I friggin' LOVE my state (WA) - my 18 yo daughter is registered to vote and didn't even know it

[Aristus]

17. I love our state like no other.

But I disagree on the vote-by-mail. I loved voting at the polls. I loved the sense of a shared cultural experience. When I got in line during the big elections, I knew I was surrounded by people who agreed with my politics, disagreed with my politics, or couldn't be bothered to care if I asked them. But we were all there to exercise our rights as Americans, regardless of outcome.

One of the greatest nights of my life was Election Day, 2008. I voted late because I was in PA School at the time. All day, every time we went on break from lecture, laptops would come out, and we would all check Election Day stats. I could hardly wait to get out of school in order to go to the polls to vote.

When I got there, the line was the longest I'd ever seen. Easily three times as long as the next longest, in 2004. The wait ended up being an hour and a half. My brother kept sending me texts, letting me know which states had declared, and for whom. By the time I got my ballot, I knew Barack Obama had won. But I voted just the same. The devil and all of his demons couldn't have deterred me by that point. It was a one-in-a-million night; one for the books.

Last November, when the election was called for PBO, I was sitting right here at this computer, and I cracked a bottle of champagne and celebrated. But my vote had been a tiny let-down, sending it in by mail as if paying the heating bill.

I miss the polls...