I was walking home from work tonight, and as I made my way east on Independence Avenue, I noticed police slowly but surely blocking off traffic, even preventing pedestrians from crossing one side of Independence to another (fortunately I crossed before they started doing that). It wasn't until I saw that the blockade continued on Independence east of the break with Pennsylvania Avenue that I realized what was going on -- Bush was on his way to throw out the first pitch for the first Washington Nationals home game. As it was, the game started at 7pm, perfectly timed to induce additional gridlock upon rush hour (apparently this will be the normal starting time for weeknight games). The additional 15-minute delay caused by the Bush motorcade was just another burden drivers had to contend with.
Another thing: as I got to my house, a couple of guys asked if they were headed in the right direction to the game. I politely helped them, and as they headed out, one said, "It's been a long time since 1996." "1996?" I asked? They both exclaimed, "The last Redskins game at RFK!" Silly me, I had been going to RFK at least a dozen times a year since then for United games, tells you what little I know.
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And another reason -- after the game, celebratory fireworks went off (some by the team, some by locals), and hundreds of people are being rather loud outside as they head for wherever, many blocks away from the stadium. oh fun, only 80 more games this year (but at least none of the others will be the first Nationals home game ever, so maybe things will improve).
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