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Before & After: Plain Particleboard Cabinets Get a Cheery Spring Paint Job
Rebecca's landlord graciously upgraded the "dismal" linoleum floor when she moved into this rental apartment in Astoria, Queens. But the cabinets — the kind of cheap, beige particleboard cabinets you find in dated apartments — were in serious need of something to make them more attractive. On a tight budget, Rebecca turned to paint and a cheery color palette.
Even with a kitchen with not a lot of natural light, you can tell the new color palette is a huge improvement!
From Rebecca:
Well the reason we're in a low-rent apartment in the first place is because we need low rent. So we couldn't undertake a replacement project. But paint was definitely doable. So we used high-gloss white (Behr Polar Bear 8075) to paint those awful taupe-y tiles in the backsplash and side wall.
Then we wanted a high impact, high contrast colorful palette to brighten up the dinginess of a room that doesn't get much light. Lime green, teal blue and orange were our choices. The exact colors we used were: 123-7 Tangerine Dream by Pittsburg Paints; 156-6 Montego Bay by Pittsburgh Paints; and Key Lime by Behr.
We sanded, but didn't use primer. I think we should have, as the paint chipped in a couple of places which we had to retouch. In any case — this is the result, for less than $100 including painting supplies and three quarts of paint.
Thank you Rebecca!
(Image credits: Burcu Ozturk; Rebecca Johnson )
77 Comments
Very cool! Those cabinets are in so many apartments and they're awful. The after is amazing.
great colour combo. clever!
I'd use contact paper myself so I wouldn't have to repaint...
clever colour combo. great job
I had a lighter shade of those same cabinets without those dark brown boarders. I opted to change the countertop to black (with blue highlights) granite, and had the walls painted with a faux-sponge finish in Wedgewood blue and cream. My accent color is red and I have a few hearts displayed on the kitchen wall. So I decided to faux-sponge paint one heart on the bottom of each door near the opening, and in the middle of the drawers. I was happy with the results because it fit my personality. Between the new walls (which look likes wallpaper), inexpensive artwork, and that touch to the kitchen cabinets, it camouflaged that 80's look. My appliances were also almond so everything blends nicely.
I also saw an episode on HGTV's Design to Sell with similar cabinets where they cut off some of the bottom brown boarder and sanded it, bought inexpensive molding and nailed it about an inch around the perimeter of each cabinet door and repainted them white. Then they added a nice knobs and the whole kitchen looked custom-made.
I once painted laminate (fake wood grain) cabinets and I used BIN primer. Actually, white was my end game, so I left it at the primer stage. That stuff is indestructible.
Your cabinets look freaking amazing! I hope they hold up for you. Great makeover!
Fantastic - so happy to see colors in a kitchen other than white. Nicely done!
I'm not a fan of the lime green, but overall this is a huge improvement!
I also have a very blah rental kitchen - might try to convince my landlord we need to remodel.
Pretty, but I would have preferred one color for upper and lower!
I never would have thought of this, but I think it looks great! Nice work.
Insanely adorable.
Looks like a whole new kitchen! And those before tiles were SO dismal!!!!
I love this color combo quite a bit and a very nice job of sprucing up this dated kitchen.
It's amazing how much one can accomplish with just a coat of paint (or two).
@Lorelski - Why should she need to apologize for her OPINION. Noone here is asking you to apologize for your bad taste (my opinion). I think the same thing. The colors are hideous and IMO any designer who thinks that was a good choice may want to rethink their careers. The clutter is a personal choice and possibly necessary due to space limitations, nothing wrong with that. The colors however.... Not only one hideous color, but two.
I'm not a big fan of the color choices. I would have painted the cabinets white or use white contact paper to really brighten up the space and highlight the brown trim of the cabinets. I think it's the back splash and the floor that made huge improvement in this kitchen.
So much better. Not crazy about the color on the uppers, however.
Another alternative to painting them would have been to just replace the doors with inexpensive shaker style paintable mdf doors. I've done this in my old kitchen when I had just the kind of doors you started out with. It looked amazing and it was relatively inexpensive. A couple hundred bucks?
Good choice to paint the backsplash. Wish my Queens landlord would allow that.
OJ, so I wouldn't choose the color. I don't live there, but I'd love to visit. Good choices by the resident color-appreciator.
I agree. These are the perfect candidates for contact paper...nice straight lines. If they didn't prime they are in for a load of trouble...if they've got kids or pets these will be a mess in a matter of weeks.
So this popped up in my facebook feed about an hour after I posted a photo of my kitchen asking for help for ideas-our kitchens are practically identical I had to look twice at the photo. Same EXACT cabinets, same setup, same white appliances even! I love what you did. I want to see more of what people did for these exact cabinets!! I need help!
Okay, Lpoley. In my OPINION, LizaJane and you are rude. Once again, the internet has allowed people to say someone else's work is "hideous" and "terrible" in pixels, meanwhile hiding beneath the anonymity of electronic communication. Would you actually be so rude to Rebecca if you were face to face? I would would be happy to say in person to both of you that you are being rude to insult someone's choices after they've put a lot of work into a project and taken some (in my opinion, successful) risks.
I use Melamine Paint. It hardens as it drys and requires no primer. Some Co. have a water based version. Prep is key sand and cleaning essential - degreaser on cabinets that old. I have done these a couple of times now. Found it worked the best. Plus I can get it tinted in any colour. If you do not use melamine you should use a blocker sealer primer, it is same as a clean slate.
Clever color combination! I'd be so happy to walk into this kitchen everyday. :)
I agree. People too easily express rude and obnoxious behaviour on the internet they never would in a person's face. Very cowardly and crummy.
That said, I think the "after" is much nicer. I've lived with those cabinets and just about anything short of fire can help improve them. It's okay if I wouldn't pick those exact colours (although, I would. They are cheeful.) the point is the tenants have made a vast improvement in their kitchen using some easy to use, easy to get, and easy to change paint.
Seriously, it's paint. It can be repainted.
As far as clutter goes, life is cluttered. You can't make dinner using the power of your mind and you need plates.
Excellent choice, and I'm so glad to see someone making the best of a funky kitchen rather than tossing the lot into a dumpster: well done.
I had melamine cabinets but decided that to sand, primer and paint something that was basically particle board just wasn't worth it. I think the color choices are interesting and do bring a certain cheerfulness to the spot.....I am a firm believer that color beauty is in the eyes of the owner. Speaking of color, is that a baby's onesie that you have photographed on the oven handle?
I think it's a little too much for a rental. I'm surprised the landlord allowed such bold colours, I guess repainting would be the problem of the next tenants. I understand renters wanting a nicely decorated place,but sometimes it should be neutral colours, so the next renters can work with the current colours. Those colours are very specific, so probably will have to be repainted before the next renters.
Here's a little story about color choices: A few years back, I invested thousands of dollars in having my house painted. I wanted a color that I liked, that was unlike the other common house colors in my conservative neighborhood, and a color that I could live with for a long time. I chose a sort of pistachio green, adding slate gray for the trim, just to tone down the color when in bright sunlight.
The painters had covered one wall in the green and I started to have my doubts. I already had a call in to the contractor to see how much it would cost to start over with another color. This was, after all, a big investment.
Then my new neighbor Mary happened by. I asked her for her opinion on the pistachio color. She said it was great, adding, "but, then I like all sorts of color." I so appreciated her for that. She supported me just when I needed it. We've been fast friends and great neighbors ever since. We have differing opinions and tastes in a lot of areas, including colors, but share the joy of helping others to make big choices and living through the ups and downs of the results.
I still love my house colors and I love my friend Mary!
You know what, I like it. This is a realistic and budget-friendly upgrade. Not everyone can toss down thousands of dollars to re-do their kitchen. The colors are retro and thank god the flooring was replaced. I hate old VCT.
Cyclokitty, thanks for the reinforcement. I also agree about the repainting, should Rebecca tire of the colors. Perhaps, though she should consult LizaJane and abyss before doing so, as they seem to be the arbiters of good taste. ;-)
i love it! best makeover for those cabinets i've ever seen & i love those colors. i can't believe no one has mentioned the new wooden floor- not exactly fair to say u spent less than $100 or did ur landlord spring for that?
I am not sure how people are allowed to paint rentals...Every rental I have ever had had the rule of no painting, not even walls. I can't even imagine painting a permanent fixture like kitchen cabinets in a rental. A wall is easy to repaint if your in a pinch to clean up before the landlord shows up but cabinets?...Maybe its a really relaxed apartment building I guess.
@ Lorelski. You've made your point clear and I don't see any reason to belabor your opinion. I think it is equally rude to dominate a conversation.
Well, I don't think LizaJane was totally out of bounds in her comment about the junk. I mean, can we not all acknowledge that it is an orange baby onesie hanging off the stove and *not* a dish towel as I first thought. There is also a random foil bag and some empty bottles on the counter. If you want to display your home online, clear the clutter, or be prepared for comments like LizaJane's.
I myself am not a fan of the colour choices, but that's me. I think anything was an improvement, and if they're happy, then they're happy.
Is anyone else dismayed by the off-center range exhaust cover? That is the first thing I noticed and it's apparent to me in both before and after shots.
The before photo reminds me to curate the front of my fridge.
As to the new color palette, I will keep my opinion to myself so no one can be upset. It looks as if she put a lot of careful work into the project, which is way more that I would do.
