Garages

The garage at my house is different than any other garage that my friends have....I didn't even know that it was a garage until I was in middle school. My house that I've grew up in is a really old farmhouse so the garage is a really old garage. It has to doors that swing open like a set a french doors, but they aren't as pretty. There is definitely no garage door opener either you have to open them by hand and they are super heavy. Looking at it now I doubt that it was used for cars because there is a general area where a car might be able to go but it would have to be small and above it is an attic space. My family basically uses this "garage" to store our holiday decorations in and all of our junk that clutters the house. Now this is completely different from the garages I see now. Friends of my family recently just built a new garage (or I should say garageS) onto their new house. This is a 3 car garage that has super high ceilings. In it they can comfortably fit all three of their vehicles, a washer and dryer, a sink, AND there is a sections set aside as a wood shop/tool area for her husband. This thing is enormous, and I don't know the exact dimensions of it but I almost feel like it would equal the measurements of their living quarters. Its just massive. I was talking to my mom about it and I guess they put a lot of emphasize on the garage because they use it so much. Their kids put a lot of their toys and bikes in it and its convenient because its attached to the house so then no mud is dragged inside. I don't know if I personally would put that kind of money is an area where I don't entertain or relax but I can kind of understand their reasoning.

I see this type of garage structure a lot with newer houses. If I were to compare the new garages of today to the most recent ones that Jackson talked about in his readings I would say they are somewhat similar. Most new garages have washer and dryers in them as well as being used to store things for the family like food, but I think they have definitely increased in size. More families are owning up to 3 or4 cars so they need more space to store them, so then garages have gone from two car garages to three car garages. Also I see new areas being included underneath the garage roof, such as wood shops and even office spaces. People can work at home but not have their work directly inside their house. Instead they can walk out through their garage and walk into an enclosed little corner giving them the feeling they are at work, and not just at home. My aunt runs a catering business this way, and her "office" is a little boxed in area in her garage where she goes to make phone calls and things of that matter. I've also noticed that with new houses the garages are much more obvious and even placed in the font of the house, so many times I notice the garage before the actual home. When Jackson was talking about the first garages built he stated that many were placed in the back behind the house as a way to hide the preparations of the car and the dirt and oil aspects of the upkeep. Now people are putting their garages out for show. Another small little fact I noticed that Jackson brought up was that when the garages were eventually moved out front they almost represented the family that lived there with things like the basketball hoop connected to the garage. It made the home seem more family friendly and American. Now I don't see so many hoops actually attached to the garages. Most are portable nets that are just placed in the drive way...I bet a lot of that idea had to do with broken garage doors and windows! One last thing about garages is that you see families putting so much more effort into the interior decorating aspect of them. Now people are putting in special flooring that does not deteriorate under the leaking cars and you see high tech tool benched that surround the walls. I know from personal experience how much work people put into their garages now. Just last summer my boyfriend offered to lay a coat of paint on his parents garage that prevents slipping and grip as well as that can be long lasting underneath the cars. Then I offered to help him...time I will ever do that. It was a horrible experience to lay the coating on the floor and last just this past winter we noticed that bits were coming off, what a waste of time! but thats the way people are thinking now a days. 

The "Sitcom Suburb"

Our readings for this week covered the topic of postwar housing and the neighborhoods that they were situated in. In the readings by Jackson he illustrates the new approaches and ideas that people of the post war were starting to favor. Jackson tells a story about the Tinkham family, who were originally more farm based, but with time and new generational ideas they become more modern and started to stray from their traditional ways of life. The story consists is made up of few characters, Ray and Shirley Tinkham, their children Don and Billie-Jean, and Ray's father "The Old Man." What the story is mostly about is Ray's new attitude and idea about the post war era. he is becoming more modernized and it is reflecting on all aspects of his life including his home, his job, his family, and his farm. His father throughout the story remains attached to the farm and to more traditional values, and Shirley follows Ray's belief and relies on technology and advancements within the home to do her work for her. In the story Ray moves away from the farmstead and builds a house completely different from the house that "The Old Man," resides in. Ray's new house depends solely on convenience. It was built with a simple design to ensure that it would not require a lot of maintenance and dedication. It was also designed to help Ray separate his work life from his home life. By building in a central location right in the middle of the farmhouse and the more rural areas, Ray could escape from work and relax. Ray and his wife kept the design as simple and as basic as possible, focusing not so much on the decorative aspect but more on the convenience. They filled the house with labor saving devices such as a dishwasher and garbage disposal. They limited the amount of un-necessary rooms so there was less area to clean and look after. The whole design and structure of the house was based on efficiency. It was meant to do the work for itself with the help of technological advances. The farmhouse on the other hand had more of a history. It was built in a spot that held a type of emotional attachment. It also required much more maintenance than Ray's home. It was also father away from rural life, and literally work and home were considered one. The farm house also held a type of permanence. With Ray's home there was no emotional attachment that went into the building, instead i was looked at mainly as a place to sleep and shelter themselves in, whereas the farm held a sentimental value to it where bonds were formed and memories were made. The farmhouse had excessive amounts of room so that company could be entertained in them. In Shirley's home she couldn't imagine going through all that work entertaining people so why would she build extra rooms for it. These were just some of the more obvious differences between the two houses. I think that by Jackson telling this story he is showing how fast paced post war America was becoming, and how more individuals were beginning to take up this one way vision of moving forward in a convenient and efficient way. While Ray's home does appear the give him more freedoms it does not give him a connection to anything. Jackson states in the reading that his wife not only depends on the house to do the work for her but over time she will expect it to raise her family as well. With all of these new innovations and modern ways of living Jackson is proving there is a loss or traditional family values and morals.

