O-O-O-Oprah!

I admit it. I love Oprah.

I Tivo her show. I subscribe to her magazine. I watch her interviews. I listen to the advice offered by the doctors, financial advisors and health gurus that she endorses. I recognize that, in the words of my mother, "she can sometimes be too much," but I freely and readily admit that I love Oprah.

So, imagine my giddiness when Chappy called with the news that she scored four tickets to Oprah's special pre-inauguration show from Washington, D.C.! I have always wanted to attend Oprah's show in Chicago, and now Chappy was bringing Oprah to me!

Knowing the show would occur on Martin Luther King Day and one day before the inauguration of Barack Obama, we assumed that the show would be a tribute to MLK and the progress of African-Americans...something like "From Rosa Parks to Barack Obama in 40 years". We kept joking that we'd be only white people in the entire audience!
How little we knew! On the Friday before the show, Chappy emailed Amber, Caroline and I the official press release from the Oprah Show with the list of Monday's guests: Demi Moore, Ashton Kutcher, Faith Hill, Bono, Seal, Will.i.am, Mary J. Blige, David Foster and "a special guest." I was practically dancing in my boots!When we arrived at the Kennedy Center on Monday morning, the four of us scrambled to find seats together. We scored "box" seats at the back that didn't provide an up-close view of the stage, but did allow us to sit together.

At 1 p.m., Oprah walked onto the stage and the crowd went nuts! She looked great (especially for a woman who just announced she weighs 200 lbs!) and was gracious and interactive with the audience. She bantered back and forth ("I love you too!") and answered questions she heard shouted from audience members. She seemed exactly as she does on her show.

Throughout the show, as Oprah welcomed her guests, Caroline attempted to take covert photos. As someone who rarely, if ever, breaks rules, I was freaking out. There was a strict no camera rule, and here I was sitting beside someone who wouldn't stop taking photos! I kept begging Caroline to put the camera away, convinced that either her camera would be confiscated or all four of us would be kicked out!Fortunately, Caroline is more stealth than I could ever hope to be and she managed to take a handful of not-clear-but-I-was-definitely-there photos of the show. Bless her!

While the show's guests and Oprah herself basked in a little too much Obama-mania and liberal propoganda for my taste, I had a great time and am so grateful that Chappy has the connections to make these sort of fun events possible for me!

Discovering Uggs

For more than five years, I've watched with dismay and derision as Hollywood starlets, sorority girls, tweens and everyone else who's dyametrically opposite of me stroll through life wearing Ugg boots. Despite their cozy sheepskin and suede material and thousands of testimonials about their comfort and warmth, Uggs are ugly. Not just the average all-purpose snow boot ugly, but U-G-L-Y. They're chunky and formless and do absolutely nothing to improve the look of a woman's legs. Whenever I see them in Nordstrom or on a woman's feet, I can't help but think, "Seriously?!?!"

Then came Inaugural Weekend 2009.

When I arrived in Washington to 8 degree weather and a suitcase with my warmest pair of ballet flats and running shoes, I knew a new pair of boots was in order. Amber managed to score Inaugural tickets for me and Susan, and I knew that running shoes weren't going to keep me happy while we waited for the Inauguration to begin.

As Amber and I drove to Nordstrom, I suspected that Uggs would be my only option. Sure enough, when we browsed through the shoe department, the only boots available were Uggs. Reluctantly, I asked the clerk to bring out a pair of chocolate brown Uggs.

I wish there had been a video camera on me as I sheepishly tried them on. I think I moved into the head-tilt-eyebrow-arch move! As soon as I slipped my bare foot into the warmth of the sheepskin, I understood the beauty of Uggs. What a discovery! They're so cozy and warm! Uggs are a hug for the feet! They may be ugly on the outside, but they're beautiful on the inside!

Five minutes and $170 later, I proudly and excitedly walked out of Nordstrom as the owner of chocolate brown Uggs! I believe this is the beginning of a beautiful friendship!

