My mother leads a limited life in retirement. During her long weekly phone calls, she shares with me a bit about what is going on at church, the condition of the laundry room at her condo complex ("Dreadful! These new people are piglets! I find wet thongs just sitting in the washing machines!"). I hear a lot about missing people, car chases and other shocking, just shocking, stories that she's seen on Fox News.

I could never imagine that she would vote any way except Republican. She'd rather discuss Mad Men and movies, not politics, so the subject never came up.

But not yesterday.

Somehow, she got hold of and read a copy of Vanity Fair someone left out. There was an article in there about Romney, specifically, his IRA. And her interest was piqued.

My mother is a retired nurse. She's frugal with what she saved. It's not much, but she's got a roof over her head (despite having to share that communal roof with "piglets" who leave things in the condo washers as evidence to her that our society is quickly abandoning its founding principles), enough to eat, cable TV and health care.

Now she is outraged. Furious.

"How did Romney get SO MUCH MONEY into his IRA?" she asked me.

Out of her night shift earnings, she contributed to hers as well. A light was coming on and she added, "He's playing by different rules."

And how does a lifelong Catholic feel about Paul Ryan?

"He does not have a clue."

About what? I asked.

EVERYTHING, she replied. He knows nothing about foreign policy. Or about washing dishes.

This conversation occurred before the debates even started and we both agreed we needed to get off the phone to get dinner finished and cleaned up before the debates began.

But before she hung up, my mother made one last comment. "I'm afraid. I'm afraid Romney will do something to mess with Social Security and Medicare. My IRA isn't big like his. It's not much, but it's all I've got."

If a person who is on a steady diet of Fox News has turned against Romney, it's looking better and better for Obama.