Independence Day in Style
A friend who works for the feds was kind enough to invite me and my girlfriend to join her, her husband (also a friend) and their baby on the White House lawn last night to watch the fireworks on the Mall. Being there was nothing short of awesome. Some highlights:
*The old dude who stormed off his barstool at McCormick & Schmick's (where my girlfriend and I had drinks and appetizers before meeting up with our hosts) in a full-blown huff because the restaurant doesn't have Clams Casino on its menu. Here's how it went down:
*Seeing the Bushes and Cheneys on the White House balcony above us. Why was that a highlight? Because W initially received only a polite standing golf clap -- not the hoots and hollers one might have expected a few years ago. That's what an approval rating hovering around three-dozen percentage points gets you. He did get a nice ovation when his 60th birthday -- coming up tomorrow -- was mentioned. Cheney got, as my friend noted, "three claps". Jenna was there, too, wearing a dress that was short enough -- and the veranda high enough -- that I could almost tell (it was dusk) that she wasn't wearing any underwear. Also, once it was dark, I could swear that W shared a lengthy embrace with another man in which the man rubbed W's back in quite a loving fashion. My friend saw it, too. But, again, it was dark.
*The fireworks. This was the twelfth Independence Day I've spent in DC and the first I've spent on the Mall for the fireworks. Also, the fingers of lightning breaking to the south of the fireworks made the display even more dramatic. All told, it's not something I need to do again, but I couldn't be happier that I did it once.
*A close-up view of the White House is just great, but the view from the White House is really fantastic. Gazing at night from the White House lawn, downhill past the fountain, on to the Washington Monument, and past it to the Jefferson Memorial is nothing short of stunning.
*Our take for the evening: two commemorative plastic cups, one commemorative proclamation, lots of photos (which will be uploaded later), one commemorative flag/fan thing, and many non-commemorative Dove Bars (consumed on premises).
*The old dude who stormed off his barstool at McCormick & Schmick's (where my girlfriend and I had drinks and appetizers before meeting up with our hosts) in a full-blown huff because the restaurant doesn't have Clams Casino on its menu. Here's how it went down:
Old dude: (looking at the menu) Do you have Clams Casino?Old people suck. (Though in his defense, any dish with bacon is worth getting fiesty over.)
Bartender: Sorry, we don't.
Old dude: What kind of a fish restaurant doesn't have Clams Casino?
Bartender: This one. Sorry. I don't make the menu. I can get the manager if you'd like.
Old dude: Nevermind. (walks out of restaurant)
*Seeing the Bushes and Cheneys on the White House balcony above us. Why was that a highlight? Because W initially received only a polite standing golf clap -- not the hoots and hollers one might have expected a few years ago. That's what an approval rating hovering around three-dozen percentage points gets you. He did get a nice ovation when his 60th birthday -- coming up tomorrow -- was mentioned. Cheney got, as my friend noted, "three claps". Jenna was there, too, wearing a dress that was short enough -- and the veranda high enough -- that I could almost tell (it was dusk) that she wasn't wearing any underwear. Also, once it was dark, I could swear that W shared a lengthy embrace with another man in which the man rubbed W's back in quite a loving fashion. My friend saw it, too. But, again, it was dark.
*The fireworks. This was the twelfth Independence Day I've spent in DC and the first I've spent on the Mall for the fireworks. Also, the fingers of lightning breaking to the south of the fireworks made the display even more dramatic. All told, it's not something I need to do again, but I couldn't be happier that I did it once.
*A close-up view of the White House is just great, but the view from the White House is really fantastic. Gazing at night from the White House lawn, downhill past the fountain, on to the Washington Monument, and past it to the Jefferson Memorial is nothing short of stunning.
*Our take for the evening: two commemorative plastic cups, one commemorative proclamation, lots of photos (which will be uploaded later), one commemorative flag/fan thing, and many non-commemorative Dove Bars (consumed on premises).
posted by TtP Staff @ 7/05/2006
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