The Vermont State Society Reception was a pleasant affair. I kissed Bernie Sanders on the cheek and whispered “good job” and left it at that after snapping a picture. Howard Dean gave one of his well-intentioned but easy-to-tune out speeches. And Patrick Leahy kept reminding us to go up on top of the building and check out the view. Finally, we took the elevator up, clutching our drinks. I wasn’t going to go out, because of the cold, but then Eileen told me I HAD to. She has lived in DC for much of her adult life, and she came back in raving that neither she or I would ever see DC like this again. So I had to go out after all, and indeed it was spectacular. The Capitol dome was aglow, and Eileen said it was especially lit up for this occasion.