I’m a fan of historical preservation but sometimes the building is too far gone. In my opinion, such is the case with an old brewery in town — the site of many lawsuits and last-ditch efforts to avoid the wrecking ball. When I drove past it recently, half of one side was gone, there was a pile of bricks on the sidewalk, and much of the structure was buttressed with two-by-fours. It doesn’t look safe.
I think we’ve all been involved in a project like this where the intent is noble but the best course of action would be to stop working on it. People are always hesitant to “throw in the towel” as it presumably signals defeat but often it is the more prudent thing to do. Whether it’s with an old car that keeps needing one repair after another, a proposal that continually hits roadblocks, or even a relationship that is on-again-off-again, if you find yourself repeatedly propping things up just to buy more time, direct your energies elsewhere. Not everything is worth saving.
