Today was long. We (my cousin and I) started our day outside of Allentown, PA, and drove south, stopping briefly to pick up Genghis near Philadelphia. Having never driven in DC before, I was glad to have someone in the car who knew where he was going. So, thanks G.

When we dropped G off, he was very nice to make sure I knew where I was going before we said good-bye. I assured him that I knew exactly how to get to my hotel. Then, I pulled away from the curb and promptly took a wrong turn. Oh well. You'll be happy to know that we made it safely and the car is parked for the duration.

Then, we embarked on a ten-hour journey from place to place, meeting up with some friends for drinks and then some more friends for dinner, and I honestly haven't had much time to stop and reflect what it means to be here on Martin Luther King Day, the day before our first African American is sworn in as president of the United States. 

What I have noticed is the people. Everyone, and I mean everyone, seems to be in a good mood, including cops and transit workers, and the city is crackling with energy. From the time we left our hotel, we were in constant conversation with strangers. We walked to the first Metro station with a group from North Carolina. We walked through the second station to change trains with a family from Arkansas, and we stood in line to see our Congressman with a couple from San Diego and a gentleman from Massachusetts. Tomorrow is the woman from San Diego's birthday. She gleefully declared that, for her birthday, she is getting her country back. That sounded just about right. 

Tomorrow, we're all getting our country back.