I owe my friend Tracy big time. Last fall I heard that President Bill Clinton was coming to the CT Forum, and because Tracy and I G-Chat pretty much all day, she got to hear me (read me?) whine about how I wanted to go. As I had just bought a house and Christmas was right around the corner, disposable income was not at an all-time high. But Tracy is one of those people who hears you mention something and makes a mental note. So, frankly, I wasn’t all that surprised when she announced I had to clear my schedule for March 16, 2012. My Christmas present was a ticket to see Bill Clinton.

A quick check of your calendar will reveal that last night was March 16, and so you’ve probably guessed that I saw the 42nd President of the United States last night.

I won’t lie, I get really angry about term limits when I think about Bill Clinton leaving office. I keep my fingers crossed that Hillary will some day be our president just to get Bill back into the White House (not that she isn’t awesome in her own right). And I don’t think I’m the only one who thinks this:

Mostly, though, I am amazed by how smart he is…and reasonable. Clinton is a supremely  thoughtful man. Last night’s speech was about “Embracing our Common Humanity,” finding ways to work together, engage in civil discourse with people we don’t agree with, and realizing that we’re all in it together. He even told a story about his mother-in-law who was a liberal democrat who watched Fox News a couple of times a week — well into her 90s — just to check in with the opposition and see if there was something she was missing.

Fox News is a little too far out there for me. I can’t bring myself to check in with people who don’t seem to be based in reality or fact, but I do like to debate with people who bring a different view to the table — as long as it’s reasonable and informed and not just “I think this country needs to get back to Jesus” kind of thinking.