Oops, "than" I would do. It's Saturday & my keyboard skills are in weekend mode.
I'm glad you noted paint chipping issue. Whenever I see AT posts about folks painting kitchen cabinets I want an "after-after" photo to see how the painted cabinets held up. In my experience (even after careful priming,etc.), painted cabinets end up chipping and looking shabby. I'd love some tips from painting pros on how to avoid this chipping.
Thanks for this lovely post!
I'm not a fan of these particular colors, but so what? They tried something different and that's called living a life. My only qualm was insufficient prepping. Kitchens get a lot of abuse and surfaces need to be "cleaning friendly" - especially if you're using strong colors because there's nothing uglier than when they begin to chip or peel.
I love it. I think those laminate/woodstrip cabinets are so dated they're in the realm of being vintage, if painted a fun colour, which this is. Who cares if they get chipped..it's a rental. Keep touching up. Also re: being able to paint in rentals, I live in a city with less than 1% vacancy and you can pretty much do whatever you want your place bc the landlord can re-rent so easily when you move.
As an aside: can I just assume that @What-da is a troll or did he/she just type possibly the most offensive thing ever typed on AT? Does anyone else wonder why people feel the need to be fundamentally crappy to others? Be positive, be friendly, if you have nothing pleasant to say, just say nothing? Why would anyone want to take even the slightest risk of hurting someone's feelings just to express an opinion that doesn't need to be expressed?
@Lolo'sLola, thanks for chiming in! I always appreciate an opportunity to reply to an response offering advice and exemplification as to how not to belabor one's opinion!
Yes, indeed, it's important to not belabor. Let sleeping dogs lie (feel free to interpret that old chestnut as you will).
However (and thanks, again for this opportunity) what you, I believe, mistook as belaboring were merely a series of responses to invitations such as yours.
Though I doubt you did so, I hope you read my anecdote regarding color choices that I also posted. I wrote it in the spirit of helping anyone who is nervous about choosing colors and the importance of being positive in supporting others' choices. Folks such as you might consider it belaboring, but I hope there are others out there who will gain confidence from it.
@B2. I agree with what you said about What-da's remark. Well put.
Nice update. Wouldn't be my color choice but, I assume that they got property owner approval because why would you waste money on something you have to repaint, or pay to repaint, when you move? Did someone liken the paint choices to the "holocaust"? -- hmmm I can think of a 6,000,000,000 reasons that paint color is a poor comparison to the holocaust! As for the snarky comment about cleaning up clutter.... when you hate how your home looks, its very hard to be motivated to organize and make everything look decorator worthy.
There is a way to share your opinion (even a dissenting one) in a more tactful way. Everyone understands that these comments on AT posts are just your OPINION but how you choose to express it also reveals something about the kind of person you are.
That being said, I think this is a great refresh of a typically bland 80's kitchen. It's great that your landlord let you paint it, and that he/she at least sprung for new floors! I love how the teal blue lower cabinets and white backsplash make the (faux?) wood counter pop out and seem charming and fresh. I do agree with others that a little more clutter-clearing could've been done before taking the after pic.
It makes me wonder if AT editors cruise others' design blogs and just feature them without curating the content a little better. For instance, do they ever ask a potential person whose project they want to feature if they will reshoot the After due to poor lighting, lack of styling (i.e., clutter, or too sparse), etc.? I'm now genuinely curious about their typical process.
Let's all assume that the public "Apartment Therapy" posts pictures that some people will like and some people will hate. After all, it's public, so there should be no need to filter ones opinions here, in fact, by it's very nature it should be embraced. As long as the opinions are not directed as hate-speech towards the person in question, all is good. Everyone is NOT going to love this picture and to argue with the people that don't is silly. That being said---I would argue that the photographer of this picture is at fault for not asking the tenants to "tidy up a bit" before the shoot. One other thing that is bothering me here besides the individual sniping---Three quarts of paint? To paint a whole room? When there's 4 colors? Please!
Speaking as someone who spent a good day removing a previous renter's paintjob from our melamine/particleboard cupboard fronts: **YES**, you should have used primer, because whoever painted our cupboards just slapped on the paint without a second thought (or much taste in colour choices… egads they were terrible). I hate to be a downer, but it will chip and scrape off, and look terrible and cheap - even if for now it looks great! (And I do love the colours! Good choice.) But an extra hour of prep work would have saved you/your landlord a bigger fix in the future.
Others considering a similar venture, take note :)
If you were referring to my comment (if so, it was not intended to be snarky) I was talking about the clutter in the "after" photo. The before is the before and any and all clutter is dismissed in my point of view. I only meant that if one is showcasing all their hard work to be reviewed online, it makes sense to clean up for your after photos, because a onesie hanging off the oven, a garbage can, and a cluttered counter space distract from the overall work and picture.
Looks wonderful... well done!!
Love the colors! Well done!
Wow, what a fabulous make-over! It must make you smile every time you walk into your kitchen.
And ignore the rude remarks. There are a lot of people in the world who confuse having an opinion with actually knowing something. An opinion is just that -- like elbows, everyone's got a couple, and they shouldn't be confused with facts or intelligent discourse.
Is it just me, or does it look like there is a onesie draped over the oven handle? :-))))
Those wouldn't have been my color choices for cabinets, but I do think those colors are fun and go together well. Ultimately, if it makes the renter happy, then it's a job well done. And the tile painting has sparked an idea for my own kitchen, so thanks for that. :-)
The floor is a great improvement! I assume that wasn't in the $100 budget though. Oh, to dream of a landlord that would swap out a floor!
I never would have thought about painting the back splash - if that wears well, brilliant idea!
I assume you have to paint the cupboards back before you move out? Or is your landlord really god's gift to tenants? My colour taste is so boring and neutral that I'd never have dreamed of using those colours, but I think I could see making an exception for a kitchen that dated looking. My first thought was a cherry red and sunny yellow combo, but that might be horrible with the new floors.
I like the idea of this color combination but it's really tough to see it accurately as described on my monitor. Regardless, I'm assuming the landlords gave the OK to do this because now they have an additional step to restore the unit for the next tenant.
@ katydidlaughs, if you're thinking of painting kitchen cabinets, we did without experiencing any chipping problems. We used farrow and ball full gloss. The paint is expensive but not compared to new cabinets. We spent well less than $200 and our cabinets looked great for over 10 years. We could wipe off grease and splashes, and heat and steam from the stove didn't bother the paint job in the least. We lightly sanded, used one of those super strong primes (Zinsser?) and painted on two coats. Hope this info is of help.
I cringed when I read she did not use primer, this will definitely look terrible in the long run because it will chip and retouching will become tiresome. I would also have preferred if she chose 1 bright color rather than three, it's a bit much... The back splash is a major improvement, again priming is a critical step as well as the right kind of paint.
Also, I always enjoy reading the "rude" comments. All the simple minded folks attempting to moderate these "rude" comments are exasperating.
OK, I think I have officially read my last AT comment. A little attitude is one thing, but this much flat-out rudeness is just a drag. I'm out.
Team Lorelski. Friend speaks my mind.
I think it's cool. Good to see that a personalised touch was possible in a rental ... and with a Landlord-funded new floor, to boot.
Is the primer issue such a big deal when the cabinets are close enough to being replaced sometime soon?
Thanks, lggsterpops. I would say more, but don't think there's a need. (Oops. Just said more.)
Sorry to say but I think if the cabinets were left untouched the kitchen would have looked much better (assuming the flooring got changed to something neutral).
Seriously folks? When AT posts an impressive before/after, we all give kudos appropriately. But let's be honest here. The taste level reflected in the "after" photo is questionable, and there are issues beyond the color choice. When taking a picture and submitting it to AT, it takes no effort and costs $0 to hang a towel properly, remove power cords, clean the counters and move the trash bag out of the shot. Apartment Therapy is a place for inspiration. This one isn't good enough.
Seriously, that is the after photo? Pick up the junk and put away the laundry before taking a photo! Not being rude, just being a reasonable, thinking adult.
The backsplash and floor look way better, no comment on the cabinets.
Nice job. But wait, is that a black cat on the counter, right of the stove?
The festive color combination reminds me of the exterior of Fred 62 (kitschy diner) in Los Feliz. I personally wouldn't be fond of it in my kitchen, but to each her own. You could calm the color scheme by changing the lime green and orange to a dark gray or white fairly inexpensively.
Oh. And I really do think not using primer is a mistake that will be regretted in time. When I was 14, bored, and suffering from a bout of stupidity I spontaneously decided to paint the ugly particleboard cabinets in a second kitchen we had down in the basement at my dad's house without asking. I just rolled on white Benjamin Moore latex paint that I found in the garage. Even though that was not our primary kitchen and so it was rarely used, it got scuffed up SO fast. Also, the first time I boiled water on the stove the steam caused streaky marks on the paint. Eeks.
Fantastic transformation!
It's bold, and certainly elicited a "whoa!" out of me. But the 'before' was such an incredible mess outside of the cupboards; downside, the clutter continued in the 'after'. It's only paint, but I rather like it. Worth noting for others, new paint doesn't mean getting a pass at cleaning and decluttering.
Sometimes I think that AT posts these types of posts in order to generate comment flame wars that will drive people to the site. Oh my! This has been a highly amusing diversion from my morning chores.
