I still get emotional when I think of this day.  Why……I’m not sure but I’m not alone.  CNN had contacted me earlier and had arranged for a car to pick Chris and I up at our hotel.  They wanted us to come to their studio and do an interview.  This was exciting!  We had to be picked up really early… I think it was around 6:30 or 6:45 am.  Oh well the price of fame.  We then got a text that we had more time and the car would come later…..however it came earlier! 

Our interview was to be aired at 9:15 am.  This would give us time to get to the Capitol to see the swearing in at 11:30 am.  However, when we got to CNN we were pushed back to 9:45 am.  Chris and I went to the green room for coffee and pastries.  We were watching the crowds gather at the Capitol on the TV.  We started getting nervous that we wouldn’t arrive in time to see the event we can all the way from FL to see.  So we ditched the show and took off on foot for the Capitol.  I think we made the right decision because the lines were so long that we couldn’t find the end!!!  We kept saying, “ is this the yellow line…yes it is, is this still the yellow line….yes it is”.  Finally we found the end!  We took our place and took one step at a time.  I think we were in this slow moving line for a couple of hours.  Once we got to security it went faster.  Unfortunately because of the temporary bleacher erected for the media we couldn’t see the podium.  However there was another large jumbo tron right in front of us just a few feet away.  The crowds were excited and emotional.  As were we. 

The festivities were: 

•  Musical Selection: The US Marine Bank, followed by The San Francisco Boys Chorus and The San Francisco Girls Chorus
• Call to Order and Welcoming Remarks: Senator Dianne Feinstein
• Invocation: Dr. Rick Warren
• Musical Selection: Aretha Franklin
• VP (elect) Biden sworn in by Associate Justice of the Supreme Court, the Honorable John Paul Stevens (sounds like a musical group)
• Musical Selection: John Williams, composer/arranger with Itzhak Perlman, (violin), Yo-Yo Ma (cello), Gabriela Montero (piano) and Anthony McGill (clarinet)
• President-elect Barack Obama took the Oath of Office using President Lincoln’s Inaugural Bible administered by the Chief Justice of the US, the Honorable John G. Roberts, Jr.  (which the Chief flubbed up and the President had to retake the oath) 
• Then the Inaugural Address
• Poem Elizabeth Alexander
• Benediction: The Reverend Dr. Joseph Lowery
• and then the National Anthem: The United States Navy Bank “Sea Chanters”

What a memory I have. 

Since Chris and I gave away our parade tickets to Kate & Karl on Monday we headed back to ….you guessed it…Sonoma’s!  It was the only place to eat.  We watched the parade and got to see President Bush board Air Force One for the last time and head back to Texas.  The crowd in the restaurant cheered!  It’s so nice to once again be proud of our President.  I felt sorry for President Bush and his wife.  What a tough job for anyone.