The Real and the Dream

I do not know if it is common to blend a construction drawing with a photo as I am doing for this project. It works for me. First I took the photo, then in the paint program, I used the eraser to remove the concrete deck. I put the photo on my drawing board and drew in the existing grade of the deck. The line below that represents what the grade should be. Evidently the existing slab was installed on top of the original porch deck. The existing porch deck is a couple of inches above the thresholds of the doors. With the grade established I have begun constructing the new deck, starting with the addition of drains. They are drawn slightly below the grade. The drain configuration is subject to change depending on how the slab is done. But for the meantime this is a reasonable representation of my desire.

This project comes to life through application of the imagination. I feel the project moving forward. I feel progress just as surely as if I were out there watching workmen going at it. I see the new construction emerging as sculpture. I hear the workmen jabbering and the machinery running and scraping. I touch a shovel handle. I smell the porta- potty. I taste the water from the orange keg. I'm out there sweating under the hot sun and it is happening. The action of wrestling with the drawings is dispelling the negative defeatism. When I can completely overcome my unbelief, I will be ready for the actual construction, somehow. By then I will have the completed plans firmly in mind and the plans will be crystal clear. When the actual construction begins, sound plans will give me a better chance of coming in on time and under budget, because I will have already encountered and overcome the problems involved. So it seems the imagination, through some mysterious process, is essential to achievement of restoration. A thing becomes real in your mind and through some mysterious process, the Infinite Intelligence manifests the thing concretely.

A Driving Lesson of the Imagination

My Dad gave me a great gift. He taught me to be an expert driver. My Dad retired from the Marine Corps. He was a pilot and in his words his primary mission was, "...flying the drunk Generals around..." He had an excellent service record and I possess his log books. He communicated to me my driving degree in no uncertain terms. I learned to drive as if piloting a transport plane. When he communicated lessons I was expected to absorb, retain and apply his lessons, or suffer the consequences.

I recently helped my son Sam get his drivers license and my technique is more compassionate, though no less thorough. He doesn't have his own vehicle yet, so he is still in my province while he drives my truck. Therefore, the driving lessons continue until he is fully emancipated. Yesterday we had opportunity to review navigation. He drove as we went out to run some errands. Before we ever left on our expedition I had the trip in mind. If I didn't find the object of my search at the first destination, we would proceed to our secondary destination in a logical, gas saving, manner. If the secondary destination came up empty we would proceed to the third destination. In my mind I plotted a course, from point "A", to point "B", to point "C". I created this route in my mind using my imagination. From this equation I could give fair estimates of traffic volume, time, mileage and fuel requirements. Because of my father’s training I was able to create this calculation in moments. Then my imagination presented my mind with a clear picture of our expedition. Incidentally, this picture could readily be modified to accept changes in the plan like one can cut and paste on a computer.

The first store didn't have what I was seeking so we proceeded to the next stop. Sam is a good driver but he still has a way to go to be proficient. Questioning Sam, I was assured he did not have his way firmly in mind. I must admit I was testing him. I only told him the names of the stores I wanted to visit and I watched as he struggled with navigation. My desire is to know he can navigate life with confidence. As we drove we talked about when he was a toddler and how as a toddler he did not have the ability to order a hamburger and fries at the fast food outlet. The faculty of imagination is generally not developed sufficiently in toddlers for them to do such a task. I think that if I walk into a familiar fast food establishment I should already have a fair idea of what I want. I am critical of grown- ups who stand in a line with a menu board in front of them and have no idea what they want when it is their turn to order. I lose patience. Use your imagination, people! Geeze!

So navigating traffic from point "A" to point "B", the imagination is utilized to create a route. This is not hard to do. In the matter of navigation while driving one is forced to use the imagination to get where one desires to go. You needn't bother yourself with baseless fears of trouble along the way. Simply fix the destination and course in the imagination, make sure you have everything you need, and then off you go. You cross those bridges when you come to them. The imagination is there to be used to make life better. The imagination is like a muscle which works better the more it is used. How could you get in a car and go anywhere without the imagination?