I admire the OP for having the courage to express herself by using colors that she loves to perk up a tired kitchen. However, I do believe that the old adage about any job worth doing should be done right applies here. Priming before painting would have ensured that the paint job that she loves would adhere properly. Then she could enjoy her fun pops of color without the constant worry of paint chipping and touch ups.
I appreciate homes that appear to be lived in rather than looking like a catalog page from a big box store. But, it would be a good idea to tidy up a bit before snapping a photo to be published in a public forum. Is my space photo ready at the moment? Heck no! Give me an hour to corral the dog hair dust bunnies, make the bed and dust! Even then, I can accept that some people will like my less than perfect space, while others won't.
Fantastic! I would have used a primer, but hopefully the paint will stick.
Oh wow. They really tried it.
Hi @Adreamer -- yep, the off-center range hood is noticeable, but let's pick our battles -- at least the landlord replaced the floor and let her paint the cabinet & backsplash!
My $0.02 about the colors? In college, my dorm had a HORRID bathroom. We were desperate to have one color instead of the four colors peeling through in layers, so when the RA was able to get us cans of college-color red paint, we had a painting party. It was fantastic --we all loved it. I went back to visit the next year and the residents were griping about the horrible red. I explained what it was before, and they all said "OH!"
Hey they forgot to mention that the floor was changed! That has a huge impact on the space.
It's funny when you think that the 'after' is going to be someone else's 'before' likely in a couple of years when/if they move out.
Yeah..ok, someone's not a home photo stylist. Not everyone can be.
It is an improvement. I like the strong colors. Don't care for how the stove now sticks out like a sore thumb. I would have chosen a scheme that incorporated a bit of white/black to draw the appliance back in.
When I saw that there were 90 comments, I had a feeling there was some controversy going on!
@lorelski - I think the idea that an opinion can be expressed without being a jerk about it is lost on most people in the "real" world and online.
Somehow, when someone gets called out for being rude, it often turns into a back and forth about opinions and rights rather than just owning that there are still ways to express opinions and criticism and having some modicum of respect or manners.
But then, you get this. Why am I tell you? :)
lorelski_we are on apartment therapy & people post opinions. the community is going to read all the posts & not pay attention to the 10% at edges. some will adapt the post to their own ends. we are not here to call other people rude (especially since the other people are correct; it is not a pretty result). we are here to look at people's ideas & we vote bluntly.
@amisdottir, when I began reading your comment, I thought you were offering sensible advice to me, i.e., to "not pay attention to the 10% edges." I thought you were referring to rude remarks, but alas, not so. Frankly, I found most of what you said rather vague, but the word "We" did stand out as the subject of several of your declarative sentences.
Could you please direct me to the definition of "we" as it pertains to this website? Hold on... I'll check... Ah! I see "We" is defined in the AT Comment Policy. Oh. There is also a list of Our four rules for comments:
1. Be honest and fair, yet gracious.
2. No ad hominem attacks or gratuitous meanness.
3. Stay on topic.
4. Add value, don't take it away.
Yes, I can see that in my pre-coffee zeal to respond to what I considered an unnecessarily hurtful remark, I could be accused of violating rules 1, 2 and 3 to some extent. I speak sincerely when I say I shall endeavor to observe these rules.
Now I offer this suggestion to you:
Call a meeting of the cadre that you refer to as "we" and discuss these 4 rules with them—particularly the definitions of the terms "fair," "gracious," "meanness" and "add value."
Then I suggest that "we" discuss amongst yourselves whether or not it adds value to use the words "terrible," "ugh," "hideous" and "Holocaust" in response to someone else's long hours of work.
You could wrap up your "we" meeting by deliberating on the finer points of "fairness," weighing the home improver's sweat equity and courage against the effort it takes for a commenter to type the word "Ugh."
I realize that, even though I have owned up, you have no responsibility to respond, let alone take my advice. But I'm honestly glad that you spurred me toward self-examination and evaluation regarding my own comments, and I hope you do do the same.


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Ranked #1 in 8 out of the 10 evaluated specialties by U.S. News
MyPatients provides referring primary care providers with secure access to their patients' information.
Boston Children's has launched the world's 1st program dedicated to offering hand transplants to children who qualify.
First-of-its-kind international contest takes first steps toward establishing "best practices" for using genomic sequencing
Read the latest blog by a Boston Children's doctor, clinician or staff member.
Support the hospital with a donation that helps kids get the care they need.
Through genetic and neurodevelopmental studies, we have discovered that complex strabismus syndromes can be sensitive indicators of human genetic errors in axon growth and guidance. These include horizontal gaze palsy with progressive scoliosis, Duane syndrome, CFEOM1, and CFEOM3 that result from mutations in ROBO3, CHN1, KIF21A, and TUBB3 respectively. We are now focusing much of our basic neuroscience research on studies of the roles of these proteins in normal and abnormal neurodevelopment.
CHN1 Research
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The future of pediatrics will be forged by thinking differently, breaking paradigms and joining together in a shared vision of tackling the toughest challenges before us."


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Gym Hair: Get it "Wright"
Written on June 16, 2010 at 12:00 pm , by Fitness Magazine
Michelle Obama is turning heads in the White House thanks to pro hair stylist, Johnny Wright. The Chicago native, who first worked with Obama at an Essence magazine photo shoot, now serves as Obama's exclusive hair stylist. We invited him to FITNESS to share his tricks for managing hair after the gym.
Categories: Beauty On the Go | Tags: gym, hair, sweat
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A host of Utah and U.S. organizations met with the National U.S.-Arab Chamber of Commerce Monday for a conference to explore future trade alliances.
Representatives of the Salt Lake Chamber, the Governor's Office of Economic Development, World Trade Center Utah and the U.S. Commercial Service gathered to address issues such as job creation through developing alternative-energy sectors, enabling and empowering Arab youth, the role of venture capital and rebuilding and modernizing infrastructure.
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The conference, at the Salt Lake Chamber offices in Salt Lake City, also examined case studies from the Arab world, including factors that have contributed to successful outcomes and remaining challenges.
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The only creative agency with latin spirit and global vision.
"Radlerluya" is a joyous exultation to the refreshing new drink Buckler Radler, a zero percent alcohol beer with natural lemon juice.
LOLA helped Amstel Radler launch their summer 2014 campaign with the simple idea that the hotter it gets, the thirstier we are.
Copyright© 2013 LOWE and Partners. All Rights Reserved.
Click where you want to share the LOLA website.Don't think too hard about it, just give us a share.Thank you! :)
LOLA lives in Madrid & Barcelona. For us, they're the capitals of latin-ness. If you want to stay connected to what happens here you can come and see us, call us or write to us:


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Research Article
Household diversity and migration in mid-life: understanding residential mobility among 45–64 year olds in Melbourne, Australia
Article first published online: 18 MAY 2009
DOI: 10.1002/psp.553
Copyright © 2009 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Population, Space and Place
Volume 16, Issue 4, pages 307–321, July/August 2010
Additional Information
How to Cite
Wulff, M., Champion, A. and Lobo, M. (2010), Household diversity and migration in mid-life: understanding residential mobility among 45–64 year olds in Melbourne, Australia. Popul. Space Place, 16: 307–321. doi: 10.1002/psp.553
Publication History
- Issue published online: 4 JUN 2010
- Article first published online: 18 MAY 2009
- Manuscript Accepted: 28 JAN 2009
- Manuscript Revised: 27 JAN 2009
- Manuscript Received: 17 OCT 2008
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DATA: Mayoral candidates, Globe staff reports, and the Massachusetts Office of Campaign & Political Finance
Joanna S. Kao for the Boston Globe and Roy Greene / Globe staff
DATA: Mayoral candidates, Globe staff reports, and the Massachusetts Office of Campaign & Political Finance
Joanna S. Kao for the Boston Globe and Roy Greene / Globe staff
The much-anticipated adaptation, starring Ben Affleck, is perhaps a little too faithful to the novel.
Scientists and engineers have developed 3-D printing to a point where the food version is taking shape.
A local campaign aims to prevent High Island from going the way of others that have been snapped up by wealthy buyers and closed to the public.
The $25 million project would allow Allston commuters to take the train to the Back Bay, South Station, and possibly Kendall Square.
The Jewish people know from long and painful experience that "who will rest and who will wander" can be as momentous a fate as life and death.
The three Afghan soldiers explained for the first time why they disappeared from a training exercise at Camp Edwards.
The GOP gubernatorial candidate has worked to present a more liberal image on the campaign trail than in his 2010 bid.
The school will complete a full review of the program after a disclosure that a student informant died of a heroin overdose.
The operator of the property intends to begin dramatically overhauling the marketplace by next summer.
Fort Point's Bastille Kitchen serves modernized French fare, for better and worse.
Startups with male executives get six times the amount of funding as those led by women, a new study found.
Recent MCAS results were big for the UP Education Network, which now runs three schools in Boston and two in Lawrence.
Members of Congress declared Tuesday that they had lost confidence in the Secret Service to protect President Obama.
Jack Cranney was arrested in Texas for allegedly stealing $6 million in investments from 15 of his clients.
Perhaps one of the biggest gambles Steve Wynn ever made was trusting Steve Tocco.
The Saugus man allegedly misled police investigating whether his son filmed a sexual assault of a teen.
Prodemocracy protesters in Hong Kong appeared headed for a showdown with the authorities Wednesday.
