So this past Saturday night, I embarked on a West Wing marathon (now available on Amazon, free streaming for Prime Members, in HD, no less!). Rather than just jump into the middle, we started from episode one, and enjoyed a nostalgia-fest being re-introduced to CJ's wit, Josh and Donna's repartee, Sam and his call girl, Charlie's keen insights on where the President's glasses may be, Leo's dedication and secret AA meetings, Toby's "New York Sense of Humor" and President Bartlet's tender-but-goofy back pill fugues all over again. It is a show which has aged extremely well, and can still move you once in a while.
On the construction side, the Lego White House came together beautifully:
While it is not very large, it was a detailed build, with a lot of small pieces, but I was very pleased with the result. The included direction manual also has details of the building's history and structure. I learned that President Calvin Coolidge was upset by the leaky roof and replaced the roof and attic with a third floor using steel girders. While it solved the immediate leak issue, this new construction was not done properly and resulted in weakening the entire structure of the building, which was addressed a couple of decades later during the Truman Reconstruction.
The West Wing was not added until 1901, and the Oval Office until 1909 - it is amazing to realize that these centerpieces of the White House with all of their historical significance were only added in the last century.
Overall, it was a very successful TV/Lego marathon - it will be hard to go back to the Newsroom after this.
If you look closely at the balcony on the South Portico, you may be able to catch President Josiah Bartlet antagonizing over the proper response to the latest outrage in Qumar.
