The Fourth of July House

We've lived in our neighborhood for sixteen years. During all that time, we always have called this the "blue house."


You can barely tell why from this picture, but look on the left side. It was painted blue. Blue trim surrounding the windows. At one time, a blue spruce in the yard. At Christmas, it was decorated in blue lights. We always wondered if there was blue carpeting too.

But it changed hands a year or two ago. The new owners considered the situation with considerable care. Patches of paint appeared near the garage, then changed color. Next, in a bold move this spring, the blue paint on the bricks (lower front) turned white.

The final scheme began to emerge as a red patch grew to encompass an entire section on the right.

Finally, late in June, the final answer emerged. Red it would be! With that splash of white for accent.

And as I drove out to the store on June 30 to buy some items for our Fourth of July celebration I saw the work in progress. A red, white and blue house! Quick! Back home for the camera. I'll bet no one else caught the celebratory mood.

The actual photo doesn't do justice to the original blue color. Perhaps 16 or more years of sunshine has faded it a bit. If only you could see it as it appeared in my mind.