The imagination is applied to every achievement. If I desire so and so, then begin to draw up plans to accomplish so and so, like a puzzle, pieces crop up that don't fit, or pieces are missing. The imagination further informs of ways and means to make a fit or to create the missing pieces. Sitting where you are right now, you can imagine a specific door far away you wish to open; a specific threshold you wish to cross. Maybe a restaurant where you and yours enjoyed a memorable meal on vacation. You know you can do this. You must use your imagination to do so. Am I right? The great secret of life that thoughts become things is this use of the imagination to create in your mind a desired objective.

I have completed the first set of drawings for the restoration of the porch on our house. By doing so I am confronted with the knowledge that the project isn’t as I first imagined. This doesn’t mean it is any more difficult or impossible. I do realize I will need some expert help. I can’t just tear out the old porch and pour in some new concrete and think that all will be well. Matter of fact my imagination informs me that this is the cause of the failure of the porch deck. The Concrete caps of the porch wall will also be demolished and replaced in form similar to the caps on the columns.

Positive belief and a thrill of expectation rises as the imagination yields knowledge and understanding. The book of Proverbs says that when understanding enters into your heart it is sweeter than honey. And, that wisdom is more desirable than the choicest gold. At the moment, everything on the porch looks the same, but in my mind this project is alive and real. This transformation is taking place in my mind with the aid of the imagination. I see the workmen out there in Carhart coveralls and dirty work boots busting out the old porch. I see them with the excavation equipment digging out the old fill. I see the bricks which have been removed cleaned and neatly stacked in preparation of the new construction. I see capable men who consult the plans and build with the mastery of their trades. I see the front porch restored to endure beyond our lives. I see the property value rising proportionately. I see us enjoying life with gladness of heart on our porch with family and friends. Restoration!

Intangible Thought Becoming Concrete Reality

Thoughts become things. The Maple Street Town Homes are thoughts becoming things. The first unit is taking concrete form and soon on these three blocks will stand the homes which began as a simple, intangible thought. This is a testament to and a demonstration of the power of thought. One sound thought began to attract other related thoughts and then the thoughts began to manifest.

That thoughts become things is a law to be utilized by those who dream of better things to come. I dream of effecting the restoration of our house into a home that showcases the highest restoration standards set forth in the National Parks Service Preservation Briefs. I believe in my dream and even though all my income in the past ten years would not suffice to cover the required expenditure, I will exercise my right to apply the law of attraction to my benefit. Following the example of the Maple Street Town Homes I will continue detailed plan making. I will simply suggest to myself that there is some power or force that aids and instructs me in the most simple and direct manner to make my thoughts of this restoration real. I will constantly affirm my conviction until my thoughts crystallize into absolute belief that this house will become as I dream it to be. I see in my mind's eye my receiving income sufficient to effect the restoration. I see myself producing the detailed plans. I see handing off my detailed plans to contractors who will in turn do the work to make my thoughts real. I see myself writing the checks to pay for it all. I will turn every negative circumstance into stepping stones to the new reality. I will conduct myself as though I already have the money in the bank until that becomes reality.

This law, that thoughts become things, is what I profess and demonstrate on this blog. Maybe like me, you who are reading, you have had a tantalizing taste, an inkling of this law at work in your life. I will take a chance to expose myself to prove this great universal truth. From my demonstration you will gain wisdom and inspiration. You will receive the guidance you require for whatever it is that you desire of life.

Side Porch Demolition

This is my first drawing for construction. It is for the demolition work of the concrete slab on the side porch. The photo doesn't reveal the very poor conditions. Careful planning enables one to edit the thoughts; cut the negatives and paste the positives. The mind is strengthened to the task. Careful planning helps reveal gaps and unsound ideas. The imagination can more easily be employed for discovery of workable solutions.

In the storehouse of my imagination I have snippets of ideas on how to do drawings for this project. I have experienced a thrill to just get this far. I want what I want and I have made do with the tools I have at my disposal. The two pictures here seemed like an easy thing to do when this was just an idea floating around in my mind. Production of the doctored photo took some patient, determined plugging away to achieve. One observation I make is that by employing my imagination my mind more easily accepts the achievement idea and I feel a thrill. This is an urge to keep going. As far as I am concerned this demolition work is already a reality. Even though the failed concrete slab is still there I "feel" real progress. I will need clear drawings and sound plans for submission to the Historic Commission for approval of my project.

