I left my house around 1740 pm and drove up 664 North. The traffic was light. I merged on to I-64 West around 1800 pm. A few minutes later, I found my exit. The traffic was moving in a snail phase, forming a long line that faded into the dark. I wondered if I could ever find a parking space.
The police office - a black man - at the traffic light waved me down and instructed me to head down to the exit a few blocks down the road. It's the back road to the parking lot no way near the international airport. I parked with eased and found myself among anxious supporters; both men, women, blacks, and children. We waited there for about 30 minutes when huge buses rolled up and started busing off people to the rally venue. I walked into one; a packed bus. The drive is a pleasant black man, and as I walked down the aisle I noticed that majority in the bus were old-timers.
A few mins later, the bus rolled out and headed to the hanger. The traffic was obviously tight as we've expected. We finally arrived at the location but still far away from the drop-off zone. I joined the others and walked in line about half-a-mile to the hanger. They did a thorough search which includes bags and body search with metal detectors. I passed through to the building but we were ushered to the left side near the Romney bus and the entrance to the podium.
The hanger had already been filled with early arriving supporters, but I was just relieved to finally at the the venue.
Sometimes later, Virginian candidates for Congress and Senate came on the scene and started firing up the mood. But as the people stood to recite the "Pledge of Allegiance", Gov Romney called from his plane. He announced that there was a delay due to some mechanical problems. They had to wait for a while in Philadelphia, but were taxing out of the terminal and were expected to arrive in an hour or so. After the recital, more VA leaders came forward and gave brief presentations.
Around 9 pm, his plane touched down and rolled up to where we were. People were extremely tired but excited to be part of the occasion. VA Governor, Bob McDonald, gave the welcoming speech and a few minutes later finally officially welcomed Romney back to Virginia. The crowd roared as Romney stepped out of the plane and making way to the podium. He walked just a yard in front of us to the podium. He was extremely excited but obviously tired. I listened to him and wondered just how exactly he handled the stress and demands of the presidential campaign. His voice faded but sound very fresh.
He again related the story of the US Scouts flag that survived the Space shuttle which blew up in the air. The flag somehow survived and in complete form. That, to him, is sign of American significance and might.
His Message was the Same
Gov Romney's message was basically the same but the crowd, in my observation, roared to two important promises: 1. To prevent defense cuts proposed by the Obama administration which projected to put 100,000+ employees out of work in 2013. 2. Allow drilling and coal industries to thrive and create more jobs for Virginians. This, Gov Romney argues, is the best way to achieving energy independence for America and for the state of Virginia.
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