Saturday, June 24, 2006

Back from New York

I'm back from New York City. Since the end of April I had been living there to supervise interns for BYU and teach a class on New York media history. I've posted some photos of the adventure, like this one, which I took on the Brooklyn Bridge. It was a wonderful experience and I actually grew to love the city. The students did a great job. Their parents and the faculty should be proud of them.

Toward the end of my stay I had a wonderful opportunity to visit the West Wing of the White House. It came about thanks to a former student, BYU graduate Brittany Candrian. She was hired several months ago to work in the White House Speech Writing Office. West Wing staff can schedule visits for friends and family, so thanks to Brittany I got to see the Oval Office, the Roosevelt Room, and the Cabinet Room. We watched from a window as the president landed in Marine One and he and the First Lady disembarked and walked to the residence. (Had he headed to the West Wing I would have been ejected, I was told.)

I was not allowed to take pictures in the West Wing proper, but I could take pictures in the White House briefing room. The room was built over a swimming pool during the Nixon administration in order to get the press out of the West Wing lobby. A funny thing happened when I posed for a picture looking into the trap door in the floor: I forgot the lens cap to my camera. I didn't figure out that I had left it there until I was back in my hotel and reviewed my photos. Luckily, I was able to retrieve it the next day when I returned for a South Lawn arrival. Not only did my lens cap spend the night in the White House, but I was able to snap photos of the President getting off Marine One.
The opinions stated here are my own and in no way reflect those of Brigham Young University, its students, faculty, or sponsoring institution.