tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post115198469209362931..comments2024-02-15T23:41:36.425-08:00Comments on SIMPLY WAIT: THE FRONT PORCH VS. THE BACK DECKPatry Francishttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10961915797919017179noreply@blogger.comBlogger36125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-75701785971718467882009-05-13T10:24:00.000-07:002009-05-13T10:24:00.000-07:00What a nice writing. What i had entered into a sor...What a nice writing. What i had entered into a sort of open web search led me here. I hope you are right about the web being the new front porch. I love them both.lunawildernoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-92057200759814753262009-01-11T18:43:00.000-08:002009-01-11T18:43:00.000-08:00I found this on an image search for adding a front...I found this on an image search for adding a front porch to a house. We have a small front porch with curved steps that are falling apart. My husband wants to take the whole thing out and have a big porch-but it would be a deck with no roof- put there. We also have a deck that his dad built when he lived here. <BR/><BR/>Your post reminded me that we have new neighbors who sit on their front porch and smoke. I can't be out for any length of time when they're out there. They also fight and swear at each other a lot. Hmm, I don't think I want to spend a lot of money on a front porch. <BR/><BR/>I wonder if you still blog. It's been a couple years since you wrote this. We'll see!<BR/><BR/>SueCorner Gardener Suehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10631500918579405664noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1163223883207711282006-11-10T21:44:00.000-08:002006-11-10T21:44:00.000-08:00Home improvement is a great financial investment, ...Home improvement is a great financial investment, either in the money you put into it or the money you hope to get out of it. All 40,000 of our building, remodeling, <A HREF="http://temecula.rgcont.com/" REL="nofollow">Dress Up Your Deck</A> renovation and construction contractors in all fifty states and Canada are checked for state licensing and insurance requirements at the time of their enrollment. Whether you are a contractor or homeowner, ServiceMagic has the answer . Home remodel contractors or Building new construction ServiceMagic has the answer to all of your home improvement needs and questions. Again Thank you for Visiting fallbrook remodeling,,Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1155131801358244942006-08-09T06:56:00.000-07:002006-08-09T06:56:00.000-07:00Cool guestbook, interesting information... Keep it...Cool guestbook, interesting information... 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It IS the 'new front porch.' No wonder we all love it so much. (We live in a tiny duplex...our unit has the front yard. I used to wish we had the backyard...but now I wouldn't trade my tiny little porch with wicker loveseat for anything.) :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152341595316783222006-07-07T23:53:00.000-07:002006-07-07T23:53:00.000-07:00And yet, I think the human spirit has a way of get...And yet, I think the human spirit has a way of getting what it needs. <BR/><BR/>So true! Front porch, back porch - it doesn't really matter - i can relate to this as I did a litle cleaning of our particular 'back porch' today.Kay Cookehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01791873464409271216noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152323943266648022006-07-07T18:59:00.000-07:002006-07-07T18:59:00.000-07:00yes, yes, yes . . . the internet is the new condui...yes, yes, yes . . . the internet is the new conduit for saying howdy and sharing a heartfelt chat . . . amen for that . . . :)Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152313503885986782006-07-07T16:05:00.000-07:002006-07-07T16:05:00.000-07:00The idea of the virtual front porch certainly has ...The idea of the virtual front porch certainly has a lot going for it, Patry. I'm inclined to agree with Mary, though. A virtual cup of tea can't warm me in quite the same way as a real cuppa... Still, I'm delighted to be able to have these sorts of conversations as well. Perhaps the virtual porch brings us close enough together to realise what we're missing.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152307000019319592006-07-07T14:16:00.000-07:002006-07-07T14:16:00.000-07:00"You sure got yourself one busy front porch...will..."You sure got yourself one busy front porch...will you please keep your voices down so we can get a little 'shut-eye' over here?"chuckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16710697712143652055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152290326550876602006-07-07T09:38:00.000-07:002006-07-07T09:38:00.000-07:00Excellent points! The virtual porch is quite somet...Excellent points! The virtual porch is quite something. But it can't replace the personal contact of seeing the same neighbours every day. Then again, do we really want to see our neighbours every day? :) Lovely post.paris parfaithttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05457437124988976587noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152286717400667342006-07-07T08:38:00.000-07:002006-07-07T08:38:00.000-07:00Great post, Patry -- I have very conflicted feelin...Great post, Patry -- I have very conflicted feelings about front vs back porch, because on one level I love the idea of community, and love that your neighbors knew right away when you failed to appear; but on the other hand I value that feeling of solitude the back deck provides, though I think Americans in general (me in particular) go way overboard on privacy.