Ghoulies and Ghosties and Long-leggity Beasties

Happy Halloween everybody! Hope you are all surviving the week so far. The house at 6262 Second Street is getting really close! Well, obviously we have a long way to go, but I really can't believe how far we've come in just a few months. Seems like yesterday we were looking at a slab. The siding is almost all up. I'm told by my insiders that the middle section will be fish-scale siding. Muy interesante. Can't wait to see what that looks like. I'm guessing kind of a scallop-edged sort of thing....

Anyway, the other three pictures are for your Halloween viewing pleasure. The kid with the pumpkin is yours truly, about 20 years ago if you can believe it. Love that severed-hand necklace I'm sporting. I think it was glow-in-the-dark. The other pictures come straight to you from Second Street circa 2006. The Barrett family is known around the globe for their unwavering Halloween spirit. This year, they've gone Spider Crazy. I think a Spider was one of their very first designs, so maybe this one is a little throw-back. The Beam Me Up Ghosts are also a Barrett creation. Kind of remind me of the Peanuts gang from the Great Pumpkin (which I missed this year. Rats.).

Everyone out there in Halloween land be safe. Look both ways before crossing the street.

Ch-Ch-Ch-Ch Changes

Well, it's Wednesday. We're having a runny-nose type rainy day here in Oxford. For those of you not fmailiar with this term, a runny-nose rain is the kind that is drippy and never stops. Gets on your nerves. Not really enough rain to do any good, but definitely wet and messy. In other words: gross. Because of the weather, I was thrilled to get a few more pictures of 626 to share with my fans. Up top you see lots of pipes and wires. Then we have a nice exterior shot of the house from across the street. My photographer parked her ambulance right in front. Safety first! Last we have another interior shot in what I think is the kitchen, looking through the walls toward the hall and weird slanty-wall study. That's not a fireman's pole in the foreground people. Just a pipe. Don't get too excited. I know having a fireman's pole in the kitchen of your house would be totally awesome (hint! hint!), but it's not likely.

Hope everyone has a nice rest of the afternoon (evening, I guess,for you East-Coastians). Next time I'm in the Puerto, I'd like to shoot some video so that we can take 626 to the latest Internet fad: YouTube. It's pretty much a poor man's Hollywood, people, so send me your ideas and we'll go Tubing together.

Till next time.

Duct, Duct, Goose

Hello readers of the blog. It's Thursday and I think I might make it through this week relatively unscathed. Had a pizza for lunch so I'm feeling pretty awesome. Wish I could sneak out of here for a minute and get a Sonic slushee... Hmmm. Maybe I will.

Today's pictures include some fancy ductwork and what appears to be trim around one of the front windows. I figure that when those windows are open (well, if they didn't have screens) you could walk through them. Like a giant cat flap.

Speaking of cats, this huge white tomcat has taken up residence in the Dumpster area of the building where I work on the glorious Ole Miss campus. He looks a little weathered and war torn. Has rips in his ears like Azriel (Gargamel's orange cat) on the Smurfs. Anyway, "Whitey" is a good cat to watch. He loves Groving after football games. Lil' Smokies, Abner's chicken tenders, all kinds of goodies for him to munch on.

Okay, everyone have a nice afternoon and evening. I can't wait to go home and snuggle up on the couch to watch The Office. Cold front came through here just in time. Adios, muchachos.

Holy Sheet (rock)

Good afternoon and welcome to another exciting episode of blogspot. It's been one of those days for me. One of those days when nothing seems to be going right. You know, you wake up with a zit the size of Madagascar. You bite your lip while eating toast. You spill coffee all over your shoes. You accidentally somehow schedule two extra Southern Studies classes for the spring semester, causing a professor to have to be in three different classes at once and you e-mail the registrar about the problem but she's really really too busy to deal with you right now.

But then you open your e-mail and there are more 626 Second Street pictures and you feel a little better. You see the front porch being built and you can imagine all the lovely springtime evenings you and your loved ones will someday spend in rocking chairs on that porch, waving at the neighbors. You see the sheetrock being loaded through a second-floor window and find yourself suddenly Googling "paint chips."

Ah. Just when you think your day is the worst it can possibly be, the thought of the new house makes you smile.

:)

Doors and Windows and Schnauzers, Oh My!

Good Morning dedicated fans. I don't know about y'all, but I am s-l-e-e-p-y. Price to be paid for going to the most incredible Wilco show ever. For those who aren't aware, Wilco is my favorite band. They played here in Oxford last night and I had FRONT ROW seats. Saw up all their noses. THAT close. Ah. However, I dragged my weary self to work this morning. That is dedication, friends.

Moving along. We have windows and doors! Can you believe it? I can't. Looks pretty classy to me. My photographer is really excited, I can tell. She used lots of exclamation points in her e-mail about the windows. They are good looking, I think. Nice choice. I'm diggin' it. My favorite picture is of that sweetheart Annie Rooney, though. She should be in pictures.

A special treat for every one this morning. The house at 626 made it's small-screen debut last night on the NEWS. WLOX's Brad Kessie came to Second Street and you just won't believe it. To watch, click on this link:

http://www.wlox.com/Global/SearchResults.asp?qu=second+street

Then click on the first option "Brad Kessie Looks At The Coast Housing Shortage." Enjoy!

Apologies

hello dear readers. please accept my apology for taking FOREVER to update this blog... things have been nuts here in O-Town. what with all the bad football not to mention preparing for houseguests, vacuuming cat-fur-filled rugs, unspeakable excitement over an upcoming Wilco (aka best band in america) concert... then there's all of the time i have spent coming up with killer ideas for Halloween costumes and Christmas card designs.... enough drivel. here are pictures. we have a roof. we have walls. we have a wee little man in the window. i hope they suffice for a couple days. it BE CRAZY here.

okay. here you go. OH. and the picture of the funny-looking man in a tie? everyone: Meet Paps. his birthday was yesterday. i hear he had a fine time.