You only have to go to the corner of 15th Street and New York Avenue NW to find the proof of Obama-mania. The Washington Post’s Inauguration Watch blog recently posted about the Pres. Elect Barack Obama souvenir store, which just opened on Monday, owned by Jim Warlick, a man who has made a lifetime career out of selling political memorabilia. The store is overflowing with your typical t-shirts, mugs and buttons, with a more expensive section for the cuff links and jewelry — and the $20 Election Special Edition of the Post, which I waited in line for on November 5 for a cool $1.50.

More interesting than the tchotchkes lining the walls is the attention the store is getting. When I asked a fellow behind the counter if I could take a couple snapshots, he laughed and said, “More attention! Of course!,” which was followed in the next 60 seconds by two more people asking to take photos. One employee (after asking me what a “blog” is) told me that a reporter from a Tokyo publication had been in the day before. As I left the store, a woman from Voice of America was setting up a video camera and enthusiastically told me, “We translate into 45 languages! People want to hear about it!”

The store is open Monday through Saturday, 9 a.m. to 8 p.m., and Sunday 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Be sure to bring your camera for an exciting photo op in the “Oval Office” or next to Obama (or Lincoln, if you’re old school) at the podium. This is just one of five new stores he plans to open around the Metro region soon, and will no doubt be retiring in luxury to the Caribbean soon after January 20.