Sometimes things seem to fall in place without you really trying – and that’s exactly what happened to me yesterday. I’m not ‘connected’ in anyway, but I am fortunate enough that my friend who lives here in DC, Liz, and her friend, Allison, and her boyfriend, Sean (OK you get the idea), are! – and this time they managed to wangle tickets to get into the Rock Industry Association of America’s Inauguration Ball with guest star Rihanna as star performer…Because somebody, knows somebody etc. When we arrived at the Ibiza Club we got in line (a recurring motif all day), in the sub-zero cold (remember this point – it will become relevant later), and then lo and behold we see the organiser and we are ushered in past the crowd – pretty well all of whom had come straight from other black tie balls – my heart went out to the girls,standing shivering in thin dresses, bare legs and open heels. Inside there was a cordoned off VIP section for DC dignatories and the great, the good and the hip from the RIAA, including Jay-Z, Beyonce, Shakira and Courtney Cox – who was representing the chosen charity for the night, Feeding America. At midnight we had a short presentation from the organisers and then a speech from Miss Cox – who then introduced her husband. Oh dear. Big mistake. I don’t know what he was on, but David Arquette was wide-eyed, hands shaking and generally manic which is maybe why he made the following comment – “We whites are very happy Obama got elected – it takes away some of our guilt.” Cue nervous laughter and disbelief from the crowds. He stumbled on, apologising for going off script and then stumbled off, fluffing his intro to Rihanna. She was stunning, both in voice and looks, but after four songs the power went and the organisers could not get it started again. The reason: the generator outside had frozen up in the cold. We went back to Allisons and drank red wine and talked politics till the wee hours. What a trip. Sometimes things just fall into place.
Tags: Beyonce, Courtney Cox, David Arquette, inauguration, Jay-Z, Obama, Rihanna, Rock Industry Association of America. Feeding America, Shakira, Washington DC