With digital format ability I can take this photo- drawing to my board and with "T" square and triangle draw in the new construction details. I like the masonry metaphor of building stone upon stone, each laid level and true. This is the way to apply the imagination for building sound plans of any achievement, idea by idea. In other words, "Thoughts become things". The physical properties of the house have not changed an iota. As far as anyone else can tell there is no restoration of the porch in progress. This first step taken, I "FEEL" that the project is under way and, my growing desire and faith will make it real rather than "...WHEN I CAN GET THE MONEY...". This is my restoration leap of faith.

What's Next

I made a decision about my desires to restore this house as "THE" restoration project of my life. I have more than enough obstacles in my life to destroy this dream. Repair of the brick work alone is intimidation aplenty to destroy my faith.
(By the way, that old K-5 Blazer belongs to my son Sam and is available for sale. It is a great restoration project for the right person and can be had for a good price.) I want to document my state of mind throughout the restoration of our house. Time has passed since my decision and my euphoria has cleared. The enormous task shows no movement. But I can't go weak in the knees now.

I went to my files to post what little I have in the way of drawings related to the work I desire to perform and none of them were in an acceptable format to publish here. I wanted to post a story describing in detail what I plan to do. I drew a blank. I have experienced a great thrill to learn how thought is clarified and condensed through the process of writing and rewriting and rewriting some more. So I have discovered a roadblock to my creative process. I posses only a vague idea of my desire to restore this house. No concrete plans to speak of. I will have to learn how to produce drawings which can be published to my blog if I am to show progress. This is relatively easy, because I now know what to do next. I theorize that by forcing myself to produce clear-cut plans, other opportunities will arise that will help me to start solving all the problems which stand in my way. I will receive strength to overcome the hurdles. My way will be made clear to me. I hope this information will be helpful to you. I pray I may be quickened in mind, body and spirit.

Table Service Available Here

Until Becky and I rediscovered each other I mostly worked alone and was alone. I imposed upon myself a solitary existence. This condition is not especially healthy or normal, but this condition has been my journey, nevertheless. I performed work for people who had lives. I was the proverbial fly on the wall. I had no life but to do for people whose lives I observed. I think I was stuck and I was hoping for the day when the right person would come along to share in a new life with me. I hoped and dreamed and planned and reserved for that life to come. In the meantime I did paint work for a lot of good people.

That dream was so clear to me I could define and summarize it like this: "I desire a table furnished in righteousness". A table must have a home and a home is for people. Maybe what I express is confusing. The table and the home to which I refer are not a physical table and a physical house. I mean the table and the home of human hearts. Without human hearts a table is just a piece of furniture. When human hearts share in the breaking of bread, there is the table I reference. No furniture is required. When human hearts shelter together, there is the home. No construction is needed. And so, in all my work, my guiding principle has been that I serve the tables of my customers. My dream was to belong to a living table myself. Much to my surprise my dream of restoration came into existence in a moment on a certain day when, by chance, Becky and I were reunited.

Looking back I observe, that through my fixation on this idea of a table and a home, my dream first found life in my heart. There was some mysterious transformation of my emotional estate that brought into reality, or manifested, what had been born in my heart by my thoughts. Taking an old house that has been lived in to death and restoring that house to new life and purpose is a metaphor of a human experience. My condition was like a house run down and vacated. Through an idea and a dream I have been restored to new life and purpose. Experience of restoration transformation is my template for writing this blog. As 'Bob the Painter' I am privileged to be an agent of change for people. I have a responsibility to ensure the change I bring is for the good.

People call Bob the Painter when they are in need. For a house to long survive requires maintenance and at times requires restoration in whole or in part. Whether the need is just a coat of paint to freshen the walls or whether the need is for major renovation, restoration can come about. I will serve your table.

