hey, it DOES look like we're auditioning for the apprentice
this was one of the arguably best weekends i have ever had at UCLA (up there with dance marathon!), filled with evoking political speeches, famous politicians, amusing left-wing propaganda, free food and alcohol (not like the latter matters to me), and bonding with the beloved bruin democrats.
DAY ONE
as you can see, some signs are blatantly unsupportive of certain incumbents. i think i heard the word "douche" used multiple times to describe them too
kristy and nick were bored at the college democrats caucus, so they made figures out of so-and-so candidates!
us at the women's caucus. it was utter pandemonium in the room when the women started heatedly arguing about nominations. greg dared kyle to walk up to the podium and say "now now, will you women please settle down?" but that was a ruthless dare asking for trouble. i am reminded of what lockney (gubernatorial democratic candidate) said at last year's convention- according to bruin democrat veterans, his vote was opposed by everyone at the women's caucus when he blurted out "now now, i know you women can get a little cranky sometimes." ...smart!
the club with villaigarosa, who is running for the upcoming mayoral election against hahn. nice guy!
the "fascist" group of la rouche supporters (for this guy who unsuccessfully ran eight time for some position) they can be a little arrogant, ignorant, rude, and racist at times..just a little
after we left the general session, we met up with mulholland, this campaign manager who has been really successful with past campaigns. he told us this funny story of how he met jimmy carter at a convention in 1975 and how he didn't believe that carter would be president. the lesson: you never know who you'll meet, even if they're an unknown at the time!
at one of the after parties on friday night. yes, that's right, a chocolate fondue fountain!!
..for desirable desserts such as these <3
green beer! caitlin practically encouraged me to break my vow of not drinking in front of the camera. you whore
thus, i squirm as jake offers me the green beer
greg with an orgasmic look on his face as caitlin gives him a massage. HAHA and look at the alien in the background ;)
derek with the two drunk girls who threw around a bouncy ball like uncivilized party guests. it was funny though!
the bruin dems with garamendi, who is running for lieutenant governor and who i presume we're endorsing?
the shave ice lovers!
kristina, president of bruin dems, was called upon to explain why she was endorsing liz figueroa for lieutenant governor (when she really didn't)
greg trying to be seductive, while i just shamelessly laugh
oh, there we go ;)
greg and kyle are cute. greg released kyle's pet balloon in the air and forced kyle to thrust his body upward so he could catch it.
awww!
caitlin and i are, needless to say, tired and delusional!
on our way exiting the convention center friday night, we saw this tacky matching couple and greg proceeded to stalk them for the sake of a picture. the first attempt failed when the guy suddenly turned around and greg subsequently hid by one of the plants, but he nonetheless followed them to their second destination. hehe PROPS!
on our way home friday night. greg's driving makes me prone to heart attacks (especially when he's not even looking at the road here) while derek is, needless to say, drunk. or crunk as some like to call it.
DAY 2
FINALLY TIME FOR THE GENERAL SESSION! friday was a good experience, however attending caucuses with redundant messages made me bored. anyway, these were our seats, coupled with angelides posters (GOVERNOR 2006!!), anti-arnold flyers, and several lists of qualifications for so-and-so candidates.
the guys being attentive at the aforementioned lists and flyers, not to mention the overwhelming statistics about education and health care
nancy pelosi (house minority leader)!! she was not as enthralling as i expected nor delivered the message that stirred the democrats, but barbara boxer (my hero) made up for it. we got a picture with boxer before she approached the stage, where she received a standing ovation from EVERYONE!
onto the candidate-endorsed booths. don't you just luv this sticker?
AND MORE. hahahha, if only i were promiscuous...
