I realized last night that two-thirds of my life, I have had a Bush or a Clinton as my president. That is 20 years. Had Hillary gotten the nomination and by a miracle gotten elected, that number would have jumped to 24 or even 28 years. That is a LONG time to be ruled by one guy or one family. It reminds me of ruling families like the Tudors - one family running a country for generations.

I am not a political person and I cannot and will not pretend that I am. I am a very happy fence sitter. There are things on both sides of the aisle that piss me off. There are opinions for both sides that are completely unfounded and if left to their own devices would hurt this country tremendously. But that is the beauty of our country. The fact that we can have differing opinions, yet still manage to work out a compromise where each side gives a little.

So, since it is an election year. Here is my one and only political post which should cover me for the next four years. You’re welcome.

I went to kickball last night very excited that I had something do to. I had something that was more interesting and exciting than sitting in front of my television watching the talking heads on CNN tell me that yes the election is going on and yes inch by inch one of these guys is going to win. Honestly, last night it didn’t matter. Because when I woke up this morning I was going to have a new president one way or another. So, instead of holding our collective breath for six or seven hours, I went out to have some fun.

But the returns were on at the bar anyways. (Didn’t they know the Mavericks were playing the Spurs last night? Honestly, where are their priorities?)

However, my friends and I put up a Political Free Zone, and we kicked out anyone who wanted to talk about why Obama’s economic plan will put us all in ruin or why McCain wants to bomb all abortion clinics. Together we were over it. We had been forced to pay attention, to listen to this campaign for more than a year. It’s been a long and tiring year. It has been a year that has built unbridled passion, but it also has been a year that is divided our country. (Again just like Bush-Kerry four years ago. What is it with elections?)

Finally, I gave up. Our Political Free Zone was crumbling and I thought it best to be home instead of in an argument with drunken kickballers. I drove home listening to Obama’s acceptance speech on the radio. I knew that this morning there would be hundreds of thousands of people who would be pissed off and the same number overjoyed. There would be factions in our country planning assassination attempts. And factions planning parades. This year, the hate that losing brings is probably not as deep rooted as it was four years ago – at least I hope it isn’t.

But for those people who didn’t win and for those who did, Obama is now our Commander in Chief. He will be the one to lead our country. And if we don’t like the direction he’s taking us, then in two years we can change it. And if we still don’t like it, in four we make the change bigger. There are more people than ever engaged in politics. It will be interesting to see how long that engagement lasts before we go back to our daily lives of watching reality television and never turning back to Fox News. I always find it interesting to see how people react almost impulsively to elections and do nothing to engage our government during the actual term of those we elect.

Can you honestly tell me (without using Google) who your Senators are? Or who your State Representatives are? Sure we all tuned in and sat up straight for the Presidential campaigns, but we know relatively nothing about any other political position.

We sit here and pat ourselves on the back for having record number of voters turn out and so many more people interested in the elections. But how many of those people got their ballot and voted only for the President? None. Chances are those names were the only ones on the ballot they recognized, yet they continued to vote for Senate seats, House seats, State Congress, judges, transportation commissions and propositions. All of wich were made without any knowledge, research or understanding.

And that’s the irony here. More people than ever turned out – all ages, colors, races, ethnicities, socio-economic statuses. It was the first thing in a long time that we agreed on. We all agreed that it was important to make a choice. To vote. It is the first thing we’ve been unified over in awhile. We came together as a country and chose.

It is now up to us to continue to choose. To continue to choose to be engaged. To learn who our Senators are and why that is relevant to you – a citizen, a tax-payer, a person. Together we must come together and build something together.

Obama said some very interesting things in his speech last night. I’ve bolded some it that I thought the most interesting.

There will be setbacks and false starts. There are many who won't agree with every decision or policy I make as President, and we know that government can't solve every problem. But I will always be honest with you about the challenges we face. I will listen to you, especially when we disagree. And above all, I will ask you join in the work of remaking this nation the only way it's been done in America for two-hundred and twenty-one years - block by block, brick by brick, calloused hand by calloused hand.

Let us resist the temptation to fall back on the same partisanship and pettiness and immaturity that has poisoned our politics for so long. Let us remember that it was a man from this state who first carried the banner of the Republican Party to the White House - a party founded on the values of self-reliance, individual liberty, and national unity.

And to those Americans whose support I have yet to earn - I may not have won your vote, but I hear your voices, I need your help, and I will be your President too.

And to all those watching tonight from beyond our shores, from parliaments and palaces to those who are huddled around radios in the forgotten corners of our world - our stories are singular, but our destiny is shared, and a new dawn of American leadership is at hand. To those who would tear this world down - we will defeat you. To those who seek peace and security - we support you. And to all those who have wondered if America's beacon still burns as bright - tonight we proved once more that the true strength of our nation comes not from our the might of our arms or the scale of our wealth, but from the enduring power of our ideals: democracy, liberty, opportunity, and unyielding hope.

For that is the true genius of America - that America can change. Our union can be perfected. And what we have already achieved gives us hope for what we can and must achieve tomorrow.

I think that it is going to take an extraordinary amount of effort to illicit the change that both candidates so vocally clung to during the campaign. In reality, it is up to us, the actual citizens of this country, to hold our leaders accountable – to make sure they follow through on uniting the country.

For at the end of the day, it’s not that person’s faith, race or political history that matters. Today, what matters most is what happens next. It is going to be an interesting four years.