<BR/><BR/>Also wanted to let you know I finished that Sunday Scribblings short story about the curse and have emailed it to interested readers, but didn't have your email; if you'd like, just email me and I'll send it your way! Thanks!Laini Taylorhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/14064837312936707024noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152240200784961432006-07-06T19:43:00.000-07:002006-07-06T19:43:00.000-07:00Yes, I miss my front porch, but I must admit the c...Yes, I miss my front porch, but I must admit the conversation was never as good as it is here. <BR/><BR/>Thanks for all the terrific comments.Patry Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10961915797919017179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152237971189371042006-07-06T19:06:00.000-07:002006-07-06T19:06:00.000-07:00Yes, you're absolutely right. By facing the back ...Yes, you're absolutely right. By facing the back yard, we've cut outselves off from so much life in the front. We have 2 back decks and one side deck. The back decks face the water, so in the summer there's a stream of people heading to the beach. Maybe that's why I like this place so much.P. A. Moedhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15121653584180540590noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152217283777820102006-07-06T13:21:00.000-07:002006-07-06T13:21:00.000-07:00Yes! Thank you, Patry - i've been waiting a long t...Yes! Thank you, Patry - i've been waiting a long time for someone to write this post! I love my front porch - even if people rarely happen by this far out in the country. The comments are illuminating, too. A little off-topic, but as a former smoker, I second Sara's remark about the way that habit brings people together. Riding Greyhound buses was a much more social experience for me when i got off to join the smokers' huddle at every stop.Davehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/02596390440496594901noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152194035410431072006-07-06T06:53:00.000-07:002006-07-06T06:53:00.000-07:00After 11 years together, we have finally begun sho...After 11 years together, we have finally begun shopping -- slowly, very slowly -- for our dream house. We agree that this house will have both a front porch and a backyard with a deck (or room for one), and that it will be in this delightful town where people walk everywhere.<BR/><BR/>In the last place we lived, I feel I only got to know my neighbors because I smoked and my boyfriend wouldn't tolerate it in the house, so I often smoked on the concrete front steps facing our heavily driven road with the double yellow line down the middle. (Our dream house will be on a street with no lines down the middle.) Often I did this in my bathrobe, in varying states of deshabille. But this is when I saw the other people who lived near us, waved to them, and exchanged pleasantries across the traffic. This is how and when I created bonds with them that outlived my smoking habit and grew into real friendships.<BR/><BR/>Where we live now, I only know my neighbors because I garden and fill bird feeders in the front yard. We meet and greet each other as they walk their dogs or as the children among them drift by in clots on their way to the local creamery. <BR/><BR/>Someday we will have it all: bird feeders, garden, porch -- and no smoking! We will still spend far too much time online -- which is, you're right, another porch, another café -- and we will still also walk to the creamery ourselves, and to the various local "real" cafés. I will still perch in my studio windows and spy lovingly on people walking by with their dogs and children, as I do now. <BR/><BR/>We are solitary, creative, intellectual types. But the world is so big, and our lives are so short. Neither of us sees the point if we don't at least leave openings somewhere.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152157221862290492006-07-05T20:40:00.000-07:002006-07-05T20:40:00.000-07:00I grew up in Western Massachusetts in Berkshire Co...I grew up in Western Massachusetts in Berkshire County in the 1940's and 1950's (except for a couple of years spent in Pakistan and India as a child).<BR/><BR/>It seems incredible now, but from age 7 on I could wander all over town until dinnertime- and often after dinner- without my parents needing to worry about my safety. <BR/><BR/>In the 1940's and 1950's Williamstown, Massachusetts, was a pretty ideal place for a boy to grow up. It really was a COMMUNITY!<BR/><BR/>I wonder if communitarian values are still as ascendent in the Williamstown of today.chuckhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16710697712143652055noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152136526218343002006-07-05T14:55:00.000-07:002006-07-05T14:55:00.000-07:00The new front porch This makes me think. I agree ...The new front porch This makes me think. <BR/><BR/>I agree with your comment Patry - a mixture of blogging AND waitressing is best! On its own blogging is a little too adept at feeding introversion.<BR/><BR/>And the wonderful thing about the real front porch is the ability to see the person. To read their body language as well as hear their words. There are so many times too that I feel that I would love to go for a cup of tea and a chat with one or other of my blogging friends ... <BR/><BR/>Maybe one day.Maryhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/15022751588711849162noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152127989620927912006-07-05T12:33:00.000-07:002006-07-05T12:33:00.000-07:00It's always a pleasure to find you here on your fr...It's always a pleasure to find you here on your front porch, Patry! <BR/><BR/>For most of my life I've been painfully shy (a condition I've mostly overcome since becoming a parent, because I simply don't have the luxury of being unable to communicate with people any longer) and 'meeting' folks via the virtual front porch comes more easily to me than on a real one. I'm so glad to be a part of this community!Sharon Hurlbuthttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04684319527146674878noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152127807887986542006-07-05T12:30:00.000-07:002006-07-05T12:30:00.000-07:00I can't add anything