Almost two years ago I was invited to a postcard party, the purpose of which was to get out the vote in Ohio. At that time I asked my fellow bloggers how would they feel about getting a postcard from a stranger reminding them they could vote by mail. Happily most of you said you would at least read it before dumping it into recycling!

As you can see the postcard simply tells people how they can vote by mail.

Sadly, Amy’s district went GOP and sadly the GOP is dead set on making it harder for Amy to vote at all. But we did what we could and we did it nicely. I thought.

Whelp, I did it again. Went to another postcard party along with approximately sixty of my fellow citizens, most of whom I’d never met before. This time the mood was different and the messages we sent were more desperate.

As before, I was only coping the boilerplate text I’d been given. Quite a different message, wouldn’t you say? I added the happy face and the heart . . . too much?

I sat at a table with four women and three men who were all probably beyond sixty, although it was difficult to tell. They talked about their experiences campaigning throughout the state and the country . . . staying in stranger’s houses . . . going door to door in strange neighborhoods . . . trying to spread the word. I must say, their energy was amazing.

Halfway through the session, the organizers came to each table and told us about the March 28 No Kings rally. They’re not planning to march but instead to form a five mile long human chain through Walnut Creek, a city at the base of Mt. Diablo. There will be musicians and organizers every couple of blocks to organize cheers and lead songs. To prepare, there will be sign-making and chant-practicing parties throughout the Bay Area.

Sounds hopeful, doesn’t it? I wish I could say, yes hope was in the air, like the spring blossoming prematurely on that warm day but the atmosphere was much grimmer than two years ago.

I think I know how that band on the deck of the Titanic felt.