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Before I get into today’s events, allow me to provide a quick recap of last night’s Netroots Nation party. In brief: free sushi, Howard Dean, Dan Beaver-Seitz, and some cool new friends. Glad I went.

Got to bed last night at around 1 or 1:30. Woke up at 5:30. Did some mental math and realized I could get to my security checkpoint sooner if I walked (rather than biking, my original plan), due to the opening time of the bike valet. Was about to leave when I realized I hadn’t taken into account breakfast (or lunch or dinner for that matter). Raided my host’s pantry from some graham crackers and was off… in the dark.

Four miles later and now after dawn, I found myself in a line consisting of silver ticket holders like myself that stretched for nearly five blocks. It wasn’t much past 7 at this point and the gates wouldn’t be open until 8. And so it was that the standing began.

When the line eventually began to move, it did so with a vengeance — I found myself nearly in a jog. The queue devolved into a large huddled mass closer to the checkpoint, but eventually I squished through. “Security” consisted of someone glancing at my camera, unzipping my coat and administering a half-assed patdown. Had the spare camera lens I was carrying been grenade I doubt they would have noticed.

The silver ticketed area — steerage, really (but better than not having a ticket at all) — was neatly sliced in two by Third St, with the portion closer to the capitol more or less pushed up against the reflecting pool. I managed to work my way near the front of that section. After taking some photos I determined that the 400 ft closer or so that this position got me didn’t allow for radically better photos than being back where I could see the Jumbotron, so I decided to retreat and enjoy the ceremony on the big screen, leaving the ceremony photography to those capable of getting a shot of Obama bigger than a speck. Better to record my experience at the event than the event itself.

It was cold and there was a lot of standing around (or boucing around for those of us too cold to remain stationary), but folks were in good spirits and there were few complaints. Eventually the ceremony program got started with a youth chorus warming up the crowd before dignitaries were shown filing in. Camera shots of different folks elicited polarized reactions from the crowd, most fairly predictable: boos for GOPers like Gingrich, cheers for Democrats like Carter and “turncoats” like Powell. Even Kerry received significant applause. John McCain got no reaction whatsoever, though when the camera showed just Cindy a chorus of boos and hisses went up. Sen. Ted Kennedy probably received the most boisterous response of anyone not surnamed Obama. A rousing rendition of ‘hey hey goodbye” was sung anytime W appeared on-screen for more than a fleeting moment.

The ceremony itself was surprisingly short and uncomplicated. Sen. Feinstein, as chair of the inaugural committee, played ringmaster and kicked things off with a few remarks. Before you knew it, Joe Biden was the vice president.

The highlight for me was actually near the beginning of the performance of “Air & Simple Gifts” by Perlman, Ma et al. A few moments after they began playing, a flock of seagulls (note: not A Flock of Seagulls) took off from somewhere between myself and the Capitol (perhaps the reflecting pool?). Their silent flight through the still morning air during the musical interlude just seemed to capture the serenity and hope of the entire thing. I regret that I didn’t get a photo of the birds.

Anyway, though not handled particularly elegantly, Obama took the oah of office from Chief Justice (oh how it pains me to write that) Roberts, and delivered his speech which I thought was good but not his best nor one that will go down in history as particularly notable. I was surprised by how short it was.

After his speech, folks began pouring out of the area, despite the remaining agenda items. I stuck around for the benediction before making my way toward the exit.

Getting in was easy compared to getting out, but eventually I managed to do so. I’d heard the Smithsonian museums were all open, so I fought my way through the crowds and lines and eventually made my way to the second floor of the Air & Space museum (they’d blocked off the escalators due to overcrowding but I took and elevator). The whole place felt like a refugee camp, with small clusters of very cold and very tired people huddled everywhere, sleeping, eating and resting. It was very odd.

After warming up there for a while I set off back to northern (aka “fake”) Virginia. It was a long walk back, notable for it’s almost war-torn, post-apocalytic feel. Police officers, army soldiers, flashing lights and copious amounts of trash were everywhere, but the crowds were beginning to thin. At first I was annoyed at all the litter — which mostly consisted of newspapers and wrappers for hand & toe warmer packets — but then I realized there was nary a trash can in sight (due, I suspect, not to some oversight but rather their being a security risk). Equally disquieting was the closed streets and bridges upon which pedestrians could roam freely — it gave the area a very “after disease wipes nearly everyone out” kind of feel.

I ultimately made it back to Rosslyn, grabbed a bite to eat, and headed to bed for a long and well-deserved nap. The rest of the day was spent resting, recuperating, checking news of the parade, and viewing my photos. While there are a number of balls, galas and other parties happening around town this evening, I failed to score invitations (or fancy enough clothes) to attend any. Would have loved to attend the Google gala.