How I Made My Mark On Europe
Inspired by our current European season on ´óÏó´«Ã½ Radio Scotland, I jumped off the train at Inverness and dashed, eventually, to the polling station to register my vote in today's election. There is something awe-inspiring about the thought of millions of people across the continent doing the same thing at the same time. I suspect, however, that the polling stations in some other countries are a little more sophisticted than the draughty school halls and community centres we have come to expect in Scotland. The Italians are bound to have a coffee bar in theirs.
My polling station, for some reason, was not within walking distance at the nearest Primary school. Instead - because of family logistics - I had to load daughter and dog into the car at nine o'clock tonight and vote in a place called Green Drive...which obviously gives an advantage to one particular party.
So let me tell you how I voted. No, I don't intend to let you know which party I voted for, but to give you an insight into my thought process as I stood in that wooden booth holding the pen on a string.
Naturally I considered the wider European issues such as, er, the demise of Esperanto. Then I thought about that whole moat-cleaning and bath-plug scandal in Westminster. Then I thought about which politicians had sent me the rudest letters in the past year.
Then I looked at the logos of each party on the ballot paper and decided which was the cutest. Then I rememembered that my daughter and dog were waiting for me in the car and I made my mark.
What a huge ballot paper. Luckily there were origami experts on hand to instruct us on how to fold it in such a way that it would fit in the ballot box.
Note to counters: mine is the one that looks like a flying swan.
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