Stuck back in Monday on a Very Important Tuesday

Today, Tuesday, has been a Monday morning in every possible way. What that actually means is that I am apparently in some sort of walking around coma because I'm breathing and eating and talking, but seem incapable of any higher function. I overslept about a half hour and was saved only by the fact that there was an hour delay of the schools. My alarm was set and functional, but I have no memory of even hitting the snooze button. See what happens when I get enough sleep?? I didn't know about the delay when my eyes opened, so I was thrust directly into a state of panic over how late it was. That made me irritable and jumpy for the rest of the morning, which is not a good way to send your high-schoolers out the door for exams, so add to the panic and irritability a healthy dose of guilt. I found a truly ugly email in my box from a friend I've been trying to help. That brought me low but I had to try to shove that aside and finish getting everyone ready to get out the door. I had no running clothes dry (forgot to start the dryer last night-see what I mean about the coma?) so I had to skip my run. Then there was no milk for the cold-cereal eaters, and naturally, hubby was at the store last night to pick up a prescription. He got ice cream, but I didn't even think to tell him to get milk (COMA!). Ev was not interested in a breakfast of cookies and cream ice cream with Fruity Pebbles on top. Oh, and I was so thrown by everything else, that I forgot to go to my photography group! Just clean forgot. coma!


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Okay, deep breath. This is not what I was going to blog about today. On to the full import of the day! It is indeed Tuesday and I am, on this Inauguration Day, full of hope for the future and respect for the office of the President. Hooray for the USA for another peaceful transfer of power! The future you wanted is here, America. Let's all roll up our sleeves and get to work.

As pleased as I am that the American people have broken through the race barrier to becoming president, Obama's no savior, and he's not a magician. However, he is ambitious, he is a hard worker, and he is an expert career politician, thus I think he'll be able to play the Washington game well enough to get things done. As NPR reported, one of his attributes when coming up through the Chicago political system was his ability to "go along" so that he would be where he wanted to be to get done what he wanted to get done. He has certainly accomplished that same thing on a large scale. His accomplishments speak for themselves-there is no doubt he has a pattern of success. So may it continue. For my part, while I am not swept away expecting miraculous or sudden change, I am ready to take responsibility for my citizenship, come to a consensus with the majority and try to stay informed and keep aware of the issues.

I will say a bit about George Bush, so please afford me some respect for my views, so we can start fresh to try and work together. Ironically, Mr. Bush did not play the Washington game, so it would seem that the change the voters want might be the reassurance of a man who will go along rather than the uncertainty of a man who doesn't care about being popular. Sadly, that unwillingness to go along was interpreted as not caring about the American people. That is an affront to the office of the President as well as deeply disrespectful of the man. Mr. Bush deserves gratitude and respect for just taking on the responsibility. It is possible to focus on the fact that he actually wanted to serve the American People. It is significant to me that he does not consider his presidency a failure even though he leaves with very low "poll numbers." That would indicate he had goals other than mere popularity, and maybe he accomplished things that might not have gotten a lot of news coverage. If any of us think we really know what he faced or what decisions we would make if standing in his shoes, we are fooling ourselves.

On this dawning of a new presidential era, I neither expect the government to change my life or save me from the circumstances I find myself in, nor do I blame the government for how things are, so it is pretty easy for me to roll with the changes. As a casual student of history, this day to me, while exciting, historic and truly memorable, is not so revolutionary as it seems. It is a normal adjustment, a pendulum swing. We've been down lower as a nation, and we've also seen better days.

Having said all that, my most pressing point is this: Barack Obama is taking on a position so difficult that my finite mind can barely comprehend what will be on his shoulders. Neither ambition nor popularity will carry the day. Character will, and I as a citizen of the United States of America make a choice to put my faith in his. He has my deep gratitude and my respect for being willing to lead this nation and I will be hoping, praying and working for his success.