail Mix (see above.) And a nice Chicken Marbella for dinner.

Up early (but not early enough it turned out) to get to the Pittsfield Fourth of July Parade. It turns out it takes a LONG TIME to get from the Colonial Theatre to the Senior Center while you're schmoozing and handing out giveaways (pens that say "Margie Ware for Senate" and small bags of "Margie Ware's Campaign Trail Mix" -- see above.) Now I don't want to rat anyone out but the RULES are that candidates who are not elected officials are not supposed to march in the parade. They may campaign before the parade but not interfere with the ability of the viewers to enjoy the spectacle. Why do I know this? Because my campaign chair is the chair of....you guessed it...the Pittsfield 4th of July Parade Committee. So I was a good doobie. As was Ben Downing. As was Matt Kinnaman. I don't believe John Z was there. If you don't see someone's name mentioned, that means that they were NOT good doobies....they "snuck in." And yes, Rinaldo, that means you too. But this is real inside baseball. No one but the other candidates and their "handlers" probably care. But I do have (along with my other good doobie colleauges)the advantage of moral superiority, which might stand me in good stead one of these days.

From the parade to the reading of the Declaration of Independence in the Chapin Rare Books Library on the Williams College campus, which is a family tradition and a wonderful way to celebrate the real meaning of Independence Day. I remember the first year I attended after being elected a Selectman. I had tears in my eyes at the end of the reading because I felt like I was part of a long line of individuals who were trying to preserve democracy.

Off to the airport to say goodbye to the kids much too soon. Yes, sorry, Betsy is six months older than Ben Downing. Back to town for a nap and then on to the Steeple Cats game in North Adams. I missed watching Deval throw out the first pitch at the Dukes game BUT THERE IS A LIMIT TO MY STAMINA! One opponent at the game. Good game. Fun to sit with the K Line group that annouces when there's a strikeout. But since it went 11 innings, I couldn't stay for the fireworks. As luck would have it, it started raining on our way home so the early departure was quite fortuitous.

And so to bed. Had I accomplished anything? Haven't a clue. Did I enjoy myself? Yes, actually. In large part because my wonderful friend Priscilla shepherded me down the parade route and my wonderful husband and friend Ellen Bernstein hung out with me at the game and the hotdogs were good and the Toomajians introduced me to the K Line group so life is good.

More than you wanted to know? Perhaps. But remember, it's MY blog, so I can write about whatever I want. Next time it will be a posting of substance. But we're saving some of the good stuff until next week.....