A nice one and a half hour train ride and walk to the area left me feeling psyked up and ready to campaign and when I finally got off the train station at Southall I was greeted by a bright open sky and a warm yet pleasant breeze. The area was clean, nice and spoke to me of one of those areas that knows its in London but doesn't quite get into all the busy hustle and bustle or crime and disorder which unfortunately plague its more inner reaches. There was also this wonderful smell of aromatic spice in the air and although at first I thought romantically this was the general aroma of multicultural Britain it turned out later simply to be the local kebab shop just outside the station (which I would advise any spice loving campaigner on an empty stomach to check out).

I set off on the quick walk to the HQ spotting a couple of Lib Dem posters on the way though when I finally got there I realised all of a sudden that I hadn't a clue what I was actually going to do. To my great fortune though, those in charge had thought of ignorant fools like myself and the bloke who seemed to be in charge (Alan) got me to sign in and directed me to a table where I quickly found myself sticking addresses on envelopes. It was monotonous and, strangely enough, hard work although I was spurred on by the general enthusiasm of those around me. I was kindly offered tea by a guy called Jonathan and a gap year student for Oxford called Mark directed our table and got me to grips with the task. I had a bit of a chat with those around me, all party members, some were local, others like myself were from all over the shot with one guy having come all the way from Eastleigh and another from Bristol. The general impression I got was one of hope. We aren't sure whether we're going to win, but we know we've got a chance which is why I suppose we're putting so much effort into it all. I also spied Tom Brake MP to the left of me also addressing envelopes which was a nice little moral boost and heard from the bloke from Eastleigh that Chris Huhne is going to be up here a couple more times. Ming is obviously trying to mobilise the hoard (or gang maybe is a more fitting description). 

 After this was finished I did a good solid 2 1/2 hour bit of leafleting with Mark or as i shall call him 'the smart bloke what is going to Oxford'. This was a lot more fun, and although they gave us far too many leaflets to deliver I did a good job of delivering to about 3 or 4 roads before turning back home. We were in an area where I think me and Mark must have been the only white people around and a few people I met couldn't speak English, let alone read it. I also got to talk to a few people and I got some really good responses when I told people about the election in person and although I felt annoyed about not being able to answer one woman's question about when the actual election was (a minor fault on our leaflet) I think I made a few converts.

It was probably a more Labour dominant area in the place I was campaigning (more labour posters up than Lib Dem though no Cons), but I think we've made good headway there. I even met a Labour campaigner leafletting the very road we were doing  and although he had failed to push all his leaflets down the letter box I resisted the temptation to take them out and throw them away (I would advise any leafleter to make sure that their leaflets are fully through the letter box in case of immoral tories or dare I say it Liberals).

I also had an elderly man breakdown in tears before me as he told me of how his wife had died in an NHS hospital after being moved around several times. Added to this it turned out his father had been a white British officer in India (his mother being Indian) and therefore might have served with my own grandfather. I was moved and in a way emboldened. It reminded me that this election means real things to ordinary people and isn't just a power game as portrayed by the media (and some of the less moral bloggers). Mark told me afterwards that its rather sad how despair in people can often lead to hope for oppossition parties. I felt differently though. Politics means to me more than just winning and losing elections or how someones sadness can be turned to political gain. I somehow feel that my convictions of politics being about people, not about power (my A level New Labour politics teacher would oft tell me it was the other way round) are more firm and entrenched. If we win this election it wont be just because of hard work on our part, its because we'll have given hope to a population of people sceptical about government and the people who fail to represent them. The thumbs up that man gave to me after our conversation meant more to me than all the leaflets I'd delivered and letters I'd addressed ever could. I'm going up again tomorrow, wish me luck and maybe I'll see a few of you there.