• Bluegrass,  Folk

    President Obama

    What an amazing day. All of the majesty, symbolism, and History behind today’s inauguration of Barack Obama was nothing short of breathtaking. Thanks to ABCNews.com, I was able to catch the Oath and the speech at work. It’s a very large corporation, with layers of security, firewalls, web filtering software and the like, so I was happy to see that at least one web site’s streaming video of the ceremony was working.

    I must say though, I wasn’t impressed that: a) there was no acknowledgment by the company, no communication to its thousands upon thousands of employees, that addressed the magnitude and significance of the day.; and b) there was absolutely no enthusiasm, chatter – no nothin’ – from my co-workers. Sure, the economy sucks, everyone has a job to do, work work work, focus focus focus, blah blah. But to go the entire day at work with no one (around me, at least) even opening their mouth to talk about this historic day? Well, I was a little disheartened and disappointed. I figured my enthusiasm for the day would be matched at least by some people. Maybe they were out there, but they sure weren’t verbal about it.

    But let my rant end there, and let me sum up by saying how refreshing it will be to wake up tomorrow with President Obama at the helm. I’m proud of my country, and I have the utmost confidence that this President will be a great leader through these very tough times.

    Old Crow Medicine ShowI Hear Them All (mp3)

    Did anyone see Old Crow Medicine Show on Austin City Limits recently? Great set, and prompted me to dig out some of their stuff. This song is fitting for the moment, in my opinion.

    I hear leaders quit their lying
    I hear babies quit their crying.
    I hear soldiers quit their dying, one and all.

    I hear them all
    I hear them all
    I hear them all

    Buy:

  • Rock

    A Promising Week

    Well, on Tuesday morning I said I’d see you on the other side. And here we are. And you know what? The other side is a good place! On January 20th, Barack Obama will be sworn in as 44th president of the United States.

    Granted, this country is in a mess, and our new president has an enormous series of tasks in front of him, but to know that we’ll have an intelligent, coherent, rational, calm presence in the White House is so refreshing to me.

    And to think also that this nation – a country that still has a looong way to go with its race issues – elected an African American to the highest office in the land… I find it profoundly encouraging. And so does most of the country and the world. I can’t understand how anyone can fail to be deeply moved (in a very positive way) by the events of the last week. But everyone sees different things in different ways. Hopefully Obama will help ease the doubts, fears, and in a lot of cases, the hatred and the venom among his detractors.

    For this white American dude, his African-American bride (born in Kenya, raised in Seychelles), and our two gorgeous girls, this week was like a burst of sun through the clouds.

    Bob Marley & the WailersComing in From the Cold (mp3)

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    SHORPY – An Amazing Web Site

    If you’re a history buff like me, you will love this site. Dave regularly posts high resolution photographs from times long gone, which offer vivid, often breathtaking views into the past.

    Here are a few examples. Click them to see the high res versions… Seriously, look at the high res images. Stunning.

    1914. "White House tent in Rose Garden." A view of the executive mansion from over the West Wing looking east past the Treasury and along Pennsylvania Avenue to the Capitol. Harris & Ewing Collection glass negative.
    March 4, 1913. Inaugural ceremony, East Front of Capitol. Woodrow Wilson being sworn in as 28th president of the United States.
    March 4, 1913. "Inaugural ceremony, East Front of Capitol." Woodrow Wilson being sworn in as 28th president of the United States.
    Spring 1943. Romeroville, near Chacon, New Mexico. 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by John Collier for the Office of War Information.
    Spring 1943. "Romeroville, near Chacon, New Mexico." 4x5 Kodachrome transparency by John Collier for the Office of War Information.

    Visit Shorpy: History in HD