Inauguration Eve

Big, fat, fluffy flakes started falling this morning around 8:30am, turning everything into a winter wonderland. This is our first real snow of the winter season and since today is a holiday, I could stay home to enjoy it. I did have lots of things to do and errands to run and I headed out around 9:45. My first stop was the library, then I pumped some iron at the gym, and then to the mall to buy a wedding gift for a friend. The slumping economy was certainly evident at the mall and I was only there to get a gift and look for some cheap shoes for the wedding - no shopping spree for me.

As I was walking down the long hallways of the somewhat unfamiliar mall, I stopped in my tracks when I heard the thundering oratory of Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I Have a Dream" speech on a nearby television. I wasn't the only one to stop and soon a small crowd gathered around to watch and listen on this historic day, as we prepare to swear in the first bi-racial U.S. President tomorrow. I'd never heard the entire speech, but I've heard pieces of it and heard it quoted. In its entirety, it's moving and amazing. I kept thinking of tomorrow's swearing in and how MLK Jr. stood on the steps of the Lincoln Memorial 46 years ago and now Barack Obama will be a straight shot up the National Mall tomorrow at the U.S. Capitol being sworn in as President. How things have changed since 1963. MLK would be proud.

After the mall, I came home and played in the snow with Riley. He "helped" me shovel our driveway and I threw his favorite toy, an empty plastic water bottle. I also took him for a walk, since this is the first time in a while that it hasn't been freezing cold outside. 32 degrees feel so much warmer than 7 degrees, I can tell you that. Riley enjoyed his romp in the snow and we saw some neighborhood kids out playing with their dad. I love snow days!