Election Day

I was pleasantly surprised this morning at how well the vote , at least Dianne’s and my voting, experience went. We were at our polling place by 6:45 a.m. and out on the road by 15 minutes after 7:00 a.m. I was pleased and impressed at the Seniors who are also the Election Judges worked the new gadgetry  or the electronic voting machines.  I think the voting machines are OK , however, I am not impressed by their lack or privacy of this type of voting and the accessibility to the machine left some to be desired  in my opinion.  I did have some senior moments of my own as far as trying to understand the technology and trying to get through all the pages especially the “print” aspect.  It seemed like it took for ever for me to realize one had to print each page.  I , at one point, thought I three of four different voting tallies as the machine printed each page of the ballot. The event took longer  then a paper ballot  but I can see potential and the things to come. I have been listening  to NPR off and on all morning and to the news updates broadcast over WQXR out of NYC and there has been a lot of reporting of how poorly the electronic system is working.  However, from what I saw and what I experienced I think that my exposure to electronic voting left me with a positive feeling.  I think once the election judges get more experience from start to finish the process will take hold and become the way of things electoral.

Since our polling place is very close to the 53rd street train station I had Dianne drop me off an I would be on my way to work. I was fortunate in as I got to the  loading the University train pulled in. This was OK I figured I could ride this train to the Courthouse stop get off and catch the next Delta station bound train.  This was one of the “dog trains” they are real junkers and I got past the forty fifth station and I almost got to the 33rd Station and the train’s brake seized and the train abruptly stopped. Lucky for me we were not traveling fast and there was just a strong lurching stop and stopped we stayed for the next half hour or so.  I was a little worried too because I had not gone to the bathroom in some time  and I knew I was coming do and I just did not know when.  Bear in mind that because the cars on the Salt Lake City trains are ”step ups” if you are in a wheelchair you can only de-board at specific places which are the min-high blocks and the train was 10 to 20 feet past a block.. The driver was finally able to get looks to this one car un seized and disengaged us from the rest of the train and was able to train up to the blocks and I was able to get off. So the main part of the train was still dead on the tracks but I was told a North bound  was coming ad that I should go to the opposite end of the station for the high blocks there and I would be able to catch the train there.  This did not make sense but away I went and sure enough the next two trains passed me up  and I was becoming pissed. Not only was I still miles away from a bathroom  and I sensed my bladder filling but I was also beginning to get cold and I was quickly becoming late for work.  I( was beginning to get very noisy and I used to never get noisy.  I used to be so nice and accommodating but not any more.  One of the train cops was dispatched to get me under control. Once I told him he understood and sure enough get gone me on the next train. I was only 30 minutes  late for work.  The “man” still thinks because I am in a wheelchair I do not count as much as anyone else and believe me I have places to go to too.