On doors

We spend our entire lives going through doors. We open doors, close doors, lock doors. Doors might be ajar, open, locked, missing, stuck, or broken. We remember our bedroom doors or our front doors, but may have used the back door just as much. Did you ever leave your front door unlocked on purpose? Doors are a first-rate metaphor for all the opportunities we have in life. As one door closes, we hope another opens. Nothing like a slamming door to kill a mood. There are all sorts of doors out there: garage doors, outhouse doors, bathroom doors, closet doors, bedroom doors, screen doors, storm doors, patio doors, French doors, sliding doors. I have a bunch of cartoons on my office door. The doors we pass through may say a lot about us. Car doors come in many sizes and shapes, and they are fun to slam, too. I often leave doors half-open, but I’m not sure what this means–indecision or passive aggressive? I once painted a guy’s front door bright red, so that he could sell his house. On account of the beautiful front door, he sold his house to the first person who looked at it. Some people can only feel comfortable behind locked and closed doors, but I like to leave my office door open. Is it really a door if it has a window in it. Is a screen door on a submarine at least partially useful? There is a peep-hole in my front door so that I can barely see the person standing outside. Do you find doorbells to be either slightly kooky or marginally creepy, especially when they don’t work? I find that doors inside of a house are a bit of a paradox: do they open up the space in a room or do they close it off? A locked or closed door sends a very direct message. I like the giant doors on the far end of cathedrals. Secret doors, hidden doors, trap doors; invisible doors add mystery and a sense of drama to any story. A locked-door mystery–corpse inside, no suspect in sight–is always a nice mind bender. The kitchen is loaded with doors: cabinet, oven, refrigerator, dishwasher, microwave, and I love to stand with the refrigerator open and stare at the cool leftovers basking in the dim light of small white appliance bulb. You are either a door closer or a door opener, but you cannot be both, so you have to decide which it is that you are, and be that. At night I wander the house before going to bed, checking all of the doors to make sure they are all closed and locked. Not all doors have locks. Double-doors are almost as fun as swinging doors, revolving doors, or saloon doors. I have never broken down a door, but I have had to climb in a window because of a locked door. I get the feeling that most doors are not as easy to break down as the cops make it look like on television. Closing the barn door after the horse has gone does no good. Leaving one’s barn door open might often be a cause for embarrassment. Door men are quickly going out of style. Door jambs, door knobs, the Doors, Door County, door locks, door busters, door frame, door mats. Our lives revolve around doors, in our homes, offices, public buildings, and our keys are a mute testimony to the number of doors we go through every day, and I bet that, for the most part, we pay little or no attention to any of those doors.