A win win

Last night the Cheetahs held the top-seeded team in the league to a one-all tie, despite the other team appearing as if they were 3rd graders. There was one girl on the team almost as tall as I am! Not that that's saying much, but I was pretty proud of Bean going head to head with a girl who was easily over a foot taller! Bean did get whacked pretty hard in the hand with the ball resulting in her nail being pulled back. Lots of blood and some green faces on the part of the other moms (seriously, it was a squick injury), but no tears and she got right back out there.

Afterwards we went to a little Italian joint called Tony's Pizza and Pasta. Tony's is rapidly becoming my favorite "red sauce" Italian place. First, it's BYOB, None of this 6 bucks for nasty chianti that tastes like drain cleaner smells. Nope, you bring what you like.

They bring out baskets of garlic knots and a big bowl of gorgeous thick marinara for dipping. And they give all the kids a big hunk of pizza dough to play with.

We had eight adults and eight kids and the bill came to 20 bucks a family including a really generous tip. The waiter could not have been nicer and was totally unfazed by a booth of loud six-year-old girls. The rest of the place was loud enough that the girls didn't annoy the rest of the world. It was heaven.

A large meat-eaters special pizza is ten dollars! A house salad is $1.49! You want pasta dishes? They have everything you could ever want and most of them are under $8 and are huge portions. The pizza is thin crust and excellent. The tomato sauce isn't distinctive - which is fine. The toppings are very fresh. I enjoy gourmet pizza, but sometimes I just want a regular, American-style, stringy mozzarella pizza but done on a better level than the delivery guys.

It's not gourmet Italian fine dining. This is a neighborhood joint that specializes in good quality freshly made Italian food that doesn't break the bank. Frankly, the world needs more places like Tony's. And did I mention the BYOB? Because it's BYOB!

I looooooove BYOB!

Yes We Did!

Undecided

But first, the Bean of the Week:

Me: achoo achoo achoo (allergies acting up)
Bean: Godzilla!

And now onto your irregularly scheduled political thoughts of the day.

The undecided voters I know are mostly Republicans who are not fond of McCain, and yet are having a hard time voting for a Democrat.

So, here's a little thought: If McCain wins this time, Hilary Clinton will be the Democratic Nominee in 2012 and she'll win. (Apologies to the Hilary fans out there but she's not my choice.)

Many Republicans are members of that party because they are fiscal conservatives who are for small government. The problem is that the Republican party no longer embraces these ideals.

I don't care that McCain is divorced or that Palin has a pregnant teenage daughter. It's none of my business and it's irrelevant to the campaign until they start telling me how they are the moral party, they are the party of the real America - the one with values. And that people who don't share their opinions are not part of the "real" America.

If voting for Obama means that I'm not a "real" American, then why do I have to pay real taxes?

So why vote, anyway?

Texas is a red state. It's not "leaning" or "battleground", but, rather, firmly red.

So, I always run into people who say, "Why bother." It doesn't matter what party they are inclined to support. If they vote Republican, it doesn't matter because the state always goes red anyway. If they vote Democrat, it doesn't matter because the state goes red anyway.

My reply is always the same, "If you don't vote; you can't bitch." I don't want to hear about how you don't like the government if you failed to participate in the election. I want you to vote on the issues that matter the most to you. Because everyone's issues are different.

Even if your vote is not going to count on the larger scale, I have to believe that every single vote counts because it is a reflection of the individuals that make up this nation. And the United States used to be all about the individual. Presidents campaigned on their belief in the strength of the people rather than this oddly paternalistic care taking role we've devolved into.

Ultimately, I don't care which way my friends cast their votes. I just want them to vote. If my preferred candidate doesn't win, so be it. But at least I spoke up for the things that matter most to me in this election.