Lordy Lordy look who's Forty!!!!!!!!

Happy Birthday Smarty Pants Liberal!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
:party: :toast: :loveya: :pals: :hug: :yourock: :woohoo: :patriot:
:party: :toast: :loveya: :pals: :hug: :yourock: :woohoo: :patriot:
:party: :toast: :loveya: :pals: :hug: :yourock: :woohoo: :patriot:
:party: :toast: :loveya: :pals: :hug: :yourock: :woohoo: :patriot:
:party: :toast: :loveya: :pals: :hug: :yourock: :woohoo: :patriot:
:party: :toast: :loveya: :pals: :hug: :yourock: :woohoo: :patriot:

:spank: :hug:

:yourock: :party: :toast:

for spacing out and not calling you after the convention adjourned. Then I was so stunned to see who WHD invited to hang out with us that I'm still pinching myself and wondering if that really happened. Kinda like the lady in red joining the PPC. Zoinks! :wow:

I joined TDW to even the score and hope that the rest of the ladies will follow suit. If I'm not mistaken, we alreay have some great DU members who belong to TDW.

And stranger things could happen than that lady joining the PPC. Of course if she does, it will just be to keep an eye on what we're up to. :rofl:

We love strong, opinionated women (and men too). That's probably the main reason we don't endorse one Democrat over another. We're a diverse group of people and welcome diverse opinions. My local chapter (Coastal Bend in Corpus Christi/Nueces County) hosted three of the TDP Chair candidates (Richie, Maxey, and Jones) at meetings open to the public, and I know we had members that supported each of the three candidates. An official club endorsement would just piss people off.

form and snail mail?

I can see that they could use our help already;-)

An online payment system costs money and we're a very lean, grass roots organization. We'd rather use our PAC money to support statewide candidates, rather than spend it for unneeded extras. Our dues are low and there are scholarships for low-income members. We don't have an office and there's no paid staff; everything's done by volunteers working out of their homes. Our website is maintained with volunteer labor for just under $200 a year. That includes an online member database and web pages for each of our chapters. We hold a state convention/fundraiser in February, a Retreat in the summer, and a campaign school in the fall -- all opportunities to meet and network with other Democratic activists. We also host the Blue Star fundraising breakfast for the TDP convention.

Most activity takes place at the chapter level. To see if there is a chapter near you, go to our Chapters web page (click the link from our home page, or go to http://www.tdw.org/chapters.html). You can search by city or county, as well as Congressional District, Senate District, and House District. My local chapter, Coastal Bend, gave $10,000 to the Nueces County Democratic Party in 2004 for GOTV efforts. We'll probably be able to double that for 2006. We don't give money to individual candidates, preferring instead to fund things like block walking, Spanish language radio ads, and a central unity headquarters that support the entire Democratic slate. We have some women who are really good at fundraising, and we have a tight-fisted treasurer who makes sure our PAC money is spent only on things like printing and mailing our monthly newsletter and GOTV efforts. For example, when we hosted a meeting with Glen Maxey and Boyd Richie the "free" chili was paid for by several members, rather than use our PAC money.

We talked about how busy the PPC's Corpus Christi chair is. What a man!

Our Harris County chapter is not meeting regularly but I hope it will rise again.

I didn't go to Democracy Fest, and I'm not a PPC member.

but a TDW and very outspoken, funny, funny, funny. She knew John though.

and I'm funny, funny, funny :) but I didn't make it to Democracy Fest. I hope to make the next one though. I used to live in Austin and hope to move back there in a couple of years when they get some of those planned high-rise condos built downtown. I'm particularly interested in the building planned for Third and Nueces.

I just have to say that spending three nights and four days with thousands of Democrats at a real convention has been the best birthday party ever.
:grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug::grouphug:

Even though he knows I'm a Karaoke rock star :headbang:, Mr. SPL did the right thing by keeping me from hanging out all night with ya'll.

We'll Karaoke another another time. Potential fundraiser in Kristi Thibaut or Hubert Vo's districts?

it might be best to wait until my voice gets home from Ft. Worth.

You missed meeting some great folks and a couple of real assholes. Lots of stories to tell, so little time.
:hug:

:bounce::bounce::bounce::bounce:

Sorry I didn't get to meet you and so many of the other DU'ers. :-(

Was really nice meeting y'all!

Oh my dog, you almost had to work on your B-Day at the state convention. Glad it's only mundane work day. You can always escape those.

I wish you the best. Have fun, party or just relax. Do whatever the heck you want to do. It's your birthday!!!

:party: :toast: :bounce: :loveya: :grouphug: :headbang:

Sonia

:party::toast::party:

The real celebration was this weekend. I read that attendance was three times greater than the 2000 convention in Ft. Worth.

Woo Hoo!!!!!!!!

Ain't no one driving us away. We're tougher than that.

I want to see that 8,000 again in 2008 like we had in 2004. If you don't participate, you can't complain. And voting is not enough, folks.

Now Smartly Pants Liberal, you get off the net and go celebrate, ya hear!

Sonia

HAPPY BIRTHDAY!!!!

:party:

:grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug: :grouphug:

:hug: