inauguration day.

Monday, January 21st, was Inauguration Day in DC. The government was closed, the MARC train was closed, the roads were closed. There were tourists everywhere. There were American flags everywhere. Heck of a day to try and get into work.

Because driving into the city from Baltimore would have been torturous (what with EVERYTHING being closed), I purchased one of the last available Amtrak train tickets. The earlier train was sold out, so I had take a later one. Not only would this put me into work late, it was a whopping $78. SEVENTY EIGHT DOLLARS. For a one-way ticket. I almost fainted. Still, it would have cost about the same for gas + parking garage if I drove, so I sucked it up and bought it.

When I got to the train station to print out my ticket, I realized something amazing.

It was a first class ticket.

To understand my excitement, you must realize how dirty and crowded the train I take everyday can be. I think someone urinated on the floor once (that I know of), and some of the seats are sticky. It’s not terrible, but it does get pretty yucky after you’ve been doing it for awhile (one year today! happy anniversary to me!).

I walked on board  There was a lady there to greet me and tell me to watch my step. I snagged an individual seat, plush and comfy with its very own window . A man walked by and offered me a free bottle of water. I had my own folding table, like on a plane. The woman across from me was eating waffles. It was amazing. I became glamorous and classy by association. I felt like a movie star.

Not only was it first class, it was an express: it only took 25 minutes to get into DC as opposed to the usual 40. I arrived in DC feeling refreshed. As I was waiting to get off the train, I noticed the woman in front of me was wearing a full length fur coat. It was thick and glossy and looked ridiculously soft. Before I knew it, my hand was moving towards her shoulder, fingers outstretched. I caught myself just before I started petting her coat.

Perhaps I’m not as classy as I thought.

Other exciting things about working on Inauguration Day:

• I was the only female on our floor, so I had the bathroom to myself.
• There were only four people in our entire office.
• There were extra food vendors lurking about, so the whole city smelled like hot dogs.
• I work really close to the White House, so the people-watching was spectacular.
• The guy at Potbelly gave me a free pickle.