Within a half hour, the 1964 South End fire morphed into a devastating tragedy that took the lives of five firefighters and a civilian.
If enough clicks add up, it will mean that Harvard has found another successful technology company.
Merchant created 150 new recipes for "Seriously Delish," but her blog readers will find the style of cooking and tone familiar.
Continue reading by subscribing to BostonGlobe.com for just 99¢.
Continue reading by subscribing to BostonGlobe.com for just 99¢.


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West Wing
Episode Report CardLauren S: B+ | 4 USERS: A+
Josh gets onto a plane with his backpack, sits, and leans back with a sigh. After a moment, Donna slides in next to him: "May I just say, a truly excellent notion." "Sam's," Josh concedes. She smiles, "Of course." Josh does a quick awkward clarification: "The vacation. Going-with-you part was all me." They kiss.
At the office, Josh's Blackberry rings and vibrates itself right off the table to an audience of eye drop bottles and Tums.
West Wing


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Praying with Women of the Bible for National Day of Prayer
- Thursday, April 29, 2004
Eva: Why do you think that listening is that just as important as speaking to God?
Nancy: I have two daughters. If they just called home to say, "Hi Mom. Please send trash bags and socks and quarters and cash – oh, yeah, I love you and I'll call you again next week. Bye." I would feel gypped out of the chance to tell them how proud I am of them and that I pray for them and hope their day goes well. With God, if I just leave him my list on an answering machine, then I miss out on hearing Him say what He wants to say to me. And I'm guilty of that! It goes back to believing and trusting that God's not out to scold or shame me – there's no condemnation for those who are in Christ.
Eva: What a great analogy! Nancy, I love it when you said in the book that praying doesn't come easy to you. But you also say you were "surprised by prayer." Talk about that.
Nancy: I am by nature a skeptic. My favorite expression is, "That'll happen when pigs fly." That said, years ago as a new Christian I was attempting to teach my then-toddler daughter about prayer. Actually, I was trying to teach her about "giving money to Jesus." One morning during the mad getting-ready-for-preschool morning rush, I discovered Alison's shoe was missing. So we prayed about it, although I didn't believe God would stop running the universe just to find a little girl's shoe. But I was wrong. Immediately after we said "Amen" Alison ran into my room and pulled her shoe out from under my bed—with a dollar bill tucked inside it. She squealed, "Jesus found my shoe and Jesus gave me money just like I gave Him!"
That still causes me to scratch my head. What kind of God does that? Only ours, who delights in proving skeptics wrong.
Eva: Amen, my friend! Amen. Taking all that, how can we encourage others to make prayer a bigger part of their lives?
Nancy: You can preach and teach and screech, but unless the Holy Spirit leads us into all truth, unless we're convinced that the Father listens and that Jesus is interceding for us and the Spirit enables, unless we realize that prayer is a life line, then it will be no more than a discipline. Not that spiritual disciplines are bad in themselves. But prayer is sacred communion, an intimate encounter. Believing that is what will encourage others to engage in it.
Eva: One last thing, would you offer a two or three sentence prayer for our country?
Nancy: Father, we are broken. Families are broken, I am broken. Marriage itself is on the edge of extinction and in desperate need of Your powerful intervening touch. We are lost without You, Father! Keep our children safe from the enemy of their souls. Bring Your healing to our wayward nation.
Eva: Amen. Thank you, Nancy.
Nancy Kennedy lives in Inverness, Florida, where she is a features writer for her local newspaper, the Citrus County Chronicle. Her weekly column, Grace Notes, can be read through her Web site www.nancykennedybooks.net. She is also the author of such books as "Move Over, Victoria—I Know the Real Secret," "When He Doesn't Believe," "When Perfect Isn't Enough," "Prayers God Always Answers" and "Praying With Women of the Bible."
Award-winning national speaker, Eva Marie Everson's work includes Intimate Moments with God and Intimate Encounters with God (Cook). She is the author of Shadow of Dreams, Summon the Shadows and Shadow of Light. (Barbour Fiction) She can be contacted for comments or for speaking engagement bookings at www.EvaMarieEverson.com
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Does Peyton Manning really need more fire in the belly for this coming week's game against his former team? Probably not, but Colts owner Jim Irsay is providing it nonetheless.
In an interview with USA Today, Irsay explains why he let Manning walk and why he drafted Andrew Luck. Irsay referenced his Super Bowl XLI ring.
"We've changed our model a little bit, because we wanted more than one of these." [Tom] Brady never had consistent numbers, but he has three of these. Pittsburgh had two, the Giants had two, Baltimore had two and we had one. That leaves you frustrated.
"You make the playoffs 11 times, and you're out in the first round seven out of 11 times. You love to have the Star Wars numbers from Peyton and Marvin [Harrison] and Reggie [Wayne]. Mostly, you love this." -Jim Irsay (USA Today)
"Mostly, you love this," Irsay said as he pointed to his ring. Manning is the only reason why Irsay has a ring. Unreal.
This comes from the same guy who wants to honor Manning with a pregame tribute.
In a perfect world, Manning will have seven touchdown passes on Sunday, and we'll lip read "Idiot owner, all liquored up," as he goes to shake Irsay's hand after the game.
Make sure to follow Predominantly Orange on Facebook and on Twitter.


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Bowling Green, KY (SportsNetwork.com) - Trency Jackson paced four teammates in double figures with 16 points. as the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers held off a late surge by the Southern Miss Golden Eagles to claim a 68-65 win at E.A. Diddle Arena.
George Fant and T.J. Price each scored 15 points for WKU (6-4), while Chris Harrison-Docks netted 11 points.
For USM (9-2), which snapped a three-game winning streak, Jerrold Brooks put up 15 points on 5-of-8 from 3-point range. Neil Watson posted 13 points for the visitors, while Michael Craig had 12 points.
WKU attempted just 13 field goals in the first half, making seven (.538). It shot 13-of-15 from the free-throw line and held a 30-25 lead at the break.
The Hilltoppers led by 10 with under 15 minutes to play, but the Golden Eagles would not go quietly, as they cut their deficit to just one, 66-65, with 12 seconds left on a Craig layup. Jackson made a pair of free-throws on the other end for WKU, and USM could not get a final shot off before the buzzer sounded.
USM was impressive at the free-throw line, making 14-of-17, but WKU was even better at 26-of-30.
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Help! I Need Some Gift Ideas for a Professional Chef
Good Questions
Q: My brother's passion in life is definitely food, and I want to get him a thoughtful food-related gift. But he's also a professional chef, so I'm feeling intimidated. I don't think a cookbook or kitchen gadget will cut it since he probably has all of those that he wants/needs. What's an indulgent gift that he would love but never buy for himself?
Sent by Shannon
Editor: Shannon, we talked to a few professional chefs last week to find out what they are asking for this year, so you may find their ideas helpful. We also created a gift guide of classic tools and gadgets for cooks — take a look, just in case!
→ Andy Ricker, What's On Your Cooking Wish List?
→ Ludo Lefebvre, What's On Your Cooking Wish List?
→ 10 Classic Kitchen Tools Every Cook Should Have (But Might Not)
Readers, do you have any ideas for thoughtful, food-related gifts for a professional chef?
Next question?
(Image credits: The Kitchn)
20 Comments
Two Waygu beef ribeye steaks
Maybe some sort of high end ingredient? Good quality vinegars, set of different sea salts, vanilla extracts, sausages, trio of fancy mustards, something along those lines.
A tree with truffle spore infused roots
Does he read? There are some very good books about cooking and food - not cook books. I read Consider the Fork earlier this year and it was fascinating. The author, Bee Wilson, has a number of other food related books.
What about high end liquor, something locally made, perhaps? That's always a no-fail.
Also, what about this homemade gin kit: http://drinks.seriouseats.com/2013/12/homemade-gin-kit-diy-make-your-own-gin-gift.html?ref=excerpt_readmore
Why not get him something non food,cooking,kitchen inspired?
I usually DON'T get someone a gift directly related to their passion/vocation, because yes, they have what they want and know a heck of a lot more than I do about the subject. A better choice is usually something related to a hobby, if they have one, or just for fun and relaxation. Luxury shaving goods, hand cream made for mountain climbers, excellent headphones--that kind of thing is a good "guy" gift.
A lot of professionals are specific about the types of equipment and ingredients they like to use, so I would avoid knives, gadgets, and things like salts and vinegars and meats. I say, give them a high-quality bakeware dish they can use at home. I don't think any professionals are going to say "no" to being given a Heath Ceramics casserole dish. It's beautiful and well-made.
What about a baking steel?
My husband is a chef and he always asks for high end cookbooks. You know, the ones I can't cook out of but are pretty any ways.
Any particular local specialty, either from where you live or somewhere you travelled recently, makes an excellent gift for a cook. This works especially well if you live a distance away from your brother, then you can bring him a little piece of your home.
For example, my parents live in the south and I love gifts of their local honey, wine, and pecans. That kind of thing is very special because I simply can't purchase it here in DC and it reminds me of them every time I get it out. I would recommend anything made in small batches or by real farmers / distillers with real names. Depending on where you live, consider honey, nuts, special cakes or breads, maple syrup, olive oil, vinegar, salt, chocolate, cured meat, liqueur, cheese, etc.
I am a pastry chef. I would not recommend buying any equipment because you will overpay at some frilly Sur la Table or Willams Sonoma type store while the chef buys everything at a resto supply store on the cheap, and everyone is particular about what they use.
