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Although this could very well be a picture of me finding a new treasure at a favorite nursery, it's actually an illustration by David Catrow for a children's book called Plantzilla.

Thursday, March 28, 2013

Beautifully Secure

In the last few years, this building has either been built or rehabbed.  I'm not sure which because, although it's not far from my home, I seldom passed this way until the year long closure of my regular freeway access point.  The discoveries I've made since trying different routes has me thinking of continuing to explore at commute time.  Usually the drive is about efficiencey of time rather than exploration.  I love the bright orange accents and the metal security screens covering the windows are inspired!  Much nicer than bars and their presence makes the building pop!

Gate at the bottom of the fire escape. 
 Fence panel
 I wonder what it would be like to see the silhouette of this through one's blinds every day?
 Is this an urban trend?  Do you have examples of this sort of thing where you live?
 The building is secure without looking like a prison.  I think it's grand!
 This lucky person gets both a lotus seed head and a peacock!
 I wonder how the lotus, peacock, and songbird (or is that a different kind of bird?) motifs were chosen.  They've been enlarged, reduced, combined, and inverted.  The continuity is very nice.
 What do you think? 

I was a little nervous taking pictures of people's windows but since you can't actually see in, I thought that folks wouldn't mind.


As I was walking back across the street where the car was parked, I heard a voice from above saying, "Hey dude, take my picture too!"  So I did.  Who am I, after all, to deny a voice from on high?
 
Peace out dudes and dudettes!

19 comments:

  1. A much nicer and friendlier looking alternative to bars indeed!

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  2. Since that looks to be a beer in the gentledude's hand I hope this was a discovery on your way home from work, not on the way to.

    I LOVE the designs and wish I could get one to use as a gate into the back garden rather than the lame-o chain link we've currently got. Someday...

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    1. Indeed, the gentledude appears to be indulging in a refreshment of an alcoholic nature and this particular visit took place on a Sunday afternoon.
      I had the same thought about replacing my rotting wood gate.

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  3. Love the grates, so bright and creative! I thought the Lotus seedpod was a peapod. That's what springing up in my garden today!

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    1. Hooray, I like 'em too! Three cheers for peas springing up today!

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  4. Too funny. I love the grates and the architecture of the building. The color orange, not so much. I work in Corvallis, Oregon in Oregon State University, Beaver country. Orange is as ubiquitous as the sky. I think a soft green would have been better but who am I to say? :) Great post!

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    1. Interesting. Here orange is a rare color; beige, greens, taupe, grey, browns, and all shades of white, and blues are everywhere, a little red maybe, so the orange really stands out as being different. I could see getting very tired of it if it were everywhere!

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  5. Love the designs and the creative way to secure the building. I like the orange, it's nice and bright in cloud country where you live.

    There are lots of bars and wrought iron on buildings around San Antonio, some dating back more than a century. They are mostly traditional in design but the colors are often bright.

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    1. Wroght iron seems to have been much more popular in the south a couple of centuries ago than it was here. I wonder why?

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  6. We have quite a few metal cut-outs used decoratively on commercial buildings. Usually they are left natural metal colors (primarily silver, which looks great against brick). The dual purpose of security and decor takes it one step further.

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    1. I've seen a few of the decorative cutouts in a couple of places but this double purpose thing was new to me. (But I don't get out much so many things are new to me.)

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  7. No, we have nothing like that here, but I wish we did. If more people were not afraid of orange, I might have to pick another favorite color.

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    1. The color really pops here in cloud land but is not often seen. We'd painted the lower level of our house a terra cotta/salmon sort of color some years ago and now that we've changed it to a somewhat more coservative green, many people have commented on how much better the house looks since we bought it. The thiking is that the same people simply could not have enjoyed the brighter colors so we must be new owners. I miss the warmth of the previous color scheme.

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  8. What an odd building but I'd be curious about it, too! I've never seen screens like that used on a building, although I have seen them used on gates. The orange just makes me laugh. It's so bold. :o)

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    1. It's different and, I think, wonderful. Makes me smile every tme I go by - must be the orange.

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  9. Peter, I think the owners love berries! There are berries or fruit on all iron lattices.
    Terrible!

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    1. It' certainly not traditional or doe in an historical style but it adds some zing to the neighborhood.

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Thanks so much for taking the time to comment! I love to hear your thoughts.