Inauguration Day

On January 20, 2009, I had the privileged to watch as Barack Obama was sworn in as president of the United States, marking a historical moment when the first African-American took the oath for the highest office in the land. Thanks to the generosity of Amber and Trish Kent, Susan and I watched this historical moment from a birds-eye view on the Capitol grounds.The night before the inauguration, Amber hosted a sleep-over in her office so we could avoid the morning crush of people on the Metro. Despite the brand-new cots and a leather couch, it was not a restful night. In fact, it would be a stretch to say that any of us got sleep. I was conscious of every toss and turn, and thanks to the cot's creaking hinges, so were Amber and Susan!

Amber woke up early - or rather she just rolled off the couch early - because she volunteered to work the Inauguration by escorting the former presidents and their families through the Capitol complex (a very cool opportunity!). When she saw that I was awake, she told me that Trish had emailed with the news that she had Red tickets for Susan and I. I didn't know the difference between our Orange tickets and the Red tickets, but Amber assured me they were better.Were they ever! At 8am, Susan and I left the Dirksen Senate Office Building with Trish's family and crossed the street to the Capitol complex. As we crossed the corner of the West Front of the Capitol, we saw Marine One stationed to take President and Mrs. Bush and their family to Andrews Air Force Base after the swearing in.We proceeded around the side of the Capitol building and, after four security checks, were shown to our seats, which were direcly above the main platform. We couldn't believe our luck! We had a view of the podium and the entire National Mall, Pennsylvania Avenue and much of downtown Washington.By 11 a.m., nearly 1.8 million people had congregated on the Mall to watch as members of Congress, the diplomatic corps, Supreme Court justices and former presidents and first ladies were announced to the stand. At the same time, Susan and I watched as two motocades carrying Vice President and Mrs. Cheney, Vice President-Elect and Mrs. Biden, President and Mrs. Bush and President-Elect and Mrs. Obama made their way down Pennsylvania Avenue toward the Capitol. It was an amazing sight that temporarily allowed Susan and I to forgot about our frozen fingers!Mrs. Bush.

The ceremony finally got started at 11:30 with Aretha Franklin singing God Bless America. She was soon followed by a musical quartet comprised of cellist Yo-Yo Ma, violinist Itzhak Perlman, clarinetist Anthony McGill and pianist Gabriella Montero. Susan and I were seating just behind the quartet so it was a real treat to see these musical masters in person.Prior to noon, Justice John Paul Stevens swore into office Vice President Biden. Chief Justice John Roberts then approached the podium and invited the Obama family to join him. Six-year old Sasha Obama virtually skipped to the front and hopped with both feed onto a step stool that was provided for her.Unfortunately, Justice Roberts and President Obama flubbed the oath a bit (I'm sure it'll be a trivia game question soon enough), but as soon as Obama uttered "So help me God," the crowd and a 21-cannon salute erupted.While Susan and I had to brave 5 hours in 20 degree weather and stand on our tippy-toes to see the swearing in, it was an event I'll always remember. I'm so grateful to Amber and Trish for providing tickets for us (hundreds of thousands of others walked for miles and stood for hours) so that we could witness such an historic occassion.

The whole event - from the pagentry to the peaceful, democratic transfer of power - made me appreciate the City of Washington and the privilege of living in such a wonderful country.Now the hard work begins for President Obama and his team. With the grind of the campaign over, the hard work of governing begins. I, for one, hope he succeeds!

First Lesson of 2009

This morning, I received Lesson #1 for 2009:

If you are going to be traveling to a destination that requires a car rental, ALWAYS make a reservation ahead of time. Failure to do so may result in 1) a less than ideal mode of transportation, 2) abandonment of all "On a good day, I can be a pretty cool person" pretenses, 3) a harsh reminder that I am not a "normal" woman of Zion, who carts along 10 offspring, 4) all of the above.

Such was my situation today when I arrived at the Hertz counter without a reservation and was told they one vehicle available:
While this car is appropriate if you are a nun who has to transport an entire convent to and fro, or a basketball coach who is driving the team to the state championships, it is not an appropriate vehicle for one woman to use as she drives 2 miles to and from the office!

Never again will I make the mistake of not having an advance reservation!