Civic Fest 2008

I made it to the Twin Cities safe and sound. I even made it to the Minneapolis Convention Center by way of car (and a gps that broke just as I was leaving), light rail, and leg power. Our orientation of sorts was confusing. People who weren't assigned to work in your area were being sent to your team and others on the team were being asked to go to other places. It was very confusing for me. We were shown where our water station was, and the water wasn't there. There were no chairs on which to sit. We were told to go back to the volunteer room to sit. I did. I was offered a diet coke, which wasn't cold. Snacks were made available. They were high in carbs and calories, and nothing you couldn't find in a vending machine. Although the team leaders were doing their best to make everything work, I felt that the volunteer "positions" were more for show than anything else and really weren't appreciated. I didn't do much but stand around for 4.5 hours. When it came time to leave, I was more than ready to go. Some friends of mine drove up for civic fest, so I stayed longer than I planned. We had a good time together. I was able to see some of the sights, and, yes, they were very good things to see and experience. The numbers of people in attendance were very low, in spite of the free admission for the first 5,000 people. I was very surprised at that.
The most popular attraction was the miniature White House. This project is one that James Zweilig and his family have worked at for the last 56 years. This is the last time this fabulous, detailed project will be displayed anywhere, other than in the Smithsonian. I took a lot of photos. It was amazing to see this detailed, miniature version of the White House. It is a current version of what is in the White House today. Everything from rugs to chandeliers is shown in each room. Nothing is different from what it is in the White House if you were to go for a visit. I couldn't get over the amount of time and work that has to go into this project! I've got a few photos to show. The problem is that these photos don't show the fantastic workmanship that has gone into this project.














Looking at this view, you'd think you were actually driving up the driveway to the entrance of the White House. If you'll notice, some of the shades are drawn in the rooms and some are not.
Close up, the shades look like pleated blinds.














This is the side of the White House that most people were interested in seeing. This is the main part of the White House where the President and his family lives and where the most famous rooms of the White House are located. I will show you the Oval Office in my next photo to give you an understanding of the detail of each room.













The rug in the Oval Office is the same rug that is there now. This rug was either painted or stitched. Some of the rugs that were stitched had over a half a million stitches in them. They were exact replicas. In some rooms, there were working tv's. The detail is amazing! If yu look on the table behind the desk in the Oval Office, you will see photos of the President's family. This site, the most popular one, and one in which people had to wait for 2 hours to see, was and is amazing!
When I left for the light rail, I knew I was tired, but I didn't know how tired I was. I actually fell asleep on the light rail. I made it back to my daughter's home, and, other than chatting with Deb online, I fell asleep and slept for 5 hours. At that point, I got up, ate, and went back to sleep. I slept through the alarm. I didn't go in today. My heel hurt. My back hurt. I don't know which one hurt the most. I hope to go in tomorrow. I bought a foot brace and ibuprophen. I had no idea that I could be this exhausted. It might take me more than one day to rest, I don't know. I hope not. I plan to take a nap soon. Maybe that will help me. Once the Advil kicks in, my heel, my knee and my back will be better. I don't know, maybe I just got too old for this kind of work.
Even though, I wasn't happy with everything about Civic Fest, I do think it's worth attending. If I can, I will put the DVD of me taking office and being sworn in by the "Chief Justice." I told the camera man to make sure my jewelry showed. He gave me a strange look. I haven't watched the DVD yet, but we shall see. Until tomorrow, I'll say good night today.