Friday, November 21, 2008

Inauguration anxiety

I am worried that inauguration weekend = New Year's Eve, in the following ways:

1.  It will be cold.
2.  There will be huge crowds everywhere. 
3.  There will be big parties, but I will not go to them, as they will be really expensive and, I suspect, possibly lame/depressing, like the New Year's Eve party Sally is at at the end of When Harry Met Sally, before Harry arrives, but still I may feel left out because I am not going to them. 
4.  Bars will probably charge a cover, and will be very crowded.
5.  Everybody knows it is supposed to be festive and celebratory, but all those expectations may collapse in on themselves, as happens to Gary Sinise's character in Forrest Gump, when he's sitting at the bar at New Year's Eve with confetti falling on him looking like he might cry.  I suppose in this case what one would be crying about would be, How long until I get disillusioned with Obama?  What if he can't fix the economy after all?  Gulp. 

But!  On the other hand, as my friends who may come to DC for inauguration* pointed out, we did spend New Year's Eve 2001-2002 in Chicago, with sub-zero temperatures, with about 15 people, many of whom got the flu, sleeping in 2 rooms in a Day's Inn, which had insane heaters we could not turn off, forcing us to open the window to counteract the heaters, resulting in alternating gale-force hot-and-cold drafts wafting across all the feverish, testy people.  And we're still friends! 


*I hope you guys do come!  I'm sure it will be fun! 

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