High finishing ingredients are a good choice because a pro cook or chef can use it at home for friends and family and it makes a difference. Honey, Sea salt, vinegar, maple syrup, olive oil, chocolate, truffle stuff---these are all things that you use a little bit of at the end but that make a huge difference in a dish. Most cooks appreciate these things and a lot of the time they are things that can get expensive to buy for yourself, so they make a great gift.
Some of the best presents I've gotten are beautiful high end cook books or chef biographies and memoirs. If you get a book, pick one that is classic and from a chef that produces quality work (don't get a book with a picture of someone on the front unless it's Julia Child!)
Some recommendations:
-On the Line by Grant Achatz
-Anything by Thomas Keller
-The Flavor Bible
-On Food and Cooking by Harold McGee
-Ratio by Michael Ruhlman
-The Cake Bible by Rose Levy Berenbaum
In my neighborhood there is a vintage/antique kitchen supply store. It is filled to the rafters with old china patterns, old kitchen gear like hand-turned meat grinders, old copper cookware, etc. I have seen chefs in there (they said they were chefs) shopping for presents for other people in the food industry.
Black Cocoa.
If he likes bacon, I would get Benton's bacon from Tennesee or andouille from Savoie's in Louisiana. I like Katy did's idea. In the chef picks series they did one of the chef's suggested gift certificate so he can buy that thing he's been coveting. Good luck.
And I just saw this post:
How about a beautiful, handmade serving dish? Or a vintage meat platter/vintage kitchenalia/some hollow-stemmed champagne coupes, things they don't make anymore? I agree that local ingredients or artisanal produce would make a lovely gift, too.
Yes to the two Wagyu steaks! Great idea.
My boyfriend is a chef and he asked for a pressure cooker. I also got him little stocking stuffers - smoked Maldon salt, a microplane grater, mini spatulas.
For his birthday I got him a giant stainless steel 14" saute pan and meat socks. They look like mortadella, salami, and sopressata!
A subscription to Lucky Peach.
Very extravagant, but how about this?


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Your email has been sent.
In the Story of Jonah, an Urgent Lesson About the Dangers of Solitary Confinement
Isolation didn't help Jonah find redemption inside the whale. It isn't helping thousands of American prisoners today, either.
Some extremely resilient prisoners can survive even long-term solitary confinement with their minds and souls whole, almost unscathed. But for many, perhaps most, isolation—and the featureless, purposeless life that accompanies it—is deeply damaging. Yet today, we impose this state, this harm, on tens of thousands of prisoners. The Michigan prison system has over a thousand prisoners in long-term segregation. In our national experiment of mass incarceration, we are not only imprisoning more people than any nation ever has before—over 20 percent of the world's current prisoners—we are housing more of them in segregation, for longer periods of time than has ever been attempted. We should be unsurprised if few or none experience Jonah's positive response.
Let's move back to Jonah for a deeper look: Jonah learned something in the whale's belly, but even Jonah's new-found clarity was far from perfect. He learned obedience but not understanding. Later in the story we find that Jonah is deeply aggrieved, even angry with God. Why? Because when the Ninevites so speedily repented, God relented and went back on the prior promise to ruin the city. Jonah heads outside the city to sit alone—again, solitary if not confined—and stew over this felt grievance. He complains that God is "compassionate and gracious, slow to anger, abounding in kindness, repenting of evil," throwing those words at God as an accusation, not, as we pray today, as words of hope or entreaty or praise. Jonah is deeply skeptical of mercy and believes only in harsh justice. At the same time, he is psychologically in a very similar place as the prisoner quoted above, enraged and desperate over the withering of the gourd on which he was relying for shade.
God could simply reject Jonah's views about the world and subject him to punishment for them. Perhaps that punishment would be a harsher or longer term of isolation, as it is so often in prison. But that's not what happens. Instead, what God rejects is Jonah's chosen isolation. God ends Jonah's segregation in the sukkah, the booth he has built, interrupting it with conversation that extolls the quality of mercy—deserved or not, applicable even to the thousands who don't know their right from left, to the beasts as well as the people. We don't see or hear Jonah's reaction, but the tradition subscribed to by most Jewish commenters on Jonah holds that he is abashed and persuaded, that this book is about Jonah's salvation more than the redemption of Nineveh.
Following that tradition, Jonah's teshuvah does occur, but not in isolation in the whale's belly, and not as a matter of justice. Jonah's teshuvah occurs when God engages Jonah's humanity to explain to him the ineffable value of mercy and when Jonah understands that just like a child who doesn't know right from left, good from evil—just like all of us, including our prisoners—he, too, depends on mercy.
The views expressed are the author's, and not those of any past or present employer.
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A Great Thinker Rediscovers His Judaism on the Day of Atonement
Jewish philosopher Franz Rosenzweig was set to convert to Christianity a century ago. Yom Kippur services changed his mind.


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Loud and Music
This is a serious question. Because hip-hop and r&b refer to other aspects of Black pop culture on the regular. Like there are references to other Black music forms, Black shows, Black food, Black sayings and ways of thought….
and most of ya'll don't even know what the fuck a jheri curl is…like how do white people actually think they know anything about hip-hop, or can be legitimate critics if there are so many references that I know for an actual fact most of yall just will not get?
If you have to look shit up on urban dictionary to get a reference, chances are you're not an expert brah….#hiphopfightsback
It's ridiculous to think certain words are exclusively understood ONLY by people with darker skin. I have a lot of friends from every kind of ethnicity and color background that listen to every genre of music. For instance I have a friend who was born in India, and moved to America at an early age. I can definitively say he's more passionate about hip-hop than any other person I have ever known, except for myself of course ;). He's dedicated his life to hip-hop and music in his own way, being an audio engineer, beat producer, and music blogger. Like me, he has hundreds and hundreds of gigabytes of hip-hop, rap, and rnb that he listens to on a daily basis. We often smoke together and talk about hip-hop for hours on end. He's honestly one of the smartest guys I've ever known, and I guarantee he knows more "slang" than you and utilizes it more in conversation. Once you learn, you know, and once you know, it's easier to learn even more.
Also, by your backwards racist logic, you and all other African-Americans can't fully comprehend hip-hop that's about losing your father, such as Atmosphere's song Yesterday, or about overcoming and loosing friends to drug addiction, like Macklemore's song Otherside, or simply loving music and its beauty because it makes you exceptionally happy, such as Eyedea's song Music Music…because you're not white. Obviously skin color has much much much more to do with your perspectives of life than the actual experiences you encounter while living…
As Kendrick Lamar said, "I don't make black music, I don't make white music, I make everyday life music."
So you and the rest of your irrationally hateful Nicki Minaj fan group need to open your eyes to the human experience. Your skin color only defines you if you let it define you. I'm just a human being trying to make it in an impossibly complex world I don't fully understand, what the fuck are you?
(Source: rococobutter)
It's funny how all the obnoxious trolls on tumblr are all friends with each other. Like how in real life super duchey people tend to only be friends with other duchey people. Humans and the internet are an interesting thing to observe.
-knock knock.
—who's there?
freedom would never knock
freedom rings
And if it takes longer than 30 minutes, your freedom is free.
If you experience freedom lasting four hours or more, contact your physician immediately.
eagle sold separately
*Some restrictions apply.
batteries not included
Im done.
(via canariesandcoalmines)
Let's argue about stuff that doesn't need to be argued about
obama doesn't poop
yes he does
No, I don't.
(Source: flip5600, via lilevanses)
my cousin is friends with this guy… I met him at my cousin's wedding…
(via asgardian-centaur)
i was hanging out with a good friend of mine (meeting her boyfriend and his friends for the first time) and we got into some deep GOT discussions.
turns out the BF is really good friends with some kid who's father went to school with GRRM.
that father is apparently filthy stinking rich.
handsome, popular, and blonde.
and apparently used to bully GRRM in high school.
so GRRM has a diary and it's called ASOIAF.
(Source: thisislucreziasand, via onionjulius)


text: Do you know a family deserving of a car this Christmas? Owners of the cab company Green-N-Go are giving a way a vehicle to a well deserve family or individual.This is the 4th year for the car give-a-way. Officials plan to hand the keys over to a gently used Ford Crown Victoria.Owner Dan Stiefel is asking interested people to send an email explaining why they need the car and he will choose a winner. The deadline is December 26, 2011.Send your story to email@example.com or write a letter post marked to:P.O. Box 5566Corpus Christi, Texas78465


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|Total (w/tax)
|Total (w/tax)
Book Description:
Ready, Set, Grow!In her uniquely warm and funny style, Lynda wrote this entirely new book especially for younger girls to give them what they need to know to celebrate and accept the new and exciting changes that are happening to their bodies during puberty.Illustrated with delightful drawings, Ready, Set, Grow! is the sixth book in the popular Madaras "What's Happening to My Body?" series of growing-up books for girls and boys. Praised by parents, teachers, nurses, doctors, and especially kids, the bestselling "What's Happening to My Body?" books for older girls and boys are on the "Best Books for Young Adults" list from the American Library Association, and have been translated into 12 languages. Over 2,000,000 copies of the "What's Happening to My Body?" series are in print.