Another one of our readings talked about the 1950's and 60's style homes that were referred to as the "Sitcom Suburbs." These were also post war houses set up in post war neighborhoods. It's funny to me because when I actually notice these types of neighborhoods I can definitely see the resemblance to the sitcoms that the writers and architects of the time were comparing them too. They do have a type of "pleasantville" look to them. Critics of the time like Lewis Mumford characterizes these places as areas of conformity in both artistic design and social interaction. Going down certain streets in Buffalo like Millersport Highway, or streets located off of Niagara Falls Boulevard, I can agree with him. These types of houses all look the same. They truly do look like little houses created out out squares and right angles. While not every single house is the same as the next and there may be some differences, their basic designs and structures are the same. They are also so close in proximity and dimension, such as they all seem the exact same distance from the sidewalk, and they all have the same walkway leading to the same doorway, that its hard not to stand at the end of a street and just see a replica house over and over again. This type of layout only makes the streets looked lined with tiny boxes. To me they do not seem to hold any type of individuality, but I will say it makes these types of neighborhoods look like they hold a type of unity within them. There is usually a school nearby or a park where all of the children can come together. I know in the areas off of Niagara Falls Blvd as well as near Millersport there are golf courses and club houses. So these do make up for the lack of originality but they still look like Little Boxes, as represented in the song by Malvina Reynolds.

Spring Break starting in a retirement home and finishing in daytona!!

So for my Spring break me and a bunch of my friends decided to go to Florida. Luckily for us one of my roommate's parents have just recently bought a house down in St. Augustine because they plan on moving down there after they both retire, and they offered us their brand new home. So we had a free place to stay which was great news. We tried to keep the cost as low as possible so then we decided to drive down....5 girls in a jetta!!, but we thought it would be an experience and it definitely was. The trip started out with us leaving earlier than expected (like 3am early) to beat the storm which we thankfully did and it was smooth sailing...until we got to Hickory, NC. That's where things went down hill. We were driving along the highway and all of the sudden the EPC light goes on, which no one knows what an EPC light does and we are stranded on the highway with no clue where we are because we aren't paying attention to roadsigns. So we eventually find out our location and call a tow truck. Turns out the tow truck can't take all 5 girls so 3 need to call a taxi. I happen to be one of the girls to ride in the cab. Our car waits an hour before the taxi cab can find us and then we were off to the Volkswagen dealership. Now nothing against southerners, but the people in Hickory, NC don't seem to speak the same kind of English we do We eventually got lost for an hour and a half in a taxi cab with a driver that would only take shortcuts, through the boonies of NC. The other girls got stuck with a tow truck driver that upon arrival to the break down, he had to take "a leak" on the top of a hill in the middle of the highway. Thankfully though our car was fixed and we were only stuck in Hickory for a few hours , so we picked up and kept going. We eventually made it down to FL and were pleasantly surprised by our new home. It was brand new with 4 bedrooms and 3 baths in the Golf Hall of Fame complex. The first couple days were breezy and cold so we decided to walk in the historic district of St. Augustine and look at the shops. Well by the third day that got old and we wanted the beach. The 3rd day warmed up a little bit and we threw our swim suits on prepared to get some sun, and boy did we. I woke up the next morning with swollen/burnt lips and my roommate could barely see out of her eyes. After a few days you can only imagine how St. Augustine felt to us. It is an area where a lot of retires go to live so there isn't much of a night life and that's what we were looking for. So we decided to be random, pack up and get a hotel rooms for a couple nights in Daytona. That ended up being our best decision of the whole trip and luckily we had some good Spring Break fun. We didn't really run into too many other troubles other than the fact the weather wasn't that warm, we didn't get much color, and my one friend lost her cell phone.We tried to make the best out of the trip but after 6 days we actually were missing Buffalo. I'm glad I had the opportunity to go on Spring break with my friends and I definitely made some memories I'll never forget, but sometimes its good to be back in Buffalo. I missed the snow.