2nd session was not as invigorating as the first, whereas many of the big names spoke and really evoked emotion from me. so here i am sporting my ooh-la-la azeein pride!
back in the volunteer room for lunch, where we honored our bruin dems president with patriotic balloons!
greg, pritika, and nikhil. democrats yo!
sleep thoroughly needed. we stayed at the convention center for 8 hours on friday and a straight 16 on saturday
the girls with skirts on hid halfway beneath the tablecloths and slept
grandma's trousers! lanyards are fun
we did a lot of bruin democrat bonding later on <333 this included question games such as "would you rather give cheney a bubble bath for the rest of your life or be stuck in a room with rumsfeld for a year?" and "what friends character/x-men are you?" for some reason it was decided that i was mystique while caitlin was jubilee..? anyway good times ;)
gabe and sara showed up later!
before hearing the pep talk from the political director of the CA democratic party, all of us took turns posing at the podium. here's my roomie!
haha and derek. he, on behalf of my request, later tried the rock eyebrow look
finally, the momentous climactic part of the day occurred, aka the HOWARD DEAN DINNER! as volunteers, we were assigned to put centerpieces and confetti on tables (as caitlin above), usher and signal people to their seats, and do ticketing. i was one of the unfortunate people stuck with ticketing, during which 1300 people stampeded angrily into the dinner room. they took out their impatience regarding waiting in a line with us volunteers, and even blamed us for allowing disabled people to enter first. one of them futilely bribed kristina with a ten-dollar bill rolled into a joint, while another said he was on viagra and was willing to show greg his "other" stub
the elegantly organized dinner tables! damn those lucky delegates who got to eat there
howard dean finally came out to talk! i think in providing morale for the democrats as the DNC chair rather than a presidential candidate, he is remarkable. dean was genuinely empathetic and spoke about how democrats are "also a people of faith" (regarding the social conservatives). that hit home for me, and i applaud dean for his efforts. he also mentioned the disturbing issue of banning the filibuster, and everyone unanimously agreed when he said that people shouldn't be silenced just because others don't agree with them. like kristina said, "dean's growing on me."
dean on the big screen
because the dean dinner was almost sold out and we weren't fed, some of us proceeded to scavenge abandoned trays and tables for food. here's scott and greg with fruit tarts! later on, liz, joline, and i stole some bread rolls and butterballs <333
onto the saturday after-parties! angelides actually came out in his and received a plethora of support. his campaign video was awesome too, which illustrated his family values. angelides has been a previous chairman of the CA democratic party and now he is currently treasurer. our club proceeded to take a picture with him, but in the time that we waited and patiently posed, numerous photographers started taking pictures of us! we did a little UCLA cheer when angelides came out, and kristina approached him saying that our club officially endorsed him for governor. afterwards, angelides shook everyone's hand and decided to give us $1000 for our upcoming bruin dems fundraiser!
the remaining pictures of after parties! free alcohol is a plus for many, hehe
we got down on the dance floor in the last half hour at "tasting california," a party with free wine, cheese, and a fun jazz band.
scott looks like he's having fun ;)
TRAIN!!
and more
haha look at christy's scared expression as greg attempted to dip her
christy dancing with that gross, pedophile looking man. i shudder!
our obligatory circle-of-friends pic on the dance floor. i love you bruin dems!!
we're all tired at the end of the day, but we come home content from the convention and ready to rock the fundraiser and angelides campaign! *proud novice public servants*
kristina and greg, the president and external vice president, respectively. cute!
the end! and yes, the convention did change my perspective on politics (everything..on the way that people deal with social security, EDUCATION, and health care and how, as democrats, we have a crucial duty to reach out to families, children, and social conservatives) i have a lot more to learn about state politics, but i am SO pumped up for what's to come. yes, any public servant has to start from the bottom and do the crap work..but we've all acknowledged that and realized that public service is so, so gratifying (for the recipients AND the volunteers).
thanks bruin democrats for such an awesome, eye-opening experience! thanks to morgan and lauren for the volunteer hook-ups and to those who took the above pictures! i look forward to volunteering with angelides' campaign and the next state convention!