Tags: Childrens-Books, Growing-Up-Facts-of-Life, Friendship-Social-Skills-School-Life, Girls-Women,


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Categories > Celebrities > My Chemical Romance
Scabbed X-Ray Blues14 Reviews
Being alone is the easiest thing in the world. Being lonely is the hardest. At eighteen, Gerard Way believes he'll never be anything more. [Bert/Gerard. Chaptered.]
Pairing: Bert/Gerard
Author: CosmicZombie
Rating: R
Summary: Being alone is the easiest thing in the world. Being lonely is the hardest. Living in his mother's basement, eighteen year old social recluse Gerard Way is just that- until a chance meeting opens up the kind of friendship he'd always been too scared to make.
A/N: Well, here's something scary, guys- well, firstly, an actual post of mine for the first time in what feels like forever (fuck you exams and revision), but more than that; a story that isn't Frerard. Please don't not read this just because of that; give it a chance? Basically, I've got into The Used in a big way lately, and Bert's character and contrast in his music really fascinates me. This story started off as a oneshot, but it was too big so I've decided to make it a ten-part story. If you like Gerbert, angst with a little bit of smiles and wordiness, you'll like this. I'm just posting this first chapter to test the waters and see if anyone would be interested in reading a Gerbert. If so, after the exams, I'll update, so let me know what you think.
Scabbed X-Ray Blues
Part One
Smoke the Loneliness
He was alone again. The beer was fosy and lukewarm under his tongue, and his fingers were coated in the black charcoal dust of unfinished teenage angst. It was just another Friday night hidden away in the dark, smoky air of his cluttered basement bedroom; the wax of the candles melting and shrunken, black rain sluicing softly down the dark glass of the window outside. The midnight beads hushed into the damp ground outside, underscoring his solitude with their softness.
At eighteen, Gerard Way knew full well this wasn't the way most kids his age spent their Friday nights- he had no doubt that the majority of his peers would be out right that moment, slurring tequila-reckless words, fucking people they'd regret, and puking their guts out into the grimy Jersey gutters. They were out, having fun- while he sat in a pair of tatty Batman pajamas on his creased black bed sheets, listening to an assortment of gloomy grunge bands as he penciled out a week of bitterness into his sketchbook; smudging and highlighting and perfecting until his eyes would sting with tiredness and his head would be lucid with sour, flat beer.
Sometimes he'd stay up until dawn crept, fluffily pink and frayed, through the moth-eaten red curtains he never bothered to close, drawing, thinking, drinking.
But always on his own.
Everyone knew that Gerard Way preferred to be alone.
All the kids at school took his anti-social behavior as a given fact, and although he never socialized, he wasn't classed as one of the losers. Perhaps it was simply because instead of being alone and craving attention, he resented any friendly move put on him. People didn't dare trample on him, let alone smile. If they did, they'd only do it once. For someone with no friends, Gerard was oddly respected within the high school status.
But then again, being on your own wasn't what the other kids picked on; it was being scared of being on your own.
And Gerard wasn't. He was simply, antisocial, bitter Gerard Way with his venomously sarcastic tongue, going everywhere in his beat-up leather jacket, raven tendrils flopping in his smoldering glare, sketchbook tucked tightly under one arm. He made it quite clear that he liked best to be left alone. So that's exactly what everyone did.
Maybe that was why no one seemed to stop and consider the obvious.
Gerard Way was lonely.
Secretly, desperately lonely. Sitting alone in the dingy, smoke-swirling shadows of his room in a pair of pajamas he'd worn since he was a thirteen, drawing self-pitying pictures with a stinging wrist and aching belly was not how he wanted to spend his Friday nights- no matter what he managed to convince his peers.
Convincing himself was a lot harder these days. The unsaid words were bitter in his mouth, sour on his skin, corrosive and synthetic, and they ran backwards, thick and gelatinous in his veins, turning the blood black with defeat.
But the thing was, Gerard didn't know how not to be lonely. It was simply how he'd existed, how he survived through his later teenage years. It was easier, less painful. At least, that's what he'd initially convinced himself.
Now, listening to the dull, pounding thrum of loud music above him years later, he wasn't so sure. One of these compulsory teenage parties he wasn't attending was being held in his very own home, by his younger- and much more popular- brother. That sure rubbed salt into the wound.
With a laden sigh, Gerard paused in his drawing to take another gulp of his lukewarm, flat beer sitting on the untidy nightstand beside him, and lit up a smoke; long, pale fingers shaking slightly from lack of food and a stomach sloshing full of watery alcohol. Once it was lit, he took a long, deep drag of the cigarette, letting the hot, tugging smoke fill his lungs- before exhaling bitterly and returning to his uncompleted drawing, still trying to ignore the sharp, malicious feeling swelling in the pit of his belly, threatening to engulf him.
Gerard clenched his charcoal-stained fists furiously; teeth gritted, as upstairs, the sound of laughter drifted down from the party, conducting the soundtrack to his smoked-loneliness.
He despised the gaudy, immature laughter and yells that always emanated from high school parties- but he despised himself even more for wishing he could share them.
It wasn't like there was anyone he actually wanted to be friends with, though- he found his peer group so boring, so predictable. He took great pride in being able to instantly categorise them into stereotypical boxes and leave them there to stew, contemptuous and uninterested.
But try as he might, Gerard could not deny how much he missed the feeling of having someone who cared. It wasn't like he'd always been alone.
Gerard wrenched his gaze from his drawing, eyes glazed with the stinging emotion.
In that moment, alone in the flickery candlelight of his cluttered basement, the black rain rolling down the window, the stereo crying, Gerard wondered if the limp cigarette in one hand, the half-drunk beer can in his other and the blade lying on his nightstand were the closest friends he'd ever get. The thought was bleakly gratifying.
Three sharp raps at the door abruptly sliced through the stale silence of Gerard's smoky basement bedroom. He winced slightly, but otherwise did not acknowledge it at all, returning to his drawing. His grip on his pencil tightened slightly as he bowed his head over his work, hair falling in disenchanted ringlets across his shadowed eyes.
The door opened, but Gerard still did not look up- though he tugged in annoyance at his long sleeves before returning to his drawing.
He gritted his teeth and continued to draw determinedly, adding a little more pressure to his charcoal strokes than necessary, so as deep grooves dug into the white paper with the black.
"Gerard, please speak to me."
He still didn't look up, eyes fixed furiously on the page which he was beginning to lacerate with the intensity of pent-up pencil strokes.
A sigh. "Are you ignoring me?"
He snorted bitterly, the first acknowledgement that he was no longer alone.
"No, Mikey, I'm temporarily incapable of speech," he sighed tiredly. "What do you think, genius?" His tone was wearily sarcastic.
There was a silence, excluding the heavy thud of the party upstairs, until Gerard sighed, slumping, the dark sarcasm wiped from his face, making it look hollowed in the stagnant candlelight- as though someone had suddenly wiped its makeup away.
"Look, just go away, Mikey," he mumbled eventually, rubbing tiredly at his forehead. "I'm not in the mood."
"Are you ever?" was the dark mutter of response, accompanied by a frustrated huff of breath.
"I just want to draw, okay?" Gerard said evenly, jaw gritted behind his slackened tangles of hair as he shaded a little too fiercely.
"No. It's not okay. When was the last time you hung out with someone, Gerard? When was the last time you socialized, huh? Frank?"
"Go away, Mikey," he said emptily. "I don't want to talk about Frank."
"It's been months, Gerard." His brother's voice was gentler this time.
"That doesn't change anything," Gerard snapped bleakly, dusting charcoal powder from his pale fingertips before continuing with his artwork.
"Can't you just come upstairs for five minutes? It wouldn't kill you."
"I said no, Mikey." He looked up fleetingly then, gritted green eyes behind a broken-up midnight patchwork quilt. The second he met his brother's gaze, he looked away, feeling the humiliation burn pinpricks into his back.
"Please. Gee."
Gerard noted the softer tone to his brother's voice then, and gritted his teeth.
"I'm not changing my mind." He said bleakly, discarding his 6B and picking up a 3B.
"All you do is you drink and you draw, and you never talk to anyone. Do you have any idea how worried Mom is about you? I'm worried about you, okay? Please, Gerard. Just five minu-"
"It's not happening, Mikey," he cut in dully.
The party thudded on upstairs. The rain pattered down outside. The charcoal was dust in his fingers, like everything he wanted.
"Whatever, Gerard." The annoyed and snappy reply eventually came in a frustrated huff, but it was followed by a small, shuddery little sigh that tried to infuse Gerard's blood cells with guilt- but then the door clicked shut, and he was all alone again.
He somehow felt even more alone than he had before. It was welling up inside of him, choking him as he continued to methodically sketch on the page in front of him, barely feeling the pencil between his fingers or seeing the world weaving from its tip.
It wasn't until a large, clear droplet spattered the page of his sketchbook, that Gerard realised the lump in his throat and the hotness in his eyes were tears; drunken, bitter tears rolling hot and salty down his cheeks and melting away the charcoal on his drawing. Furiously, he wiped them away, scratching his cheeks angrily in the process, hating himself for being so weak and pathetic. He wanted to rip his own wrists to ribbons, to scribble so hard over all his stupid, self-pitying drawings that his pencil snapped in two and punctured a hole all the way through his sketchbook. He wanted to be numb.
But none of it would make a difference.
He'd still be alone. He'd always be alone, because the alternative made him too vulnerable. Letting someone in again simply wasn't an option. He couldn't go through it all again. It hurt too much. He couldn't do it.
