For those of you who are watching and keeping score on the CRAN trivia questions (go to the CRAN forums page to catch up if you aren't!), you probably noticed a question about the mid century modern blogs www.savethepinkbathrooms.com and www.retrorenovation.com both created by Pam Kueber. So I might as well 'fess up now about my love of all things mid century modern. I seem to be alone in this among anyone I've actually met, but the cost of alumnium trees on ebay makes me realize that I'm certainly not alone among those strolling the internet. While there are many 40s, 50s and 60s items that people can chose to like from that era, let's talk about the architecture - this is an architecture blog after all. Actually let's whittle that down a bit more to the mid century modern house. I love seeing the wonderful architect designed homes from this era, but even more fascinating to me is the average Amercian home. Any house hunting trip will produce a few colorful bathrooms, some built in ovens, a unique pendant light or two and if you're lucky- a cork floor. All (in my opinion) symbols of a generation of home buyers looking for function and style. But I find that these vintage features have disappeared rapidly over the past 10 years, perhaps due to the original homeowners leaving and new owners "improving" their new digs. The American ranch home can be found in virtually any town in the country thanks to a post WWII housing shortage. But let's get back to how this relates to the two blogs I've mentioned above. It's easy as an architect (intern) to assume that I know much more about building design than the average homeowner. Sure, I can probably help with a few things that someone simply might not have thought about. We study spaces and flows and can give someone a unique home or office because we're supposed to be creative (smart, analytical, talented, beautiful...but I digress!). That said, stroll through a few of the posts on the blogs I've mentioned above and you'll find plenty of wonderful creativity. In particular, I loved an article about a woman who purchased a 50s house with a not-so-wonderful 80s bathroom makeover. She used the most readily available materials at the local big box store and created a clean, period appropriate and yet contemporary bathroom renovation. She discovered how to recapture a style without having to live in the past and I loved it from tub to towels. With the resurgance in popularity of the average mid century house, I find with it a wonderful community of average homeowners restoring and caring for these newly treasured gems. I'm reminded that for all my love of architecture and higher education, I should never take for granted the passionate and creative ideas from anyone who simply wants the built world around them to be just a bit cooler, architecture degree or not. What style of American house do you love?