June 1, 2007

VIEW FROM THE FRONT PORCH

Northern View from my Front Porch

Southern View from my Front Porch


In a dense urban area like Chicago your neighbor is very close, just a sidewalk length away, in most cases. I am fortunate to have wonderful views from both sides of my front porch, as shown above. I'm also lucky to live on a wonderful street with neighbors who know each other and share a common interest in preserving our historic neighborhood.

I especially love the view of the second photo where I can see almost to the end of the block because everyone has an open front porch and they're usually adorned with flower boxes , wicker furniture and houseplants spending summer outdoors.

Porches are so American , aren't they ? I can just image that in the old days people in the city actually used their front porches to sit and enjoy summer evenings, watching the world go by. Fences were almost non-existent then as well, open lawns being the rule. Now, however, they abound and the front porch is but a passageway .

Maybe its time to bring the front porch back ? Should I have a front porch party and invite the neighbors to sip ice tea and mint juleps in the summer eve ? Am I dreaming ?


8 comments:

  1. I totally agree. I love the front porch. (And I didn't believe at first that your porch is your house in here chgo, it looks like it's from the south!) We have, unfortunately, a split-level house, totally 70's. But our goal in the near future is to add a porch so we can enjoy our front yard, sit on a swing, and drink lemonade. Hmmmm...

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  2. Absolutely beautiful! June is Iced Tea Month, you know.

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  3. Hi Rosemarie,

    You're right my front porch could look like a scene from down South instead of Chicago.

    I can't imagine a house without a porch so good luck with your future plans.

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  4. Hi Teapartygirl,

    No, I didn't know that June was ice tea month. Thanks for telling me. I plan to drink a lot of it. Down south we call it Southern champagne.

    Thanks for visiting.

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  5. I have a front porch on my 100-year-old home with a porch swing and a rocker. My husband and I set aside 15 minutes every evening to swing. At first we felt strange because no one does that anymore. People in cars passing by would look at us as if we were crazy. But we don't care, we just swing away and we wave when they toot.

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  6. You do have a very cool looking neighborhood, Carolyn!
    Our Texas porch is a long, narrow veranda-style with some chairs and an overhang. My Chicago-suburban sister & her husband added a large open porch to the front when they remodeled their 60-year old home, and it transformed the house.
    When family and friends visit they call it 'going to Mayberry'.

    Annie at the Transplantable Rose

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  7. Hi Pianna nanna,

    Way to go. Glad ayou don't care that they think you're crazy, as long as you're enjoying yourself !

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  8. Hi Annie,

    " Going to Mayberry " sounds great, I've always loved the Andy Griffith show.

    Maybe I'll shake up the neighborhood and have a porch party.

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