It’s almost midnight and we are definitely winding down in preparation for 8 am breakfast when we get our credentials and the real work begins. So much happened today and it is not an exaggeration to admit I can barely remember this morning. After a quickly grabbed breakfast at a wonderful little bakery, we decided to take our chances “crashing” the press event. Someone had told us there was a commemorative event for Tim Russert, but this morning we heard it was by invitation only. Well, we thought we would take our chances and wander on over. And we actually got pretty far. We just walked in; no one asked any questions and we didn’t volunteer anything. We were star struck. We saw Al Hunt, Judy Woodruff, George Stephanopoulos, Gwen Ifell and Chuck Todd. While Senator McCain seems concerned about the likes of Paris Hilton and Britney Spears, these press folks are definitely our version of celebrity. As we were leaving, Lynn Sweet of the Chicago Sun-Times passed us. We couldn’t resist. As she is a frequent guest on Hardball and other MSNBC shows, we have come to know and appreciate her reporting and analysis. We stopped her and told her how much we admire her work. She was genuinely flattered and so nice to a group of women acting like, well, to be honest, groupies. She thanked us and asked us where we were from and what we thought would happen in Virginia.  We are supposedly sitting behind Illinois on the floor tomorrow so we are going to look for her and try to introduce her to Governor Kaine and former Governor Warner. It is the least we can do – show off our heroes and give her an entrée for her kindness to us.

We then attended the NEA luncheon at the Hyatt Regency. Robert F. Kennedy, Jr. was the featured speaker which was especially moving for me because my first campaign was as a volunteer for his dad when I was a young teenager. He brought his fourteen year old son and it was just another reminder that “the torch has passed.” I couldn’t help but think about all the young Kennedys that seem to be involved this year, and even more so, the youth vote. Although I know many people totally credit Barack Obama for this phenomenon, I have met many young people who supported Senator Clinton and some even for Senator McCain. I wonder if the war in Iraq is somehow responsible. Nothing like war to make people, even kids, wake up and realize the importance of civic involvement. Whatever the cause, I am glad to see the kids engaged and voting.

After the NEA lunch we walked all the way down the pedestrian mall to watch Hardball being filmed. We passed an anti-Iraq demonstration. I get very frustrated because, of course, the media was all over and I knew it would be a big story on the evening news. In reality, it was a few people, certainly not a significant group and, yet, it somehow relays the message that Democrats are disorderly and outside the system. If those demonstrators believe we should be out of Iraq and it is an “illegal war,” then they need to roll up their sleeves, get to work and create real change we can believe in with their votes.
“Hardball” was amazing. All right, truth be told, Chris Matthews is by far my favorite commentator. He isn’t straight down any Party line and he wears his heart on his sleeve. I always feel that if I met him anywhere else, I would be able to talk to him because he is who he is and you see that on his show. I also love that while I sometimes (ok, mostly) agree with him, he can make me mad and it forces me to keep listening. Well, the taping did not disappoint. If anything, I was even more impressed to see him interview reporters and politicians even with the distraction of cheering fans behind him. He even came down and talked to folks and was genuinely friendly, spontaneous and, as always, perceptive and bright. I might have to make that trek again this week.

We then walked all the way back to the Interfaith Caucus. It was held in a cavernous theatre that was filled virtually to capacity with a very diverse crowd. The experience was incredibly emotional as a wide variety of religious leaders preached and prayed with us. Sister Jean Prejean was especially moving as she spoke about the ills of the death penalty and its unfair application. I loved her quote about the poor and the justice system. “Capital punishment – well, those with less capital get more punishment.” She brought the crowd to its feet several times and we were reminded that politics should really be about doing good for people, not just about winning elections. I also was struck by the similarities in message between several of the preachers and Pastor Rick Warren who also speaks of economic injustice, poverty and other societal ills. We may all have different approaches but it is reassuring that Americans do take seriously the responsibility to make the world a better place for all.

We had to hurry back to the hotel to get on a bus for the Red Rocks Amphitheatre for a wonderful event for five delegations, sponsored by Dominion. As with most things Democratic, there was a wee bit of confusion and our 4 pm bus didn’t leave until after 4:30. As we left Denver, the driver informed us that he was from San Diego and he hoped we knew where we were going. We laughed, thinking he was joking, and replied that we were from Virginia. Well, the last laugh was on us. He was serious and arriving at Red Rocks after a circuitous route, we got lost and tried to drop us off on the wrong side of the mountain. After much confusion, we avoided a long hike (hadn’t we been on our feet and walking all day?) and we got back on the bus and drove around the mountain to the correct drop-off. The views were spectacular. I simply do not have the ability to put into words the huge jutting, yes, red rocks and mountain vistas that were all around us. We ate “Colorado fare” on balconies that allowed us to appreciate the surrounding views. I admit I am still tentative about bison burgers, but chicken and baked beans and other goodies more than made up for my pickiness. We had another event that ended at 8:30 so we made the difficult decision not to stay for the concert. This was a little more awkward after someone introduced me to Dave Matthews and, here I was, leaving before he even played. But we really want to take in as much as we can so we got back on the bus for Denver. However, the bus didn’t leave and just as were ready to carjack it, the last stragglers piled on. Imagine my surprise to know that we were delayed by none other than our erstwhile Party Chair! Unfortunately, this driver, a different one this time, got lost again and a twenty minute trip took one hour and fifteen minutes so we missed our subsequent event. Maybe it’s a blessing in disguise because I heard that they are running late at Red Rocks and Dave Matthews isn’t even coming on until 10 pm. That would make it an after midnight evening and probably not a good idea when tomorrow is the beginning of real Convention business, or maybe I am just getting too old for this stuff!