After a few moments of struggling, Gerard finally managed to compress the fierce emotion swelling inside of him; dulling it with an extra long swig of beer that burnt at his salty gullet. Tucking his hair firmly behind one ear, he returned to his drawing, blocking everything else out with swift, fierce strokes of charcoal and vicious shading.
The music upstairs was louder than ever, a dull, repetitive thud against the ceiling, grinding into his skull. His heartbeat was louder than ever, echoing off all the lifeless space that surrounded him, but he ignored it and drew; drew until his hand ached with cramp and his eyes were scratchy and dry and his second beer was empty, and then finally, he cast his sketchbook aside and stared out at the indigo window where all he could see his own, bitterly lonely reflection flickered in dying candlelight- and then he let the tears fall properly, hot, salty, welling, not even trying to stop them.
A couple of hours later, and Gerard was unmoved, staring at his raindrop embossed reflection with his knees hugged up against his aching chest, teetering backwards and forth on the edge of his bed. The party upstairs had only gotten louder, reminding him even more bitterly of his loneliness and the cowardly burn behind his eyes that refused to dull.
He was halfway through his seventh cigarette, artwork forgotten, eyes dead and hopeless as he stared at the black raindrops running down the window, letting the dry, loose smoke warm his unfeeling lungs, when there was suddenly an odd fumbling noise by the door and then the music from upstairs was a lot louder.
Gerard whipped his head round, his cigarette trembling, forgotten in his long fingers, eyes glazed, brimming with tears he'd been to proud to shit. His hear was suddenly punctured with an influx of terrified beats; there was someone in his room.
It was a guy- a scruffy, weird looking kid with long, tangled waves of greasy black hair falling into his sharp, dangerous features. Skinny and wearing a stained, blood-red 'Sex, Drugs and Rock 'n' Roll' t-shirt with a pair of extremely ratty, frayed and faded jeans and a slightly devilish grin, he looked like your typical teenage rock rebel- but despite the drunkenly lazy charisma that lingered round him, he was quite steady on his feet.
Gerard was about to choke and tell him to get the fuck out, but he found the words were broken and lost at the bottom of his core, bitter, black fragments- and he let his hand fall in limp defeat from his temple, jaw rigid.
At that moment, the kid appeared to notice him, and his features pulled into an edgy grin; lopsided pink lips and a nicotine stained teeth- a smile sort of like dirty sugar.
"Huh. I'm guessing this isn't a bathroom, then," he remarked in a voice Gerard wouldn't have expected- he'd have predicted a low, lazy drawl, but although it was that, it was also somehow oddly alert and quirky, husked slightly with smoke.
Gerard tried to speak, to say something sarcastic and bitter and venomous to distance himself from this grimy kid, but it all failed him. With tears still wet on his cheeks, his wrist stinging freshly and his chest feeling as though it was impaled with a dagger that dug in more deeply with every breath, he was powerless. He was what no one ever saw, even himself.
The guy hadn't even seemed to notice- he was biting at his lower lip mischievously, the dirty sugar grin still pulling at his alcohol-moistened lips as he exhaled lazily, making his greasy hair flit around him like hacked up ribbons.
"Whoa, nice poster!" he exclaimed dramatically, suddenly catching sight of a 'The Cure' poster beside the door. "They're fuckin' ace- and Robert's damn hot as fuck. That's my name, you know. Robert. But I hate that name, so everyone just calls me Bert. If they call me Bertie, I piss in their beer. Damn, I wanna listen to The Cure now, it's been far too long since I've heard them, and- hey, man, what's wrong?" he trailed off unsteadily, frowning, suddenly seeming to notice Gerard's hunched posture and badly concealed dead eyes. He tucked his messy hair earnestly behind one ear and cocked his head to one side, inquisitive.
Gerard hid further behind his tousles of ebony hair, clenching his fists furiously in his lap. He didn't trust himself to try and speak. He was scared it would come out shaky and weak, so he just gritted his teeth and prayed the guy would leave.
"Didn't catch that, sorry," the guy- Bert- said wickedly, flopping down carelessly on the other end of Gerard's bed in a fluid movement of unshaven smoke and tequila.
Instinctively, Gerard backed away, staring at his lap as his heart pounded in fear. He glared as furiously as he could at his wrung hands, as though doing so would somehow cover up the fact he had tear trails staining his cheeks and his eyes were raw and red.
"God, that's an impressive scowl you got there, man," Bert remarked, catching sight of it and recoiling slightly. "Jeez, calm it. I don't bite or anything." He paused and the evil grin pulled at his lips again. "Actually, that's a lie. But don't worry. If I bite, it means I like you," he bared his teeth in a full grin, crossing-legged, sitting up straight like an eager first grader and pushing his greasy black hair back from his angular face, swaying from side to side as he stared intently at Gerard.
And that's when Gerard noticed his eyes. Oh, his eyes…they contradicted everything else about him. He'd initially appeared to be careless and lazily rebellious, slightly sloppy- but his eyes were such a piercing, vivid ice-blue color that fiercely clashed with any initial judgements made about him, and they sort of took Gerard's breath away a little, despite everything. They were amazing, and nothing like Gerard would have predicted. He felt himself itching to reach for his pencil and put them down on paper, because they said so much they shouldn't have; a soul split right down the middle in a conflict of things that loved and hated each other. It sort of made Gerard annoyed, though, because he prided himself on prejudice- and he'd decided not to like this kid.
Then he suddenly realised he was staring, and dropped his gaze to his hands, scowling, hiding behind a few ringlets of tousled midnight.
"What's wrong, man?" Bert questioned inquisitively, voice rough yet not unkind. "You look pretty low or something."
Gerard struggled with himself for a moment, shrugging and trying to bite back the tears, furious with himself for not being able to get a hold over his emotions. He was clenching his fists so hard he could feel his bitten-down nails digging half-moon grooves into the soft skin of his palms. "…Please…" he muttered through gritted teeth, his voice rough and unused. "Please. Just leave." He didn't dare peek through his veil of moody hair for more than a split second, before clenching his jaw and staring at his closed sketchbook.
The Bert guy was biting his lip thoughtfully, impatiently tucking his hair behind his ears again and staring unnervingly at Gerard with those insightful, clashing blues. "Why?" he said the single syllable as though it held the weight of the world- and maybe it did.
Gerard could feel his fists shaking slightly now from how fiercely he was clenching them in vain attempt to hold the remains together. He ached for a smoke, but didn't quite dare unclench his fists in fear of what it would do to reach the carton off his nightstand.
"Don't you wanna come upstairs and enjoy the party?" Bert was looking at him impatiently, plaiting a strand of hair lazily. "Surely it's kinda… boring down here on your own? There's vodka. And they're playing Motley Crue, and there are some really hot chicks. And guys, actually. I don't know which floats your rubber duck, man."
Gerard blinked, slightly taken aback at the amount of words that seemed to spew from this drunk yet oddly charismatic guy with tangled hair and stained clothes and bitten down nails and the bitterly sugary smile. He didn't know how to respond, so he hurriedly snatched a cigarette from his desk and lit it with quavering long fingers. His jaw remained gritted, hidden behind unkempt onyx hair and the half-moon groves in the pale skin of his palms tingled from the pressure of his nails.
Bert was still looking at him curiously, head cocked to one side, and Gerard realised he wouldn't rest without an answer.
"I don't like parties," he muttered gruffly after several moments, flicking ash from his cigarette to the messy carpet with an irritated sigh and hoping his eyes weren't visibly bloodshot from crying. "Okay?" he glared at the kid, but Bert didn't even appear to notice.
"What?" he looked scandalized. "How can someone not like parties?" Then his eyes narrowed, icy slits that glittered contradiction. "Do you not like crowds of people or something?" he guessed, surprisingly intelligently. Then, to contradict that too- "Or is it 'cause you're a stuck up dick and you're too good to mix with us kids?"
Gerard almost snorted at that, but didn't have the heart. "Just go away," he said weakly.
Bert seemed to contemplate for a moment, before shrugging cheerfully. "No, thanks."
Gerard stared at him.
"Seriously, man, what is it?" Bert persisted earnestly, fidgeting, all tangled, greasy long hair, warm skin and a heart-shaped face. He jiggled up and down. "C'mon, man, I wanna know why you're sitting here all sad and alone when it's Friday fucking night."
"What makes you so special?" Gerard spat, stubbing his cigarette out on the nightstand, suddenly fed up. Bert's words had hit a nerve, and he was angry; the heat scrabbling at his lungs along with the smoke. He snorted bitterly. "Seriously. Like I'd tell a random stranger who wandered into my room looking for somewhere to piss. Are you actually as thick as you look?"
He felt guilty as soon as he'd spat the words out, but he couldn't take them back.
Bert blinked. "Wow. You don't even know me, and you're making very cruel and inaccurate comments about my intelligence."
"Oh, I'm so sorry," Gerard snapped sarcastically, wishing he hadn't stubbed his cigarette out. "Should I have formally introduced myself before telling you you're an annoying motherfucker, then?"
"Oh." Gerard was wrong-footed, unsure of just how to measure this scruffy guy.
"I'll go first, seeing as manners clearly aren't your strong point. I am Sir Robert McCracken, and how do you do on this spiffing evening, good sir?" he was grinning wickedly, showing off a set of pointy, vampire-like teeth, which sort of marred the mock-pompous voice as he extended a hand for Gerard to shake.
