Cottage Living (with Curb Appeal)

Some might envision an eye-sore as a remodeling special.
To my eye, it's just a shack full of has-beens and almost-weres.
I get hung up on the neglect and decline and don't see the secrets
holding it together, keeping it from succumbing, no questions asked.

On the other hand, the trained eye will confide: it's also got curb appeal.
My spine shivers, and I'm left to assume the highly questionable:
it looks like my family, eating my dinner, at my table, in my home.
All the while I stand waiting, outside, on the curb, looking for the appeal.

Inside, inspiring changes are masked by layers of paint and the odors of time.
Today, multiple rooms are seducing multiple uses for multiple uses.
Architecturally, it's only a draft or two away from what you'd call a bungalow,
and well on its way toward becoming one of those happily-ever-after cottages.

But the untrained eye, hesitant, looks and wants to run away,
withdraw to a safe space with extra wide accommodations and inspiring renovations.
Instead, I wait, without coffered ceilings, under a picture-perfect sky.
I sit on the curb, blueprint in my head, my back toward all that old-fashioned charm.