Weird Moment

After the ceremony was over, and we joined the crowd flowing westward, the jumbotrons showed bland announcements about the exits on 7th St being closed, etc. but the sound was still on and the Mall was filled with a loud and unpleasant roaring. It went from loud to very loud when we were near a speaker tower. With the crowd opened up, the breeze could reach us and it was cold and it swirled the sheets of newspaper folks had been sitting on and the plastic wrappers from the chemical hand warmers around our feet. Joining thousands of others we hunched our shoulders and walked stiffly, (after standing so long, Julie's feet hurt a lot every time she put one down) silenced by this ominous drone. Apparently the microphone was following the new President as he escorted the ex-President to his helicopter, and I suppose we had guessed at this because when the sound lessened we knew to turn toward the Capital and watch the Marine Corp helicopter appear over it and head slowly up the length of the Mall. I don't remember there being too much crowd reaction... no one threw their shoes at it. We were glad that the ugly noise was gone, though.