Entries Tagged 'Joe Biden' ↓

Picture from Obama’s First Day

The countdown in on – there are less than two weeks until Barack Obama is elected president! And this liberal mom thinks the occasion calls for a celebration. If you are as excited as I am, and game for a get together, here are some ideas to host your own fabulously patriotic inauguration party.

Plan the Party

First thing’s first however: unfortunately, the date and time are not exactly “party-worthy”. The inauguration will be held on Tuesday, January 20th and President-elect Obama will officially be sworn in at noon. A parade will follow that afternoon and of course, all major networks will be covering the event. (Even Nickelodeon will be covering the event with young reporters!)

But back to the issue. Noon on a Tuesday is not exactly the time to host a hugely impressive gala. So there are a few options to consider.

• If you are home that day, host a fun get together with other parents who are home also
• If you usually work, consider playing hooky – and tell your partner to do the same
• Have a Tuesday night BBQ or early get together to celebrate
• Host an inaugural ball of your own the weekend before or after

Invitations

Now that you have decided what kind of party works best for you, it’s time to think about the invites. Sure, it’s a little late, but if your friends are as fired up to celebrate this event as I am, they will leap at the chance to ring in this new presidency. But since the date is coming up fast, consider sending evites. My Punchbowl is my favorite alternative to Evite and it has some fabulous invites at their site.

Regarding who you invite, obviously invite folks who share your own political views. But please consider inviting those that don’t also. In the spirit of bringing this nation together to solve these upcoming issues as Americans, make sure your invites go out to friends of yours on both sides of the political fence.

Decorations

Obviously, as we are all feeling patriotic, you should decorate in red, white and blue. I would also consider adding some sparkle to your event, especially if you hold your event at night. Get creative and recycle red table cloths you may still have from Christmas or some glittery decorations from New Years. String up a few Christmas lights with your red, white and blue too!

Food

The possibilities for food options are endless. You could go with traditionally American foods such as hot dogs and apple pie. Since Obama is from Hawaii, you could serve traditional Hawaiian foods. Ehow offers some great ideas:

“You can choose fun themed foods such as ‘Buffalo LEFT Wings,’ or how about some ‘Campaign Trail Mix?’ Other ideas that are clever include: ‘Lipsticked Pigs In a Blanket,’ ‘Sloppy Joe Bidens’, ‘Barack of Lamb’, and ‘Shredded Pork (Barrel) Sandwiches.’… Keeping the fun theme going for the drinks, why not create a shot and call them ‘Cheney Shooters.’”

I would also consider serving some of Obama’s favorite foods. He is a big fan of Italian pizza. Also, NPR found recipes for some of his favorite Mexican dishes.

Don’t forget Michelle’s favorite shortbread cookies for dessert! And, of course, serve “Yes Pecan” Ben & Jerry’s ice cream.

Drinks

Apparently Obama’s favorite beer is Bud Lite which is easy enough to serve. And I would throw in some Busch beer too, just for fun. But what are some other patriotic, theme appropriate drinks to serve? You can find 10 “all American” cocktail ideas at Fine Living.com. Also, here is a fun recipe for Patriotic Punch. And then Hawaiian themed cocktails are also fun, and probably very welcome in the midst of winter.

Music

Considering that Aretha Franklin will be singing at the inauguration, her music must be a part of your playlist. Other options for Obama favorites can be found on his Facebook page:

“Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Bob Dylan, Stevie Wonder, Johann Sebastian Bach (cello suites), and The Fugees”

Games

DivaGirl offers some fun Inauguration games including having guests participate in some presidential trivia. While your group watches Obama’s speech, Ehow shares Bingobama. Print out copies for everyone!

Don’t forget about the kids – they may want to be a part of the inaugural fun as well! Kaboose.com has some excellent ideas such as making your own parade stick, presidential coloring pages and fun family quizzes.

More party ideas can be found at any of these sites:

• Obama’s First Day
• Venue Guru
• Party Girl

And finally, if you are serious about hosting an inauguration bash for your entire community, visit Move on.org for more information about how to set one up.

Further Inauguration information:

• Official Inaugural Website
• Presidential Inauguration.com
• Inauguration Day 2009
• Follow @inauguration on twitter

Happy January 20th!

Cross posted at Type A Moms.

The December holidays are finally winding down. Decorations are to be packed up, our homes are being put back into order and left over holiday goodies are being cleaned out of refrigerators. So naturally, as we are fed up with our past week of excess, what comes to mind during the December wind down? Resolutions. And lots of them. But I am a realistic person and I know that my personal resolution lists rarely pan out. So this year, I am doing it a little differently. I would like to consider what sort of resolutions Obama might want to make for 2009. Perhaps you may have a few to add to his list as well.

On the eve of a hope-filled New Year and his first inauguration, Barack Obama’s resolution list has got to be about a mile long. Although, I’m not sure how he can discriminate his resolution list from the endlessly unfurling to-do list draped over his desk right now.

In the midst of all that is to be taken seriously in the New Year, The Red Stapler Chronicles had some resolutions for Obama that gave me a good laugh. For example:

• Fix the leaking faucet in the Oval Office to immediately save tax payer’s money
• Make sure new puppy gets along with Biden’s new dog to avoid dog fighting scandal.

Now it’s my turn. Here are a few suggested resolutions this liberal minded mom might add to President-elect Obama’s list:

• Prepare that pedestal.

