I actually rather like helping friends move, perhaps especially close friends who have great artistic talents and a good aesthetic sense. I also like getting to meet and chat with people who are friends of friends, and also to have good conversations with old friends, too. Then there is the pizza. I forgot to take a picture of that, though I meant to. And, yes, I actually did do some work, too 🙂
Well, the reason there have been slim pickings on the Dassler Effect recently is principally because I have been (and will continue to be for some time) setting up my new house which was the subject of this naming post. I’ve been so busy that I have not even taken pictures of the house itself. So this one from the nosy Google-cars will have to do.
Below is the title which got the most votes, but also the one which seems to be the cleverest and most catchy. I should note here that the emphasis, as it is in German, should be on Haus and not das.
A sweet part of this whole process, though, has been to see the things that I kept from my father’s house after he passed away– which jammed my little apartment, which dear brother-friends came over to help me sort through and organize when I did not have the emotional energy to do so–are now finding lovely places to brighten–the hutches, the brasses from Pakistan, the furniture. Indeed a friend just this morning described the process as almost like flowering. So I’ll put some of photos of roses up (#3) perhaps even plant a few in the garden, and surely give a nod to Rosenheim, too.
Well, without further ado. Here are a couple of designs for a little sign to paint at the base of the left pillar of the porch with the blue color from the fascia (though judging from the picture above it will need to be a little greener).
Design one has the same sized letters on each side of the “H.” Design two has a generally larger “Haus.”
Oh, and if you are ever in St. Louis and want to see the sign in person and give the guest room a whirl, just give me a shout.
As I alluded to a little while ago on the blog, I have bought a house. By the end of this week, I will officially be the owner…er, mortgage payer 🙂 And by Saturday, Lord willing, all my worldly goods will have been moved into it. This is pretty exciting. As I contemplate this move, it occurs to me that some people name their homes, and, well, I am that sort of person.
In talking with some friends, I also discovered the reason why people who are having a baby don’t generally tell their friends the name ahead of time is because there is actually a chance that before the name is affixed to an official certificate and to a wriggling wee one that one’s friends might just be honest, and the name which has such meaning to one may be, well….mocked or at the very least come in for some odd looks or gentle ribbing. Such was my fate last night with a group of friends upon my uttering the name for my house which I had been contemplating. In addition to uproarious laughter though, there was also a very creative suggestion for a name, and it led me to think of some meaningful alternates, which leads to….your mission, should you choose to accept it, which is to vote for a name on the list.
By way of disclaimer, I am not holding myself to pick the name with the most votes, but I will at least publish the results here and post the name I pick some time at the end of January. So without further ado, here are the candidates, along with my reasons for choosing them.
das Haus
Well, this is rather cool for its simplicity and how it sounds and, well, because my last name is Das and it is a haus, er, house.
Rivendell – StL
OK, so this option may be rather cheesy and confirm me as a bit of a nerd as it comes from the The Lord of the Rings books. However, the motive for this is that Rivendell is also described as “The Last Homely House west of the Mountains” and is a place where all manner of folk can find what they like best to do, whether that is frivolity or contemplation. Mirroring Rivendell would, of course, be a rather impossible example to follow, but I would like my house to express at least hints of its essence. Being rather Hobbit-ish myself, I would have chosen Bag End but the house is not, alas, a hobbit hole in the side of a mountain.
Rosenheim
This choice has the most lineage and perhaps is most closely connected to my family. It is, oddly enough, a German name once again (which perhaps is appropriate as my mother’s maiden name was Bodenbach) and means “home of the roses.” It was the name of the collection of houses on a lovely hillside where we lived in the mountains of Pakistan when my parents would come up to spend some time in the hills where our boarding school was located. It was also the name my father gave to his house here, the selling of which upon his passing is what makes my home even a possibility, and this is dear to me. Of course, I would need to grow roses, but how sweet would that be.
Harland House
I am told by my friends who sold me this house that it was once the home of the father of American urban planning, Harland Bartholomew. How cool is that, to live in the former home of someone who has their very own Wikipedia page 😉 Another, positive of this name is its lovely alliteration and to give a man his due.
Write-in
It is election season, and though Mr. Gingrich evidently cannot be a candidate (write-in or otherwise) in his own home state because he did not file the paperwork, you can vote a write-in here. Just be nice, eh 🙂
So, without further rambling…..CLICK HERE TO VOTE!!!
The Dassler Effect 