10 CHICAGO TRIBUNE | HOUSE & HOMES | SECTION 7 | SUNDAY, DECEMBER 21, 2008 N

By Elaine MatsushitaTRIBUNE REPORTER

Excuse us for a moment.We’re on hold while JohnGrogan runs down to thebasement. Duty is calling. Inthis case, “duty” is Woodson,the “Marley & Me” author’snewest four-legged familymember. For some reason,the 9-month-old, housebro-ken yellow Lab has rundownstairs, having confusedthe basement for his ownpersonal restroom.

To be kind, he could bemarking territory. This is anew home his family hasjust moved into.

Grogan adopted Woodsonoff the set of “Marley & Me,”the film interpretation ofGrogan’s best-seller starringJennifer Aniston as Gro-gan’s wife, Jenny, OwenWilson as the columnist/author and Woodson, ofcourse, who had the task ofplaying a Labrador pup. (Incase you’ve missed the hy-per-marketing that rivals thefamous Marley’s intensity,the movie opens on Christ-mas Day.)

“I’m surrounded by boxesand junk,” Grogan says,when he returns to thephone. He’s just weeks backfrom the tour promoting hisnew book, “The Longest TripHome,” and finishing up themove into his family’s reno-vated 1790 stone farmhouse.“We moved in two parts: Wemoved half the stuff beforethe book tour [in early No-vember]. And yesterday wemoved the rest. It’s just start-ing to feel like our ownhouse now.”

The “new” home in Coop-ersberg, Pa., is not far fromthe vinyl-sided suburbanabode that the Grogans—John, Jenny, Patrick, 16,Connor, 15, Colleen, 11,Woodson, Gracie (an “olderand calmer Lab”) and threenew kittens—had outgrown.In addition to the farm-house, the new 19-acre home-stead has a wood-frame cot-tage (now Grogan’s writingplace), a stone barn, two-cargarage (originally built forhay wagons), a walk-inchicken coop, meadow, lots ofdeer, wetlands, swamps anda stream. It’s also got peren-nials and roses that Grogan,the former editor-in-chief ofOrganic Gardening maga-zine, transplanted from theirold house.

The decor is “definitelyeclectic,” Grogan says. “A lotof African art, several Bud-dhas floating around, Hat-itian art we collected while[living] in Florida, a Rasta-farian mask that we got froma gallery in Key West. Plussome traditional pieces.[Also], I like to collect oldtools. I have them on the wallout [in the writing cottage]. Ilike them with a story.”

Speaking of stories, youshould know: Woodson re-deemed himself after herelieved himself down in thebasement. As he walked bythe front-loading washer, histail gave it an enthusiasticand mighty whack. And thatstarted it up.

What item in your homesays John Grogan liveshere: The [blown-up] “Mar-ley & Me” book cover that’son the wall. ... [and] botani-cal prints. I have a framed19th Century reproductionbotanical print of a plantwith the little Latin writtenon it. That’s pretty much aJohn Grogan signature state-ment.

Three things on yournightstand: My iPod and itsalarm-clock docker. Thebook I’m reading right now“The Botany of Desire” byMichael Pollan. And thelatest issues of Esquire andNewsweek.

One thing on a wall in yourliving room: A large31⁄2-by-5-foot framed poster ofthe imperial Chinese emper-or that was part of a Germanart exhibit. ... We [also] haveone of those big wrought-iron fireplace bars that you’dhang kettles on, and we haveit mounted it on the wall.

One thing you have in yourhouse from your child-hood: When I started towrite “The Longest TripHome,” I started gatheringthings that would jog mymemories from my child-hood. And I found my sec-ond-grade school picture—itwas still in that little card-board frame. ... That’s sittingup on my dresser in mybedroom.

Three things we’d find inyour medicine cabinet:Garden Tomato Toner byBurt’s Bees, ibuprofen forachy bones after I split fire-wood, toothpaste, mouth-wash, deodorant.

Three things we’d find inyour refrigerator? Theusual suspects: turkey coldcuts, Muenster cheese andnan bread.

If you had to save one"thing" from your home,what would it be? That’seasy. I’ve actually said thisbefore. Just before my daddied, I made a videotape ofhim and he told me hiswhole life story ... I woulddefinitely grab those [tapes].Those are very precious tome.

What is the biggest collec-tion in your home? Oldtools, many of which I buy atgarage sales. ... Oh, and Ihave every Kinks album.They’re just in a woodencrate. I was a huge fan injunior high school.

What reading materialwould we find in yourbathroom? None. There aretwo kinds of people in thisworld. Those that have read-ing material in their bath-room and those that don’t.[In our house,] all the read-ing stuff’s on the bed stand.The bathroom: It’s a no-readzone.

Most embarrassing thingin your home that you hidewhen guests come over:For us, the big issue is—wehave two dogs—it’s a dog-hair fiesta. We race arounddoing a last-minute vacuum.

If we came unexpectedly,would we find your bedmade—or not made? Madeevery morning. I’m usuallythe second [one] up and Ialways make the bed. Mywife would probably disputethat. We mostly do that be-cause our dogs are reallydisobedient and if they getup on the bed, it’s better ifthey get up on the coversrather than the sheets.

Best furniture bargain youever got? A neighbor up thehill was throwing out an oldcouch. Jenny spotted it andit looked like it had goodbones and she dragged it toan upholsterer and it’s abeautiful piece now.

What CD or artist wouldwe find in your player (oron your iPod)? Just listen-ing to the Avett Brothers’“Emotionalism.” They’relike organic rock—banjosand mandolins and stuff[with] kind of a rock rhythm.I heard them in San Fran-cisco in a shop in Haight-Asbury.

Do you hang your toiletpaper with the paperhanging over the front ordown the back? Over thefront. I don’t know why, it’sjust the way it’s always been.My wife and I are on thesame page.

Do you do any snooping ofyour own when visitingfriends? I do like to look atwhat people read. I’ll wanderover to the bookshelves. Itreally tells you somethingabout them.

SNOOP PATROL

New house, new pup and wholelot of that ol’ ‘Marley’ love

One of Grogan’s favorite things? The wood stove in his writingcottage. “I love playing with fire! That’s Woodson my Lab(adopted from the “Marley & Me” movie)... and my favorite,well-broken-in leather reading chair. On top of the stove is an oldantique yoke I found at an auction,” says Grogan (shown withGracie, at right).

This 19th Century vanity be-longed to Grogan’s maternalgrandmother. “My motherpainted it hot pink in the 1960s(chalk it up to the times), and Ispent years chipping andsanding that pink paint off. . . . Ilove this piece because itconnects me with my past. Mymother had it in her bedroomas a teenager.”

Peek in on actorFreddy Rodriguez’s

West Coast pad with us atchicagotribune.com/snoop.

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Product: CTHOME PubDate: 12-21-2008 Zone: N Edition: SUN Page: 7-10 User: cci Time: 12-18-2008 17:33 Color: CMYK