DELIGHTful DOORS
Door darlings, please, do check out this site of old doors in terra galleria. The images of the photograher QT LUONG are too delightful. He must be a real door darling. You can buy them on istock, too. Would make for a lovely wall poster.
http://www.terragalleria.com/photos/?keyword=old-doors
BIO of the photographer http://www.terragalleria.com/statement.html
A Door is a Door is a DoorisaDoorisaDoor
Though this may seem banal, let us, look at the different words for DOOR in other languages
PORTE – French
PORTELLO- Italian
PUERTA- Spanish
TUER- German
DVAR- Hindi
дверь- Russian
KAPI- Turkish
VRATA- Serbian
DRZWI- Polish (dont ask me how to pronounce this)
OVEN- Finnish (yeah, I know)
Ajtó-Hungarian
MLANGO- Swahili
USA- Romanian
PINTU- malay/ indonesian
DURYS- Lithuanian
derë- Albanian
Honey, Where Are the Keys?
All of us, door darlings or not, have faced the struggle of keeping the house, car, or safety deposit box KEYS in the same place every time. But life doesnt work like this. We misplace them , and nothing is worse than standing in front of your apartment door fumbling like Hudini and getting that goshdangit-feeling with a hysteric scream on one’s lips “HONEY, WHERE ARE THE KEYS?” (men usually scream “What have YOU done with the keys, honey?” ) And so the nightmare begins, a locksmith is called for a thousand bucks a visit, and you swear from now on you will get to know the neighbors and give all of them a spare one. Yeah, right. This old man here has heard all the stories and he is prepared to give you what you need: an extra key for your lover, or that special lock to keep the ex away.
The Real Reason Why Paradise Was Lost
Dear Door Darlings,
You might be shocked to know that it was not all Eve´s fault Adam and Eve had to leave paradise. No, Adam could have easily have finished eaten the apple in peace, and God still could have expressd his anger. Sure, but Adam and Eve could only be expelled because THERE WERE NO GATE DOORS around the garden of Eden! Here you can see, how their deeparture could have been easily prevented. Inpenetrable exits.
Elegance Elates!
There is a term in sociology called “Broken Window Effect” and it states that wherever the state, the community or the landlord allows property to go to ruin, people in the neighborhood will stop caring and start trashing up their surroundings. So if there are more and more broken homes and no parks, the remaining inhabitants will for example stop discarding their trash properly etc. This would mean the opposite to be also true: when property owners do care for their houses, everyone on the block will act more careful in the neighborhood. But who makes a start? Many times the renters of homes and apartments blame the landlord for everything not working and decay. At the same time landlords blame the tennants for being too careless.
People, we all have to look after our places of living, rented or owned. Dont just sweep in front of your own steps, sweep the street, why not? And make your entrance to your home look nice.
This apartment house owner spent a lot of money to make this building entrance look gorgeous. Elegance is elating!
Snake Eaters and Pelicans
Yes, door darlings, once upon a time, stories were told within some beautiful door details and frames. This here pelican mother is protecting her brood against those beastly snakes left and right, but YOU HAVE TO OPEN YOUR EYES to see such precious things in your city. Go out and have a good look around, guys and gals! Cheers!
Who lives NEXT DOOR?
Do you know who lives behind the door across the hall, or in the next house, or right above you? Most people dont, that must be the reason why there are so many books speculating about the mystery person called neighbor.
There is “The Millionaire Next Door” (by Thomas Stanley). Will his wealth rub off on me? I better be really neighborly here.
Or “The Sociopath Next Door” (by Martha Stout). Will I become crazed from living next door? An object of obsession?
There even is a “Universe Next Door” (byJames S. Sire),which will be the reason the kids are not in bed at night.
If your neighbors have a maid, you may have “The Slave Next Door” (by Kevin Bales) . Can you suppress your envy that he gets his shirts pressed every day and doesnt have to do his own shopping, or will you blow the whistle on all that human trafficking?
We all have had “The Girl Next Door” in our ´hood who is supposed to be especially innocent andsweet, the one your mother wants you to marry, but things are not always as they appear (remember the movie “American Beauty”? Some neighbors they were to eachothers, eh?)…. various authors and certain types of film makers have tackled the girl next door…
WOW, did you know about “The UNdead Next Door” (by Kerrelyn Sparks)? I guess that´s better than an unalive neighbor.
If we are really lucky, “Confusuis Lives Next Door” (by T.R.Reid) so we can run to him not just for an egg or some flower, but some desperately needed advice.
In today´s migratory society, you might have “The Muslim Next Door” (by Sumbul Ali-Karamali), and to avoid being scared you can learn all about his ticks and offer some humus and falafel for a welcoming Hello.
Seeing too many movies definately makes us think there is “The Murderer Next Door” (by David M. Buss) and we hope it happens while we are out. What is that weird smell over there, you ask yourself a bit later.
So you see, instead of WONDERING WHO lives next door, why dont you find out and make sure, and then write a book about it 
Cheers, door- darlings.
If you have a door like this, you might never meet the neighbor
Can You Get the Door, honey?!
Though I have so far managed this site with photos clicked entirely by my own hands, I decided to make an exception. Due to my current stay in New Delhi (where it is nose-running chilly in the house in January but of course never snows), I decided to use someone else´s photo here to celebrate the masses of snow which seem to be falling in my other home towns: Bremen, Berlin and Philadelphia right now.