Gerard sniffed and glared at it for a second in the dim light, annoyed by the way he was vaguely reassured at how Bert's nails were bitten right down to the quick, as though he worried about things, just like Gerard. Realising again he was staring, Gerard shook it tersely before withdrawing his arm and hunching back over himself, scowling even more dourly than before.
"So, you're Gerard," Bert announced loudly. "Mikey's brother, right? I'm the singer in Mikey's band. I see you like, all the time in school, but I've never talked to you. I guess it's 'cause you're older. Pecking order and all that shit, but you don't really look like that kind of thing would make a difference to you. Who do you hang out with? That Toro dude who moved away last year? He was an epic guitarist, but his head looked like a toilet brush."
Gerard glared, itching for a cigarette and solitude.
Bert frowned suddenly, and ducked forwards, peering under Gerard's greasy hair. His breath tasted headily of alcohol and smoke, a little like the atmosphere of a rock gig, which oddly reassured Gerard- that was one of the few places he'd ever felt safe in. Close up, Bert's eyes should have been sharp, steely and piercing with a blue like that and an attitude so careless- but there was a slightly kinder, intelligent quality laced into their irises. He could have lost himself in them, the way he lost himself in art, but then Bert spoke, short and dry.
"You've been crying." It wasn't a question.
He half expected Bert to laugh, to make some kind of joke and laugh it off. But he didn't. He sounded appalled, his icy blue eyes pained as they stared at Gerard.
Suddenly, the anger that had been fluctuating all evening rose furiously inside of Gerard like blood, swelling and flooding every inch of him as he suddenly hated this scruffy, amazing-eyed kid with such insightful impertinence. He clenched his fists, glaring smoulderingly at Bert from behind his moody tousles of black hair.
"Get out," he spat, shaking with anger. He couldn't stand the presence of anyone else a second longer; he needed to be alone, so he could crumble.
He'd expected Bert to argue, or even ignore him, but much to his surprise, the greasy-haired guy slid off the bed and sloped easily towards the door with a shrug and a sad kind of smile.
When the door closed behind him, Gerard felt a pang of disappointment shoot through him, and blinked in shock, thoughts in a whirl. It had been so long he'd spoken properly to someone, and as usual, he'd messed it up. With a grimace, he drained the remainder of his beer, threw the blade across his room and started a new sketch.
So, uh, worth continuing? I'm aware there probably aren't that many Gerbert fans on here, but like I said, please don't judge on the pairing alone, give the story a shot? I have bits and pieces of it written, and it's not going to be a particularly long one, so I'm not too worried about the workload, especially as I'll have a lot of free time once my exams are done. I really want to try something a little different, so...yeah. Do you guys want to me to continue? I'm kind of unsure about this as it's something new, so rates and Reviews would make my day...Pretty pretty please? If I get enough, I'll continue :3 Thanks for reading!
Lucy xo


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Roswell troupe's season
Georgia Ensemble Theatre in Roswell has announced a 2011-12 season emphasizing comedies and musicals, opening Sept. 1 with movie star Jeff Daniels's "Panhandle Slim and the Oklahoma Kid." Also in GET's 19th season: Tajlei Levis's "Glimpses of the Moon" (music by John Mercurio), Steven Dietz's "Becky's New Car," Larry Shue's "The Foreigner" and "Ring of Fire: The Johnny Cash Musical Show" (conceived by William Meade, created by Richard Maltby Jr.). Subscriptions are available via 770-641-1260 or www.get.org. HOWARD POUSNER


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Republicans seized control of Congress in the 1994 mid-term elections by promising, among other things, to turn term limits into the law of the land.
Of course, as soon as they won control they scrapped the term limits idea, saying the concept was "unworkable" and some even suggested it could be "unconstitutional."
Both excuses were crocks. States have term limited governors and other elected offices for years. A President is limited to two terms.
Thomas Jefferson and other founding fathers never intended service in Congress to be a career. They envisioned elected office as public service. But many members of both the House and Senate have served for 20 years or more. Some campaigned on promises to serve a limited number of terms in office. Most forgot those promises as soon as they started to enjoy the many perks of service in Congress.
It's time, I think to impose consider imposing a limit on the number of terms that anyone can serve in the House or Senate.
Lets limit a House member to five terms: 10 years and Senators to two terms: 12 years. If someone serves at least two terms (4 years in the House), he or she cannot serve more than one term in the Senate if they choose election to the "other chamber."
And, while we're at it, let's scrap the welfare program called the Congressional Retirement Program. Service in Congress is — at best — a part-time job and most part-time jobs don't come with benefits. Let members of Congress apply for health care individually just like other part-time workers. Scrap the free prescriptions from the Congressional medical office, cancel their right to use Bethesda Medical Center and force them to fend for themselves just like ordinary Americans.
That way, they might have a real appreciation for what most of the rest of America goes through when it comes to trying to obtain medical care or put money away for retirement.
Let's also reduce the size of Congressional office staffs. Business and industry across the nation is cutting back in a sour economy but House and Senate office budgets and staffs continue to grow. Give each a secretary, a legislative assistant and a clerk to open and answer the phones and mail: No press secretaries, no $100,000-a-year plus chiefs of staff, no free mailings for propaganda-stuffed newsletters.
Think about it. If we make serving in Congress a real chore, we might not even need term limits. Most of them would go home after a term or two and look for real work.
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10 Responses to "Time to revisit term limits"
There's another side to the coin, Doug.
When you go to a doctor, do you want one who knows what she's doing or do you want some pup fresh out of med school who has not had years of practice to make her good? When you go to an attorney do you want someone who knows what he's doing or do you want someone fresh out of law school who isn't really sure where the court house is?
Personally I want a physician who knows my ass from a handsaw and an attorney who knows that torts aren't something you make in a kitchen.
If you institute strict term limits you end up with a very powerful staff/lobbyist system running the legislatures. Check out Colorado. They have an opt out for their otherwise strict state and local term limits law, and each year more and more jurisdictions are opting out of the term limits provisions. They do so by a vote of the public. A referendum. Does that tell us anything? I certainly think so.
I cannot see any overriding reason to require that amateurs be in charge of the legislature.
"I cannot see any overriding reason to require that amateurs be in charge of the legislature."
As if that isn't what's already in motion…
Here's Congressman Hank Johnson on the Armed Service Committee who's concerned that sending 8,000 more US troops to Guam will make it "tip over and capsize" !!!
The founders were amateurs, albeit geniuses, and there's no shortage of either geniuses or Hank Johnsons in this country. Most of the 536 we've got in DC could easily be replaced without a hiccup.
But then, 5 will get you 10 that Hank Johnson will be reelected.
I agree with Guardhouse.Lawyers in that instituting strict term limits create a powerful staff/lobbyist system running the legisature.
I think California has term limits and as I recall, Phil Hoskins noted that their legislators have been even more influenced by lobbying groups.
Whether we're talking about State Legislatures or Congress….Lobbyists aren't just money to these folks – Lobbyists are the eyes and ears to these seat holders. They are the gateway to information that legislators and congressional members can't get any other way.
As much as I dislike our current situation having a Corporate Fabricated Political System that manufactures our government representatives at all level – I still believe that when it hurts hard enough and long enough the electorates will either engage in their constitutional responsibility and rebuild Washington's corrupt machine back to a government of, by, and for the people – or we will forever surrender our rights as the 4th branch of government, the most powerful branch of the check and balance system.
IMHO, we have to confont our representatives, state by state, electorate by electorate and demand campaign finance reform and a TRUE lobbyists reform. Those running for office need to do so by individual funds only, not corporate funds. Lobbyists need to be very controlled over their assess and roles. They play an important role, but they should hold so much power over elected official.
Correction on last sentence above: "They play and important role, but the SHOULD NOT hold so much power over elected officials.
I haven't had a solid opinion on the subject of term limits but the article below does throw a bit of light from a different angle for no limits.
It seems that political finance reform, i.e. get corporations out of politics, might produce a large and diverse set of desired effects that would make term limits unnecessary, as well.
I would agree that we need term limits for senators and representatives but those we wish to limit terms of would have to vote this into law, correct? Ain't never going to happen!
Congressional Retirement Program? As above, ain't never going to happen!
All we really need to do is make lobbying and campaign contributions illegal. Special interests are in direct conflict with a true Constitutional Republic due to favoritism when all HUMANS should be treated equally. Corporations are not people, they are composed of people, and those people don't deserve more from government than those not in charge of corporations. Board members and executive officers get more representation than the average joe and that just isn't how it's supposed to be.
Your idea, Doug, doesn't need much tweaking to be a real winner.
Here's a list of 2010 candidates who support term limits:
Andy Woerner for U.S. Senate Hawaii
Term limits…ha! Don't expect any until the 12th of forever. The only possibility to insure such 'term limits' is a Robespierre styled guillolitne session…no?! : ))
Carl Nemo **==
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'Anchorman 2′ Cast Sing 'Afternoon Delight' For A New Trailer Debut [Video]
Will Ferrell and the rest of the 'Action News Team' were in Sydney promoting the upcoming release of 'Anchorman 2' when they decided to break out into a little song.
The 'Afternoon Delight' scene has already become an iconic scene, but how do you think the live version stacked up to the original?
Watch Ron Burgandy Sing To Toronto Mayor Rob Ford