I jokingly told my students the other day that I and the other three registered Democrats in Red Willow County were going to meet in one of the broom closets down at the courthouse for our caucus. Obviously there are more than four registered Democrats but sometimes it doesn't seem like there are. But so far, the Democratic turnout this primary season has been setting records in primaries and caucuses already contested all across the country and, hopefully, the same thing will happen in Nebraska in general and Red Willow County in particular.

The caucus will take place in the County Commission room on the third floor of the Red Willow County Courthouse at 2 p.m. this Saturday. We have participatory government in this great country of ours and, as the old saying goes, if you don't participate, you don't have a gripe if the people selected weren't the ones you wanted.

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I don't like the idea of "superdelegates" in the primary process. These are people who because of their status within the party; i.e. elected officials, party officers, etc. get to go to the convention and vote for whoever they want to vote for, regardless of the way their constituents voted back home.

That isn't what I've always believed a democracy is. An election should represent the will of the people; not the will of the power brokers within the party and in a contest as close as this one is, the superdelegates may hold the balance of power since current projections suggest that neither Clinton nor Obama will have the necessary number of delegates needed for the nomination when the Democratic convention convenes in Denver in August.

This would take us back to the deal-making, cigar smoke filled rooms that we got rid of forty years ago because those kinds of shenanigans didn't necessarily represent the will of the people either.

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I recently heard Ann Coulter, the vitriolic commentator and columnist who leans far right on the political spectrum say that she would vote for Hillary Clinton before she would vote for John McCain because Clinton is more moderate than McCain is.

I have some swamp land to sell anyone who would believe that Coulter, one of the original Clinton-haters, would vote for Hillary under ANY circumstance.

Barack Obama is the most inspirational political speaker I've heard since John F. Kennedy. Whether his actions will support his words is yet to be determined.

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Rick Michaelsen and I stopped at the Veterans Home in Grand Island last weekend to visit an old friend of ours, Bob Ruby, the well-known and liked former bartender at the Elks Club for more than 30 years. As many of you know, Bob had a severe stroke several years ago that almost claimed his life. He wanted all of his friends in McCook to know he's doing well. We had an enjoyable time with him remembering old times and good times the three of us had shared. I'm sure it would make his day to hear from those of you who were his friends as well. You can email him at rubyrgivh@yahoo.com

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A television show worth checking out is Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives on the Food Channel.

In today's cookie-cutter world where everything seems to look the same and taste the same, regardless of what town you're in, this program goes from coast to coast, hunting down one-of-a-kind eating establishments that cook and prepare food like no one else does.

When I was growing up, I used to love to take trips with my family because we would stay in a one-of-a-kind locally owned motels and eat at one-of-a-kind restaurants.

It's hard to find those anymore but the host of this show says that the unique restaurants are making a comeback and I think that's a good thing.

I make a list of the places he visits during each show and hope I'm able to try some of them out in the not-too distant future.

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Finally, to quote Tom Hanks as Forrest Gump, "Life is like a box of chocolates. You never know what you're going to get."

That's mostly true and that's a good thing when the surprises are good surprises rather than bad.

You and I have a lot to do with whether the surprises are good or bad. If we think before we speak, if we're sensitive to the needs of others, if we put others first in our lives, if we speak the truth and honor the promises we make to others, the good surprises will always far outnumber the bad.