Hello and welcome to Of Houses and Trees. Certainly, this blog is going to largely follow its own title for a content guideline, but I’m nothing if not a meanderer when it comes to staying on topic. I would say check out my previous blog for proof, but after letting it sit dormant for over four years I finally decided it was time to let it go gentle into that good night. And, by “good night,” I mean the place abandoned blogs go after their callous owners have deleted them. I’m sure it’s a happier place. At least, that’s what I’m telling myself.
So, why houses and trees, you might ask? Or, you might not. Perhaps you’re the kind of person who just accepts things and moves on. Good for you. I’m sure you lead a much more productive life than those who have to ask why about everything. I am one of those “those.” I pass it off as unquenchable curiosity, but it really has more to do with my obsessive nature. Even now, as I write this blog’s inaugural post, I’m recovering from a sleepless night filled with tortured thoughts about turrets. But more on that later.
I used to be an architectural technologist. I find this a funny thing to say. I worked in an architect’s office for five years and then I decided to go back to school to become a writer and, well, here I am. Yet, just because I don’t have the business card anymore doesn’t mean I stopped caring about the things my life used to revolve around. Houses and other people-made structures mean something to me. But as a why-centric person I can’t help asking—why care about floor plans and paint colours and finishing materials and the kitchen work triangle when, quite frankly, there are more important things to care about? Still, care I do.
As for the titular “trees,” I never question why I care about them and the things that, to me, they represent. I’ve been called a “tree-hugger.” I’ve been called a “hippy.” My favorite colour is green and I buy over-priced cleaning supplies because they claim to be “environmentally friendly.” I’m a self-professed nature-freak who also happens to love the great indoors. Though, I realize the world of houses and the world of trees don’t coexist seamlessly. Trees are cut down to make space for houses, their body parts used to put roofs over our heads. Then, a black poplar decides to off itself and crushes our puny little structures in its wake. Man versus nature—certainly not a new subject. But, as a writer, I have to pretend that I have the ability to put a fresh spin on a tired topic.
Of Houses and Trees is my way of taking two things I love and placing them both within the constraints of one [cyber]space. Kind of like decorating a room with French country and modernist furniture. Or planting a Japanese tree lilac next to a blue spruce. Oh, and did I forget to mention I’m building a house and starting a tree farm? Silly me.
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