that someone else hasn't alre...I can't add anything that someone else hasn't already said better, but I did want to say thank you to everyone for the wonderful discussion, and to Patry for starting it for us all.Bill Cameronhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04796321136771189464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152113428594001122006-07-05T08:30:00.000-07:002006-07-05T08:30:00.000-07:00Patry, how wonderfully put, and how close my feeli...Patry, how wonderfully put, and how close my feelings are to yours! Though I've never lived in a 'front porch' neighbourhood. I suppose for me it was my twenties in communal houses and the close left/feminist/alternative community in a provincial city. My blog-friends are a wonderful, new and irreplaceable community. Sharing each others' day-to-day ups and downs has been amazing. Such an unexpected blessing. This whole experience has made me regret even more, though, my lack of day-to-day contact with even the closest of my friends in the off-line world. Living in London, the people I've made friends with at work, evening classes, shared hobbies etc often live from one to three hours' journey from me, and all, of course, have the typical super-busy big-city lifestyle. We talk and meet up so rarely compared with friends in the blogosphere. (As for neighbours - forget it! I just about know the names of the people in the other apartments in my building). This has made me keener, rather than less keen, to make my home somewhere with more sense of local community and a few friends around whose company doesn't have to be 'booked' weeks in advance.Jeanhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08690685768980280402noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152110310154864902006-07-05T07:38:00.000-07:002006-07-05T07:38:00.000-07:00Patry,Your post brought back memories for me. My m...Patry,<BR/>Your post brought back memories for me. My mom and I always lived in apartments that were in front porch neighborhoods. Later when I had my own house it was a back deck neighborhood. Now I live in an apartment in a front porch neighborhood. People in this neighborhood still use the front porches alot. This is a lower income area and it feels better than the deck place!Fred Garberhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/06308938520063396329noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152106395960670902006-07-05T06:33:00.000-07:002006-07-05T06:33:00.000-07:00You've made me feel all nostaligic, thinking about...You've made me feel all nostaligic, thinking about all the places of lived. Right now, out here in the country, I can't even see my neighbor's house. I'm a tad anti-social, and so I like it this way. I don't know if I would have liked it when I was younger and wanted more stimulation.Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152068117695776462006-07-04T19:55:00.000-07:002006-07-04T19:55:00.000-07:00darius: (must have x-posted) Yes. Different relati...darius: (must have x-posted) Yes. Different relationships with different places, and also with different times in our lives. Thanks for visiting.Patry Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10961915797919017179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152067851427664962006-07-04T19:50:00.000-07:002006-07-04T19:50:00.000-07:00Stephanie: I didn't think much about it either unt...Stephanie: I didn't think much about it either until I started missing my front porch.<BR/><BR/>zhoen: Sure is; can I offer you a lemonade?<BR/><BR/>kerstin: Thank you so much for your thoughtful comment and for all the questions it raised, many of which I was pondering, too.<BR/><BR/>You say that when you pass the beautiful front porches in your town, they are empty. We've noticed the same thing in the coal mining town where Ted grew up. Though every duplex came equipped with a porch, nearly all of them are empty whenever we walk there. "Where are the children?" we ask. <BR/><BR/>It's not just the architecture; it's the way people live now--and as I said this has increasingly become a back deck society.<BR/><BR/>Most people over thirty remember spending long days outdoors, playing games, fighting imaginary wars, claiming the neighborhood as our own. We are baffled when we see our children captivated by video games and choreographed activities.<BR/><BR/>Though we are certainly enriched by the technological wonders in our lives, there's no doubt something has been lost in the process. I love my friends in the blogosphere, but they can't bring me chicken soup when I'm sick, feed my cat when I'm away,or remind my kids to slow down on their bikes in traffic.<BR/><BR/>That takes real flesh and blood neighbors.<BR/><BR/>And yet, I remain both grateful for what I have--all of you; and optimistic that when we reach "the tipping point" the old-fashioned sense of community will return.<BR/><BR/>sustenance: Growing up, the streets of my neighborhood were as familiar to me as the rooms of my own house, or the lines on the palm of my hand. In fact, I can still mentally walk those streets and name the occupants in every house; and I'm saddened that my children can't do the same. You pinpoint the causes accurately: we move frequently; we're busy; we don't have time to know the neighbors. Thanks for stopping by to join the conversation.<BR/><BR/>jordan: I share your sadness over the loss of the front porch, but I'm grateful that the virtual porch has introduced me to people like you, who might never have passed my street otherwise.Patry Francishttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10961915797919017179noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-11695927.post-1152067088068606282006-07-04T19:38:00.000-07:002006-07-04T19:38:00.000-07:00I know what you mean. To me, it's always felt like...I know what you mean. To me, it's always felt like I develop "relationships" with places as well as people.Dariushttps://www.blogger.com/profile/09456843848141315800noreply@blogger.com