Day 4: the Lost Post

Unfortunately, last nights blog post was lost in space. So here is the Readers Digest version!!

Nancy & Barry went to Mt. Vernon, used public transportation, it was great.

I explored the vacant streets of DC and enjoyed breathing in the city. 2nd in the door and 1st to the 3rd floor for the First Ladies exhibit. It was amazing. Did Smithsonian museums all day. Scoped out where we'd be today for the Inauguration.

We all met up for a late afternoon nap and then headed to the Kennedy Center in hopes of getting free tickets to the Smokey Robinson show. We did have a run-in with someone Nancy & Barry knows from Wichita. After getting 0 tickets we headed to Georgetown to have dinner at Martins Tavern.

This is the restaurant where John proposed to Jackie. Dinner was delicious. We ventured to Georgetown Cupcakes but the line was a block long so we headed home. Tired and without dessert.

We went to bed.

First Ladies exhibit at the Smithsonian American History Museum.

Walking around on the Mall, I went up to scope out where our tickets would gain us access the next day.

This is the booth JFK would come and have his morning coffee and read the paper at Martins Tavern in Georgetown.  This is also the resturant where he proposed to Jackie.

Lost in Space

Well folks.... I typed up this great post about today, had the pictures picked out and ready to upload. Then the app shut down on me and we lost the text. So day 4's post will be redrafted tomorrow while we wait for the Inauguration to start.

Peace and sleep,
M

Day 3, Day of the Bicycle.

Another great and full day for us in DC! Not quite as jammed packed as yesterday, but still a lot of adventures were had.

We were a little tired from our grand day yesterday, sleeping in till 10am. We got around and finally out the door about 12-noon. Our first destination was the Mall to take part in the National Day of Service. We arrived just in time to see one of the three programs they had scheduled for this location. A welcome was made, a freshman senator from Illinois spoke, and then they started talking about this piano that was on the stage.... They were about to introduce Ben Folds!! How awesome :) If you knew me in high school you know I was ALWAYS listening to Ben Folds. I was pretty excited to see him take the stage for a few songs. Star Jones was the next speaker and then we went on our way to explore the different opportunities in the tent. Nancy wrote a postcard to active military serving overseas, Barry got a hat, and I was still smiling from seeing Ben Folds.

Our goal for today was to do the Capital Bikeshare. It was a bit of a learning curve to acquire your day pass and learn how to check out/return every 30minutes- but we were a quick study and found this a great way to tour the city. We headed out from the mall to the Jefferson memorial. Great views of the Washington monument over the lake and enjoyed the sights of Jefferson.

Our next stop was the FDR memorial. The guided tour was very informative and we enjoyed it. Quick quiz for all my Emporia friends: What program did FDR establish during the depression to help put people to work that ESU benefited from?? Our very own Welch Stadium was a WPA project that put Americans to work during the depression to help stimulate the economy.

Onto the MLK memorial where I spent a fair amount of time asking strangers if I could take their photos so their whole family could be in the picture. One father visiting with his wife and four daughters was so thankful for my offer. Helping their family document this memory was heart warming.

It was beginning to get chilly as the sun set so we did the express tour of the Korean memorial, Lincoln & the Vietnam memorial. Getting bikes again we road up by the White House backyard and even ventured out onto city streets via bike lanes. Overall a successful day of bike riding!

After such a busy day we were ready for a good meal and found a sports bar to get dinner and watch the end of the WSU game. We also decided to catch a movie and Zero Dark Thirty seemed fitting for our location.

Another long day for these tourists, nigh three of musical beds begins.

Nancy & Barry as we went to the National Day of Service.

Hanging out with Eleanor Roosevelt at the FDR memorial.

Barry, Nancy & me at the base of the Lincoln Memorial.  The Washington Monument is behind us.

Using the bike lanes in DC.  Loved the Capital Bikeshare!

DC, Day 1

In the words of my cousins sweet 3yr old, "Made it!"

My folks arrived to DC just before me, we collected our luggage and made our way to the metro to travel to our hotel. I am always amazed at large cities public transportation! Such a wonderful way to get around. Thankfully our hotel let us check in early and we were able to drop off our luggage and do a bit of sight seeing. We walked up the street to the old Post Office, such a beautiful building. Went up the tower and took in the great views of the city. Great way to get your internal compass set. I parted ways with my folks at this point and headed to my volunteer training for the Staff Ball. I found the city pretty easy to navigate, walked to the training location and back to the hotel without getting lost!

The three of us are staying at the Harrington Hotel, luckily booking the last room they had left. It is called a "Small Queen." It's a tiny room with a little closet and bare bathroom. My mother and I are sharing the bed tonight and my stepfather volunteered to take the floor. We'll see how this sleeping arrangement works..... It's certainly tight quarters, cozy as my mom puts it. Good thing we don't plan on spending much time at our hotel!

Tomorrow weather is to get cold and possibly snowy. DC residents hear the word "snow" and react like its the end of the world. Our plan is to take the double decker tour bus. No silly chances of snow will hold us back!

Just arrived to DC!  Still in the airport :)

Old Post Office.  We went up the Bell Tower to see the great views of the city.

