About a year ago we added on to our home by building a screened porch and since then we've immensely enjoyed the cool bug free evenings it has provided. However there has consistently been a single point of pain with this porch which has been the door. From the start we weren't crazy about the design or the doorknob but the contractor would not alter said item without us forking over more money.

Without being nit picky about the door hardware color or other such aesthetic items the main problem with this door is that it does not function as one. When the door is open it does not close and when it is closed it will not open. I don't mean it gets stuck I mean it literally is too large for the door opening and when forcibly closed can only be opened with a claw hook or well placed boot. Why is the door so stubborn you may ask? Because it is wood and it has swollen with humidity.

When the door was first installed there was a tight fit on the sides but the operation was fairly workable. At the time our only complaint was a faulty doorknob, which the contractor also did not want to replace, and this should have been the first sign that things weren't aligned as they should be. Over the winter the door swelled and would no longer close unless you gave it a gentle tap.

Things took a dramatic turn early this spring when the "Great Drought of 2007" finally ended in the South East and it rained nearly every day for two months. By the beginning of April the door had swollen so much that when I removed the door hinges, which has prematurely rusted, I was able to wedge the door sans hinges into the doorway and tap it snuggly into place. So snug in fact that my toddler was unable to ram her way through it. While this made a great child containment area it markedly reduced the usefulness of the porch for adults.

After several suggestions from every handyman I know I finally came to the conclusion that I need to custom fit this door by removing 1/8" of material from one side and possibly beveling slots for new door hinge hardware. While I'm up to the task I'm more than a little pissed that I have to do the job in the first place. You would think that when you pay good money for someone to build a custom porch they'd at least go through the trouble of backing up their product without a lot of hassle. Yes I know the construction sector is suffering, but things like these aren't exactly the kind of glowing results that will generate follow-up business.

It's been quite a while since I last attended a concert. Sunday night we left our daughter in the capable hands of a childcare professional and enjoyed our first big rock show together since becoming parents a little over two years ago. It may seem strange that habitual concert goers would wait so long between shows but in all honesty both circumstances of life and an ever increasing desire for quality over quantity.

In our younger days we were both prone drop everything and go to a show. Some of my fondest concert memories are from shows that I never really expected to see. Whether packed into a tiny venue, crushed against the stage barrier, or on the lawn with 1,000 other people each concert represented something different yet strangely the same.

From the moment the first chord plays something magical happens that sends a shiver down my spine. Though we are all there in one place we are isolated by a wall of sound that drowns out nearly everything. For a brief time you can crank up your favorite song louder than any car stereo and scream the lyrics at the top of your lungs without looking insane. And you share this experience with anywhere from a hundred to thousands fans who, like you, know every single word.

Some folks live for ballgames, others for playing sports or hobbies. They may rejoice the victories or lament the defeats, or recount tales of great moments they have witnessed. Though all of these things are respectable, they can never imitate the transformation that takes place when you experience a live show. The greatest performer can take a two dimensional track and breath new life into it that will forever change the way you hear the song. For better or worse the living experience can shape your interpretation or change the meaning profoundly.

When the howl of the encore fades and the house lights return you might think that the show is over. The ears will ring and the voice may be hoarse but the dramatic refrain of the music is still echoes in your head. And there it sits in serene contemplation as you listen again for the new meaning and a shimmer of the raw emotion you felt. It is, at least for me, the reason that I still go to concerts.

The British media gives the royals a hard time but sometimes I think they are digging too deep for a story. Case in point the recent account of Prince William landing an RAF helo in his on again / off again girlfriend Kate Middleton's backyard.

At first glance it sounds like the reckless antics of a spoiled rich kid. But hang on not only did Flying Officer William Wales have a legitimate reason to be behind the flight stick but he also had the foresight to clear the stunt with both his commanding officer and potential father-in-law.

Sure it's a romantic notion to imagine King Willie swooping down out of the clouds in his chopper, Ride of the Valykries playing for a quick touch and go while his sweetheart swoons at the heroic display. Truth may be more boring than fiction but I for one rejoice the fact that finally someone in the royal family has grown large enough testicles to do something awe inspiring for the British people.

No I'm not talking about reckless endangerment of government property or wrecking your girlfriend's father's prize rose garden. I'm talking about the hard and practical lesson of bending the ridged world of British policy and procedure to your will, and then kicking it in the ass like Henry VIII's third wife.