No Status Quo

There is a process of discovery on every road to restoration. Restoration is a journey. The journey begins when we decide that current conditions are undesired and longing for a better day has translated into action of some sort. By now we know running off helter- skelter is indeed like the proverbial headless chicken. Sometimes one seeking this restoration can feel like a prisoner trying to break out. He runs and hides and runs some more but soon the law catches up and he is returned to his chains if he's not shot on sight. Now I am old enough to have observed the secret that thoughts become things. I have made my life what it is today. If I am unsatisfied, I simply must change the habits of my thought.

My Aunt A.G.'s husband, Uncle Lou, taught economics in a college out in California. The last time I saw Uncle Lou I asked him, "Uncle Lou, is there one fundamental principle of economics you can tell me?" Without hesitation Uncle Lou replied, "There is no such thing as the status quo. You are either going forward or backward, rising or falling, gaining ground or losing ground. Any way you want to put it, there is no status quo." So the secret that thoughts become things is really no secret at all. It is constantly before our eyes. The circumstances of my life plainly declare the nature of my thoughts. If there is anything difficult about restoration, it is this recognition of self.

My condition is similar to this house. I have managed to recover somewhat from the ignorance and blind ambition of my youth. I may think life is livable but I must force myself to continually think toward further restoration and improvement. The good news is that this road to restoration, to recovery, isn't a death march. It may be the road less traveled, to borrow from Robert Frost. It is the adventure of a lifetime; my lifetime, your lifetime, whatever your road. Fear of what may lie ahead on this way must be replaced by faith and enthusiasm of exciting adventure. We don't travel alone for all of the great minds have left their marks along this way.

I borrowed the picture in this post from the NPS preservation brief on repair of masonry. Three stones laid together bound by a handsome mortar joint. That is some fine restoration work. I desire a life this solid if this be a fitting figure. I desire the restoration of our house to be this solid all the way through. I believe I have brought myself to this place to bring to bear all of my previous experience to effect a similar, rock solid, restoration. Thought charged positively immediately translates to positive effect. Stone by stone, thought by thought a wonderful house takes shape to shelter good life.

Our Dream House

Wait a minute on that tuck pointing. Before I get out my tools and get materials to start, I notice that the concrete porch deck was very poorly done as you may see in these pictures. The side porch deck is shot through with cracks and has sunk. It looks like the deck is exerting outward pressure on the wall causing it to lean. What started as a simple project of tuck pointing really means replacing the deck, steps and the top segment of sidewalk. The concrete caps on the walls must be replaced and the brickwork will have some extensive rebuilding. When we bought the house the inspector's report noted that the porch roof did not have sufficient rise and is not finished up to par. Problems with this are starting to show. So the porch roof also needs to be rebuilt. What at first seemed like a little cosmetic repair actually turns out to be the beginning of an epic journey. We will require the services of a competent Architect qualified in historic preservation. Some of this work I can do myself, but first we need sound plans.

Our house is a prime candidate for complete restoration. It is a solid house in the middle of an historic district. An historic district is a district of dreams and we bought into this dream. Historic Districts are plants of the Department of Interior administered by the National Parks Service. That is the same service that takes care of Yosemite and the Lincoln Memorial. The NPS has developed a standard for restoration. (See the link to the preservation briefs)

Our house has been made livable. It has new plumbing, wiring and a new heat and air system. The plaster has been replaced with sheetrock. There is a new kitchen. I would not say, however, this house has been restored. I have worked in construction since I was 17. I well know the work involved to restore a structure like our house. I am challenged to visualize the achievement in my imagination. Doubt pops up and blocks out my thoughts directed to the operation of faith. I doubt my ability to raise the necessary funds. I am bullied by the dead past. The first step of restoration is the restoration of faith. I must say I am successful and that I will rehabilitate this house to the highest standard of the National Parks Service and I must imagine this and believe it in my heart. Through my faith and imagination the Infinite Intelligence will infuse into my mind ideas which will enable me to manifest this thought. Important to keep constantly in mind is the finished project. The house will be more attractive and livable. The house will be a more valuable asset. Our state of mind will be more secure. Life will be better.