The photo was taken in New England in 2005, but surely many of you experience something similar: when your loved one cried “Honey, get the door” you had no idea what lay there waiting for you. Now go out and shovel, darlings, but dont overdo it!
Somerville, MA in 2005
Source for photos: http://www.wunderground.com/wximage/viewsingleimage.html?mode=singleimage&handle=hop&number=1&album_id=0&thumbstart=0&gallery=
Doors in the New Decade
Door in Caputh near Berlin (where Einstein once lived)
Doors Darling, I wish you many, many open doors this new year, no squeeky hinges, no stuck door handles, lots of knocks from friends, lots of smiling greeters standing in door ways whenever you arrive, happy door chimes, no drafts and just a beautiful entrance wherever you go.
“Happiness is something that comes into our lives through doors we don´t even remember leaving open.”
And remember too: only knocking will open doors. Create your own opportunities. I know I need to work on that one as well. Happy New Year!
Dreaming About Doors?
Is a door a big obstacle in your dreams, something you bang against or cant get through, or is it the open door opportunity making your dreams occasionally sweet? Do you believe dreams have meaning? Well, for a bit of change on my blog I copied some internet sites´wisdom on doors in dreams. Believe it or not! (I dont, but that´s ok
“Door Dream Meaning
Psychological Meaning: If a door opens outward, it may show that you have a need to be more accessible to others. However, an inward opening door may represent your desire for inner exploration and self-discovery. A door may also represent a new opening in your waking life or a desire to open up your feelings. If the door is locked, you may feel that opportunities are being denied you or alternatively it can represent ‘closing the door to the past’.
Mystical Meaning: There are lot’s of dream oracles for this one: a door knob means unexpected good luck, hinges bring family problems, locked doors show missed opportunities, an open door predicts good fortune, a revolving door means a monotonous period ahead and a trap door predicts shocking news. ” From http://www.dreamsleep.net/meaning-of-door-dream.html
Doris Duke Doors
Hey, door darlings, I just saw the movie “Bernard and Doris” on HBO about the life of American tobacco heiress Doris Duke (1912-1993) and when I googled her, because I didnt know a darn thing about her, I found out she was a door darling too. When she married in 1935, she went around the world for her honeymoon and started buying incredible things in every country. She picked up some amazing doors, too, and later had them brought to her Hawaiian home called “Shangri La” where she recreated rooms in Turkish, Morrocan, Indian or Persian style. My, what fun a few million dollars lets you have…..
Sure would be lovely to have this sliding door out of marble, wouldnt it, perhaps between your bath and built-in closet or walk-in wardrobe, or leading toward the veranda?
Well, no matter how poor or rich we are, we all must walk through a lot of doors, and good old Doris, well, with her pocket book, doors just opened automatically. I wonder if that became boring for her with time. Dont forget to create you homes in your own style, so how about painting a fake door(trompe l´Oeil style) here and there, if you cant afford the one Doris got. It´s definately something I always wanted to do. I already tried it with some stencil on the terrace walls.
This is one was seen on http://www.trompe-l-oeil-art.com/trompe.html
Anything is possible and the illusion is for free
Oh and some people have blogged about the Duke style, go check it out.
http://thepeakofchic.blogspot.com/2007/06/doris-dukes-shangri-la.html
http://stylecourt.blogspot.com/2007/12/gifts-from-doris-duke.html
Beauty in doors
George and the door he didn´t see
Found this book at a Delhi book market . Too bad it never happened that way.
I guess that was not his bedtime reading
Door Details
Sunday comes around sooner than expected, darlings, doesnt it? And on Sunday why not dwell, for a second or two, on the big question: who is more powerful god or the devil? In German, there are 2 contradictory sayings about details:
“Der liebe Gott steckt im Detail” (Lit: dear God is in the detail)
“Der Teufel steckt im Detail” (Lit.: the devil is in the detail)
The first referring to the love , care and attention we put into each and every detail of a project or an art work. While the second one assumes if we spend too much time worrying about detail, we miss the big picture, and tending to every little (unimportant) matter could spoil the whole project . What do you think: devil or god ? Good riddens, but what has all this got to do with bloody doors, you are asking yourself . Well, these here door details are the link, and is what I am getting at. I think it is nice to notice details, but only the door artisans can answer the god or devil question, I suppose. At least we can enjoy their work here regardless of the answer.
Cast iron details
Gilden Age
Door lock art
Not necessary, but stunning!
Twirls and Squiggles
More on door protection
May be you renters dont care much about safety, but once you own that shop and that door, boy, you make sure you protect it (and what´s inside), am I right, or am I right? The solution, darlings: SHUTTERS! Of course! And as you all know me by now, please, dont be boring, bring even your shutters to life, you know you can!
Build It
Nice one from http://sentence.me , or rather Milton Berle
If opportunity does not knock, build a door
BUILD IT YOURSELF when you see a lack of sorts
Get your paint brush and color your door!
Green is for Hope!
Indian orange in Berlin
Sunshine or eggs sunny side up-Yellow
Bachelor energy!
Purple and Pink, these neighbors are complimenting eachother
