Inauguration Photo Thread

[donheff]

Quote:

Originally Posted by harley hmm...I just printed that pic out and it looks pretty good. Hey buddy, wanna buy a ticket?

I have to admit, I considered printing a couple of copies on matte photo paper. But the originals are two sided and embossed - so no go. Besides, cheating on such a positive occasion would be truly venal.

[CuppaJoe]

http://video.aol.com/partner/cnn/air...guration:music

Interesting choice of music, all about LBYM and freedom, John Williams’ "Air and Simple Gifts."

Here’s the words to the old Shaker song, “Simple Gifts,” from Copland’s “Appalachian Spring.” I prefer the Thomas Hampson version but apparently he’s not giving it out free on the internet.

YouTube - Marilyn Horne "Simple Gifts" by Aaron Copland

[Moemg]

Aretha Franklin singing " My Country Tis of Thee " brought tears to my eyes . Plus her hat was fabulous .

[FinanceDude]

Quote:

Originally Posted by samclem Don't be a grump. It's a big day for the whole country. Just wait until he walks across the Reflecting Pool.

Hey, nice to see noone practices reciting the Oath of Office......

[ERD50]

Quote:

Originally Posted by samclem Don't be a grump. It's a big day for the whole country. Just wait until he walks across the Reflecting Pool.

That would not have been too impressive. It was frozen solid. After the ceremony was over, the guards didn't bother to keep people off the pool. Yes, even mere mortals were walking on water!

Quote:

Originally Posted by FinanceDude Hey, nice to see noone practices reciting the Oath of Office......

Apparently, it was Chief Justice John Roberts who erred. That put Obama in a tough spot, he clearly knew which was correct, but then you end up pointing out the other's mistake.

Damned if you do, damned if you don't - but he might as well get used to that - he's our President now (and I wish him all the best)!

As much as I don't put much stock in pomp and circumstance, and I'm a lot more interested in what actions will follow than all this hoopla, I have to admit I got caught up in it a bit. It was good to see that it all came off peacefully.

I was hoping the market would be up on that, I want to sell some calls, but not looking to be a good day for that.

-ERD50

[samclem]

Lots to be proud of today. Every inauguration, to me, validates the incredible process we have and highlights the importance of the Constitution. It's not about the new President, or about the departing one. 44 peaceful changes of power from one man to another over the course of over 230 years--few nations can match it. As long as we have the Constitution and as long as respect for its tenets remains strong in the populace, our future is bright.

[CuppaJoe]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moemg Aretha Franklin singing " My Country Tis of Thee " brought tears to my eyes . Plus her hat was fabulous .

Yes! That hat will have a prominent place in the apolitical history of inauguration attire, "from JFK's no hat to Aretha."

[Khan]

Quote:

Originally Posted by CuppaJoe Yes! That hat will have a prominent place in the apolitical history of inauguration attire, "from JFK's no hat to Aretha."

snopes.com: John F. Kennedy's Hat

[donheff]

Wonderful event. The crowds were huge and friendly. I left at 8:00 AM and the mall was already full. Had to walk all the way down to the Washington Monument. I will post pictures later. For now this one will have to suffice:

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Moemg Aretha Franklin singing " My Country Tis of Thee " brought tears to my eyes . Plus her hat was fabulous .

I wish I could have seen it! Maybe it will be on the news tonight.

They didn't relent and allow us to gather at a TV in a conference room until the last minute. When I got there it was already 11:04 (12:04 Eastern), a minute before the swearing in began. I am glad I got to see that, and his speech which I thought was so inspirational and moving.

[Purron]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Want2retire I wish I could have seen it! Maybe it will be on the news tonight. They didn't relent and allow us to gather at a TV in a conference room until the last minute. When I got there it was already 11:04 (12:04 Eastern), a minute before the swearing in began. I am glad I got to see that, and his speech which I thought was so inspirational and moving.

W2R - in 293 days no one will be able to dictate your TV viewing schedule any more

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Purron W2R - in 293 days no one will be able to dictate your TV viewing schedule any more

I know!! I can hardly wait! When I first started counting the days, I had 2350 to go. It seems very close, now.

