The Dems Debate..

MYRTLE BEACH, South Carolina (CNN) — Hillary Clinton just drew the first boos of the night. She said Barack Obama doesn't take responsibility for his votes, and took issue with his 'present' voting in the Illinois Senate.
It's evidence the nastiness between the two is beginning to backfire.
– CNN Senior Political Analyst Bill Schneider

The Democratic debate was nothing short of riveting tonight. Obama is a rock star. He has transformed from the early days of his campaign. The charisma and poise he brought to his speeches now permeates his every comment and retort in the debates. Clinton went negative, and did a complete 180 from the "humanizing metamorphosis" that she went through in New Hampshire. She was snarling as she spewed argument after argument towards Obama, and I believe he came out unscathed, if not stronger. I think Obama will take South Carolina for certain now that I've seen this debate. Clinton looked petty and manipulative, and Obama came of as honest and articulate. Edwards got the raw deal in this debate because Clinton and Obama definitely took more than their fair share of the time. To echo the sentiments of my friend Jason, I believe if it comes down to Obama vs. McCain, it may be a tough choice for me to make.

Two things that Obama said resonated with me... criticism of NAFTA (although honestly I need to read up on the trade agreement, but I'm a skeptic) and his refusal to mandate health care.

For lunch today I went to Atasca, a Portuguese restaurant in Cambridge. It was the second time I've been there and I've found it to be excellent both times. I had "Galimha com Vinho do Porto" which is Sauteed chicken tenderloins with mushrooms in port wine served with rice. The rice was a sort of pilaf. A few of my coworkers and I met up with a former coworker of ours. It was a nice break from the day.

I have Austin City limits on in the background. Crowded House is on, so I think I'll go take that in before hitting the hay. Their live performance definitely has a different feel since they tend to sometimes (in my opinion) over-over produce otherwise excellent music. I'm definitely enjoying the show and their album "Time on Earth" is a nice collection of classic sounding pop pieces. I'm slightly embarrassed to say one of my favorite tunes on the album was penned by Natalie Maines of the Dixie Chicks. Sounds like they are leading a sing a long... gotta go check it out.