I closed out my night at Empire Dine & Dance, a popular bar in Portland, Maine, where hundreds of Barack Obama supporters were packed in like sardies, watching the CNN returns on a large-screen TV.

When the TV anchor announced that Obama had surpassed the number of electoral votes needed to become our next president, pandemonium broke out inside the bar. The clamour was deafening! People were screaming, cheering, crying, hugging, kissing, dancing, and chanting Obama's name. Outside, cars drove past blowing their horns.

Two young Portland women got choked up as I spoke to them about what this election meant to them. Each told me that they'd never felt so proud to be an American.

Time to go to bed; I'm exhausted!