Looks Like A Restoration Situation To Me

Here are two more views of my front porch brick work project. Taking in a bigger overall picture it is clear that, with the tuck pointing, the concrete caps will have to be replaced. The caps are atop the whole porch wall and almost every brick under the caps needs attention. So now this simple tuck pointing project, still a simple project, is much larger than first thought. If $30 could have covered the original part, now just start adding zeros. This is what is known as "home ownership". You are going along doing just fine and you see a tiny defect in your house. You pick at it then suddenly the house caves in on you.
What we got here is a restoration situation. Panic is the usually the first emotional response to discovery of restoration situations. After all, like I said before, this discovery always comes when dark hopelessness has controlled the life of a house. The panic response thinks this situation is a conspiracy suddenly sprung like a trap. That's crazy talk. If we could watch a time lapse movie of the life of this house from it's construction up to the present we would see the workers buzzing around like ants and the house going up. We see this wall being completed and a grizzled mason squishes out a cigarette in the mud beneath his feet then collects his tools to go home. Years of living go by and gradually this area degrades. Work is done from time to time to try and hold off the restoration situation until the mind behind it gives up and the place falls into despair. The only thing going on for a long time is the rent and the crumbling and the rot.
Then in our movie the young ladies show up with their mother. They hold faith and a dream of restoration. They will labor in hopes of the reward they have bargained for. Now we see them buzzing around and the house gets a major face lift. However their budget holds them to putting minimal resources into the brick work. None of their friends were masons. Becky and I show up to give them their reward and here we are in the present.
Here's the way I see it; This isn't a situation suddenly sent to wreck us. We will carry on the restoration. Neglect has taken a terrible toll but we must believe we have the faith to set this right. Fulfilling this epic journey means receiving an epic reward for our faith. Aren't these the very elements of restoration? If we see ourselves through some kind of "eye of God" we would look down and see our thoughts becoming real. Why not think to restore in a fabulous way? Faith brings fabulous restoration which money alone cannot accomplish. We begin by directing strong, positive thinking to this restoration. We conceive the complete restoration of a sweet little Craftsman house in the middle of an historic district. We will put this house on par with the guidelines of the National Parks Service.
With the view of the ages we see that thought is the basis for achievement. Before minds and muscle show up in trucks with sand and lime and tools of the trade to make the materials conform to a new, restored property, minds, our minds must order restoration. Our reward is a more valuable and handsome property.

Maple Street

Here's a closer look at the Maple Street Townhomes' first unit under construction. This is the north east corner of 4th and Maple. The top picture is from the sidewalk looking east. There is a legend board constructed which displays the various bricks and colors and siding materials. The V3 website is on the left.
The bottom Picture was taken beside the legend display looking west towards maple street. A trolley was going by. See how close? I can't wait, it will be so neat!
The church across the street is the old First Presbyterian formed in the 1800's. I think it has a dozen or so die hard members which still attend. I was born into the Presbyterian Church but I have quit it. I felt like it was more a country club and I was not a welcomed member. Too bad, I loved singing to old hymns. I just can't go along with a theology based in guilt. God is love and all powerful. God defies being defined in such pitiful ways as church dogma. Maybe the Presbyterian Church here can also experience the thrill of restoration to relevance. (And that's all I have to say about that.)

Prettying up for St. Patrick's Day

Sam puts the final touches on Cregeen's Irish pub's front doors to ready them for the St. Patrick's Day celebration. Last year Becky and I watched the parade at 5th and Main in Argenta. V3 Partners had just begun to construct a building at 3rd and Main which houses Cregeens. We remarked then as how we would have to quaff a pint of Guinness in here this St. Patrick's Day. Now Cregeen's is a reality and the building is about complete. Cheers!
We are grateful to live in a neighborhood with so much life. Each project like the ballpark and Cregeen's have been eagerly anticipated and each has exceeded expectations. Other projects equally anticipated are coming on line and new projects are still to be formally announced. A St. Patrick's toast to Argenta and all the people hard at work to make it even better still!

