All,
Got invited to attend the inauguration – Thank you, Congressman Kelly 🙂
Got down there Monday morning and it was cold. So cold that they decided to move all the events indoors, so instead of 250,000 guests watching it, only a few hundred got in, and we just watched the inauguration from our hotel room.
We then went to the JP Morgan reception (thanks, Brian Linville) and had a drink and some pretzels. Washington was all secured, so it was tough getting around. Lots of road closures and fencing. We had to do a lot of walking (which I don’t mind), and I wore my Josh Allen jersey (which got a lot of “GO BILLS” from passersby. I love repping the Bills. Fans everywhere).
Notice, I did not wear a coat even though the wind chill was single digits. I lived in Buffalo for 15 years and worked outside in the steel plant and then as a dockworker there for years, so maybe I just got used to it. But unless there is wind, I don’t mind the cold. I honestly told Yuriy that I could easily take off my jacket and jersey and walk around bare chested (I think I have actually done that before hahahahahaha) but Yuriy said that with all the armed security around, they might think I was a nut and take me down. So…the shirt stayed on (this time. I wasn’t kidding. 😉
Not that unusual for announcer and former Bills QB and all-time fan, Ryan Fitzpatrick. It must be the Buffalo in us 🙂
Tuesday, we had several very good meetings with several very interesting people. Our Erie friend, Steve Scully, arranged some of them, and Derek arranged the others. Talked about the new administration and the future, but mostly about Ukraine. We got to meet with some of Senator John Fetterman’s staff and had a very productive talk. LP is kind of a hidden gem here in Erie, and I think the world is finding us more and more. We are making some great inroads with our Ukraine support efforts and making a real name for ourselves. “Punching above our weight.” I think Senator Fetterman (and likely Senator McCormick, our 2 US Senators, will visit Union Station the next time they are in Erie).
Yuriy also got interviewed by Steve on an Sirius XM. Did a great job.
Thanks to Congressman Kelly, Brian Linville, Senator Fetterman, and Steve Scully for making this an enjoyable and memorable trip to what is a historic event.
Onward! -JB