We all have a favorite show that we know by heart and can quote at the drop of a hat. For me that is The Office. I first heard about it when I was dating a girl and saw she had a cardboard cutout of Jim in her office. I asked what it was from and she was flabbergasted that I hadn't see it yet. In true Dwight fashion I resist doing things people are forcing me into so I never watched it while dating her. A couple of years later I was working at KCTV5 killing time between shows when I saw it while flipping through the channels. It was the Traveling Salesman episode (Season 3 Episode 13). Not knowing the characters or the reason for their interactions I was confused at first but drawn in none the less.
From then on I made it a point to tune in each week and when I discovered the episodes online I binge watched to get caught up. I eventually found the DVDs of complete seasons for sale and purchased them as they were released up till season 5 when I switched to digital copies. The show is amazingly well written, has phenomenal character development and is anchored by the brilliance of Steve Carell (who plays Michael Scott). I fell in love with the quirkiness of the characters and found myself watching the reruns whenever I could. when that wasn't available I watched short clips on YouTube.
As my kids got older they would catch me watching it from time to time and slowly got hooked themselves. One by one they each found themselves watching the love story of Jim and Pam, the pranks, the awkwardness of Michael, the fall of Ryan and the many other lovable storylines. With the onset of streaming services I was excited to see it on Netflix and set about watching the whole series again... and again... and again. Sometimes I would alternate with Parks and Rec but my first love (by way of TV shows) is solidly in The Office camp.
In 2018 we went on an epic trip (I know, all of our trips are epic) through the south and up the Eastern seaboard to the New England area. On our way back we took care to drive through Scranton to snap photos with the iconic papermill seen in the opening credits and the Welcome to Scranton sign at the Steamtown Mall. Three years later we hunted down various filming locations around LA all for the love of The Office. It's the only show all 6 members of my family enjoy. My oldest and I can hold entire conversations out of quotes from the show. To date I have watched it 12 times start to finish and I still preach the good word of it to anyone I encounter willing to listen.
8/4/2021