Here comes the President, all dressed for (the) White (house).

The day we've all been waiting for- 20th of January. The day Bush is unceremoniously thrown out of the White House, and Barack Obama is welcomed in with open arms. The day Obama sheds the 'elect' from 'President- elect' and fully becomes President. Just in the nick of time, I would say. Bush would probably have pulled in alien planets to join in the lovely economic dive if he was given another week.

Obama certainly knows how to party in style. His inauguration is kicked off by Bruce Springsteen in the morning celebration, themed 'We Are One'. Celebrities who can't sing read history from a teleprompter, and those who can, sang. Mary J Blige, Shakira, Sheryl Crow and Stevie Wonder were among those who could sing. Of course, some who couldn't any more still vailantly attempted, Bono from U2 being a fine example of such bravery. But the bravest had to be the sargeant who sang the National Anthem at the start of the event. It must take real guts to sing the last word wrongly, being such a high commanding officer.

The nightime event was the one everyone was waiting for, though. Stars such as Mariah Carey, Alicia Keys, Faith Hill, Beyonce and Stevie Wonder (again. This guy's got some serious free time.) were there to perform, among others.

Mariah sang the new version of Hero (cause she says it's totally appropriate for Obama) and was amazing at it, especially the belts. She no longer does the 'whole song almost belting' thing, 'cause I doubt her voice can stand that after years of hardcore usage. She still belted a bit here, though, and the diva actions (sadly the hand flutters were limited due to the straps on her dress) that have been missing for the past few performances are starting to creep back. Seems like someone hasn't tamed the diva after all.

Beyonce was treated like a lounge singer, and she was made to sing 'At Last' for the First Couple's first dance as a First Couple. The lyrics SHOULD have gone like this:

At Last
A real President has come along
We all can rest in peace
And life is like a song
Oh yea, at last
Bush's bullshit rules are out too
My wallet was running low on cash
Due to the recession caused by you

That would have been much more suitable for the night. After all, it's not everyday we get to chase an ex-president out of office.

Obama is certainly keeping the economy in circulation. US$40 million was spent for the entire event, and 2 million people turned up. A total of 19 thousand law enforcers were hired to enforce security, and 18 thousand volunteers turned up to help out. Definitely the grandest event that would ever be held this year. What other event would use as many as 12 thousand eggs for food? That's gotta be a sign of a sure winner.

See you in office!