Castle Impossible and Melania

My wife and I finished watching season one of Castle Impossible on Discovery Plus. We have been finding a lot of reality shows on Discovery Plus, and many of them we just like. The general synopsis is that there is a married couple, Daphne Reckert and Ian Figueira, and Daphne inherited a chateau along with hundreds of acres of land that contains lakes, forests, cabins, a hunter’s lodge, stables and other places from her deceased grandfather. The couple goes about renovating the estate, usually one room at a time. Projects include: turning an area of the stables into a workshop, turning a room into an office, turning a room into a living room/waiting room, making a bedroom suite, and renovating the kitchen, living room, and master suite in the hunter’s lodge. The selling points of the show come from the sheer size of the project that they’re working on, the history of the place, Daphne’s connection with her grandfather, and the energy and enthusiasm from the couple themselves. Ian is a jack-of-all-trades type, and Daphne is a really good designer. I am glad to hear that this show has been renewed for a second season.

My wife, a friend and I also watched the Melania movie. It started out slow with First Lady Melania Trump picking out an outfit, and she was very meticulous about its length and look on her. Her fashion designer though was definitely a small highlight of the movie. I thought that it might be about style and fashion, but as the movie went on, it got better. The movie showed her relationship with her parents and how seriously she takes the office of First Lady. The first interaction with her husband, President Donald Trump, was actually a bit comical as it was a phone call after he won the election in 2024. He was excited almost like a child, and she responded like a mother would. Honestly, that was relatable though as husbands can be childlike at times, and wives can be like mothers at times. Most of the movie from then on was about her relationship with her husband, and it was endearing, for the most part. She seems to take the office seriously, and that meticulousness that she puts into style and fashion is a trait that she puts into being the First Lady.

Appearance matters whether it comes from a chateau or from people. Certain design choices can change something mundane into something much better.