The beaten path

When it comes to a vacation there is nothing better than letting go and relaxing. To me just being on a vacation is good enough let alone throwing in a destination....SWEET LIFE! I know that when it comes to places to go and sightsee I obviously have certain ideas of what I would like to do, but I never really looked to closely at my biases. Now that I have too, I see just how differently I think and how odd it is.

When I think of an American vacation the first place that comes to mind is Disney world, which I'm sure is the same for many other people. I think of huge roller coasters and amusement parks. I get the image of the perfect family going down a water slide on an enormous over sized tube, with huge cheesy grins on their faces. I see Mickey and Goofy in family pictures. I see Casinos and long strip of lights, with people walking around taking pictures and asking others to take pictures as well. It all is so commercial and many times confusing. With all of the hustle and constant hurry to catch this show, or make this reservation, or HURRY UP AND GET IN THE LINE! It ends up not being as relaxing as one would think and many times creates anxiety. I know for a fact that the times where I have gone on vacation I just look at the shows or buildings, or parks, but never really care too much about their pasts. They are just there to look pretty. This is of course my vision of an American vacation but I wonder what a Europeans perspective is.

Looking at American Vacation packages for Europeans I see that pretty much everything I described they see as well. They promote huge sights and shows such as Disney world, Niagara Falls, the Grand Canyon, and Las Vegas. All of these sights are visual. They are things that you pay to see, then hop in your rental to try and catch the next one. America is more commercial driven. It's portrayed as a place to create family bonding through fun activities. You can either stay at a cool hotel with a lazy river, then go out and go to Busch Gardens, or you get rent a condo on the beach and walk out your door to go para sailing and snorkeling. The options are limitless, but they all cost large amounts of money. There are not as many historical buildings that have a deep past. Walking into cities its mostly a melting pot of the locations they traveled from. So vacationing in Europe is not so much a random trip but specifically planned out.

On a whole different type of image, when I think of vacationing to Europe my opinions become blurred with romantic, elegant thoughts. When I think of Europe I think of the word classy. I don't know why but I just do. I think of really cool old buildings that have a story behind them and the reason why I'm visiting it is to hear it, not to just look and move on. When I think of European vacations I think of relaxation. Of just walking through the streets and coming across old buildings and pretty parks with quaint restaurants and villages. European Vacations differ from American ones because to me they seem to focus more on their historic culture. It is a more educational trip where you leave knowing so much more. It offers its deep personal histories and gives a sense of mystery because everything is so well preserved. I personally would rather travel to Europe because I feel like thats where I could truly relax. I enjoy the thought of waking up in my family run hotel, NOT chained ran! then walking out my door to see the beautiful architecture and slower pace of life.

Looking at Vacation packages to Europe the words that frequently were used in its' description were history, culture, and romantic. The packages offered walking tours of the cities, to see the historical buildings and sites. Places like France offered tours of the museums and the Eiffel Tower. Where places like Italy offered tours to the castles, the Roman arena, Juilets ballet, and other places like the Vatican and Sistine Chapel. I felt that these vacations offered more than the America ones because you would not have to pay to see each and every site. Many times you can just walk right by it. Also I feel that not only can you experience it first hand but you can also leave being educated about it as well. It's always cool to come back and say that you saw where the pope gives Easter mass or you saw the ceilings of the Sistine Chapel.

Sooo I'm sure it's pretty obvious where I would like to plan my next vacation, and not that I'm knocking America cause believe me I really like those vacations too. It's just that I'm over that period of my life and I'm ready to branch out and learn a little. I'm sure that when I have a family of my own I will be that cheesy family coming down the water slide, but I don't have to do that just yet...Thank god! I can see why Europeans would come to American I guess it all comes down too what you are usually surrounded by. American vacationing to Europe are only looking for a little romance and relaxation, where Europeans vacationing to America are looking for a good time and a little spark to their lives.

