The 44th President of the United States of America has arrived. President Obama was sworn in on Tuesday (and apparently again last night, just to make sure the Chief Justice could get it right this time) in front of a crowd of possibly 3 million people. Everyone in this city has a story ranging from a lucky situation and good timing to months of effort and heightened expectations but all are filled with excitement. It was a magical day in this city.
We watched the swearing in with friends, and we watched the parade at home. It was a fun relaxing day.
At the end of the day, things ramped up a bit. The night before we got free tickets to one of the official inagural balls; Southern States Regional Ball. After P was down for the night the Mister and I had some Coke with dinner and brewed some coffee for the ride to the ball. We donned our 'best' and made sure the babysitter was settled before heading out the door for our evening adventure.
Coffee in hand we decided to just try and drive to the ball and see how far we got. In about 20 minutes we were near the ball and found a parking space about 3 blocks from the entrance. YoHoo!
We danced, we snacked, we had a few drinks, we did LOTS of people watching, and we waited and waited and waited for The President and First Lady to arrive.
About 11:45 the Vice President and Dr. Bidden made their entrance and danced. And then we debated, do we stay or should we go? When will he come? We decided to wait 15 minutes and see what happens. Shortly after that the band marched in and played a few songs, then the color guard marched in, and then...The President and First Lady. It was a complete thrill to be part of the crowd, cheering, smiling and trying to capture it on film.
Our story is one of pure luck! A friend with extra tickets and a closet with a tux and a ball gown...and voila.
At Last
living, laughing, loving on S street
7 comments:
How wonderful! I'm so glad you could go!
So exciting!!! And even more amazing--you had a ball gown in your closet!!
wow! so cool!
it's good to hear you screaming dawn! JM
so, a tad better than bowling? whit
What an amazing experience!! I was in Dublin watching the inauguration on tv with three children doing their best to keep me from actually hearing any of it. When Cerys asked why tears were streaming down my face, I couldn't quite express the mix of homesickness, desperate longing for good friends who were near the festivities, and a strange sort of hope welling up in me. It was also the first time I actually felt like an ex-pat, watching a man who was going to the be the President of the United States, but not actually MY president. Anyway, I'm glad you got to enjoy it!
How exciting!
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