Writer's Block: Open Arms

[Error: unknown template qotd]A couple of different times at concerts I've had girls come up behind me and put their arms around me like I was their boyfriend or something, then quickly stopping once they realized I was no one they knew. You'd think that when you're in a dark room with a few hundred strangers you'd doublecheck the identity of a man before groping him.

The last time I was at GenCon a girl in a anime cat costume let me squeeze her boobs while we were waiting in line to get into a LARP. Does that count as embracing a stranger?

That weren't no innoggeration, that were a COR-O-NATION!

Since I was stuck in the office with a trainee for most of yesterday and since the office TV always plays news channels I got to watch pretty much the entire inauguration all day. I've got to admit I normally don't go in for those kind of things, even for presidents I like, but this was pretty snazzy. Of course, we can't just have a nice party day without someone somewhere finding something to get upset about.

There are actually people (Fox News's Glenn Beck among them,) who took umbrage at the elderly African American reverend who gave the closing prayer for doing the little rhyme about how now "black don't have to step back, brown can stick around, yellow can be mellow, the red man can get ahead, man, and white can do what's right." Apparently that's racist against white people and furthering divisions Obama said he'd get rid of. Funny, I thought it was a veteran of the Civil Rights movement talking about how his dreams of unity from many decades ago had come true. People love to read things that aren't there; people who, if they can't find a legitimate reason to be unhappy about something will just make one up.

And then people are mocking Obama because he tripped over a line in the oath of office. What actually happened was that the guy reading the oath to him screwed it up, Obama tried to get him back on track, and wound up with them both getting turned around. I've spent my share of time on the stage and can attest that you can be the best actor in the world, but if the other person on stage screws up you can STILL wind up turned around all to hell and back.

I recognize that a lot of people are just waiting for Obama to fail. But seriously, you'll get your chance. Getting your panties moist over insignificant word slips during a pompous ceremony just makes you look petty.

My mom told me a funny story this morning. Apparently she was arguing circles around one of my aunts who is anti-Obama. My aunt quoted my late grandfather who apparently once said that "if a black man ever becomes president the white man will be scrubbing the black man's floors and cleaning his toilets." My mom said "if he wants me to come scrub floors and clean toilets in the white house, sign me up! Those people make a lot of money!" That shut her right up.

Sign me up too. I don't know what kind of money a white house janitor makes, but I'm sure it can't be shabby. They've got to be out-earning me, at any rate.

Right now they're televising the President & friends attending the national prayer service at the cathedral in Washington. I'm sure the atheist bloggers must be creaming their jeans over that one.