1346

This is an onion lamp. Elenka likes them a lot. I'm not so sure. Every time we're in need of some sort of outside lighting, she always seems to bring the conversation around to a fixture like this. I tend to lean towards the more basic. Call it simple. Don't get me wrong. It's not that I don't like the design. I really do, but I like them on the bigger houses. However, I must say this, I've never picked wrong going with Elenka's choices... in ANYTHING! Knobs on cabinets, paint color, carpet, rock design on the back walkway, furniture choices. Take your pick. She has the 'eye'. So, here's the bottom line---I wouldn't bet against one of these gracing our yard someday.

820

Here it is! This is 820 Stevens Avenue. I've written about it many times but never shown it. It's where I hung out, aggravated girls and attempted to figure out if I might in any way play for the Red Sox someday. The frontage remains the same, sans the large wrap around front porch. It's a shame really; it added so much class and dignity to the home. We moved in between my second and third grade years and lived there till I was a junior in high school. The window on the top right was my bedroom, my domain. If there was something amiss at the convergence of Stevens and Forest a the the Corner, no matter what time, I was on it. This room and this house are just overflowing with memories and adventures. They flood my head. Unbeknownst to Mom and Dad, once at twelve I pushed open the attic trap door, scrambled across the roof peak and sat dangling my feet over the edge for about an hour watching the sights. Wild times for this sneaker clad kid.

Ever get the opportunity to get back to the old hangout? Would you ever want the chance?

Shrouded Door

This front doorway, on an outer Washington Avenue home, caught my eye the other morning. The brick house is very much inhabited, but the front door is pretty much off limits. However, Johnny Weissmuller, of the old Tarzan movie fame, would probably love making an entrance through these vines. "Me Tarzan, you Jane..." I'm not really a movie buff, although I did see "King's Speech" and "The Fighter" on consecutive weekends last winter. That was rare. I do enjoy watching TMC and those movie classics. Did anyone catch Jane Greer, Robert Mitchum and an early second film of Kirk Douglas in the film noir "Out of the Past"(1947) last Saturday night? Now, that was entertaining!

Spring Weekend#1

This past weekend we headed to Rockland and spent time in the Berry Manor Inn, a grand old manse built in 1898 and showing off the grandeur of the Victorian age. Local merchant Charles H. Berry built this extraordinary home as a wedding present for his new bride. Over the next few days, I'll be taking a look at a few of the images I captured on our little soiree. These lace curtains reminded me so much of the windows on Coyle Street. Mom loved lace work and used it to decorate windows in the living and dining rooms. I remembered thinking. Why all the fuss about lace? Aren't curtains suppose to block out light? I just didn't get it. I do now. Sitting in our bedroom and the common rooms on the first floor took me back to another time and place.