Before The Big Chill
REJECTED: October 2008

"There is no place like Alaska. That is why we call the rest of the United Sates the lower 48." Rhonda is a friendly, divorced paralegal with a bright and eloquent daughter, Kayla—a Julliard bound pianist, and a sophomore at Wasilla High School.

At Mocha Moose, a drive through coffee-hut, adorned with Palin propaganda for sale, Rhonda asks the young, blonde counter girl if Mocha Moose is the "Official Sarah Palin coffee shop."

The girl looks stumped. "No, she just gets her coffee here, and the owners are real close with her."

The "Palin Fever" beanie hats are overpriced at $20, so Rhonda chooses the buttons that say,"Palin Power" in pink script, above a pink stiletto heel. And another, "Got Lipstick? Palin '08.”

"Palin's sexual appeal hasn't been a detractor," says John Lackey, an engineer with a fiery mohawk. He continues, "She's capable and it hasn't hurt—America loves that she's attractive." Lackey is a Democrat but will vote, "Sarah." "She's done good for the state. Everyone's got jobs."

Meanwhile, Republican mayoral candidate Verne Rupright is fixing the "Vote Rupright" sign on the side of the road that was mauled by the high Wasilla winds. Rupright is a defense attorney and a cousin of Palin, but he has a broad range of supporters, including Wasilla’s more liberal set.

A fixture in the city is the Mug Shot Saloon, where Todd Palin and retired vets hang out. A self-described Army wife and chain-smoker tells me someone could walk to Russia in the winter. "Sarah can't talk White House language, but she is cute as a button." On the news, she recently saw Obama "with his back turned to the American flag, a sure sign that he's "anti-America."

Just a two-minute drive, (but a twenty-minute, painfully cold walk away), is The Grand View Suites, a "place for tourists, media people, and the Secret Service", according to a manicurist at Foxy Nail & Tanning, who does Sarah and Bristol Palin's nails.

Next door to the hotel is a Chili's restaurant, whose neon sign showcases the picturesque icy mountains that tower over the whole city.

Way up on that mountain is Perry Cowles of Perry's Rod & Custom, a hot rod shop. Cowles is a former classmate of Sarah and Todd Palin. His cautiousness belies his rockabilly getup and cool demeanor. He rides a Harley, is stocky and solid. Cowles finds his yearbook and says he was married to his first wife in high school and was quite close to Sarah at the time. "Nobody was serious back then."

"Sarah will redefine what a V.P. does and I think Obama is a closet Muslim."  When Perry receives a phone call, and finds out that Ted Stevens has just been convicted on all seven charges, he tenses up, and when he hangs up, is quiet for a few minutes. “People will still vote for him. Even if McCain raises healthcare taxes, I would vote for him. Even if he raised taxes 50 percent, I still would vote for him. He wiped other peoples shoes. There are three candidates, she is her own party."

-Jessica Pilot