Good Morning.
The White House is often referred to as The People's House even though only a handful of Americans have ever actually lived there. John Adams and his wife, Abigail, moved into the presidential residence in 1800 before it was actually completed. The British set fire to the house in 1814 with the damage so great that it basically had to be rebuilt. James Monroe furnished it with French pieces, many of which are still on display. Teddy Roosevelt added the West Wing to take care of official business because he needed more room for the family quarters; Teddy had six children. President Truman oversaw a major renovation of the residence after he noticed there were structural problems; his daughter's piano fell through the ceiling of one of the rooms.
I was fortunate to get a tour of The White House many years ago and loved every square inch of the areas open to the public.
The antiques and portraits are wonderful. I have also seen Mount Vernon and Monticello and have spent time looking around Williamsburg in Virginia and Old Sturbridge Village in Massachusetts. I have toured some lovely homes in the south and all over New England. I like old, historic buildings, large and small.
The current resident-in-chief at The White House has termed the place a "real dump" and one wonders what he thinks about the Capitol, the Lincoln Memorial, and the Supreme Court, also venerable buildings of understated elegance that grace the nation's capital. Actually I already know. He prefers showy, glittery, gilded opulence to American historically significant. He cannot wait to get away from the dump nearly every weekend but not to Camp David, the rustic retreat in Maryland named by Eisenhower in honor of his grandson and used by presidents for meetings, even with foreign leaders, and as a private getaway. At the moment he is vacationing at a resort in New Jersey and has taken a fair amount of flak for being away when he stated during the campaign that he would never do such a dreadful thing. Actually he probably needed to get out of town for awhile; The White House is having its electrical and air-conditioning systems upgraded, but that still doesn't excuse the comment.
Let us consider the story of King Midas who loved gold, like really loved gold. All he talked about was gold, gold, gold. All he did all day was count his gold coins, and thus he petitioned Dionysus, the god of sumptuous living, to grant him his fondest wish - that everything he touched would be turned to gold. It worked out to his satisfaction when he ran his hand over a chair, a bed, or a bathtub, but he also tried to eat some grapes for lunch and hugged his daughter. He pleaded with Dionysus to remove the terrible curse and was told to wash his hands in the river Pactolus and all would be well. Whew, the king said to himself, that was close, and perhaps I should get a different set of values. The old boy did just that and was ultimately revered by his subjects.
Best regards,
Elisabeth
Save
Comments