...scavenger

After finally leaving Deleware...I decided to drive around and look at some houses and maybe restaurants that had anything that would remind me of the pantheon, and I found A LOT! What I realized and its something that I have overlooked a million times is that it seems every hair salon has some type of greek/roman influence in the design, either theres a column somewhere or vines, or fake intricate molding. I thought it was pretty cool and come to think of it I know my hair dressers salon definitely is designed to look like a greek ruin inside with columns and vines everywhere....weird

Heres some houses that look like they had some influence....


This house was absolutely beautiful, it was ride outside of the park and I loved this place. You can't see it in the picture but theres this cozy little sun room underneath this upper section.






Sorry I can't figure out how to rotate the pic, but I think the doric columns on the doorway make the house seem more grand and big like the monument






Here are a couple more examples of doric columns. Also on my scavenger hunt I saw some statues that reminded me of the pantheon, or of that type of culture.



....the one on the right made me kinda uncomfy, not really but I was looking at him from a different kind of angle.

Scavenger Hunt!

So this is a part of the Albright Knox museum, and I think it completely screams the pantheon. I actually have been inside the pantheon and its beautiful and soo overwhelming, but in a good way. It was crazy for me to believe I was standing looking at something so ancient and beautiful. While standing underneath the columns at the museum may have not been as monumental for me it was still really pretty and big. I think the size of the columns alone are pretty impressive. Its hard to imagine all the work that goes into making and designing them, let alone putting them up!


...here's a couple pictures looking up into the columns. I'm pretty sure these are Ionic style ones, it seems like the Ionic and Doric styles were the most popular












...when I was taking pictures of buildings I mostly stayed around the Elmwood, Deleware area. There was just so many things that remind me of the pantheon like statues and the molding. It was all so intricate and there was so much detail put into it.

Dream House

I chose this home in Charleston, because personally I think it definitely says class and money. I love this house, it has a very pretty look, its on the water and its also secluded. Whats also nice about it is that it isn't in your face and absolutely huge. I wouldn't know what to do with such a huge house, but this size seems perfect. I really think the water is what makes me love it. It seems like the perfect place to get some peace and quiet and really just enjoy your self :0)

The streets of East Aurora

For my blog I decided to go someplace that I knew, but never really looked closely at. I went to Main Street in East Aurora. I have lived in that area my whole life and can't count the number of times I have either walked or driven down the main street, but by actually taking my time and observing it, I saw more than I ever really had in the past. The whole street is really kind of long for a commercial area and its almost broken up into sections. The first section is a little more crowded with older buildings. It seems like the type of section that you would walk with someone at night to look at the shops. They are all either made of brick or wood. The buildings are all close together and mixed. There are some clothing shops, a bookstore, a music store, a coffee house, cute restaurants, and old fashioned movie theater, and a five and dime type of store. There are no law firms or doctors offices in this area. Some have been there for decades while others are new. The five and dime store has been there since 1930. The theater only shows two shows a night and it has been restored but always to look classic and traditional. The more new stores tend to come and go, but each has the same theme. They are all crafty, type shops where you find one of a kind objects by artisans. There are no chain stores along the first part of Main street. There is also a small portion of a brick road that serves as a historical monument. There are sidewalks along both sides of the streets lined with older styled telephone poles, that they decorate during the holidays. The sidewalks are also lined with trees that were planted, and those are also decorated with lights during the holidays. Even the garbage bins are hand crafted by local artisans, with quotes on each, making them seem old and historical. The benches are all either iron or wood. From this part of the street you definitely get a sense of history and how they are trying to maintain that image. An interesting thing that E.A. does in that they individually paint all of the fire hydrants into characters from Fisher-Price because it is the hometown of the company. I always wonder who actually goes around and does those. They are also starting to put up painted horses like the fire hydrants, randomly around town, but those are different themes. The second half of main street is more modern and commerical. That is where you will find the doctors offices and chain restaurants as well as gas stations and things of that nature. There are still some locally owned, cute store mixed in but that's where the majority of the town goes to get their basics. There are also sidewalks on both sides of the street here. The benches are also still either wood or iron but the stores and much more new. This is also the area where many houses that were lived in were turned in offices. I know that E.A. has to give permission to a lot of companies that want to move into town, because they do not want to take away from their cute, old, historical image. The houses that are on main street are grand and beautiful. They are all maintained and kept up because I really don't believe that E.A. would allow them to have un-kept lawns or garbage floating around because it would ruin the cute image. I think that this town wants people who live there or visit to feel like its a close knit community where its safe to walk the streets and its a place to buy classic things.