As the World Turns -Or- Look Before You Leap

You know the old saying that a picture is worth a thousand words? I cut these bushes back last summer to reveal this situation and the image was burned in my mind. The thousand words I first thought concerned worry, doubt and insecurity. This is the front wall around the porch and I exposed it for all the world and Becky to see. The folks who restored the house did great work overall and they took a stab at tuck pointing this. The smudged bricks at the top are the dead give away. There is other work like this around the house.
During my years as a masonry laborer it didn't take me long to figure out that the laborer who took an active interest and learned to mix the mud to the masons' liking got the job of mixing mud. I quickly became that person thereby gaining exemption from much of the heavy lifting, toting block and setting scaffold. One year, on a hotel job in Florida, I mixed so much mud I thought a large beach had been moved with my shovel. I mixed mud for brick masons and watched them at their craft for five years.
Even armed with this great experience I must confess my thoughts have been centered on defeat. Maybe that's why this situation persists today? I began to find peace by accepting and acknowledging, not so much the ugly situation but, that my thoughts issued in unbelief. I turned my thoughts from the dead past to positive impulses of the life I desire. Then the world turned and now I see the real good in this. It is a demand to be met profitably; a perfect example of typical problems found in brick work on wonderful, old homes. Lack of faith is the central problem blocking restoration. Restoration, of a life or a building, ever begins with an intolerable situation. An idea comes and gives birth to pure, positive thoughts of life anew with fresh, young purpose. Wonderful!
Confidence is gained through study. I call attention to the National Parks Service "Preservation Briefs" link I have placed conveniently to the left. The preservation briefs are the beginning point, the best foundational resource for all restoration work. There is so much golden treasure in the preservation briefs that I feel it is my duty as an American to urge you to sift this eternal, national wisdom carefully and absorb it's import and history. For this topic look under repair of masonry.
Before the world turned I made excuses. Now is the time to make plans. An inventory of my tools reveals that I have somehow acquired all the equipment I need. I guess my sub conscience has been at work. I seem to recall a job of pouring a foundation and building a block retaining wall. I recall pouring concrete flooring tile in the basement and this gives me hope. I had to acquire specialized masonry tools for these jobs. Turning to the subject of materials I have learned there is a great old line masonry dealer not three blocks from my house. It's where I got my mud pan and trowel. The supply house, Martin Borchet Company, possibly supplied materials in 1928 when this house was constructed. So I have tools and materials covered.
Now, to devise a sound plan, I need to look at my project through the eyes and hearts and minds of the architect and engineer to plan on paper in clear detail. One rule in restoration is that there are no rules; you never know what you're getting into. Said another way, "Look before you leap".

Looking for a Way?

When I was young I began to work up through the trades. I spent five years as a hod tender. (also known as a mason's helper) I am deeply fascinated with the masonry trade. Masonry goes back to the dawn of civilization. People realized a need and so began the laying of one stone atop another for shelter and protection. The masonry trade instructs civilization in universal principles concerning foundation, line and level. In this modern era there are breakthrough developments which enable masonry work to be done with great efficiency and creativity. Yet, all such work is firmly laid on the foundation of the eternal principles.
In this neighborhood almost every house has brick work of some kind. Unless the brickwork has received tuck pointing, almost every house needs re-pointing. Our house is a perfect example. Tuck pointing is a task requiring specialized skills. I would like to call attention to the need and show that masonry repair is a very fertile field for a person seeking such opportunity. When home owners see bricks with degraded and missing mortar the first thought may be fear and apprehension at what will possibly be a costly, but very needful repair. To a man or woman starting out this is an opportunity to calm these fears with a decisive answer. I suggest the idea of specialization to provide such repairs. A person who can learn to effect repairs in a price range attainable by the average homeowner and make a profit, can learn to create a great demand for his or her services. Such a person will see and feel a connection with the ancient craft and realize the reward of a true contribution to society.
Check out my link to the National Park Service preservation briefs and look under repair of masonry. I've taken this photo from that brief.

Coming to Argenta Redux

Today the word has gone forth that a grocery store is to open in downtown Argenta, Arkansas this summer. I love this photo a friend of ours took on a recent trip to Italy. I thought this would be a good time to post it again. Follow the link on the left to the Argenta blog for the complete story.
Many thanks to Mr. Gaudin and Mr. Hardin for taking a chance and bringing the neighborhood a much needed grocery store. I am sure it will be first class.

