It's going to get a lot worse before it gets better
Last night, I was out with La Dona's parents who are in town for the inauguration. La Dona's dad is the mayor of our fair home town and, since term limits are rearing their ugly head, will be swearing off politics after this spring (at least for a while). So he and La Dona's mom wanted to take full advantage of their last trip to DC as part of the national mayoral convention. Wow am I boring everyone else as much as I am myself? Jesus. So didn't need that backstory. Anyhoo, I am out to dinner at McCormick and Schmick's, which in case you didn't know is a chain seafood restaurant. It's a nice place, usually serves decent food, I got nothing against them.
What I did have a problem with was that since the restaurant is on DC's vaunted K Street (where all the lobbyists live) and two blocks from the White House, it was chock-a-block with Texans there to "celebrate" the inauguration. You could not walk two steps without tripping over Bouffant Betty and her floor-length fur. Not to mention men with big hats and bigger buckles. Too much red, white, and blue going on.
Also, we happened to get seated outside a private room where Tom Ridge was giving a talk. So we had a Secret Serviceman posted right outside our table the whole time. It really thrilled La Dona's parents, who kept making jokes about the guy's presence. It was kind of funny, especially when you figure in about two weeks Tom Ridge will be striding the world solo as a private citizen. I was happy that these out-of-towners got a taste of life in DC, complete with psycho wannabe van-bombers, Secret Service, and soon-to-be B-list politicos.
In 2000, I had tickets to the inauguration, so G&T and I trudged down in the rain and mud and watched. Even though I was pissed about the election and not happy about W coming into office, I figured it was a historic event and I should take advantage of being in the right place at the right time. Well, this year it's much different. The whole thought of Bush being in office for four more years truly makes me ill and even if it wasn't freezing outside I wouldn't go to the inauguration/any of the attending festivities. I don't even want to go to counter-protest, not even to Turn My Back on Bush. I just want to pretend the whole thing isn't happening.
We get tomorrow off from work - it's a federal holiday in DC, and we follow the feds - so I'll be in my happy place and in denial. It's fun - come join me! Plus, a small saving grace is that this is a three-day work week. Monday we had off because, as the Onion put it, I got to let freedom ring instead of my alarm clock. So this short week makes the whole thing seem more unrealistic and dreamlike and thus marginally more palatable.
What I did have a problem with was that since the restaurant is on DC's vaunted K Street (where all the lobbyists live) and two blocks from the White House, it was chock-a-block with Texans there to "celebrate" the inauguration. You could not walk two steps without tripping over Bouffant Betty and her floor-length fur. Not to mention men with big hats and bigger buckles. Too much red, white, and blue going on.
Also, we happened to get seated outside a private room where Tom Ridge was giving a talk. So we had a Secret Serviceman posted right outside our table the whole time. It really thrilled La Dona's parents, who kept making jokes about the guy's presence. It was kind of funny, especially when you figure in about two weeks Tom Ridge will be striding the world solo as a private citizen. I was happy that these out-of-towners got a taste of life in DC, complete with psycho wannabe van-bombers, Secret Service, and soon-to-be B-list politicos.
In 2000, I had tickets to the inauguration, so G&T and I trudged down in the rain and mud and watched. Even though I was pissed about the election and not happy about W coming into office, I figured it was a historic event and I should take advantage of being in the right place at the right time. Well, this year it's much different. The whole thought of Bush being in office for four more years truly makes me ill and even if it wasn't freezing outside I wouldn't go to the inauguration/any of the attending festivities. I don't even want to go to counter-protest, not even to Turn My Back on Bush. I just want to pretend the whole thing isn't happening.
We get tomorrow off from work - it's a federal holiday in DC, and we follow the feds - so I'll be in my happy place and in denial. It's fun - come join me! Plus, a small saving grace is that this is a three-day work week. Monday we had off because, as the Onion put it, I got to let freedom ring instead of my alarm clock. So this short week makes the whole thing seem more unrealistic and dreamlike and thus marginally more palatable.
posted by Her Ladyship @ 11:36 AM
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