Yes we did. And Yes I will

I feel indescribable right now.

I couldn't vote, not being a citizen and all that, I can ( and did ) donate to 3 progressive democrats.

Two of them are still having their results tallied, both races are neck in neck.

The other is now President-Elect of the United States of America. (that felt damn good to type)

All this helped me to answer a question that has been hounding me since I set foot in this country, the citizenship question.

Becoming a full citizen means revoking my British citizenship, I would not be able to go back to Northern Ireland for longer than 3 months. If anything happened I would be on my own, my family would not be able to fly me home anymore. The beautiful, bizarre land of Ulster, with its rocky coasts, rolling green fields and those stark, yet strangely comforting slate gray skies, would no longer be my true home.

My friends in Belfast, that leering, freewheeling carnival of drunkards, chain smokers, hedonists and avowed bastards, they will remain my friends till the day I die. Rest assured I will make arrangements in the future to unleash them sporadically on an unsuspecting America. Unfortunately my memories of spending winters in the pub, ensconced with my fellow miscreants in the snug, pints clutched in hands will remain just that, memories.

Choosing citizenship sacrifices a lot, but there is much to gain.

Since arriving in the colonies, I have found a new circle of friends, certainly not as depraved as the ones I left behind, but I hold them in equally high regard. The last month would have been unbearable without them. The people here are hardworking, compassionate, and they don't throw rocks at people.

I have, for the first time in my life, a job that I truly enjoy, even though it will not make me rich.

My mother cannot mother me as much.

However, even with all this in mind I was still undecided.

Until last night, when the America that I read about in my history books, the land of hope and liberty, looked me in the eye and told me that I can.

As soon as I am eligible I plan on applying for Citizenship. I will pay my fee, take my test and recite my oath with pride.

And in 2012 I can finally vote for Barack Obama.