Commiserate For The Debate - 8pm CST
Commiserating, of course, is commonly done in pairs, but reaches ecstatic levels in large groups. Accordingly, one of the best ways we've experienced a connection to the election in general and the people of this town is to head out and watch the debates at one of the many planned and unplanned viewing parties in Austin TONIGHT.
On the night of the inaugural McCain/Obama duel, we innocently headed to the Dog and Duck for some fish and chips, throwing our fondness for politics to the wind in exchange for delicious battered and fried cod, some fries, and a pint of Live Oak Big Bark.
We ordered at the bar and headed outdoors to the back patio. There was a solid crowd already and the flat screen, replacing the warmth of a communal fire, was set on low volume as people got their post work week on. We waited and drank a bit while our fi & chi got soaked in greased greatness. It was a cool night out, one of our blessedly reasonable evenings this early fall. As we settled, we occasionally strained our ears to hear CNN commentators handle ridiculously foolish devices like the personal political spectrometer (or whatever that thing is called). A solid group sat on patios nearest the screen and in the 15 minutes before the debate proper began, the patio filled up, and people shifted to give way for strangers to share their table space. There was a palpable electricity in the air, a collective nervous anticipation for everyone's respective candidate, how he might win, lose, or affect one's life in the next four years.
Then an amazing thing happened.
The camera cut from tv studios, and framed the picture of the auditorium, Jim Lehrer started in, the volume was turned up, and as the debate started, a patio filled with 50 twenty and thirty year olds, drinking beer, eating pub food, rambling on about the week's stories, fell in a complete and solid silence as the candidates prepared to speak.
The silence endured for the length of the debate's hour and a half. Occasionally there'd be a nervous groan, a smattering of applause, and small, private remarks whispered to friends. As people walked onto the scene, they immediately fell into a respectful silence and found a spot to sit without disturbing the viewers. Once, when a runner came out with food and yelled "KAArrren!" he was shushed in force by a group of girls up front, as the whole mass of us laughed together. For the next hour, he'd come out the swinging bar door and whisper names. The lucky recipients of food would raise their hand, and the whole process was quietly exchanged.
Toward the end of the night, the crowd's anxiety had dulled slightly, and a little chatter picked up. We were a little weary, having sat in near silence for almost two hours. But nearly all hands stayed for the duration, and lasted, listening together, until shortly after the table of pundits set in once again.
If you haven't seen any of the debates in public, we think you should. Debate's at 8pm Austin time (9pm EST).
Alamo Drafthouse TIX ARE SOLD OUT SO DON'T HURT YOURSELF
