Getting Visionary Again

Lack of posts lately due not to waning interest in maintaining a blog, but a crazy deadline-driven and travel-filled work schedule. I read home decor and gardening magazines on flights. On a recent trip, one photo set my brain whirling and I haven't forgotten it. Hooked on stone, again! The photo showed an English basement window open to a stone wall outside, stone walls inside and slate floor. Oh boy oh boy oh boy. So I get visions of a stone wine cellar in our basement. Very grotto-ish. With low lighting. An old wood door with iron scrollwork, shipped from a dusty warehouse within earshot of the spice traders in Cochin. Lots of stories and secrets are in the aisles of that warehouse and I'm itching for an excuse to go back. However, without getting into laborious detail of our current situation, getting a bona fide stone wine cellar big enough for a dining table surrounded by wine-lined walls would entail digging to expand the basement. And that just ain't happenin'.

BUT ... what could happen ... a slice of the feeling and slightly different ... there is a cement staircase behind our house leading down to a door into the basement. And behind the wood door that is always closed is a metal and glass storm door. It's always closed, even when we're in the basement in nice weather, because the view is nasty. Sunshine never hits the ugly gray cement wall and it's now becoming slick with, hmmm, something more algae-like than pretty carpeted moss, which I would actually like. But what if that cement were covered with stone veneer? And the bushes at the top of the stairs chopped down and replaced with low-growing flowers to allow sunlight onto the steps, and a view of the blue sky ... at least for the person on the exercise bike by the door. Why not. The cats would love it. When working down there on hobbies, you could hear the birds singing, feel fresh air.

There's all winter to plan ...