So it's Nov.5

And, good grief, history has been made. The new American president is Senator Barack Obama, of Illinois, a black man.

I am in (good) shock. I never, ever, thought I'd see an African-American president in my lifetime. I sooner expected a white woman, particularly after the debacle in the primaries where several West Virginians voted for Hillary Clinton on the grounds that "they weren't votin' for no [highly unacceptable pejorative]."

I did have to think about it a minute. Mr. Samoa voted for McCain because he was concerned about Obama's views on gun control, which is reasoning I can tolerate. But I hadn't made up my mind about what I was going to do when I wandered into the polls last night, still coughing. (Yes, I did feel up to it- no thanks to Shady Acres, but I digress.) I had several concerns about the future state of Mr. Obama's health as affected by white supremacist loons, which this country really doesn't need. So I kind of peered at the ballot for a few minutes, as I saw a lot of people around me doing also.

I thought and thought. Mr. McCain really wasn't on my menu (sorry, Ms. Palin, you're a lovely lady, but several residents of the Shady Acres system have a better grasp of politics than you do!) so it was between Obama and independents. I thought about the white supremacist loons, and Mr. Obama's little girls.

Finally I decided. I don't know what is going to happen, but we have to try. Four more years of a rich, clueless white guy, and our country would be a smoking ruin and we'd all be out on the streets. Something has got to give, come what may. I filled in the circle next to Senators Barack Obama and Joseph Biden.

Apparently a lot of other people did too. Because, praise to Ceiling cat, the president-elect of the United States of America is now an African-American man. He campaigned on a platform of change. Let's all pray for him that he can bring the change that he hopes to be.