Good evening again Maine!
Today I battled the Instagram Demons and possibly prevailed. Look forward to lots of things there as I learn how the heck to use it now that they’re pretty sure at least one of my email addresses isn’t owned by a robot (in fact, none of my emails is operated by a robot, nor currently even by a different person: if you’ve every received an email or read a post from me, rest assured I wrote and sent it personally). My hope is that by going where all the cool people are these days we will be able to more effectively reach the whole of Southern Maine with how awesome this election platform is. For those of you who weren’t subscribed yet, we added to it a little bit just a few days ago.
I’ve been pondering some other cool things that Maine has that other states don’t while I’m out of town (visiting family for the first time in forever; the trip was on my calendar way before this campaign was), and some of them are already on my platform, like free school lunches. Others, like community college scholarships and apprenticeship programs I just haven’t found the time to write about yet. And there are of course other things that all states have but do differently to the great confusion and frustration of everyone, like accessible parking rules (this is not to say that Maine necessarily has the best of those, but we do have them). One of the most awesome things about campaigning and canvassing is getting to hear which of the things each person most personally has to deal with, and how it affects our lives, and how it’s done differently where they or their family or their friends are from. Understanding these things about the people around us makes us better neighbors. The other thing that makes us better neighbors is connecting the people around us in ways that their skills and challenges and experiences compliment and build on each other in order to make the whole neighborhood, and the friendships it’s build of, stronger.
Speaking of connections, so far almost everyone who has found this campaign has found us through word of mouth. That’s really awesome. Thank you so much to everyone who has shared emails, handed out flyers, collected signatures, and above all else told all your friends and acquaintances about me: the friendly local fellow running for US Congress. Everything you have done has gotten us to the point where I can say this:
Next week from May 17th through 25th, we will be going on tour throughout as much of District 1 as I can get to without losing my job. At the moment the schedule looks a little like this: it will likely also change a little throughout the week as things settle out. Absolutely send this schedule to everyone you know who lives near these towns, though, because I would really appreciate help finding places to be and people keep the events running smoothly. Folks who want to organize little after-gatherings for any of these events at local parks and whatnot are also more than welcome to do so and if I have any time at all I’ll be happy to stop in at them.
May 17: Portland 4-6pm Hi Fidelity Brewing (I will be in South Portland and Brunswick for non-campaign events earlier in the day)
May 18: South Portland 6-7:30pm
May 19: Sanford 6-7:30pm
May 20: Biddeford 6-7:30pm
May 21: Rockland 6:30-8pm
May 22: Winslow 6:30-8pm
May 23: Wiscasset 11am-1pm at Panacea Chowder House, Brunswick 2:15-3:45pm at Curtis Memorial Library, Damariscotta 4:45-6pm at S Fernald’s Country Store
May 24: Cumberland 10am-12pm, Gray 1-3pm, Naples 5:30-7pm
May 25: Kittery 10-11:30am, Buxton 1:30-3pm, Yarmouth 4-6pm
This tour will do four things: first, you will get a chance to bring your friends and family and ask us about the issues that are important to you and them. Second, you will get a chance to donate food items to the nearest food bank (we will have a collection box at each event and are looking for volunteers to deliver it afterwards). Third, we can all get one last chance to sign our names on a petition to see this platform on the ballot in November. We have not yet made it to 2,000 signatures, and we need to get them if we want to be able to vote for me this fall. The last thing it will do is totally demolish what remains of my sleep schedule, but that’s what the weekend after is for.
Thank you all again and have a wonderful night! I’ll look forward to seeing many of you next week.
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