It's STATUARY Hall

RantWoman is partaking of the inauguration courtesy of NPR, and she wishes emphatically to remind the hosts, that the luncheon is in STATUARY HALL, not Statutory Hall in the Capitol. RantWoman thinks she has been there, once long ago during a stint doing good and public services and internship in our nation's capital. Probably if RantWoman were watching this on TV instead of enjoying the radio, there would be even more things to rant about.

RantWoman actually has TWO TV's but neither of them is plugged in. RantWoman generally finds things to do with TV more enjoyable over the computer with screen enlargement software. Well somewhere in RantWoman's mind, RantMom's voice is saying don't sit so close to the TV; you'll hurt your eyes. Under some circumstances, RantWoman's Inner Nerd would be looking up all the reasons new flat screen monitors cause less eyestrain than previous generations of TV's, but we have an inauguration to attend to, and mercifully not by Jumbotron.

RantMom invited RantWoman over to watch the inauguration on RantMom's new (to her) TV. RantWoman pleaded late night laundry needs and correctly guessed that she would barely be out of bed by the swearing-in. Actually, RantWoman has morning exercises and those were well underway, but that is still nowhere near presentable enough to leave the house. RantWoman is aware that this state of affairs is a huge luxury compared to all the people who not only had to get up for the affair, but also are outside freezing their pekid behinds off.

Okay, scratch that: if enough circumstances had aligned to allow RantWoman to attend in person, even among the millions on the mall instead of in some more official capacity with accompanying perquisites INDOORS, she probably would have jumped at the chance. Seattle Snowpocalypse or no, RantWoman would have summoned every thread of her MT childhood and numerous rounds of keeping warm while standing around doing opinionated things Protest and Survive zeal. She would have piled on layers and made sure she had a good hat, a couple layers of gloves, long underwear, a thermos of something warm, maybe even a sleeping bag, space blanket... and some good peers to hang with.

RantWoman would probably still be cold but would know either to keep moving or when to quit and celebrate indoors. And since RantWoman knows her way around a good bit of the DC Metro system, she would come armed with fare cards both for souvenirs and for transportation. She would probably know a few different boarding options and even walking routes away a good bit from the massing throngs. Or she would be somewhere helping people keep warm and trying to make people flow smoothly, in solidarity with the planners fretting about how to get everyone out of the area when necessary.

Wait, RantWoman probably could have found a place to celebrate with like-minded folk somewhere in Seattle too, but this seems to be a solo act for now. Self-employed as RantWoman is, she also still has to try to attend to work while soaking up inauguration broadcast, letting details gallop through their various resonances with her experiences, and thinking about today's manifestations of public service.

Back to work? Not yet...