A Doors-Filled Story (Third Edition)

Yeah, Another Blogger

Well, here I am, dispensing thoughts about doors for the third time. Huh, doors? Damn straight! I mean, doors are cool. Or can be, anyway. And I’m hardly alone in holding this opinion. Various WordPress writers, for instance, launch doors-centric articles into cyberspace every Thursday. And they publicize the pieces by placing links to them on the No Facilities blog, of which a fine gent named Dan Antion is the heart, soul and brains. I’m part of that Thursday club today.

Okay, then. On a clear and comfortable morning in late May I visited the sprawling town of Glenside, a community in the Philadelphia suburbs about five miles from my home. Leafy, handsome residential blocks abound in Glenside. And there also are business sections that include Main Street-like corridors. Now, I wasn’t about to stroll up the front paths of homes to check out their doors closely (I wasn’t eager to hear something on the order of  Yo, asshole! What are you doing on my property? directed at me), so I confined most of my investigating and picture-snapping to commercial blocks. In the end, though, I also got pix of a couple of residential doors that were not set back from their respective sidewalks.

While I didn’t cross paths with any doors that might take your breath away during the hour I spent in Glenside, I became fascinated by the varieties of doors on public display. They ran the gamut from the solid and stolid to the utilitarian to the well-worn to the neglected. I passed at least two hundred doors, possibly many more than that, and a dozen or so of them grabbed me almost instantly. I’ve chosen images of seven of them to grace this page.

Could I possibly have resisted a sky-blue door, endearingly shop-worn a bit, whose street address (number 12) beams proudly above it? No way! I tell you, if that door were a human being I’d have smiled at it generously and then given it a great big hug. Yup, the blue door is the one I felt most in tune with in Glenside. In a low-key manner it exudes warmth and wisdom. It’s my kind of door.

Unexpectedly, the four garage doors belonging to Santilli’s auto repair shop connected with me. They’re ordinary, right? We’ve seen doors such as these a million times. Yet, as I stared at them I thought to myself they are worthy of admiration. Non-complaining and tireless, they enable important work to get done. In the doors-ian realm, these four are among the salt of the earth.

And what can you say about the rust-stained shed door that probably hasn’t been opened in years? The healthy green plant a few feet away, doing all it can to brighten the scene, knows that the door has been ignored. It’s the norm to pass by a door such as this without a thought. But I’m a softie at heart, and so my old ticker went out to it. Its life has been anything but easy.

By the way, I had no intention of having my spectral double show up in five of the photos, but that’s what happened. Yeah, I saw the f*cker aiming his phone’s camera at me from a door beneath the NAPA sign as I snapped that picture. But not till I was examining all of the Glenside pix a day or two later did I realize that he also was present in other doors, the sky-blue door and the ones belonging to Elcy’s, the antique store, and Santilli’s. “It figures, Neil,” my wife Sandy just mentioned to me, shaking her head in disapproval as she looked over this article before I hit the Publish button. “It’s bad enough that you write about yourself incessantly in your stories. Now your readers are likely to overdose on your sort-of-spitting image too. Give ’em a break, for crying out loud!”

Shit, she’s right. She almost always is. On the other hand, has a ghoul ever before rocked a Cape Cod-emblazoned cap so magnificently? I think not!

The time has arrived to bring this essay to a close. On a musical note, of course, as that’s what I did with my first two doors pieces. With each of those, I included a tune by the hippie era band The Doors. This time around I’ve decided to forego one of their blasts from the past. Instead I’ve selected a blast from the present. It’s called, appropriately, Leave The Door Open, and it’s by Silk Sonic, a new band led by pop superstars Bruno Mars and Anderson .Paak. The song is a throwback to the sweet soul/R&B music, lovingly orchestrated, that The Stylistics, The Delfonics and other groups filled the air with during the 1970s. I dig Leave The Door Open a lot.

I’m done! Goodbye till next time, boys and girls. Please don’t be shy about adding your comments.

162 thoughts on “A Doors-Filled Story (Third Edition)”

  1. rkrontheroad June 13, 2021 / 6:24 pm

    The blue door speaks to me as well, and the rusty one – there’s a story behind that door, I’m sure. Glad to see the mystery man in the reflection.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  2. johnlmalone June 14, 2021 / 12:20 am

    I lovr the way you show empathy for doors, esp the old, rusted variety; there was, of course, a band called ‘The Doors’ based on an Aldous Huxley quote about the doors of perception 🙂

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  3. slfinnell June 14, 2021 / 3:09 pm

    Silk Sonic is Smmoooooth! Love your entry and hope you’ll be back!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  5. Angela June 15, 2021 / 4:47 pm

    Doors are so cool: they can tell stories or hide stories, inspire or be frightening……
    Nice photos!

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  7. Ally Bean June 18, 2021 / 10:23 am

    I like your door choices and your commentary about them. The blue door is the winner if’n you ask me. Well done, Neil.

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  8. Anonymous June 19, 2021 / 9:57 am

    Fun and gorgeous singing, very cool and laid back. Reminds me of some of the better Motown.
    Alan

    Liked by 2 people

    Reply
  10. alex55mantaB June 22, 2021 / 1:47 pm

    It’s kind of interesting that the focus plane is sharply focused on the reflected image in your ‘images’ and not on the focal plane of the door. If that’s too confusing – your reflected image is in good focus but the focus on the doors themselves are a little … out of focus. So, that’s interesting. Perhaps that was the intent? I knew a guy in Lancaster back in the mid-1980s that painted doorways of many of the residential doorways in the city. Was an interesting project. UB

    Liked by 1 person

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    • Yeah, Another Blogger June 22, 2021 / 3:44 pm

      Hi. Thanks for the input. I don’t agree with you, though. To me, the doors are in focus. Enjoy the day. See ya.

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      Reply
      • UB June 22, 2021 / 4:04 pm

        Well, consider this – the charge card stickers on the doors are not sharp and clear. You can read them but… its just my opinion. Your line along your hat is a crisp line. Ah, whatever. So it wasn’t your intent to have the reflection be so clear? Kind of neat that it worked out that way though. Take care. UB

        Liked by 1 person

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        • Yeah, Another Blogger June 22, 2021 / 4:44 pm

          My reflection is in five photos. But while taking the photos I noticed my reflection in only the NAPA door.

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          Reply
  11. The Coastal Crone June 23, 2021 / 5:35 pm

    I rather liked the creative image of your doppelganger in the image below the NAPA sign! The others were more like ghosts. Good job!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  13. Vinny July 1, 2021 / 12:36 pm

    This has got me interested in doors. So much in fact I had a look around where I live and snapped a few. The weirdest thing is there is a sillouette reflection in some of mine too….

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  14. Basia Korzeniowska July 2, 2021 / 10:25 am

    I love the blue door too. It’s cross is like a kiss or a hug. I’m almost inspired to take some pictures of the doors we have at home, as I live them all too. Watch my space!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  15. denisebushphoto July 3, 2021 / 12:40 pm

    I agree … doors are cool and I have done a few posts on the subject of windows & doors myself! These doors are all interesting and the stories worthy of 100 words!

    Liked by 1 person

    Reply
  17. Silver Screenings July 17, 2021 / 3:10 pm

    Your door images are always wonderful, but your descriptions are even better. My favourite here is the tribute to the four repair shop doors.

    Liked by 1 person

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