I am in Washington, DC for the weekend. I would love to rationalize this trip as having some great purpose. But I am not speaking, or working, or doing anything of intention. I really have no business being here at all. But . . .
I am a huge Jon Stewart fan. I have been for years. Mark has known this about me since we were dating, and he has been very gracious with my potentially inappropriate crush on someone else. So gracious, in fact, that when I heard about the rally, he laughed and said, “Yeah, you have to go to that.” And I was like, really? I’m travelling a lot. Are you sure? And he said yes. Because he knows me.
THAT IS WHAT I CALL TRUE LOVE, PEOPLE.
Mark is pretty awesome, too.
(I’m just kidding. Please don’t leave me mean comments.)
So, after some negotiating with my airline miles and with our plentiful hotel reward points thanks to the Great Flood and Exile during July and August, here I am.
That’s me in the White House pastry shop. My friend Sarah and I came to DC together, and she has some connections and got us a backstage pass at the White House. That’s pretty much the only reason I am traveling with her. We have very little in common. Other than both having four kids, being introverted, and sharing a passion for social justice, politics, adoption, missions, books, flashmobs, and musicals. Other than that we are NOTHING ALIKE.
It was fun seeing the White House up close. We got to leave with one of the official treat bags the President will be passing out on Halloween for each of our kids. I think I am more excited about that than my kids will be. I am also exercising great discipline by not eating the chocolates myself.
We did not get to meet Barack (or B-Rock, as Mark calls him). He was in Maryland stumping for the upcoming election. I did think about leaving a Rage Against the Minivan bumper sticker in the Red Room, but I decided against it.
Some thoughts on the White House:
- The decor is not entirely different than that of the TBN building
- The Kennedy’s had the prettiest china. President Hayes? Not so much.
- You may be shocked to know that Michelle does not tend her own garden
- There is an architect whose job it is to erect a replica of the White House made entirely of white chocolate
- There is a team of full-time florists already working on Christmas bouquets
- Regardless of your political affiliation, a trip to the White House may make you wonder about excessive government spending
- The most scandalous story I could wrangle out of our escort was that one of the president’s wives wore a sorority brooch in her official portrait and they had to paint it out of the picture. JUICY.
Tomorrow, we will wake up at the crack of dawn (4am Pacific Time) and head down to the Capital Mall to try to claim a spot. It seems like every person we’ve met is in town for this rally. Most of the plane from LAX was rally-bound. I have no idea what to expect tomorrow. I know it will be crowded, I know it will be COLD, and I know it will be fun.
