Small House

In 1985 I bought a small house in the Cedmont neighborhood in Northeast Baltimore. At the time, I knew nothing about Formstone ("Formstone would be banned on new buildings under proposal," Dec. 1). I have found it to be beautiful, especially up close when it includes subtle shades of pale pink, blue, and gray with sparkles. Several years ago, a storm damaged a small piece of Formstone. I had some difficulty finding a person who could repair it properly, and I am pleased the Formstone artist blended in the new with the old. Baltimore has many charms we can all enjoy, and I'm very pleased to live here and have a unique home.

Standing in the center of downtown Baltimore's economic hub, amid blocks of hotels that house tourists, about 100 advocates called Saturday for adequate and affordable housing that they say has been unjustly denied to the homeless. Chants of "housing is a human right" rang through the Inner Harbor's McKeldin Square, as demonstrators kicked off the fifth-annual "Sleep Out for Housing Justice. " The event was organized by the advocacy group Housing our Neighbors. The organization brought together current and former homeless people, advocates and supporters for the event that included a march to City Hall where they planned to have a community meal, a public forum, and eventually camp out for the night.

Baltimore's Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum should reopen Oct. 4, the group responsible for making it profitable announced this week. "That's the official goal. That's the date," said Baltimore-based actor and author Mark Redfield, vice president of Poe Baltimore. "Things are coming along. " Tentative plans call for the house to be open weekends until spring 2014, when hours would be expanded. Final details are still being developed, Redfield said, but plans call for a museum that will be similar to what had been available to visitors before the closing of the house in September 2012.

Baltimore's Edgar Allan Poe House and Museum should reopen Oct. 4, the group responsible for making it profitable announced this week. "That's the official goal. That's the date," said Baltimore-based actor and author Mark Redfield, vice president of Poe Baltimore. "Things are coming along. " Tentative plans call for the house to be open weekends until spring 2014, when hours would be expanded. Final details are still being developed, Redfield said, but plans call for a museum that will be similar to what had been available to visitors before the closing of the house in September 2012.

Standing in the center of downtown Baltimore's economic hub, amid blocks of hotels that house tourists, about 100 advocates called Saturday for adequate and affordable housing that they say has been unjustly denied to the homeless. Chants of "housing is a human right" rang through the Inner Harbor's McKeldin Square, as demonstrators kicked off the fifth-annual "Sleep Out for Housing Justice. " The event was organized by the advocacy group Housing our Neighbors. The organization brought together current and former homeless people, advocates and supporters for the event that included a march to City Hall where they planned to have a community meal, a public forum, and eventually camp out for the night.

The brick facade of the Eastern Shore house is authenticall 18th century and quite handsome. The back lawn, meandering down to the Chester River in a landscaped pattern of roses, rhododendrons and boxwoods, is captured by a custom-made white picket fence.But the interiors of George and Jane Dean's newly restored home, which will be on the Kent County House and Garden Tour, are the creme de la creme of the redo. Decaying old rooms have been turned into lovely little gems of sophistication and design, accented with just the right -- of friendly charm and family comfort -- from the Charleston woven basket in the kitchen to the museum reproduction settee in the living room.

Our small, new home is quite cozy, but it lacks adequate storage space for books, CDs and DVDs. We'd prefer something stylistically and functionally different from the standard storage unit, so can you suggest some possibilities for a custom-made piece? And can you tell us how to get started on such a project? "Houses are for living." I'm putting that simple saying in quotes because I'm sure someone must have coined it before me. If not, I'm pleased to claim authorship because it makes an important point.

The loft town house looked spacious and well planned with a great view -- a lot of house for the money.It took a few minutes to block out what the interior designer had done. Then I mentally inserted our furniture into the room, and reality hit. The rooms would never look this good unless we got rid of everything we owned and down-scaled.The dining room table was glass and only 36 inches in diameter. The couch was undersized -- about a foot shorter than ours. And the bookcase, made with faux stone and glass shelves, seemed to become part of the wall behind it.Looking at model houses can teach you that carefully selected furniture and accessories can make even a 1,200 square foot town house look like the Taj Mahal.

