Election Week Starter Pack

counterweights to keep us in the game

I have an emotional relationship to election night coverage.

Decades ago, Cory and I attended a splashy televised Republican “watch party.” I bought a special necklace from the glass case at Banana Republic, just for the occasion. By the end of the night, we knew we would be moving to Washington D.C.

Just one year ago, I stood among my neighbors at a smaller Democrat watch party (with better food) and heard the news that I’d lost my bid for Goshen’s City Council, District 3.

Past election nights have registered everything from jubilation to terror in me. Gone are the old days of bland resignation, like a Superbowl loss for someone who doesn’t understand words like “first and ten.” (cough cough) I do understand politics. There have been elections where my guy didn’t win, but it was easy enough to move on. Something changed for me and many others in 2016 and held on through 2020. Now, here we are, four more trips around the sun, facing a Presidential election with sky-high stakes. The tension has twisted us for months. The burner is on HIGH.

I need a plan for next Tuesday. Maybe you do, too.

My plan will center around the idea of Counterweights - small but meaningful moments that help to redistribute the heaviness and keep us (emotionally) upright.

Some people will choose to disengage entirely. I understand this impulse, but even more, I want to be invested in - while not losing myself to - the mechanics of our government. I feel jittery just thinking about it, but regardless of the outcome, it will be historic.

{I’ll be watching from this corner of the couch on tuesday}

Election Week Counterweights Starter Pack

Category: Food

a cozy meal

Back in the day, we used to order Chinese food on election night. In recent cycles, I need something less digestively disruptive. Minimal heat. Low complexity. Light. As a compulsive jaw-clencher, even chewing sounds like a bridge too far, come Tuesday. Election ‘24 calls for soup. This 4-ingredient cabbage and potato soup is cozy, homey, simple, and delicious. I slice the potatoes, add a smidge of crushed red pepper, plenty of salt, lemon juice, fresh chives and dill (still growing in my garden.) A bowl of this is low-barrier sustenance and weirdly optimistic. Fuel for the long haul.