i like chocolate...

chocolate house with shades of sage trim/doors/porch and steps...do you think it's cute:)

look in the bottom left of the window...

jammie had to watch the goings-on so she didn't covered in chocolate!

smother that puppy in choc-o-late syrup...

wow, new roof...new paint...having some cute finials for the front porch milled and gutters on the way...stay tuned!

could this be Saint Tornado?

(the son of) let the repairs begin...with a very special addition

is this cute?

a question asked of myself and many others during the long and somewhat awful decision making process about tile, carpet and i think most drawn out of all...paint color!

i was thrilled to be able to get rid of original WAY fugly blue tile that was in the kitchen, but...is this cute?

wait, what about this...everyone is saying these new glass tiles are the latest "in" thing!
berber for the upstairs, is that cute?
glass tiles in pretty colors, is this too busy...or is it cute?
OMFG!

if you have a chance to paint your house ANY color in the whole world, what would you choose?

sounds sort of easy, right?

WRONG...i took pictures of houses i liked for months...went on walks specifically checking out house colors...went to paint stores grabbing loads of those color cards...standing in front of each huge selection would usually only created anxiety, impatience and sometimes nausea!

and those unwieldy color things with a million choices grouped by color (but not really)...aaarrrggghhhh!!
narrowing it down...
here's my very special addition...with carpenters, saws and wood all around...i got an idea!

for a little architectural accent could i put up a zappa mustache?

you know, the famous imperial?

if i draw it, could jimmy cut it out and place it on my house?

he was willing and happy to do it...he also said to me one morning, "you're supposed to be this big zappa fan but we never hear any music"...i was a little embarrassed really and fixed that problem...lots of zappa coming through the windows to work by from then on!

TA DA!
i felt very accomplished with my zappa 'stache in place way up high...a small part of the bigger project object...

so, are any of these colors cute?

let the repairs begin...

the first order of business was a new roof...
actually, the *real* first order of business was introducing the construction workers to the dogs and going over the "DO NOT leave the gate open" rule...we went over that rule A LOT!

notice the new roofs on judy and laura's homes...we were all making progress, after so many months.
umm...hello??

the gate is open!!

:)

last of random moments...

i had a beautiful dream
i found a diamond ring
music, friends and concerts are a staple of my life...regardless of silly tornados
enjoyed the breakfast of champions in amsterdam
had the latest zappabeer, WOIIFTM (under the watchful eye of capt. beefheart)
frosted a cake (with a paper knife!)
just had to include more zappanale pix...bogus pomp from tampa, playing in germany!
glorious sunset at zappanale
fell in love with jammerz
saw bogus pomp in tampa with dr. dot, had one of her massages too!

mas random randomness...

possibly just like every other year, we all have a lot going on...last year, the months after the tornado, seemed particularly chockfull of  "things"...maybe it had to do with the delays in repairs and managing all of our "things" with holes in the roof!

michael broke his foot
bought tickets for zappanale 
WENT to zappanale 19...frank zappa music festival in Germany!
kids went to Israel!
umm...hung out with pals in my bed and took silly pictures
realized that the t-shirt shop at Georgia State "Univeristy" needs an editor!

saw lots of rainbows

went to miami for the one year anniversary of my dad's passing...while we never dreamed we would be able to even function without him, it was a beautiful ceremony...love and miss you dad...
alethea welcomed her son to the world...welcome azel!
ok now...this sign...if you were not familiar with cabbagetown and the tornado...what would you think this meant??
went to the beach...we all heart the beach!
had a tooth pulled...eww i know but look how perfectly broken in half it was...
reunited with my long-lost goddaughter, i was taller than her the last time i had seen her!
got my box of local produce and more every wednesday
said good-bye to dear neighbors 

random moments before home repairs...

considering we needed approximately 6 months to "process" everything and begin repairs, these random moments may be many...i say "we" collectively to include a bunch of us who needed just a bit more processing time than others:)

in no particular order ~

belle got a haircut
family beer pong playoffs in miami :)
had to go to minneapolis for a conference just 3 weeks after storm...this is what you might imagine a storm survivor to look like in a lonely teenage hotel room in minneapolis!

why go outside to the beach when you can watch jack iron?

i wish i could explain this...
one smile i got while in minneapolis...
i have a puppy
just pretty and yummy...and free...
a popular meeting place...judy's steps...i guess we were tired of taking pix of the storm damage...