Yikes! I let a whole week go by without posting about Inauguration Weekend. To be honest, that whole weekend was busy and I filed way more than I could handle in my "to blog later" pile. So now, I'll try to briefly recap using what I remember.
The concert was pretty great -- lots of interesting readings and big celebrities -- and the walk home was a good way to thaw my toes again. On Monday, we went to a Obamabash sponsored by Jamie's group. They had some pretty good musical acts and really tasty finger foods. I also finally got to meet all of the people that Jamie had been working with for so long in his group.
Then, of course, we had the Inauguration. For a long time, I had been planning to avoid the crowds, and just watch the event from the warmth and comfort of my living room. I feebly resisted...and by Friday I already knew I was going. I was NOT, however, going to wake up at 4am to get there. Instead, we decided on a much more reasonable time of 7:30am and aimed to meet some friends of ours on the way over at 8am. We knew that we would probably not get the best view, but figured we could position ourselves near a Jumbotron and see well enough.
We met up with Trevor -- Jamie's friend from college -- who was wearing his "Minnesota" outfit. I guess while he was braving the cold there, he regularly wore this particular jacket over a t-shirt. What I don't think he took into account was that in college you only have to face the freezing cold air for short bursts of time, whereas this event would require at least 5 hours of freezing cold air. Suffice to say he was cold. But I think he was excited enough for the Inauguration that he didn't mind too much.
We followed the signs as best we could...mostly following the crowds and ended up with an incredible space despite our late departure. We were super close to the first Jumbotron and could still also see the Capitol. The crowd was incredible. Normally, my claustrophobic self (yes, even outdoors) would not last long -- but my fears of a stampede quickly vanished when I stood in the crowd and realized nothing could dampen this crowd's spirits that day. Everyone was just so happy and so friendly. Even when the almost 2 million people were trying to funnel out of the Mall, everyone was friendly and apologetic for pushing. It really was great.
But the best part (aside from Obama being sworn in) was watching Bush get into the helicopter and fly right over us. The crowd around me waved and sang goodbye...
It's probably more interesting with the video. I haven't gotten around to uploading all of the video we took...it'll be up soon -- er, at least some of it will. We walked home once again from The Mall -- this time through some pretty crazy crowds -- and by the time we got there we were frozen and starving. We had some of our friends over and all looked back fondly at our morning.
That night, Jamie and I had the Youth Ball. I will not delve into the mishap with my dress...but let's just say there was panic and we got out much later than intended. We waited in line to get in...a line which was around the block...and not at all fun to stand in when it is below twenty, and you're wearing a short dress...and strappy sandals. We knew not to expect much: we figured we'd be on our feet all night with no place to sit, we ate a big lunch because we figured there wouldn't be food, and we planned to hold our coats as the coat check would be a nightmare. Really, the only thing that motivated me to go and brave the cold in the strappy shoes was the idea of seeing President Obama up close and watching him dance. Never mind the musical acts...not a big fan of Fall Out Boy, Kid Rock, or Kanye West.
I am not kidding when I say that Jamie and I were the last ones locked out of the ballroom. The only person between us and that freaking ballroom was a Secret Service guy. AND, he was not at all what I expected him to be. I was expecting stoic, threatening, and not unlike those guys with the fuzzy hats in England. This guy was talkative and friendly. Friendly, except he was NOT letting us in. Boo.
Jamie and I eventually did get in, but long after President Obama left. Still it was a once-in-a-lifetime experience. Although it did feel like prom like many told me it would.
Probably the best Inauguration-related thing that happened was actually today at work. I was observing a teacher with a Pre-Kindergarten class. As part of their Morning Meeting they were talking about big events that happened in January (as the month comes to a close). The teacher pointed to a picture of Obama and asked who the gentleman was and all of the children started raising their hands enthusiastically. FOUR YEAR OLDS...tripping over themselves to talk about our President. I heard facts about our President excitedly burst out of their mouths: "44th President!", "dad's from Kenya!", "his wife is Michelle!", "he works with everybody!"
Later, when I was talking to one of these FOUR YEAR OLDS I mentioned "President Obama" and he quickly corrected me in his little voice: "President Barack HUSSEIN Obama" with special emphasis on that middle name. So funny.
I love that these children are excited about their new President because it means that their moms, dads, uncles, aunts, grandmas, grandpas, foster parents, brothers, sisters, neighbors, etc. are excited about their new President. It truly is an incredible time to be working with children because even the four year olds know they are living through a historic time...
I am sorry for the shoddy writing in this post. There was a lot to cover and it is below 50 in this particular room of our house and I'm trying to get out of here before I freeze. Like, I'm thinking, it's in the low 40s. Stupid windows.
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