Another shot of the Old Post Office.

View from the Bell Tower of the Capital.

View from the Bell Tower of the Washington Monument.

Secret Service, Apps & Packing

At this rate I am going to be a pro at being vetted by Secret Service!  When I met the President in August I had to be cleared by the Secret Service.  While in DC I will be volunteering at an event that the President will be at.  Once again, I have to get checked out.  And I thought I was selected for this volunteer position because I'd already passed this test!  Guess I'm not as special as I thought.

My Aunt told me about an app that will keep you up-to-date on all the going-ons in DC for the Inauguration.  Being attached to my iPhone I had to get it.  SUCH A GREAT APP, thanks Aunt Karen!  Has maps of the city, schedule of events, live feeds of events, information about public transportation, and so much more.  This will be a great tool for us as we experience the 57th Inauguration.

One more wake up until I head out on this great adventure!  I'm too excited to sleep.  I got most of my packing done over the weekend (yes, that is how excited I am).  Tonight I'll finish off my packing and try to get to bed early, that 7am flight will come way too early.  Watch out DIA, I'm not a morning person.



I'll do my best to post stories and pictures for you.  Figured out how to blog from my phone, so it should be great!  If you have twitter, follow me!  @MeShellCork

Meeting the President, August 2012

As I pack and prepare for my trip to DC, I find myself looking back at the time I spent on the campaign.  Obviously, this special memory comes to mind.  For those of you who don't know the story I thought I'd share; for those of you who do know its time for a refresher!

In August 2012 I was selected to meet the President.  I have been writing and re-writing how I want to explain the events of that day.  Nothing I wrote seemed to quite capture the moment, so I went through my emails and pulled this out.  After meeting the President I composed this message and sent it out to my family and friends.  I apologize  its a little lengthy...

Hello family and friends!

I have some exciting news to share with you today. As many of you know, I am volunteering with the Obama campaign here in Denver. I am a Neighborhood Team Leader for my neighborhood, leading a team of volunteers in our various campaign efforts. The work I do with the campaign is very rewarding and I am so proud to be working to re-elect this amazing leader.

Today, the President made a campaign stop in Denver and gave an amazing speech on the topic of Women’s health. Not only did I have the amazing opportunity to go and see him speak, I was also invited to meet our President and have my picture taken with him before the event. (I’m sure you all can imagine how ecstatic I was when I heard this news!) So today, I got to meet the man I am working so hard to re-elect.

Thinking I would be SO nervous, I practiced what I would want to tell him. Being a team leader, I talked to the team of volunteers I manage and got their feedback on what they want me to tell him. The general consensus was “Thank you.”

First we gathered outside, got checked in, and waited….. Then we were brought in through security, purses searched, walked through metal detectors, and waited some more. We were lead to the meeting area where we…… you guessed it, waited again. FINALLY we were assembled into a line and got to see the President walk into the photo area. When it was our turn a staff member said “Mr. President, this is Elena & Michelle.”

Elena was so nervous all she said was “Hi, I’m Elena.” I introduced myself and he said “Michelle, I’m very fond of that name!” I then proceeded to share with him that I grew up near El Dorado, Kansas, where his grandmother lived. He replied with “Wow, we could be cousins!” Our picture was taken, and we were ushered on.

It was that short. But in that short time, I felt like I had just spent a few moments with a long lost friend.

From there we then went into the auditorium where he would soon be speaking. We were escorted to the standing area just in front of the podium, had a great view! Some of the volunteers on my team got special VIP tickets to be in the crowd of women on the stage. One of which you can see on the CNN broadcast!

Being there listening to our President speak was amazing. I was so moved by his speech and the things he stands for, I was crying. I am so proud to be working to re-elect our President.

A BIG thank you to all of you who continue to support me as I journey through life in Denver. I am truly proud of the work I am doing, and am excited to see what else life will bring me!

-Michelle

This link will let you watch the speech. I was to the Presidents’ right standing in front of the podium.
http://www.c-span.org/Campaign2012/Events/President-Obama-Begins-2-Day-Campaign-Tour-of-Colorado/10737432954-1/

Farewell to Kate

My time volunteering on the campaign brought so many amazing people into my life. One of which is Kate Bass. Kate was the first person on the campaign that I met, she is the one who I said "yeah, I'll do anything!" to. Tonight we had a farewell fiesta for her as she embarks on her next journey: Haiti.
It was so great to gather with fellow volunteers and campaigners this evening. We all, very comfortably, returned to our lives on the campaign. To make it feel right I made sure to supply fresh baked cookies and beer. We reminisced, shared stories, updates on life after the campaign, and simply enjoyed being together again. These people were my Obama Family. They will forever hold a very special place in my heart. I am thankful for the work each of them did on the campaign, and know they will all continue to do amazing things with the rest of their lives. There were even talks of coming back together for a Hillary 2016 campaign......

Rebecca, Kate & myself.  Sadly this was our best picture, we had a lot of great outtakes.  

The Dress Obama magnet on the fridge had no clothes.  I figured we could put the Presidential Seal to good use.