Memory burn

Posted at 10:54 AM on January 21, 2009 by Than Tibbetts (16 Comments)

If yesterday seemed an important and historic day, you'll probably remember where you were when you witnessed it.

But of what you witnessed, what will you remember? What images will stick with you 10, 20 years from now?

MPR's Inauguration Day slideshow contains more than 80 images, and will be a good starting point if you need it. I'd also recommend taking a peek at the NY Times' galleries.

Update: Commenter mulad points to the Big Picture blog for more pictures. The image taken from the GeoEye Satellite is particularly stunning.

---

Comments (16)

Sick at home, I missed watching the event live on television, but I don't think I will ever forget the crowd shots, as seen from the Capitol steps.

Stunning.

I was once stationed in the DC area (Ft. Belvior) and got to know the city well, so I had a good feel for how huge that crowd was. So much hope and promisde -- not in the politicans or the President, but in the people themselves.

I felt renewed by the sight of it.

Posted by Bob Moffitt | January 21, 2009 11:11 AM

---

The incredible sea of happy people watching the inauguration. Tears on faces of people watching. The Kenya people dancing in the street while watching. The first couple dancing. Obama sitting at the desk, signing the first presidential papers.

Posted by Grace Kelly | January 21, 2009 11:38 AM

---

-Steely reserve visible in Obama's clenched jaw during much of the pre-swearing-in. Maybe he was trying to keep it together.
-George Sr. gutting it out, saluting every soldier.
-Breaking down during Yo-Yo Ma performance.
-Roberts' "faux pas" during the swearing-in. WTEff J-Rob?
-I'll never forget the sense of pride and happiness I felt, and I'll probably never fully realize why I felt it. But I'll remember it.

Posted by Stevelknievel | January 21, 2009 11:55 AM

---

The image I will remember most came before the oath or speech, both of which I was unable to view live; what I did see, that brought a smile to my face, as a brief shot of the moving trucks at the White House.

Posted by bsimon | January 21, 2009 12:15 PM

---

"a brief shot of the moving trucks at the White House."

I see Bob has such a shot in his collage. Well done, sir.

Posted by bsimon | January 21, 2009 12:16 PM

---

Since I was at work, I could only listen to the festivities, therefore I didn't see any images until I got home. What I think I'll remember isn't what I saw, it's what I heard (on MPR) on my drive home. There were estimates of nearly 2 million people in DC for the inauguration, and as of 6:30 eastern time yesterday, not a single arrest was made by the police. How cool is that?

Posted by andy | January 21, 2009 12:30 PM

---

I stayed home in order to watch the inauguration on my HDTV (though it also turned out I was sick, but my illness was tapering off). The capitol building was very picturesque with a bright blue sky accentuated with light clouds. I'm sure the wind made it an uncomfortable day since it was cold, but it made all of the flags fly very nicely. There was a still shot shown on the news with Sasha Obama giving a big thumbs-up to her father which was cute. I'll also remember some of the images of the new President and his wife walking down the street.

These are in contrast to my memories of Bush's inaugural in 2001, where rain streaked across the camera lens as he took the oath, and the drive to the White House was marked by protesters throwing bottles, tomatoes, and eggs at the motorcade. Quite a difference from yesterday.

Posted by mulad | January 21, 2009 1:26 PM

---

Was at work attempting to watch CSPAN's live feeds, our network was getting hammered. Ventured down to the cafeteria to see a bit on "TV". Was quite interesting to watch (and hear) co-workers reactions. Some claps, some with folded hands, one or two with backs turned like they could not be bothered.

Posted by Craig | January 21, 2009 1:28 PM

---

Oh, and here's a collection of pictures from Boston.com's Big Picture blog: http://www.boston.com/bigpicture/2009/01/the_inauguration_of_president.html

Posted by mulad | January 21, 2009 1:30 PM

---

@Craig - I agree. Reading some of the comments on Twitter etc. about people saying the streaming was bad.. as if television was now an antiquated technology we'd forgotten how to use.

Posted by Than Tibbetts | January 21, 2009 1:41 PM

---

My favorite moment was the first time I heard Obama addressed as "Mr. President." It was no longer a dream.

Posted by Lucie | January 21, 2009 1:43 PM

---

The image of Cheney looking every bit the grumpy old man in his wheelchair.

The joy on all the faces made me tear up all day.

Posted by momkat | January 21, 2009 3:55 PM

---

George W. Bush, flying away. That's when it really hit me that while the Bush legacy is one that is -- unfortunately -- going to "keep on giving" for years to come, W. is finally out of my life.

Posted by Florence | January 21, 2009 4:05 PM

---

Aretha Franklin's hat.

Posted by c | January 21, 2009 4:27 PM

---

Seeing the sea of people stretching from the Capitol building all the way to the Lincoln Monument.

Posted by Paul | January 21, 2009 8:21 PM

---

LOL... agreed on the sight of Cheney in his wheelchair. Insensitive of me perhaps, but it made him look even more like an evil supervillain! But on a serious note, the image of Barack and Michelle walking up the steps to the White House... made me tear up a little bit. They seem so fresh, so hopeful, and they really make me proud to be an American right now.

Posted by Heidi | January 21, 2009 8:43 PM

---

Post a comment

The following HTML tags are allowed in your comments:
+ Bold: <b>Text</b>
+ Italic: <i>Text</i>
+ Link: <a href="http://url" target="_blank">Link</a>
Fields marked with * are required.

Name*:

E-mail Address*:

URL:

Remember personal info?

Comments*:

Comment Preview appears above this form upon pressing the "preview" button. Edit your comment and press "preview" again, until you are satisfied with your comment.

Your comment may not appear on the blog until several minutes after it was submitted.

• E-mail this page
• Print this page
• Save to Delicious
• Submit to Digg
• Share this

Services

• Hourly Newscast
• HD Radio
• iPhone App / Mobile
• E-mail newsletters
• RSS feeds
• Podcasts
• Submit your photos
• Videos
• Weather
• Most e-mailed stories

Become a Sponsor