Rockford Air Show - 2009

A beautiful display of excellence at the Rockford Air Show 2009. As you can see, the F-22 Stealth was the main draw; it's precision and performance was unbelievable ... too bad we can't buy parts for it anymore!

Gettysburg ... and Washington, D.C.

I had a few hours to kill on Sunday afternoon before the annual lobbying convention began, so a couple of good friends and I rented a vehicle and headed out of D.C. to Gettysburg, Pennsylvania. While we drove around the countryside hitting all of the various battle points, we listened to a historian on cd who recounted the importance of each stop's events. The loss of life was simply staggering ... two stories that I can still hear in my mind are that when the battle in the Wheat Field was said and done, one soldier remarked that there wasn't a spot he could step on which was solid ground. Another remembered laying wounded for two days, waiting for help, and brandishing his sword at the hogs who were feasting on the deceased and those who couldn't fight them off. 51,112 casulties in three days.

The other two images are, of course, the White House and the Capitol Building near the reflecting pool. There seemed to be a very different, energetic buzz happening in D.C. with the new administration. Everyone was focused on passing the new Stimulus Bill in the hopes of dispersing the funds within (60) days ... but no one is quite sure where or how exactly the funds will be dispersed.

I did have the opporutnity to meet with Senator Durbin, Arne Duncan, and Representative Don Manzullo (the last one thoroughly disappointed us). I'm hoping for change!

No, seriously, he's a doctor!

Matt and I at his graduation in Springfield. He's the wizard. I'm the warlock. Where is Capt. Morgan?

Hangin' with the Lincoln's. Cheer up people! We're not asking you to go to a play!

Yeah, same guy ... if you know Matt, then you will understand that the next day, two more statues of children stood in that grouping. FYI, Abe wasn't the father ...

Yup, a doctor who's interning in the ER ... one must understand where his patients come from ...

Matt graduated from SIU School of Medicine, aka Jamaican Voodoo, this spring. He will be interning in the Peoria ER for the next four years. The biggest benefit to Matt: he gets to eat as much food as he wants to and its free. Mental Note, don't get shot in Peoria. Matt, Rich (see Storm Chasing), and I used to hang out in high school. Matt, unfortunately, couldn't make the storm chasing trip due to some important tests or something ... don't worry he's going to live ;), so we had to celebrate his graduation "small-town style" as you can see above.

Even More D.C. ....

While walking about the capitol, gripping my coat to keep warm, these two gentleman came into view as we passed one of the most revered icons within the American culture (see photo above :) ). The cold wasn't a bother for either one of them as they stood above the grates where the hot air blew out of the building. They were both singing and dancing, to what, who knows, but whatever it was, they could both hear it .... and they were both happy for a small time.

D.C. - Some more images ....

More in D.C. ....

First of all, credit goes to Bob for photographing me in the Member's Only Room at the Library of Congress. The lighting was excellent and the decor was phenomenal; subject matter, of course, was something that needed a little bit of work! So how did we get into the Member's Only Room? Well, Senate Majority Whip Dick Durbin invited us! Well, not just us, but the entire Illinois Community College Trustees Association to discuss Pell and Perkins grant funding as well as the proposed education bill pending within Congress (update -- he did speak about loan forgiveness to prosecutors and public defenders -- it's still being considered). Prior to that, we spent the morning visiting the various Senate and House offices speaking to legislative assistants regarding pending bills. The business day ended on the top floor of the Hart building for a brief reception thrown by the South Carolina Senators for all representatives of community colleges. The view over the capitol was great!

Washington, D.C. -- Exciting Times ....

I thought that by leaving the -25 degree weather behind in Chicago, I would find warmer weather. Well, it's somewhat warmer, but it's still VERY COLD and WINDY here in D.C. Still below zero with the wind chill, but I guess not as cold as it is at home.

The plane ride was somewhat eventful, in fact, I've never experienced turbulence like it before (FYI, neither had the stewardess who had been working for over thirty-five years). During the trip, we dropped three times, only later to find out it was about 50-100 feet each time. It felt kind of like a ride at Great America and I was having a blast, but it was short-lived when I remembered that my ticket didn't include the "added experience."

The educational seminars have been informative, as usual, and tomorrow, we will talk with Senator Durbin to lobby support for community colleges.

It is such an amazing time to be in Washington at this of the year! The Potomac Primaries are tomorrow, so all the buzz in D.C. is about who is going to win. Today, out of mere chance and a little ingenuity, we ended up at the University of Maryland for the Barak Obama rally. The line was over a mile long, stretching and bending clear across the campus. Amazingly, with over 17,000 people crammed inside of the stadium, Barak was fortunate enough to end up speaking only twenty feet away from me! (Side note -- not the closest we've been. In 2006, he used the urinal right next to me down in the tunnels under the Congressional buildings -- I'm pretty sure he remembered me today).

What was awe inspiring about today was the fact that there were so many young people that wanted to be involved in the process of electing the next President of the United States! This is so refreshing in a society that appears to have become complacent and distant from becoming involved within their own government. While talking with some of the people who attended, they said they didn't know who they were going to vote for this coming election, but they wanted to be informed.

This Democratic rally came on the heels of attending the local Republican rally at the Brandywine in Dixon. That place was packed, too, but not quite as much as this Presidential primary. It's been very refreshing to see everyone becoming actively involved within their own governments and looking to make a change.

Each and every generation has a time when it must meet its calling, perhaps that time is now. Change is good, yet active participation is necessary for that change to take place. I'm really excited to see what the rest of the week has to bring. Stay tuned!