  With so much work ahead of him, folks may shove him right off that pedestal if he doesn’t change things on day one. Or, it could go the other way. Any difference he makes at all could officially establish his superhero status and permanence on that pedestal. Either way, he needs to ready his pedestal and be prepared for anything.

• Keep that ego in check.

  With all the inauguration fanfare and Obama mania ringing in the streets, he needs to keep a grounded perspective. I am expecting Michelle to see right through it all and remind him who Barack really is.

• Keep it real.

  President or not, he must remember his roots, his family, his heritage and the real reasons he got into politics in the first place.

• Don’t forget the moms.

  With his wife and mother-in-law dropping everything to raise his children, he better recognize the kind of work mothers actually do and that women nationwide are expecting more focus on rights for working mothers during his presidency.

• Keep a sense of humor.

  President-elect Obama is a funny guy. There is not much to laugh at right now but his sense of humor will serve him and this White House well in the midst of it all.

• Stay squeaky clean.

  After our last democratic president, I shudder to think about what sort of damage one stupid, selfish decision could do right now.

• Keep those promises.

  As any politician does during an election, Obama has made a lot of them. The difference is that this time if he doesn’t keep those promises and we don’t see change happen, a recession will be the least of our problems.

• Play with your kids.

  There is no better way to keep perspective and maintain sanity than to play with your children after a long day at the office solving the world’s problems.

And finally, I would like to wish the President-elect, his family and this entire country a very happy and hopeful New Year indeed.

And here’s a hand, my trusty friend And gie’s a hand o’ thine

We’ll tak’ a cup o’ kindness yet

For auld lang syne

-Robert Burns, 1788

 Cross posted at Type A Moms.

Maybe all this bailout mess has left me twitched out and over stressed. I am not sure I am thinking in the right state of mind. That’s gotta be it. Because here’s the thing. I am sort of suddenly rooting for Sarah a little bit right now.

Egads! Has my evil twin taken over my blog? No, I swear. It’s still me.

Heres the thing. It is becoming decidedly clear that Sarah is not at all prepared to be the Vice President of the United States, let ALONE (…choking on my Cheerios here…) POTUS. …Shudder. And I am also thinking that most of you agree, even my repub readers. Sarah’s knowledge base has been tested over the past few days in interviews with Katie and Charlie. If you haven’t seen the interviews, check them out. I kind of can’t watch them more than once. It’s just the cringe factor, the “Oh my God, she really doesn’t know what she’s talking about, does she” thing, you know? But you should watch them, no matter which party you belong to.

And now Sarah will debate Joe Biden on Thursday. As I type this, there is no doubt she is studying like a mad woman, with coaches in her ear and stacks of talking points spread out all around her. Maybe even flash cards. Or timed tests while someone holding a stop watch stands over her shoulder. All the while, she’s dressed in a sweat suit with the Rocky theme song playing in the background.

And, to be fair, I would bet Biden is going through his own preparation too: “Don’t talk too much, Joe.” “Be cool, Joe.” “You know what you’re talking about, just stick to the facts.” “The responses are timed, Joe, don’t forget that!”

But, holy canoli, Sarah’s preparation is an impossible task. Just as Joe Biden did, she came in knowing what she knows and she, unfortunately, just doesn’t know enough. And that’s not necessarily her fault either. It’s McCain’s fault for not picking a more qualified candidate. And now her ignorance and ineptitude is being uncovered and displayed for all the world to see, question in disblief, or even laugh at.

I just can’t imagine. Perhaps I am simply relating to her as a woman and mom right now, trying to do too much, and knowing that no matter how hard she works, it’s never good enough. Being this far in over her head, how must she be feeling right now? 

And Joe Biden, Mr. “I’ve been in the senate since I was 29 and I can talk circles around you”, is smacking his lips, ready to rip the holes in her knowledge base even wider. If I were Sarah, I’d be crying in my glass of wine at night, I’d be sick to my stomach nervous and entirely overwhelmed and ready to hop the first plane back to Alaska.

But here’s my other dilema. Is my assumption that she is crying in her wine completely unfeminist of me? Am I being too soft on her? Would I be saying the same thing if she were a male? Am I underestimating her abilities? I truly don’t think so. If anything, as a woman, I actually gave her the benefit of the doubt thinking she could seriously be the Republican’s secret weapon. And now. No. That’s not the case. She’s just a person not prepared to be Vice President, as simple as that.

Here’s the thing, however - I really don’t WANT her to fail. No, I mean it. Please note that it is not my intention to come across snarky, condescending or patronizing here. I mean what I am saying. I WANT her to be good enough for this position. I don’t want to see a train wreck on Thursday - that will not make me feel good. I’d like to see a good solid debate with too qualified individuals sparring off on the issues, both on equal ground. (And of course, notes the Democrat in me, then see her loose fair and square.)  Honestly folks, I don’t want to see someone – who could very well potentially be POTUS afterall – be so damn clueless. And I’ll also admit, the idea of a woman finally being so close to the White House potentially failing so miserably makes me sick to my stomach. Amoungst everything else going on right now, Sarah Palin is just plain old scaring the crap outa me.

So Sarah, c’mon woman. You can do this. Show us what you’ve got. Let them be wrong. I won’t be on your side politically but I will be rooting for you. You’re Rocky, Biden is Mr. T - come out preprared and swinging. Let’s have a good clean fight.