I'm re-doing the front door. What would you do?

I've sanded it, now we have 'patina' "So I got that goin' for me, which is nice."**


Our front door faces southwest and takes a beating from the sun. It takes a kicking too (19 years of kids at home). It takes a slamming too. I'm quite rude to door-to-door solicitors who aren't neighbors or girl scouts.

I've forgotten why but the door started off stained cherry. Kind of reddish, kind of dark. This picture shows it a bit past it's peak. Hey, we just live here; the house is rarely in showroom condition.


You may know that 2 world famous Atlanta bloggers (Holly and Claire) have visited here and seen our place in as-is condition.

If Holly or Claire, have read this far, they are certainly wondering about the trick photography. Where did all the green come from? We actually did have a green yard until the Big Dig.


In the Kearns' Big Dig we fixed our sewer line, did some water proofing, broke the gas line twice, re-directed the down spouts, tore off the end of our porch, and added enough drainage to divert the Colorado River.

Dear Holly and Claire,
We haven't yet re-landscaped the front. Instead we've concentrated on high-weed, high bare spot, high pine needle, high shade minimalism. I call it "Terry Turf" after Tara Dillard's "Tara Turf."

Anyway, what about the door?

Before sanding		After sanding

When we re-roof, we'll repaint and reconsider everything. But for now our designer, Gordon, has made the decision. I need to get started before the pollen sets in.

Any suggestions? Can you guess what we decided to do? There is still time to change our minds.


Thanks so much.
Terry

**Carl Spackler

P.S. Decorum prevents revealing the full story of the Big Dig in this blog. But if you must, there is a slide show at my Reeder Redo blog.

Pinkest and Purplest Art Deco in Decatur

Forget the price and try the lemon cupcakes.


Grandpa is 80. The son is running amok on spring break so JoAnn, the girls, and I headed to McDonough with balloons and cupcakes for a little celebration. Your host went with the flow. Who knew that we'd enjoy art deco, running shoes, a city hall, and dinner at a re-purposed service station?

This is the Blair-Rutland Building at 215 Church St., Decatur, Georgia.


On the way to Grandpa's we picked up some cupcakes at the Atlanta Cupcake Factory. I complained about the price. I admit I was wrong, try the lemon cupcakes.

Next: the girls needed running shoes. I went along for the ride to The Big Peach Running Company in Decatur.


Buying running shoes takes longer than it used to. I bolted the store with my camera before my hate-to-wait bad attitude took hold. The Blair-Rutland Building is nearby. It's pretty but so darn pink and purple. Was it always?


Decatur City Hall is next to the shoe store. It's beautiful but there is a lot of "less pretty" stuff nearby that catchess the eye first. The overgrown summer foliage will soon hide it. A recent renovation produced these beautiful panels. More on City Hall in another post.


By the time we got the shoes we were hungry again. Rachel said we should go Leon's Full Service for brisket. It's very nice for a converted service station. We got there before the crowd and ate like kings and queens. Rachel was right, the brisket was magnificent. When we left, Leon's was very busy and full of cool folks.


Going along for the ride (for almost 7 hours) was pretty darn good.

As a bonus I got the greatest advice from my 3 girls: How to improve my driving, manners, grooming, people skills, eating habits, and all around behavior. They tirelessly and selflessly look for ways to help me improve myself.

Thanks,
Terry