She comes from the porch, down the sidewalk, and into the parking lot to chat with me

[struggle4progress]

I'm knocking targeted doors in a townhouse development, and the list is too sparse just to park and walk

The dwellings have their own numbered parking spaces. There are many signs: no-parking signs, signs insisting visitors park only in designated visitors' spaces, and many signs warning that vehicles improperly parked will be towed. Here and there, a lucky driver might actually find a designated visitors' spot, but their scarcity suggests residents seldom invite friends to dinner

This address has a vacant visitors' space nearby, so I need not park illegally here

I ring the bell and start counting. Almost anyone who answers will answer within my count. She doesn't, so I head back towards my car across the street

Then I hear the door open

So I turn and take a few steps towards her to explain who I am and what I'm doing

She comes from the porch, down the sidewalk, and into the parking lot to chat with me

I answer her questions as well as I can. In the end, I'm convinced she'll vote with us

At the next address, I park illegally, hoping I outrun any tow-truck that might appear on the horizon

[CaliforniaPeggy]

1. My dear struggle4progress...

I just cannot really convey how much I enjoy your posts on canvassing.

Thank you for the essential work you're doing and for the great posts...

[struggle4progress]

9. I'm so glad you get something from them!

[fadedrose]

11. Ditto, Peg nt

[sheshe2]

2. s4p.

Thank you.

[japple]

3. Thank you. You are making a difference and are brave beyond measure.

I applaud your efforts and wish I had the courage you have. Bless you.

[struggle4progress]

10. It really doesn't take much courage (though some people might be much more comfortable

canvassing with a partner): almost everybody I'm meeting right now is friendly -- though that's partly because I'm knocking pre-chosen doors or selected neighborhoods

I may have been at 1200 or so doors in the last six months for various reasons, and I could count the somewhat unpleasant interactions in that time without using all the fingers on one hand: the jerks I've met from time to time don't frighten me, though some have really practiced how to get defensive reactions from other people, and when I run into somebody who's good at that, it can leave a psychological mark for a few minutes, mostly due to the strain of politely and deferentially apologizing for bothering the person and leaving in a pleasant manner, while the person continues trying very hard to get me to shout Maybe you could go fuck yourself! -- which, of course, I don't want to do, since I'm not on my property and since returning the rudeness won't get any votes for my candidate

[alfredo]

4. Here's an old mail carrier trick. If the gate is closed, rattle it. If there's a dog in the yard

it will make its presence known.

If the house is a wood frame house you should be able to see the footfalls of anyone inside. The glass in the door will jiggle. Don't confuse it with your pulse.

Put a bandaid on the knuckle of the finger you use for knocking.

Canvassing is fun.

[struggle4progress]

7. Some tricks like this do work. But often the question for me isn't "Are they home?" but rather

"Will they answer the door?" A certain number of people are obviously home but won't come to the door -- and the whether or not they do come to the door seems to me influenced by a variety of factors, including time of day and neighborhood socio-economics: knocking well before sundown on a dark rainy day might be(in my experience) rather like knocking after sundown on a cloudless day

I don't know how many thousands of doors I've knocked over the years, but I'm convinced that I can often tell by the sound from my knock whether a house with a for-sale sign in the front yard is empty and uninhabited, for example

[alfredo]

15. One more thing about dogs, If you see chew toys bigger than your head, pass on by.

[struggle4progress]

16. !

[FailureToCommunicate]

5. GOTV for 2008 in NH something similar happened to us more than once...

After the first time, I realized the wife was for Obama (and Shaheen) but was scared to talk about it in front of her husband so she stepped outside to speak. At one house we could clearly see a man sitting in front of the TV, with a rifle propped against the recliner. As the woman listened and smiled and asked about the literature, the man got up and turned up the TV volumn real loud. As we went on to the next neighborhood, I couldn't help but wonder what that poor woman had to put up with, live with day in and day out...

[struggle4progress]

13. I had an experience like that in 2010: the house was on a dirt road in an industrial area of town

I pull up in the road and park. The guy on the porch yells to find out if I'm having car trouble. He doesn't sound happy to see me. My list shows a woman's name, so I yell back I'm looking for her. He wants to know for what. I tell him I want to give her some info on the Democratic candidates. No, go away! The guy doesn't like Democrats, and a string of cusswords follows. His wife comes out on the porch and talks to him a minute. Then she yells, No! We don't want no Democrats around here! I apologize for bothering them and leave. According to my list, she's registered as a Democrat

[flying rabbit]

6. You have a great writing style.

Keep up the missives, and the mission. Thank you.

[struggle4progress]

8. Thanks!

[WinkyDink]

12. Totally concur! That thread title, so (deceptively) simple yet powerful and poetic.

[A HERETIC I AM]

14. Couldn't agree more.

Struggle4Progress does great work and writes about it in a compelling style.

[SammyWinstonJack]

17. Indeed!

[MadrasT]

18. Thank you for doing this work.