Paint Job

A $71 million project to clean and paint portions of the 4.3-mile eastbound span of the Bay Bridge got under way yesterday as workers began blasting away lead paint from the structure.It will be the first scraping down to bare metal on the original, two-lane span of the William Preston Lane Jr. Memorial Bridge, built in 1952 at a cost of $45 million.But Maryland Transportation Authority (MdTA) officials promised yesterday that the project will not significantly interrupt beach traffic or rush hours.

"AMAZING THE difference a little paint and plaster can make,'' I have been heard to say, after a daub of lipstick and a swipe of blush. No, Estee Lauder cannot compensate for deficiencies of the soul. But the restorative power of a little fix-up should not be underestimated. The effects are not merely skin-deep.Pitching inIt's a point worth remembering when gauging the worth of community volunteer efforts -- pitch-in-and-clean-up affairs such as the three-day event Baltimore County sponsored two weekends ago. Thousands of countians gave up their free time to paint schools, spruce up senior centers, clean up parks and streams, plant trees, scrub graffiti and other assorted good deeds.

Sometimes you have to take matters into your own hands.The Anne Arundel County school system had planned a much-needed paint job for the 47-year-old Glendale Elementary School -- for next year.But that would mean emotionally disturbed children in a program at the school would have to spend another year in peeling classrooms with no air conditioning and no bright colors."I'm coming in as a new administrator, and I feel very strongly that the climate is important," said administrative intern Paulette Tanoue.

THIS IS the season when the Bay Bridge attracts thousands of commuters hungry for a slice of good times on the Eastern Shore.But this old gray lady is in serious need of a make-over -- and quick.Your Intrepid wheelster last week took a ride over the bridge only to discover the eastbound span is rusty in many places, including guard rails. On the western section, potholes and chips in the road surface made the car rock and roll, adding to the anxiety of crossing the 4.2-mile suspension span.

All the Foslers know about the house across the street is it wasn't purple when they fell asleep one night three years ago. But it was when they woke up. How it happened is still a mystery.Like a hyacinth, The Purple House seemed to spring up overnight out of nowhere. A showy blossom, the 1 1/2 -story bungalow with white awnings stands out in the 300 block of Orchard Road in Ferndale among the traditionally colored sky-blue, gray and white houses."It was just an ordinary color when we went to bed, and then to wake up and see this purple house," Edith Fosler, 82, exclaimed, as her husband, Frederick, 80, watched the evening news on the living room television set. "We never saw it until it was completely painted."

Call it paint-chip paranoia. You have been burnt before; your confidence has been shaken.How many times have you taken these tiny samples home and tried to match them to fabric or a color in a painting? Even when you take a fabric or picture into the store for computer matching, the color rarely turns out the way you envisioned.The paint looks too dark or too light. The terra cotta that appeared sensational in a small chip looks disgusting on a big wall.So how can those chic decorating magazines and designer show houses use unusual colors that work perfectly?

We recently purchased a home that has a lot of dark yellow or brown oak paneling and molding, which looks great in our library but rather oppressive in other rooms of the house, especially in combination with our equally heavy oak furniture and the dark stained floors. Can such paneling be bleached? Would light carpeting make a significant difference?Sure, you can bleach the paneling, but first you must remove the existing stain and finish. If you have the patience for this, it will probably make a significant difference.

It takes more than a hole in the wall to turn two small apartments into an elegant home.But with the artistry of a creative painter, Barbie and Glenn Porcelain converted a dull walk-up in the Greenspring section of Baltimore into a classy showpiece.The couple and their children, Tani, 12, Michael, 8, and Alex, 4, moved in August from New Rochelle, N.Y. Mr. Porcelain, 40, owned a corrugated box manufacturing business in New Jersey. He is working on a new venture here."We were looking for a more qualitative life," says Ms. Porcelain, 36, a Baltimore native.

I gave my kid the lecture about painting. It was the traditional speech, the one my dad had given me many years ago. It stressed the importance of preparation and clean-up. And it contained large sections devoted to the importance of not putting too much paint on the brush, of covering the floor with newspapers, and of not knocking the paint can over.The 9-year-old listened, or pretended to, much as I had done when I was a kid and felt the surge of excitement that comes from holding a brush in your hand as you stand in front of a surface that is begging for paint.

Employees of Bon Secours Health Systems Inc. in Marriottsville traded in their desk jobs, tailored business suits, leather pumps and briefcases for paintbrushes, ladders and hedge trimmers Friday.The 36 volunteers from the national health care company's corporate headquarters spent the day painting, repairing and landscaping four residential homes for mentally retarded adults in Columbia, Glenelg, Elkridge and Ellicott City.Sister Anne Lutz of Bon Secours said she chose the service project from several submitted by Howard County volunteer groups because it matched the talents of the employees.