Bob Collins
We had some time to kill today while watching — and enjoying, frankly — lawmakers and President Trump argue out in the open as if there’s more than one branch of government. So we looked around the room and we have takeaways.
1) The president doesn’t wear a wedding ring. Apparently he never has in any of his marriages. He doesn’t wear any rings. For the record, everybody else had rings on.
2) There’s some bearded a guy (Poseidon?) with a Trident stabbing someone on a horse on the mantle. Because nothing conveys the joy of the season like assault and battery.
3) This can’t be comfortable. C’mon man, unbutton.
4) These roses are gorgeous. We estimate there are at least three dozen. The current White House florist is Hedieh Ghaffarian, a holdover from the Obama administration. The previous floral designer left under mysterious circumstances.
5) This is unique to the Trump Oval Office. Flags for every military branch adored with battle streamers. This one is atop the Air Force flag. I haven’t yet figured out which battle N-S-I-V… 1942-1945 is, but possibly it’s some military offensive during World War II. Any guesses?
James Fallows wrote in The Atlantic last year that the display of military artifacts in the Oval Office is in inverse proportion to the military service of the commander in chief.
6) See, now this is how you build a fire. Split wood, and strips of fatwood providing air circulation and a firestarter. No need to wad up pages of the failing New York Times to get this baby roaring.
