R.I.P. hipster homeowners

After typing  ”Las Vegas foreclosures” into the google search engine box today, the query produced six million results.  The first three pages of such results were filled with companies involved in the sale of home foreclosures.  I was actually looking for statistics on foreclosure rates, but decided I didn’t really need them.  All I had to do was look around me, and only in my neighborhood’s vicinity.

You see, I live in a hipster atomic-aged neighborhood filled with fabulous mod architecture and fabulous mod people.  However, due to the downturn of the economy, some of the hipsters lost their hipster cocktail, bartending, promotion and marketing jobs.  They couldn’t afford to continue to make payments on their hipster (Prius-like) vehicles, let alone their hipster pads.  Each day I drive around the neighborhood, I cringe at the sight of another hipster loss; a foreclosure sign. 

This foreclosed home was sold by Jack Levine at veryvintagevegas.com, just to be flipped and sold through Century 21

Now, I’ve gotten to know my neighbors quite well the past year, and they told me the uber-hipsters were the first to go.  It wasn’t because they were younger, didn’t save  or got into something they really couldn’t afford.  In fact, the hipster-est were the first to spend their money wisely; they poured their money into their houses in way of renovations and restorations.  Everyone from bank lenders to financial advisors suggested they do so, for it could only build equity and they’d get that money back and then some. 

But then, something happened.  Their mortgages coupled with home improvement loans began to cut off their air supply as the value of their homes plummeted.  They began drowning in debt without any equity.  And then the hipsters had to make a choice:  Drown or Swim the seven-year bankruptcy/poor credit relay.  Most of them decided to live, but left remnants of their near-death experiences all over my neighborhood.  Consider my recent photoblog a memorial to those brave enough to attempt the seven-year swim.

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Tags: atomic, las vegas, Mid-Century, Photography, real estate

This WordPress theme is on fire

I found a fantastic WordPress theme this week called Flambeau.  Now, the word ’flambeau’ is typically defined as a flaming torch, such as those used in a night procession. It guides people that otherwise wouldn’t be able to guide themselves.  And this WordPress theme certainly lives up to its definition. Not only does Flambeau make any blog easy to navigate, it displays a front-page photo gallery that doesn’t engulf.  The theme follows the rule of thirds, which makes it aesthetically pleasing and functional.  With Flambeau, visitors can quickly scan any homepage and with a one-click maximum, find exactly what they are looking for. The best part; it’s free to download.

I understand some may not like the brown and orange color scheme, but it is easily forgotten once the page is read.  Simply, the white characters just pop. In bold, white typeface are phrases everyone is familiar with: Home, About, Contact, Recent Posts, Categories, Tags, Blogroll, Search and Gallery. It’s all there, organized into one neat row and three tidy columns. This is very exciting, for visitors won’t have to muddle through anything.  Flambeau just screams usability.  And usability equals professionalism.

Anyone blogging for artistic or hobbiest reasons will absolutely enjoy Flambeau, if only for it’s polished yet vintage vibe. I’m personally a proud owner of a few antique cameras, (including a 70’s Polaroid Land Camera) and wish to display such photography within my blog.  I also wish to include mid-century architecture, and Flambeau’s gallery is capable of handling multiple artistic topics. 

Impressively, Flambeau’s middle third of the homepage is reserved solely for recent blog posts.  With wider boxes than its neighboring columns, the blog posts become the focus of the page.  In this way, Flambeau is straight to the point, for it sheds light on what is most important.  I’m hoping some of my visitors will pass this torch along. 

For more free WordPress themes, go to http://wordpressthemesbase.com/

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Tags: downloads, Photography, WordPress