The ridiculous part of it was that we work for the President, as part of the Executive Branch. So I feel like any Presidential inauguration is kind of special from a work standpoint.

[Purron]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Want2retire I know!! I can hardly wait! When I first started counting the days, I had 2350 to go. It seems very close, now. The ridiculous part of it was that we work for the President, as part of the Executive Branch. So I feel like any Presidential inauguration is kind of special from a work standpoint.

As a former GS'er, I understand this all too well. Here's Aretha, enjoy!

YouTube - Welcome Barack Obama - Aretha Franklin sings "My Country Tis of Thee"

[harley]

I love Aretha and have seen her 3 times before, but she seems sort of short of breath in this one. Could be the weather, I suppose, or she could just be getting older. Of course, she's still better than pretty much anybody out there. Thanks for posting it.

[W2R]

Quote:

Originally Posted by Purron As a former GS'er, I understand this all too well. Here's Aretha, enjoy!

Purron, THANK YOU so much!!!! That was even more moving than I had thought it would be. Her rendition was amazing and brought tears to my eyes too.

Love the hat, too!

What a nice surprise after flipping channels for an hour and not being able to find it.

Oh, and harley, yes, she is getting older but I think that is why it touched me so much. She is older, but still amazing.

[aaronc879]

Quote:

Originally Posted by harley I love Aretha and have seen her 3 times before, but she seems sort of short of breath in this one. Could be the weather, I suppose, or she could just be getting older. Of course, she's still better than pretty much anybody out there. Thanks for posting it.

Of course she's out of breathe. She's out in the freezing cold. She's almost 67 years old, and about 100 pounds overweight.

I still challenge you to get to your second hand when counting the people who could ever, at their best, out sing her even now.

[harley]

As I said, she's still the best. I was just saying. Like my comments about BB King on another forum. He's been dialing it in for years, but I say more power to him. It's all paybacks for the hard years when he was busting his ass for basically nothing. I don't think it's blasphemy to comment on people getting past their prime. I wish my prime was a tiny fraction of them now.

And I could, but I won't. No reason to start a flame war. I love Aretha. One of my proudest moments was when my DD was 7 and told me that is she could sing like anyone she would choose Aretha.

[Purron]

Quote:

Originally Posted by harley As I said, she's still the best. I was just saying. Like my comments about BB King on another forum. He's been dialing it in for years, but I say more power to him. It's all paybacks for the hard years when he was busting his ass for basically nothing. I don't think it's blasphemy to comment on people getting past their prime. I wish my prime was a tiny fraction of them now. And I could, but I won't. No reason to start a flame war. I love Aretha. One of my proudest moments was when my DD was 7 and told me that is she could sing like anyone she would choose Aretha.

Well said harley. The reality is, Aretha has a spirit and soul that is amazing. I agree she is no longer in her prime and was not in her best voice today. Even so, the emotion she put into the song was simply amazing. I suspect that's what your DD at age 7 picked up on. We all know how kids are often so much wiser than adults. We should listen more closely to them!

[donheff]

It was a great day, with huge crowds of wonderful people. We started out about 8:00 and walked south of the Capitol paralleling the Mall:



At every opportunity to turn toward the Mall, thousands of people were jammed up, so we kept moving west looking for an opportunity to see the show:



We eventually came out by the Washington Monument about a mile and a half from the Capitol:





But the sound system and video monitor was great so we didn't miss a thing. Here is the 44th President taking the oath of office:



In the meantime, DW was closer in:



That's Barb on the right and our friend Sharon on the left:



Here is their view back toward us -- way back by that little monument. Gives you a feel for the crowd size:



Getting back home was easier than getting down there. We skirted way south where the busses were parked and the crowds were thin:

[Linney]

Quote:

Originally Posted by samclem Lots to be proud of today. Every inauguration, to me, validates the incredible process we have and highlights the importance of the Constitution. It's not about the new President, or about the departing one. 44 peaceful changes of power from one man to another over the course of over 230 years--few nations can match it. As long as we have the Constitution and as long as respect for its tenets remains strong in the populace, our future is bright.

Agreed, it is indeed an incredible process.

But.... some day..... I want to see the above sentiment written as: "XX peaceful changes of power from one person to another"

--Linney
a Barack supporter, not a Hillary supporter