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December 11, 2004
EtherHouse undergoing renovations
It's a shame to post this sporadically when you're trying to get a blog off the ground. But I'm still trying to drag EtherHouse, bit by binary bit, from TypePad to Movable Type. Had to switch hosts, ending up where I probably should have started, at Hosting Matters. Now we'll see if we can whip the thing into shape and go live with my real URL: EtherHouse.com.
I must admit that I've also been enjoying a little decompression from the news and blogs in general for the last week or so. It's the first time since Sept. 2001 that I've actually felt able to relax my vigilance. Don't ask me what good it ever did anyway, staring with bloodshot eyes at talking heads on the TV while tense music blared the latest alert, or reading political blogs until my wrist was numb from mousing. Apparently some part of my lizard brain thought it was very important that I follow all the polls, as if victory depended solely on my unwavering attention.
In a way, Nov 3 was as big a turning point in my life as Sept 11 was. It silenced so much unbearable din. Bush's victory, apart from anything else it achieved, had a major effect on my personal life; it muted a lot of the constant rage and hostility that had been emanating from so many of my friends and colleagues for so long. Bear in mind that I'm a deeply closeted Bush supporter, so the rage and hostility weren't directed at me personally. They just permeated the atmosphere like new elements. Hydrogen, oxygen, carbon, rage, and hostility.
Shortly before the election, the EtherHub and I very cautiously bought a bottle of champagne. There was quite a lot of voodoo around the whole purchase. "Well, there's every chance we won't use this." "Oh, that's for sure. We could always use it on New Year's." "That's really what it's for, now that I think of it. New Year's. Or some wedding in the future. If it happens to get used on Election Night, well, that's a nice bonus..." We were so careful not to jinx anything.
We spent election night in a hotel room in Philly. The champagne was cooling in an ice bucket. When Fox called Ohio for Bush, neither of us reached for the champagne. "It's just one network," I said calmly.
When NBC called Ohio, we popped the cork and filled the flutes I'd bought just for the occasion. I had tested all the glasses in the store until I found the ones that made the most pleasing "ding!" when clinked together. And we ding!ed ourselves silly in the early morning hours of Nov. 3. Again and again. Every time we heard something we liked: whooping, laughter, ding!, and a sip of champagne. Daschle got several goodbye ding!s too. There was so much good news we could have ding!ed our way through two bottles.
And now it turns out we could've bought a case. There's been so much good news lately that I hardly know what to make of it. It's taken a while to learn how to push aside the "so when's the brutal payback coming?" anxieties, but I figured out how to deal with it.
I feel like a new woman. And for this one brief shining moment, I'm really enjoying not having a passionate opinion on 50 things a day. So bear with me; I'm sure this phase won't last, and I'll be refreshed and extra-feisty when I'm ready to come out swingin'.
Posted by EtherPundit at December 11, 2004 11:44 AM Category: Personal stories