The First Morning

It is earliest morning in Zambia, the sun just starting its ascent
into the November sky, and I am on a crowded bus, already too hot, en
route to the airport.

The polls close in my beloved California in mere minutes, and with her
mighty 55 electoral college votes CNN will say that Obama has clinched
it. Or perhaps they already have.

Being so far from this campaign's center of gravity on the day it
evolves from potential to actual is quite hard. But the Africans I
encounter have made a great difference in that regard. They hunger for
some small connection to this otherwise mythical man, which I can
provide them. My cache of Obama buttons dwindles but the
conversations with their proud new owners fill the empty spaces in me.

It will more than do for now.

But soon I will need to celebrate this with the grassroots -- the
people who pushed relentlessly and with great hope to achieve this
seismic shift in America's quest to evolve into the nation it has
always claimed to be.

Today, I wish I was home.

Sent from my iPhone, please pardon the type-os!

Election day in South Africa

I've cried once already --when I told a fellow traveler how hard it is
to be away from home on this historic election day. If I was home I
would've spent the last week making endless calls to swing states, and
working in getting out the vote in my local area. You just want to
know you did all you could. You know?

All I can do at this point is spread Obama love and cheer. I brought
100 Obama buttons and five t-shirts with me to give away, and I have a
lot of fun doing that.

Win it America. Win it for us and win it for the world.

Africans Interested in Obama

I am traveling for work in nine African countries through mid November. At a restaurant in Accra, Ghana, I saw the following signs and just had to share. Imagine people wanting to buy an Obama t-shirt in Accra, Ghana. There's also an advertisement for an elections results viewing
party. THIS is how big this is.