Wednesday, January 28, 2009

40% of all statistics are made up

saw this viral video at the healthcare conference at the big h last weekend. nice soundtrack, at least.

Monday, January 26, 2009

some more inauguration pics

the chief got sweet pics last tuesday.

check them out here.

Tuesday, January 20, 2009

an unimaginable day








today was one of those days when i got to be in the right place in the right time. dr. wintermute and i attended the inauguration. it was unimaginably cold and unimaginably uplifting. we stayed a shan de la shan's last night on 9th and E. walking around penn quarter last night, the mood felt calmer than i expected. a lot of folks out, but no ridiculous lines. we bought a scarf at H&M, and it felt like business as usual.

this morning, we headed out around 7:30. while the streets were pretty orderly, there were a few confusing moments. we walked down to the 4th street tunnel, then back up over on to maryland street, and then we were turned away. that was actually the only moment where i doubted that it might work. the cop shook his head and said he didn't think there were letting in people without tickets anymore, but we could try down on 14th street. so then we sprinted. ok, we sprinted, then we walked, then we stood still, then we shuffled. halfway there, we actually ran into the chief and chief chick. in a crowd of two million people, there were only two people were intended to meet, and we literally ran into each other. what are the odds? they actually won inauguration tickets through their congressperson.

and then we were there. when we got our chance to pass through the barricade, i realized that we were going to make it to the mall. dr w and i broke into a jog.

i passed a smithsonian sign and saw the crowds piled up on the lawn in front of the washington monument, and i have to admit, it completely overwhelmed me. i think those moments can be the most powerful, because they come at you completing unexpected. when barack walked down the steps of the capitol, it certainly lifted the crowd, but i had been expecting that moment for some time. on the other hand, that moment when i held dr. w's hand, we jogged onto the lawn, i looked up at the monument and back at the capitol, well, i was unprepared. five seconds earlier, we were shuffling between barricades, and now we were here. all of the forces that brought me here flashed through my head, primarily, my parents moving halfway across the world to pursue the american dream, and i had to tell myself, "wintermute, keep it together."

we ended up getting to a spot halfway between the capitol and the washington monument, a great view, by about 9:30. i couldn't feel my toes about then minutes later. in the spirit of the day, a kind stranger gave dr. w a spare warmth pack (one of the chemical heat pads that you break open) when he overheard her saying how cold her hands were.

pictures speak louder than words, and just about everyone has seen the oath and address by now, so i will leave it to pics. below is the shot we will show to our kids someday and day, "your old man and mom were there." click here to see the whole set.