October is traditionally our Homes and Interiors issue, but seeing the content this year, one of our staff suggested we change it to Homes and Exteriors. Although he was joking, I’d have to agree.
Instead of meeting friends for drinks, chatting after church, or enjoying a restaurant meal, we have shifted our social connections to parks and porches, sidewalks and cul-de-sacs.
This year, being out is in.
While I hate the cause, I must admit that I enjoy meeting my neighbors as we walk our dogs in the evening. Normally too busy with soccer camp or after-school activities, children speed up and down our street on bikes or scooters. Toddlers sprint gleefully through sprinklers as their grandparents watch from lawn chairs set up in the driveway.
All this activity brings back fond memories of childhood summers spent bouncing from front porches to back yards, exploring alleys and empty lots, relishing empty afternoons with my friends and siblings. There was no internet, no video games, and daytime television was a vast wasteland of game shows and soap operas. Boredom drove us outside, and there we found freedom.
In Jonathan Fredin’s photos, “The Great Outdoors,” I see a similar freedom. Confident that sun and air will dissipate the poisonous virus, people enjoy each other’s company. Al fresco picnic dates and porch coffee with friends remind us that the “where” doesn’t matter; it’s the “who” that counts.
My hope is that, even when this crisis is over, we will remember how good it feels to be outside with people we care about.
- Thank You Apex: Sincerely, Jane Wolfgang
- Pittsboro: The Epicenter of Groovy
- Small Business Spotlight: Dust and Mop
- Nonprofit Spotlight: The Green Chair Project
- From the Editor: Homes and Exteriors
- Worth the Drive: Press Coffee + Crepes in Graham
- Liquid Assets: Harvest Time Pumpkin Ale from Big Boss Brewing
- Creating an Outdoor Oasis
- Virtual Real Estate
- Crush the Blues!
- Garden Adventurer: Frilly-Dilly!