When CBS launched its second reality TV show "Big Brother" last week, die-hard MTV fan Pear Musikabhumma tuned in to see if it would hook her like her all-time favorite show, "Real World." For seven years, Musikabhumma has religiously watched "Real World," which logs the adventures of seven young strangers thrown together in a luxurious house. But from the moment she saw the plainly furnished, 1,800-square-foot "Big Brother" house, the 23-year-old Baltimore lab researcher knew she was wasting her time.

Editor's note: A little boy yearns to know the purple coyote's secret but later wishes he hadn't been so curious.In the middle of a flat and arid desert stood a hill of sand and rock.Near this hill was a small house.Jim played alone in the garden with his old truck, which was missing one wheel.One day, a coyote appeared on the hill.A coyote unlike any other.A purple coyote.Jim watched him.The coyote did a little dance. Then he balanced himself on his right front paw and let out a strange howl:"WULULI WULA WULILA WUWU WA!"

In 1985 I bought a small house in the Cedmont neighborhood in Northeast Baltimore. At the time, I knew nothing about Formstone ("Formstone would be banned on new buildings under proposal," Dec. 1). I have found it to be beautiful, especially up close when it includes subtle shades of pale pink, blue, and gray with sparkles. Several years ago, a storm damaged a small piece of Formstone. I had some difficulty finding a person who could repair it properly, and I am pleased the Formstone artist blended in the new with the old. Baltimore has many charms we can all enjoy, and I'm very pleased to live here and have a unique home.

Our small, new home is quite cozy, but it lacks adequate storage space for books, CDs and DVDs. We'd prefer something stylistically and functionally different from the standard storage unit, so can you suggest some possibilities for a custom-made piece? And can you tell us how to get started on such a project? "Houses are for living." I'm putting that simple saying in quotes because I'm sure someone must have coined it before me. If not, I'm pleased to claim authorship because it makes an important point.

The loft town house looked spacious and well planned with a great view -- a lot of house for the money.It took a few minutes to block out what the interior designer had done. Then I mentally inserted our furniture into the room, and reality hit. The rooms would never look this good unless we got rid of everything we owned and down-scaled.The dining room table was glass and only 36 inches in diameter. The couch was undersized -- about a foot shorter than ours. And the bookcase, made with faux stone and glass shelves, seemed to become part of the wall behind it.Looking at model houses can teach you that carefully selected furniture and accessories can make even a 1,200 square foot town house look like the Taj Mahal.

The brick facade of the Eastern Shore house is authenticall 18th century and quite handsome. The back lawn, meandering down to the Chester River in a landscaped pattern of roses, rhododendrons and boxwoods, is captured by a custom-made white picket fence.But the interiors of George and Jane Dean's newly restored home, which will be on the Kent County House and Garden Tour, are the creme de la creme of the redo. Decaying old rooms have been turned into lovely little gems of sophistication and design, accented with just the right -- of friendly charm and family comfort -- from the Charleston woven basket in the kitchen to the museum reproduction settee in the living room.

COROLLA, N.C. - Edward Collings Knight Jr. was a railroad executive and amateur artist who "exhibited more talent at spending money than making it." Marie Louise LeBel was his foul-mouthed, hard-drinking wife, who thought nothing of killing a neighbor's dog with a shot from her pearl-handled pistol. The couple caused quite an uproar in the early 1920s, when they arrived on North Carolina's Outer Banks to hunt ducks and geese in Currituck Sound. But that was nothing compared to the fury that erupted when the menfolk barred Marie Knight from joining their hunting clubs because of her gender.

R. Madison Mitchell once said he just wanted to be a good funeral director and carve wood when things got slow.But it was the ducks and geese he fashioned in his spare time -- some of which fetched $10,000 -- that made him famous.Mr. Mitchell, who died of a stroke yesterday at 91, carved tens of thousands of decoys in a span of 60 years. His work won international praise, and he inspired dozens of artists to take up the trade."Because of him and his willingness to share the art form, the legacy will continue to flourish," said his grandson, E. Mitchell Shank.