Weekly Wave: We’re proud to wear a tiny sticker with a big message

DULUTH — Now that Election Day 2024 has passed and you've emerged from the voting booth, it's OK to say it. Even if you're afraid to reveal which presidential candidate you voted for, it's safe to admit you like receiving the "I Voted" sticker.

We can all agree on that, right?

We spend our entire childhood receiving stickers and gold stars at home, school and church, and suddenly you reach adulthood and it stops. Until Election Day.

We enjoy this small token of validation for voting. It's the least that Uncle Sam can do to thank us for enduring an endless barrage of political ads and performing our sacred duty as American citizens.

We proudly post selfies on social media showing our stickers and wear them as we resume our daily routines. Standing in line at the polls, there's a noticeable charge in the air that flows through every polling place in the United States as we give back to the democracy that has raised and nurtured us. We give it our votes (more than 140,000,000 as I type this). The sticker is our participation ribbon.

Mail balloting and early in-person voting are popular, and that's fine. I prefer the thrill of voting on Election Day and feeling that electric current that courses through the 50 states ... and receiving that sticker after turning in my ballot. It's one line I don't mind waiting in.

The stickers sort of reconnect us, temporarily filling the deep political and cultural expanse in our country in a way that reminds us we're all trying to make America the best place to live, even when we have very different ideas of how that works and looks. Elections have winners and losers after the votes are counted, but the stickers prove that the ultimate winners are those of us who show up and vote.

The "I Voted" stickers have a short shelf life though — sort of like the lifespan of a fruit fly — as we peel them off our shirts and jackets at the end of Election Day, lose track of them or find their messy remains in the washer or dryer several days later.

If only we kept those stickers around a little longer and felt that palpable — and nonpartisan — connection to every American for more than one day. The stickers are small and fragile, but they carry a large and enduring message, and they have the glue that can repair and reconnect red and blue, Republican and Democrat.

Overall voting totals only tell part of an election's story. Once you look more closely at the data and how each precinct voted, a clearer picture emerges.

DNT reporter Jimmy Lovrien created an interactive deep dive into Minnesota's voting data.

Curious how the presidential candidates fared in Duluth precincts? Just scroll over those areas on the map and check out the results.

Lovrien's graphics include U.S. Senate, the 8th Congressional District and local races as well.

Just in time for our six-month blizzard watch, the city of Duluth is naming one of its snowplows.

A citywide contest produced more than 300 suggestions, which were whittled to 10 finalists. The newly named snowplow (and the lucky winner) will parade proudly through Duluth on Nov. 22 in the Christmas City of the North Parade.

Without giving away too much, Weekly Wave is pulling for Sled Zeppelin, though Lake Snowbegone sounds too Northlandy to discount.

DNT reporter Peter Passi's story has the names of the 10 finalists and a bonus — most of the names that didn't make the cut (the ones fit to print anyway).

One question: How did The Chillennium Falcon not advance to the final? That will anger Chillbacca.

I couldn't help but hum a little of Bruce Springsteen's "Darkness on the Edge of Town" while reading Astro Bob's latest column about how light pollution is taking away more of our country's prime night skies.

To find the darkness in the Northland, you need to travel well past the edge of town.

Anyone who has camped out under a Bible-black sky with only the stars, planets and moon as visible lights knows what a breathtaking experience it is. It's a natural resource of wonder and inspiration that we should fight to preserve.

Astro Bob adroitly presents his case for dark skies and offers a few practical tips and inexpensive purchases to push back light pollution.

Hopefully, we can all drive "dark desert highways" and see the night skies in all their sparkling glory.

Here are a few more stories from the past week to check out: