We’re preparing for Obama’s inauguration, the coronation as some of you have called it, and it’s almost here. Finally here already, like your budding breasts when you were 11. Those of us who live within 100 miles of DC have been hearing about road closures and ramped up security for some time now, and one can only take so many duck and cover drills before wanting to head down the Capital Grille for a shot of Pucker. I’m happy the day is finally here, and not just because this means a thrilling end to eight years of political cloud cover that began when I lived in another state, a state in which chads hung by tiny paper threads that may or may not have resembled man hands. I’m happy too because we all can get on with the business of living again.
It has been unseasonably cold here. Unseasonably as in should not be this cold in any season, in any region, in any land inhabited by humans. Word on the local street is that all hand warmers are sold out. You know, the kind that old people and athletes crack like glow sticks, the kind that while warm as can be have also been known to pull off your flesh with their strong adhesive. They’re sold out, bought up in bulk from CVS and Target and even Home Depot, likely by locals looking to make a buck rather than large men with acres of potentially exposed flesh. I have no hand warmers for Tuesday. I don’t plan on buying them on the Mall from a man selling $8 Deer Parks and FBI thongs, but I’ve been known to be all talk more than once.
Against all good sense, I do plan to be there on Tuesday, to walk with the dimwitted and the overzealous to see Obama sworn in as President. I’m well aware that this may mean standing behind a rather tall couple from Ohio, the ones with accents you just cannot place, or a father who refuses to take a small child off his shoulders, one who so won’t remember any of it anyway. I’m well aware I may not see anything. But that will be my Obama experience, my inauguration moment, my two hours about which I can rant to fellow Washingtonians and blog to all three dear readers. Something will happen, and I will be there.
I do hope these ceremonies go off without a hitch, and by hitch I mean in the absence of both dirty bombs and the normal lame protesters prone to awful spelling, and that I get to be there. On the periphery, possibly outside the Mall security lines, but a spectator from a distance, nonetheless. When I first stood on the Grand Canyon’s edge, I placed a cell phone call, to whom I cannot recall; for this momentous event I’m going a different route. I’m going to try not to Twitter, try not to write, so that I can simply be a part of the process. Just there, in the moment. A witness to history, and most likely some very, very cold hands.
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Oh Kris, I’m so glad you will be there! I can understand the no Twitter thing, but one shout out Tweet when it’s done would be lovely for us who can’t be there. In fact, though I planned on surreptiously watching from my desk, I now have to present information to new hires. Sigh. I’ll probably miss the whole damn thing and it won’t be the same watching it on CNN an hour later. It just won’t.
Just being in the moment seems like a great idea. Enjoy.
How exciting for you! If I lived there, I think I would go. But I couldn’t see flying in for it. Although, if I did, we could have had many glasses of wine together and talked about Dr. Ross vs. Dr. Gates.
Since I live in NoVA and have been cut off to all DC access. Yes, there is the Metro but not for me. At least on Tuesday.
I will live vicariously through you. ENjoy for me as well.
I’m jealous you get the opportunity to go, even though it’ll probably be crazy with a record number of people attending. I’ll be starting my first class of the semester at precisely the same time as the swearing in ceremony. At any rate, please do turn everything off and just be in the moment.
maybe I will see you walking! I am still trying my darndest to score some tickets…
You know you’ll want to email CNN from your Blackberry at “the moment.”
So excited and jealous.
People from Ohio don’t have accents.
i’m heading over too :) and just fyi, there won’t be any security lines on the mall for us riff-raff without tickets – they decided there will be too many of us! so as long as you don’t bring guns or booze, you’re good to go!
I have never heard of hand warmers before! I want some! I’ll have to ask at CVS to see when their next shipment will come in.
I think it sounds perfect just experience the moment without realtime documentation.
The dimwitted and the overzealous… that struck a chord. There are so many high and/or unreasonable expectations for Obama and his administration, and I fear the reaction when the dimwitted and overzealous inevitably feel let down and then angry at the man who has so much good to bring to this country, even if he can’t walk on water.
I hope the high point of his years in office doesn’t begin and end tomorrow.
Have fun!
They may be out of hand warmers but try to score some Toasty Tootsies! Now that’ll keep you warm from the ground up! And as a former Ohioan, no we do not have accents.
Enjoy taking the Metro to the ceremony. As all the bathrooms will be closed, please remember to potty before you go out and stand around in the cold and drink all that red wine from your oh so sneaky bota bag.
And that accent? It’s Shaker Heights.
Coronation. What kind of an asshat calls it that? I do hope he wears flowing robes though.
“When I first stood on the Grand Canyon’s edge, I placed a cell phone call, to whom I cannot recall; for this momentous event I’m going a different route. I’m going to try not to Twitter, try not to write, so that I can simply be a part of the process. Just there, in the moment. A witness to history, and most likely some very, very cold hands.”
Love that. Here’s to a very momentous occasion, and all of us, whether physically present or watching from afar, a happy shiny part of it.
For months we have seriously considered coming down, even scheming with our Arlington friends what time we’d leave their house, in the frozen cold, to walk to the Mall.
But I am glad you are going to be there. Come home and write about it – I’ll be glued to the TV.
Beautiful! I shall be there with you in spirit!
I was watching the coverage and hoped that you were there…..
A dawning of a new day.
:-)
I’m happy you went. I’m kind of regretting my decision to not go, and not get shoved behind some tall dude with a kid on his shoulders. Granted it would have involved a trip from Kentucky and missing quite a bit of work just to get my toes stepped on, but like you said, it still would have been the experience. Hope yours was a blast!
I hope you were able to see something! I wandered around for a bit, didn’t see much, but at least I got a blog post out of it. :)
Glad you went, Kris. I was… around, but working.
As for expectations… Obama could hardly be worse than that useless Texas fuckwad we finally just got rid of.