HOLLY NADLER

508-687-9239

(hollynadler@gmail.com)

Voting in the community room of the Oak Bluffs Library last Tuesday felt less like performing a civic duty and more like dining at a fine restaurant. When I arrived around eleven in the morning, there were no onerous lines such as those reported all around the country, but every booth had a body appended to it. A spotter on the floor kept his eye out for vacancies; when one materialized, he signaled an elegantly dressed woman, slim, with dark hair, who raised a finger to alert the next voter to “Come this way, please.” She had no menus in her hand, but you couldn’t help wondering if you should maybe tip her. Considering the sanctity and solemnity of the American polling place, an exchange of money is likely a federal offense.

It’s in poor taste to gloat, we all know that, but as I write this column on Wednesday morning, November 5th, I must admit to a mood of euphoria that I know is shared, at least in this part of the world, by almost everyone I know. In the past few months on the Vineyard, you couldn’t fire a peashooter without splotching pea juice on half a dozen Obama supporters. And you have to admire the handful of McCain backers among us who toughed it out in spite of the numbers ranged against them: you are brave souls, every one of you. A lot of us would have developed tics and trembles if, say, we’d had to wave an Obama flag in the midst of over-the-top McCain country. I can readily imagine myself in that situation exchanging daily e-mails with Dr. Kevorkian.

The outcome of the presidential election, and other results of Tuesday’s voting, had me at 6:30 on this same Wednesday morning walking my dog and singing ‘THE HILLS ARE ALIVE WITH THE SOUND OF MUSIC!’ with every bit of Julie Andrews’ gusto, though none of her pitch. For all us dog lovers, hooray for the break our greyhound buddies are getting. It also seems like a good idea, for the sake of keeping Massachusetts in business, that we in fact did not repeal the state income tax, much as we could probably all use a stimulus package, just not at the expense of schools, roads, health, and even that cute little bridge we’re building between Oak Bluffs and Vineyard Haven. And finally, the biggie, for all of us old hippies and new young stoners; it’s a welcoming relief that no one will have to go to jail for taking a couple of tokes. (I don’t even like the stuff; when I used to try an occasional puff back in the day, I always came to the same shocking realization that I sounded exactly, spot on like Minnie Mouse. When you think you sound like Minnie Mouse, you stop talking, a dampener in any social situation.)

Editorials all over the country will be reminding us that the hard work is ahead, these are catastrophically difficult times, and we all need to roll up our sleeves with our president-elect to get serious and get busy. That’s all true, but we Americans tend to bulldoze through our periods of celebration, running them over with wagonloads of fresh worries. So whatever we need to do right now to feel the love — dance, scream, light bonfires, open champagne, fire up the cannabis (not forgetting to keep it under an ounce) — let’s not rush this part of the program.

For the new children’s librarian at the Oak Bluffs Library, Ms. Jennifer Bowers, there will be a Meet And Greet on Friday, Nov. 7 from 3 to 4:30 p.m.

Last weekend Oak Bluffs School seventh grader Jeremy Alley Tarter won the Mayor’s Cup Cross Country Race held at historic Franklin Park in Boston. Way to go, Jeremy!

On Thursday, Nov. 20, at 6:30 p.m., the Oak Bluffs Public Library will host a talk by Dr. Kelly Joyce entitled MRI Technology. Dr. Joyce, assistant professor at William & Mary College and an Oak Bluffs elementary school and MVRHS graduate, will address such questions as why do docs on the television show House, routinely order MRI Scans? And how do media portrayals of MRI relate to the technology’s use in medicine?

On Saturday, Nov. 22 from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., a Christmas Bazaar will be held at Woodside Village II in Oak Bluffs, hosted by Island Elderly Housing. On offer will be newly-made gifts, old treasures and “just a barrel of stuff” for the holidays. For details, call Rita Reynolds at 508-693-3606.