Sworn IN

Well, I just watched the ceremony. This is actually something I did not intend to watch. i'm a little odd when it comes to the ceremony around politics. anyway, a friend talking to me about this made me (without her realizing it) rethink this. Maybe because it has been 16 years since the Inaugural Address was meaningful to me. As readers here may have noticed, my posts have been sporadic. this is (in part) because elections take a lot out of me. i devote a lot of my time, money, and heart into these things and i just feel exhausted and sometimes have trouble picking back up. (look at old posts here after each election).

The speech was good. I cannot tell if it will go down in history as profound, but it was very much something we (i) needed. He took great pains to address what i call the Republican fears. not just fears about Democrats or Obama, but rather fears that the Republican Leadership have created: The government's existence is terrible and can't be trusted, then using this notion as cover to run a government designed to fail and privatize work for more expense. The idea that we must give up our rights to be protected. That the President is above the law and and you're unpatriotic to disagree. A passive aggressive, and sometimes not so passive, tone that not everyone here is quite as American as everyone else. An enabled irresponsibility.

The speech hit on the themes i really liked from the acceptance speech. the parts of both that were important to me were the the references to this serious state we are in. One of the most impressive things i've seen (along with his speech on race) was on election night when he ordered the fireworks not to be shot at Grant Park. the reason was the serious, almost grave tone that he took. We won, but this is the beginning of the real work. That we are in dire straits and that the previous leadership as not required sacrifice from us. That is ending. I like hearing our problems taken in a serious tone. Not simple platitudes that suggest "we shall prevail," but a shaking of the people by their collars. We are in tough times and we ALL need to fix it. not "it will be ok" or "THEY will fix it" or "I will fix it". I think it has been a decade since I've heard an elected official tell us that WE have to meet these expectations...and hearing that the expectations go beyond "freedom" or "liberty".

We have to conserve. We have to be responsible for the obligations of the nation.

I have said many times about the change in leadership, that i'm ready for the grown ups to be back in charge. I'm tired of Men that fight 2 wars and never budget the cost. I feel like the nation's inside has been hulled so that the favored may get their way. I did feel happy today and i did feel slightly inspired. To be quite frank, the real way i felt was relief. Like i don't have to be sick anymore. I've been very sick for a very long time. I am ready for life to be better again.

I really liked the comments stating that we are 'ready to lead once more'.

People were cheering the helicopter taking bush away, and that is telling.

Dinner from last week

This is a test.

New Orleans Musem of Art Sculpture Garden

I like the New Orleans Museum of Art a lot. the entrance to the grounds is pretty damn awesome. CLICK the photos for nice big shots. I really liked the last one.