When I finally see her up close, I realize I would never have pegged her as a voter

But when I canvass, I try to talk to everyone

She's up on her balcony, while I prowl around on the ground, trying to figure out the building numbers in this sprawling complex, so I yell up to see whether she was registered to vote

Yes, she's registered

I push a bit: does she know about early voting?

No, she doesn't and she'd be happy to have some info: come right on up! the door is open!

I go around front, climb the steps to the landing, wondering if I've really got to barge into her place, and pause at the door

It opens immediately

Every now and then I meet someone who I think might bring a knife to a gunfight and still win. This woman looks like she works hard and knows how to drink hard if she wants. Her posture says without any suggestion of bluff that she's not scared of anybody. And yet one glance at her eyes convinces me that she is also sincere and very very nice

She says she hasn't voted for a long time and just re-registered last week

During our chat, her middle-school-aged daughter passes by once and again, politely and unobtrusively checking and double-checking that the scruffy dude on the doorstep isn't an unneeded extra problem for her mom

I give the woman the promised list of early voting sites and times and run through it quickly. She says this is helpful because she hasn't voted for a long time

And then I ask whether she's planning to vote for Obama this fall.

Yes, she's definitely voting for Obama. I give her a bit more info. She thanks me again

Walking away, I imagine a bumpersticker: "Kickass Biker Moms for Obama"