Country Girl in the City #5

The Gaslamp Quarter was just beginning to be redeveloped when I lived in San Diego. I worked for an architect in a somewhat seedy part of town, in a fabulous building. My sister was game to explore, so we went looking for the Keating Building.

There it is!! I found it!
I boldly walked in and was asked if I was a “registered guest”. What? It is a hotel, and the desk guy graciously walked us upstairs and showed us some of the renovations.
The woodwork is the same; the office where I worked is now a hotel room, so we obviously didn’t go in.
My boss’s office was on the second floor in that corner. Our guide said that George Keating began the building in stone, and after he died, his widow finished the building in brick.
We walked down to the harbor to enjoy another sunset. I think we put in about 9 miles that day. Good thing, because there was a tremendous amount of very good restaurant food getting consumed on this trip.

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5 Comments

  1. I LOVE to tour old buildings, especially if they have been restored to their glorious original splendor. What a lovely, old building! They don’t make ’em like they used to. This is much more pleasing to the eye and aesthetics than the plain, boring box buildings they throw up these days. Back then, workmen built with pride and skill!

    I guess I was born about 125 years too late. . . .

    • Sharon, I have often wondered why beautiful design and workmanship was possible in the olden days but isn’t anymore.

      • Simple answer. It’s more expensive to add ornamentation to structures, and these days it’s all about the Bottom Line. $$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$$. Sadly.

        • Yeah, but (Yabbit) would you want to work for fun instead of money? Does anyone? Nope. So how could they do it in the olden days??

          • Also, I believe workers in all creative arts–music, painting, hand arts, as well as building designs–had more pride in their work. Their goal was to leave a creative legacy for future generations (“Wow, my grandpa built THAT?!”) and not just pick up a paycheck at the end of the day.

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