Everybody in California gets mailed their ballots now as of this election. In our county, I think it’s our second time. 
My plan was to finish and show off the cuttlefish as well as the small blue jelly (which in this bad-lighting picture looks vaguely Star Wars-ish. Or like an enlarged dust mite.) I’m close, too, but then after dinner the daughter and husband pulled out the sample ballots, the phones, a laptop, and started going over the choices. With me running to the desktop in the other room from time to time.
For two hours. And this is with us having already individually read the state Voter’s Guide and various articles over time.
And then with a flourish, to make it official: the actual ballots.
No not that pen, I said, it smudges and we can’t.
Got it all done, signed the envelopes…
…And realized I’d given it my standard signature of name middle initial name.
The envelope said name name name.
Can I sign it both ways?
That got me a groan of, No! (Meaning, do NOT risk it!)
As Richard put it, you get to make someone’s day difficult tomorrow trying to talk to you on the phone while you find out if that’s how you’ve signed their book in the past. Left unspoken was, Or whether you have to wait till November 3 to hand it in in person covid or no covid so the envelope won’t matter. I said I could take it to the county office and ask for a new envelope and then hand it in right there–to be reminded that probably nobody would be there. Covid. Oh right.
So much for dropping them all off together at the official ballot box tonight. But they are filled out and they are ready and we are so ready.
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Update Wednesday:
They looked it up for me. Name initial name is what’s on file for both of us, and they have both our signatures from way back when we registered to vote here in 1986 and our signatures from the most recent election, giving them both a range and any progression with age over time, and whether it was a full middle name or just the initial wouldn’t matter anyway, she said; what matters is that it looks like the same hand signed that new ballot.
We’re good.