Thought Leads to Restoration

A vagrant spirit inhabits a dead house. When you walk into a dead house you smell it and feel it in the still, dank air. It tries to scare you and bluff you into leaving it be. A vagrant spirit is ugly and stinks like plaster rot. A vagrant spirit moves into a house gradually and finally begins to own the house by default because the human owner is unable or unwilling to keep it out. The vagrant spirit thrives on scattered remnants of dead dreams long past. The vagrant spirit doesn't want you to notice it's habitation. It wants no change. It wants you to pass by, to leave it to it's cheap wine and hand rolled tobacco just one more day. But a vagrant spirit is only a feeling of vacant thought.
A day dawns when, before the sun again sets,the spirit is cast out by decision. On this day demolition or restoration has come to the house. Someone with a mind set on restoration shows up and the vagrant spirit slips out. The vagrant spirit vanishes like stale cigarette smoke in sunlight filtering through boarded up windows when the doors are finally thrown open to restoration. A vagrant spirit never really owns a house, it is a squatter.
Thoughts are things. Abandon constructive thought, as in the case of an absent slumlord and in come the tramp thoughts. Soon more tramp thoughts are attracted and now the house is home to bums, parasites who have no respect; no positive, active thinking. Tramps won't visualize a table in the dinning room set for a thanksgiving family.
Restoration often dawns when conditions are at their worst; in the blackest, darkest night. Some good people thought well and restored what would become our house. Becky and I had known each other in High School. We reacquainted and came together three years ago. We both were alone before and both dreamed of a new home. When the sisters opened the door on the first day of restoration, and took the "before" pictures who would know Becky and I would get together? Who could have told that two years later when the sisters tacked up their "For Sale By Owner" sign Becky and I would happen along to discover a home and a neighborhood? This house was restored to new life and we were redeemed with it. Sound thinking produced a transaction that was win-win-win; for the sisters, the house and for us. Becky dreamed and I dreamed; we thought of restoration and our thoughts were rewarded. If you are in need of restoration, draft the same power into your service and think. Have and hold faith. Watch your dreams come true.

Dream, Think; Dream Some More

The focus of this post is the pink store. On the left a recently restored building houses the modern offices of an Architectural design firm. This is the middle of the 400 block of Main Street in Argenta, Arkansas. From what I have read on our neighborhood blog, which is linked to this blog, this space is to become a cafe. The last post features construction of the City Grove Town Homes model unit just beginning across the alley behind this block. The yellow mark on the sidewalk on this side of the street is a trolley stop. I took this picture standing in a parking lot which will become a farmers market for locally grown produce. (More on the farmers market project at a later date.)
When I learn of any development concerning this property I will report the story here. This is an adventure in restoration. You can bet there are many people focusing their thoughts on creating new life in this space. There are people with differing ideas; with dreams of establishing an enterprise here which will serve crowds of people a useful benefit. One idea will win out. I wish them every success!
Several spaces on Main between 3rd and 7th are available for restoration development. Many old stores on Main have been restored to new purpose.

The Real and The Dream

Here on Maple Street in Argenta, Arkansas a bold dream is beginning to come true. The City Grove Townhomes will occupy blocks 400 to 600. The builder, Dave Grundfest Company, is just beginning to make it happen. I know Grundfest builds high quality structures. Inside the orange construction netting at 400 Maple the ground is being prepared for the first unit to be used as the model home. In all I think 57 units are planned. I have a link to the development web site and there you can find all the information available.
Reality on this urban street was pretty dismal up to now. But for some time behind the scenes people have been wrestling for and against this dream of urban restoration. The dream has won out and grim reality has had to move on.
Money and manpower and materials and architectural renderings are the media to construct buildings. The real power is thought. This project began as a simple thought and multiplying thought has brought this project to where it stands today. Thought will carry the project on to completion and the plans will be fulfilled. As the final dabs of paint are put on and the last construction dust is swept away, papers will be signed and checks will be written; ownership of the dream will change hands. The new people coming in buy the dream. They will bring their stuff, their tables and chairs, their sofas and beds, but more importantly, they will bring their thoughts. (Make them good thoughts!)
Our good and positive thoughts and our prayers are with the developers and with the new neighbors yet to come. We are grateful for the growing restoration of life in the neighborhood these new homes are bringing.