A Major Hysterical Event

I thought the drama surrounding the primary election was bad.  Karen and Janet didn't know if they should be for Bernie because they liked what he said (Karen particularly liked the bit about free college and Janet is an old hippie-Leftist who had dragged Ed and his sister to rallies and demonstrations and played Woody Guthrie tapes for them instead of Disney hits.) or for Hillary because she's a woman.

During one discussion, Ed said, "I thought a real feminist would vote for the best candidate, no matter what their sex is."

Janet told him that anyone who had an attitude like his about feminists had no business telling them how to behave.

Betsey look umbrage that anyone would imply that her father wasn't a feminist and Josh and Cilla chimed in, even if they didn't understand.  Then Betsey told Ed that  "Nevertheless," he shouldn't be fresh to his mom and anyway everybody is entitled to his or her own opinion.

Janet said, "It's all right.  I used to change his diapers."

Kate closed her eyes and sighed, "Jesus, give me strength."  Cilla said she should ask the Blessed Virgin Mother too.

Nikki and I figured that they both had their good points, but who had time to get upset?  It seemed most people did.  
 
After Hillary got the nomination, things settled down a bit.  We all bought buttons and t-shirts, and Ed complained about wasting all that money.  I told him he'd thank us in November.

We told the kids they could stay up to watch the returns.  I thought it would be over by ten and was even prepared to move it up to eleven, even if they would be too tired to go to school the next day. After all, they were witnessing a major historical event and anyway it might even be done by nine.

I finally sent them up at eleven thirty.  I stretched out on the sofa with a Diet Dr. Pepper and a bowl of potato chips and fell asleep.  When I woke up, Trump had just gone over the top.  I didn't cry, but Karen called me and then Janet, both of them sobbing.  Ed growled, "Can't their spouses take care of them?  It's the goddamn middle of the night."  I told him to go back to sleep.

By that time it was four o'clock.  I tried to figure out if I'd be any good at work,  if they'd give me a vacation day on such short notice, and what I should say.  It turned out that wasn't necessary.  As soon as Betsey and Cilla got up, they asked who won and then they started crying.  Betsey even flung herself on me, while Cilla stood in the middle of the kitchen in her pajamas wailing, "Why, God, why?"

Josh looked at Ed and they both smirked.

I decided I would say we had a family emergency, which was true.  The girls were too upset to go to school, so I had to stay home.  Josh wanted to stay home too, and said, "Just because I'm not carrying on, doesn't mean I don't care."  That's one of Ed's favorite lines.  Since he had worn the buttons and shirt, I decided that he really could be upset, more or less, and let him stay home.

After Ed left for work, snorting about "Liberal foolishness," I made everyone French toast and we ate it in front of the tv, watching an old movie about an idealist young man who runs for Congress but refuses to make deals.