Hail to the Chief!

January 21, 2013 was a great day to be an American. Everything about the second inauguration of Barack H. Obama made me proud, including the Presidential Inaugural Ball, which I attended with my son, Alex Footman. The DC Convention Center (700,000 square feet) was tricked out to appear as if 10 Senior Proms were taking place side by side (except for the very generous bars which featured every alcoholic beverage you could imagine). There must have been enough mink in that room to blanket a small nation.  My suggestions for future Inaugural Ball-goers follow. Shoes: wear flats (you will be on your feet for several hours; not a chair in sight) but be prepared to be dwarfed by the throngs of gorgeous young women in floor-length gowns wearing stiletto heels. They will obscure your view of the stage, even if you are squeezed into the third row. Sort of. (As if the term “rows” applies when 35,000 revelers are crammed together just to get a glimpse of A- and B-list celebrities and the honorees they have come to sing to/for. ) And those same young women in long dresses will occasionally look your way witheringly and say to you – as if you could move your feet an inch in any direction – “Are you stepping on my dress?” iPhones: the blessing and the curse of our time. In this instance, a curse because everyone – most especially the already 6’7” behemoth standing directly in front of me – and his/her husband wife, daughter, sister, brother, son, and daughter – will lift and keep lifted those instruments of immediate gratification just to get the money shot. So, yes, I saw the Obamas. I saw the Bidens. I saw Alicia Keys, Jamie Foxx, Jennifer Hudson, Katy Perry, Smokey, and Usher.  (Usher’s rendition of “America the Beautiful” was stunning. Not a dry eye around me.) (Thanks to the miracle of modern surgery, Smokey Robinson can virtually lay claim to an “ear to ear” smile. Better stop while you’re ahead, Smokey!) Mostly I saw them through the crooks of arms elevated and bent at a slight angle putting their iPhones to the test.  Entertainment: boogie if you feel like it, but this is not a dance as Dances go. The only people who danced were POTUS and FLOTUS and Joe and Dr. Jill. Oh, sure, there is a lot of moving around, but this is not the dancing you learned at Miss De Sauers Dance Class. Good company: you will make instant friendships with the erstwhile strangers standing in front, behind, and to each side of you. Be nice. Do not keep asking your 25-year old son who came with you, “Which one are they?” if you do not know the name of one or more entertainers. (“Far East Movement” and he had never heard of them, either.) I loved it when two tuxedoed men cut in front of us, apologizing that “We’re looking for our wives.” When my son wished them good luck, one said to the other, “Well, if we can’t find them, we can always find other wives here!” nodding at the crowd of 35,000.  (Maybe you had to be there!) Clap, cheer, whoop, stamp your feet.  I defy anyone with a pulse to stay still when the U.S. Army Bank queues up "Ruffles and Flourishes" followed by "Hail to the Chief." Most of all: BE PROUD! Last night, there was no 47%, there was no 1%, there were only Americans from all walks of life, from all corners of the map, standing on common ground, united in purpose.