No, YOU Go Vote
I'm sorry. I think it's important, and I really intended to, and Eric, I know I promised. But then I got all worried that I would be arrested.
Last year, around this time, I found myself "between apartments." This is a Manhattan euphemism for "you will not believe what you will settle for by the time this is over." Particularly if your only recourse is to move in with my parents, a deceptively easy commute away in CT.
Now this is where it gets sticky.
A few months before my lease ended, I got a jury summons. And deferred it, because I was scheduled to appear on a day when my newly-purchased plane tickets said I should be in Barcelona. I did have a pang of guilt about deferring it until after my lease would end, since I didn't think I would renew, but only a small one. See, I believe in jury duty. I think it is a cornerstone of our democracy, and I had every intention of honoring my responsibility as a citizen, even if I had to do so from a bit further away.
But...Connecticut?
I did the math. I would have had to leave by 4:30am. Have they met me?
So my thinking went a bit like this: I had now moved out of state. Who cares that it was just the next state over--I could have moved to Iowa. What would they have done then? That is actually an interesting question, you see, because the you-have-already-deferred-once-and-huge-men-are-waiting-outside-your-door-to-escort-you-now notices are pretty terrifying. There are simply no options for not appearing; they do not even provide a phone number to call with questions. They are not interested in your questions. Just. Show. Up.
I did my best, you know. I circled the 100% genuine USPS forwarding label. I wrote "Moved Out of State" as large as I could. I mailed it back. Even so, no one seems to be able to say for certain that there is not currently a warrant out for my arrest.
Normally, I would have voted even so. I mean, I live yet somewhere else now: further proof, if any were required, that I was no longer a resident of my old apartment last November. Clearly, no big deal.
This morning, though, I realized the implications of never having changed my voter registration. I was about to trek over to my old neighborhood to cast my ballot in a district that my continued freedom may depend on my not having lived in for a year.
It's not as if I really believed that the police would be waiting for me at the polling place. But think about it for a minute: what if I were ever mistakenly accused of murder or something? They dig into crap like this; I've seen Law & Order.
Last year, around this time, I found myself "between apartments." This is a Manhattan euphemism for "you will not believe what you will settle for by the time this is over." Particularly if your only recourse is to move in with my parents, a deceptively easy commute away in CT.
Now this is where it gets sticky.
A few months before my lease ended, I got a jury summons. And deferred it, because I was scheduled to appear on a day when my newly-purchased plane tickets said I should be in Barcelona. I did have a pang of guilt about deferring it until after my lease would end, since I didn't think I would renew, but only a small one. See, I believe in jury duty. I think it is a cornerstone of our democracy, and I had every intention of honoring my responsibility as a citizen, even if I had to do so from a bit further away.
But...Connecticut?
I did the math. I would have had to leave by 4:30am. Have they met me?
So my thinking went a bit like this: I had now moved out of state. Who cares that it was just the next state over--I could have moved to Iowa. What would they have done then? That is actually an interesting question, you see, because the you-have-already-deferred-once-and-huge-men-are-waiting-outside-your-door-to-escort-you-now notices are pretty terrifying. There are simply no options for not appearing; they do not even provide a phone number to call with questions. They are not interested in your questions. Just. Show. Up.
I did my best, you know. I circled the 100% genuine USPS forwarding label. I wrote "Moved Out of State" as large as I could. I mailed it back. Even so, no one seems to be able to say for certain that there is not currently a warrant out for my arrest.
Normally, I would have voted even so. I mean, I live yet somewhere else now: further proof, if any were required, that I was no longer a resident of my old apartment last November. Clearly, no big deal.
This morning, though, I realized the implications of never having changed my voter registration. I was about to trek over to my old neighborhood to cast my ballot in a district that my continued freedom may depend on my not having lived in for a year.
It's not as if I really believed that the police would be waiting for me at the polling place. But think about it for a minute: what if I were ever mistakenly accused of murder or something? They dig into crap like this; I've seen Law & Order.
posted by Caroline | 11/07/2006 10:47:00 PM
1 Comments:
You've seen too much Law & Order.
Maybe you should have asked Big what to do?
I didn't vote either. Connecticut is far! It's, like, a whole 'nother state. What's up with that?
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