Yeah, I was geeky enough to take photos of the TV images. This is of the crowd.
I was at Clinton's inaugural in 1993, and I thought the crowds were huge, but from what I say, the didn't go beyond the Washington Monument. Today, the steps of the Lincoln Memorial were packed with people facing the Captiol...a distance of 1.9 MILES away!!! And all the areas between were packed as well! It simply boggles my mind that people were at the Lincoln Memorial to see something on the Captiol steps!
When the homophobic pastor Rev. Warren spoke, I turned my back on the TV, just as I would have done were I there in person. He gives me and my fellow gays no respect, so I'll give him none.
My action meant nothing in the larger scheme of things, but it meant a lot to me.
Then, after Obama took the oath, I drank a whole glass of Asti right away. On my second glass, I got a photo next to my yard sign that I framed.
And then I followed that up with a few more geeky TV photos. I had the entire bottle finished in under ten minutes.
After this, i went to mom's and did some laundry, watching the rest of the coverage. I was there until 7:00. When mom came home, we sat and watched it together. Later we went to get KFC and ate it watching the parade.
This was the first Inugural Parade I had ever witnessed. I remember Jimmy Carter getting elected, and I seemed to remember seeing he and Rosalyn walking down Pennsylvania Avenue, but I don't remember a parade. I certainly wouldn't be watching the parade in 80, 84, and 88. In 1992, I was at Clinton's Inugaural, and when the Parade was taking place, I was driving back from DC. In 1996, I just watched Clinton's swearing in, I wasn't as enthused the second time around. And there's no way in hell I'd watch anything from 2000 or 2004. So, at 41, and on the ninth opportunity, I actually saw an Inaugural Parade.
What a day.
POLT Listening to continued inaugural coverage
As for our common defense, we reject as false the choice between our safety and our ideals. - President Barack Obama
5 comments:
We watched it at work today, but I couldn't get in until about 11:45 AM. I walked into the room of people and Warren was still speaking. I turned around and walked back out and didn't go back in until he was done. The man disgusts me as well.
That is a great photo of you in front of your sign.
Have you seen Barack and Michelle's first dance at the Neighborhood Ball?
Beyonce does Etta James "At Last", totally awesome btw.
They're so cute together btw. I wish them all the best.
Glad you enjoyed the coverage. They just said on the radio there were between 1.5 and 2 million people there and no arrests amazingly. They also said the President to have nearly that many was Lyndon Johnson in 1965 and that Bill Clinton had about 800,000 and GWB and Reagan about 500,000. It was on the TVs at work but I only saw a bit of it in the lobby as I passed through.
There was a story on NPR this morning about a 105 year old African American woman who was determined to attend the Inauguration. Her nurse bundled her in a head to toe sleeping bag and rolled her onto the Mall in her wheelchair. When interviewed after the swearing in and speech, she told the NPR reporter that the most amazing part of the day was that she was in the middle of this happy crowd and it didn't matter what color she was and it didn't matter what color he was and it didn't matter what anyone's color was.
Hopefully it won't take another 100 years to achieve that the same experience for who someone loves vs what color someone is.
It was, for the msot part, a wonderful day!
It was a glorious day.
Onanite
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