8 / matters magazine / spring 2018 READ & RECYLE Featuring Local People, Places and Things that Matter Since 1990 Please address all correspondence to: Visual Impact Advertising, Inc.© P.O Box 198 Maplewood, NJ 07040 973-763-4900 mattersmagazine.com MattersHello@gmail.com MattersMagazine©isownedandpublished by Visual Impact Advertising, Inc., P.O. Box 198 Maplewood, NJ 07040. Matters Magazineisfree,witheditionsdirectmailed 7timesayeartotheresidentsofMaplewood and South Orange and distributed to busi- nesses and surrounding communities total- ing 15,000. Subscriptions are available to non-residents for $30 (U.S.) $40 (Foreign) annually. No part of the publication may be reprinted or otherwise reproduced without written permission from Visual Impact Advertising, Inc. CIRCULATION VERIFIED BY U.S. POSTAL RECEIPTS. Matters PUBLISHER & EDITOR IN CHIEF Ellen Donker ASSOCIATE EDITOR Joanne DiPasquale ADVERTISING CONSULTANTS Rene Conlon H. Leslie Gilman Sara Knutsen Adrienne MacWhannell COPY EDITORS Nick Humez Tia Swanson CONTRIBUTORS Rose Bennett Gilbert, Donny Levit, Erin Rogers Pickering, Frank Verderosa FOUNDER & CREATIVE CONTRIBUTOR Karen Duncan heart of the matter M y basement is not pretty. And to be honest, I’ve never really cared. It’s an unfinished dank space with cinder block walls, a concrete floor and, until re- cently, the occasional puddle. Not exactly the sort of place you’d like to hang out in. Though the dampness makes it uninhabitable for any- thing but a short visit, it works great as a repository for the recycling barrels, folding chairs and tables, Christmas decorations, beach umbrella, craft supplies, gardening ma- terials, litter boxes and anything else we don’t want to see above ground. And were we to fix it up, I’ve reasoned, it’d just be one more room to clean, and that cleaner would be me. When we first moved in 16 years ago, one corner of the basement was devoted to a large pile of dirty coal – as in the type of rocks used to heat the house decades ago. I couldn’t believe that no one had removed it lo those many years. I eventually hauled the coal out but kept a few lumps as a convincing object lesson at Christmas time to encourage our children to exhibit good behavior. The ac- companying coal shovel seemed like a piece of history we were meant to keep. Of course, we do use the basement, but on its own terms. When our kids were small, it proved to be the perfect place for them to engage in all sorts of crafts and projects. If paint hit the floor I only had to do some light mopping with no concern for stains. At 4 or 5 years of age, when it was too cold to go outside, they rode our three Big Wheels around and around the basement at top speed. Since some bikes were in better shape than others, I resorted to hanging a color-coded chart that indicated who got to ride which bike on a particular day. The noise was deafening but it helped to expend a lot of pent-up pre- school energy. In recent years, the space has changed somewhat with Christian devoting a corner to his weight lifting equipment and Madeline “borrowing” our folding table for her end- less craft supplies and projects. Tim is our organizer and, when he’s in the mood, helps bring order to our overflow- ing contents. Although I keep purging and try to clean the basement a few times a year, it never seems to look any better. Re- cently, when I noticed the floor always had a puddle after the slightest rainfall I decided to once again look into wa- terproofing the basement. Sure, I would’ve preferred sink- ing the money into a new bathroom – we have two that would benefit from total renovation – but it was time. The basement was a mess. I didn’t expect it to happen, but now that the basement is dry, I’m thinking of more possibilities. We’ll still need space for the recycling bins and folding chairs. But maybe we could put up a few walls, install new flooring and desig- nate a space for crafts. I could even make the laundry room resemble one of those Pinterest pages with nice counters, an inspirational sign, and glass vessels filled with laundry detergent and clothespins. Yes, it could be a pretty place and it would be a relief to no longer have to warn the PSE&G meter reader, the occasional cat sitter or anyone else needing to descend the stairs that things down there are bad. (I guess I really do care how it looks!) But for now I will take satisfaction in having checked an item off my home maintenance list and being one step closer to having a presentable basement. Dreaming of a Facelift A nice basement may be in my future BY ELLEN DONKER