2021 has gifted us with an exceptionally eventful string of Wednesdays, which is objectively the crappiest day of the week (followed closely by Tuesday). On January 6, a mob of pro-Trump insurrectionists stormed the Capitol. Some were armed, some carried zip-ties, and a makeshift gallows was erected outside the Capitol. Five people died as a result, including a Capitol Police officer.
January has been quite a month. First Wednesday: Riot. Second: Impeachment. Third: Inauguration. https://t.co/pWN6bYCtGA (Images: Getty, AP, AP) pic.twitter.com/qupwPfvpuU
— Amanda Terkel (@aterkel) January 21, 2021
History across three Wednesdays: Two Wednesday’s ago, the Capitol was attacked by insurrectionists. Last Wednesday, Trump was impeached. Today, Wednesday, Biden is inaugurated. -h/t @DafnaLinzer
— Geoff Bennett (@GeoffRBennett) January 20, 2021
On January 13, the House voted to impeach former President Trump for the second time, due to “incitement of insurrection.” As lawmakers entered the chamber to vote, they had to pass through metal detectors, and members of the National Guard were stationed throughout the Capitol.
And on January 20, Joe Biden was sworn in as the 46th president. After unprecedented security measures were taken in DC—Red and Green Zones were established to secure streets, Metro stations were closed, and Airbnb canceled all DC reservations—the day unfolded without issue. In fact, many found it to be a spot of joy after a series of dark weeks: Amanda Gorman captivated viewers with her poem “The Hill We Climb,” Michelle Obama absolutely killed it with her outfit, and the powers that be gifted us Bernie memes.
All this to say, January 27 is the first Wednesday in many Wednesdays that seems…relatively sedate? Of course, it’s a sign of the times (and our battered mental states) that things can be considered relatively sedate against the backdrop of a deadly pandemic, with Americans dying daily in the thousands.
I realized waking up today that I didn't want to go to work, that there was this sense of needing to go back to sleep and not pay any attention to what's happening in the world. For the first time in 3 weeks, I don't have a major thing to report about on a Wednesday.
— Grace Segers (@Grace_Segers) January 27, 2021
Wishing all you Washingtonians a boring Wednesday where nothing at all happens and you get to take a nap <3 pic.twitter.com/rltE3nQzku
— Washingtonian (@washingtonian) January 26, 2021
For those who work in journalism or are especially attuned to its rhythms, the rapid-fire nature of these events—against the backdrop of Covid-19, economic and political uncertainty, and our nation’s ongoing reckoning with systemic racism—can likely have a numbing or depressing effect, depending on where you land. But let’s perhaps accept some grace where we can find it: a relatively boring Wednesday, all things considered.
Take a walk at lunch, watch the new baby panda livestream, or sign off Twitter for a bit without the fear that some catastrophic event will occur while you’re gone. We’re so close, after all—it’s almost February.
Mimi Montgomery joined Washingtonian in 2018. She’s written for The Washington Post, Garden & Gun, Outside Magazine, Washington City Paper, DCist, and PoPVille. Originally from North Carolina, she now lives in Del Ray.
