Inauguration

I'm sure that everyone and their ferret are posting about the inauguration on their blogs, but here's my two cents:
Yesterday, I felt so globally connected: I had a Skype conference call with Carole Lung in Huntington Beach and Bailey Salisbury in Chicago. Today, I feel somewhat excommunicated. I rushed home to watch the inauguration in my apartment, but I didn't have anyone to talk to about it (except Indira, my stuffed tiger, who was actually quite nice about all my sniffling). I cried at Sen. Feinstein's opening address (by the way, how great was it to have Feinstein AND Pelosi, both women from San Francisco, announced as VIPs). And Aretha-Oh-My-God-I-Want-That-Hat-Franklin did a stupendous job. Also worth noting, the First Lady's outfit kicked ass. With the matching green pumps and gloves? SO Jackie O.
About the inaugural speech itself: extremely well crafted. I mean to go over the transcription several times. And way to go, calling America to work. I felt that the speech was especially relevant to craftspeople as well as laborers ("the doers, the makers of things"). In North Carolina last week, a large portion of conversation revolved around the dying of the textile industry in the United States. Textile workers, before unacknowledged and unappreciated, are now also almost defunct. It's incredibly sad to see. At the same time, we were urged by a few speakers to think of this crisis as an opportunity; we can bring the industry back in a better-functioning way. Living wages, a merging of design and technical knowledge, and environmentally sustainable fibers are key. I hope to contribute to this attempt in some small way.
President Obama called for no less than a total revamp of both the American Government and the American Economy. The sticking point, I think, is that many people, including me, personally believe in Obama so much that we're willing to go along with just about anything. There will be commentary, discussion, and opposition on all of his efforts, but I truly predict that he'll get a few needful things done. Maybe he really IS the Messiah.