Inaguration

We woke up at 6am. We had fruit loops. Always a good way to start.

By 6:30am, we were out the door and spent $20 between the two of us for a shuttle from our hotel to the nearest Metro station. There were several older black folks on the bus, talking (we were mostly silent) and it was obvious they were stoked. It occurred to me, that this day is the closest I will ever really come to sharing something of their rather fascinating culture as if I were a part of it, not just simply borrowing from it or visiting it.

We arrived at the train station and it was PACKED. On Monday, we got there, and spent 15 minutes trying to get a ticket in line and that seemed like a long time. It took a half an hour just to get in the door, and another 30 minutes to get from the door to the train. We took the train for 12 stops without daring to transfer, because every stop we went by had people wanting to get on the train.

We got to the mall about 10:15. It was COLD. There was some nifty singing in the background. They announced lots of people who came, some of whom pleased more than others. The crowd went absolutely bonkers any time Obama or Biden or family thereof appeared. It was definitely a uniquely American Affair of State. It might not have a thousand years of tradition like a European power, but in my opinion it had just as much majesty and decorum.

The President's speech was masterful, and restored my faith in him that had been lost with ....(see the Codex in September). It spoke of the need for hard work, but it also spoke of the true American Philosophy and the ability to go forward and do great things. I am pleased, and more sure of anything than I have been in a very long time that this man is the right man for the job. It may be the most memorable event (aside from my marriage) in which I will partake in my entire life.

Re: The periphials. Aretha Franklin was cool. The instrumental was awesome. The National Anthem was well done. The poem would have been awesome but should have been BEFORE Obama's speech. Afterwards, it just seemed lame.

The invokations.....both well spoken, but there was a world of difference. I'll write more on that on Codex tomorrow.

And then....the way home. 5 hours. All of the amazing planning that made the whole weekend work like clockwork fell apart. There were no instructions on where to go, no places to warm up, no places to eat that weren't crammed full of people. At one point Nature called for Jennifer and we spent 45 minutes trying to find a place where she could go. She had to go through office building security to get to a place. We finally got to a metro station we could take, and stood in line for ANOTHER hour and a half. We were very glad to get on the train. Neither of us had the stamina to wait 30 minutes for the charter bus so we just took a Taxi home.

Overall, it was amazing and awesome. I'm glad that we did it, but whoever planned the end departure belongs in charge of the Federal Zoo instead. Strike that. They belong IN the Federal Zoo.