a visit from Barrack and Michelle

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Well, ok, I don't know if Michelle is coming along, but who wouldn't want to visit Ann Arbor in springtime? It's lovely now, and there is so much good food here......

Mr. Obama will speak at the University's commencement tomorrow.

I wanted to go, but they are making a serious ordeal out of it. Huge waits in verrry long lines to get tickets (which were limited to UM students and staff), then huger lines tomorrow (in the rain, if the predictions come true), and NO bags (not even fanny packs), NO umbrellas, NO food or water can be brought into the stadium. And you have to be in line before 9:00 am. For a noon graduation.

I decided to forgo, even though it's probably the only chance I'll get to be in the same place at the same time my president.

I remember when my mom took us to hear Lyndon Johnson in 1964. We casually walked in, heard him, and saw him wave to us from the helicopter as he left.

Lots of things are better about now than 1964, but if I could casually wander in to an open stadium to hear my president now, I absolutely would do so........

It's sort of weird, all the commotion surrounding every move he makes. Things have been strange here, all week. Helicopters flying around the stadium, many announcements from the U about parking and road closures and "no more tickets available." Michigan stadium seats over 100,000. I think they're only letting in about 80,000....

It's odd to think of all the people who work to keep him secure. There were plenty of very visible secret service people last year when Nancy Pelosi spoke at Johns Hopkins' literature school's graduation, but this is orders of magnitude more.....

We didn't have to go through airline-type security, as everyone will tomorrow. We didn't have tickets; we just wandered in.......

I'm thinking of a very large bubble of "secure space" around the person of the president. Secure at the edges, and ever more secure as you get nearer......

A very sad commentary that this is necessary.......



We'll be rearranging our usual Saturday errands. We usually venture rather close to Michigan Stadium. We'll be wanting to avoid the extra traffic from street closures, etc. And especially wanting to avoid the traffic which will occur when those 80,000 people leave the stadium.........

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