Category

Architecture

I literally scream when I’m driving and I see a good looking building. Sometimes I take photos and scream at the same time.

An abandoned Foster's Freeze covered with graffiti.

Sacramento’s Oldest Ice Cream Shop, Portland’s Neon Signs and More From Our I-5 Road Trip

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Our trip up to Portland and back was filled with stops to charge our car and take photos, I also had a couple of days in Portland to roam my old stomping grounds and take photos of things I never did while I lived there. Thrifty Klean Center. 1661 S. El Dorado Street, Stockton, California.…

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Overall of the Sandy Jug, which is a building shaped like a jug, painted a pale cream. The very top is painted brown, with a gold stopper. Around the shoulder of the bottle are gold circles with roses painted in the middle. A door sits in the middle, with a blue neon sign reading "Cocktails" above, on either side of the door are windows of glass blocks.

Grabbing a Drink at Portland’s Only Bottle Shaped Bar, the Sandy Jug

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While living in Portland I would sometimes find myself passing by a massive jug, solidly painted maroon. Inside? A strip club dubbed Pirate’s Cove. I always sighed, and bemoaned the fact it was a strip club. Here was a beautiful example of programatic architecture, and it was a strip club? And not even painted well?…

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Angled view of Johnie's Coffee Shop, a blue and stripe butterfly roof hangs low, with red letters reading "Johnie's Coffee Shop and Restaurant"

Step Inside the Googie Masterpiece Johnie’s Coffee Shop Thanks to Artist Gary Baseman

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Every time I would visit the Petersen Automotive Museum or the Academy Museum I would gaze longingly at Johnie’s Coffee Shop. The red, white, and blue Googie masterpiece has sat empty since 2000, and I longed to step inside. Well, I finally got that chance, thanks to artist Gary Baseman. Baseman was born in LA…

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Straight on view of the Victorian, a large, three story Victorian style building, painted a pale green with white trim, with bay windows and turrets on each side, a large square bay window above the door, and a small cupola at the top in the middle.

Risen From the Dead: The Victorian Mansion Frankenstein’ed from Bunker Hill Homes and a Catholic Poor House

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The other day Patrick and I were driving in an area of the Valley we don’t often find ourselves in, and we stumbled upon the most bizarre Victorian monstrosity. A quick turn around and we stood beneath a towering building simply dubbed The Victorian. My brain was boggled, because while elements certainly seemed genuine from…

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Full exterior view of Idle Hour, in the center is a large barrel with smaller buildings attached at either side.

Idle Hour: Eat Inside a Giant Hidden Dog at California’s Last Barrel Restaurant

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As many of you know I’m an architecture junkie, and one of my favorite forms of architecture is programmatic, or fondly known as “California Crazy” that is to say, buildings that are constructed to look like something, which California was wildly known for. Sadly, there are very few examples left, but at Idle Hour you…

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Arched gateway to the home.

Inside Greystone Mansion: Money, Murder, and the Movies

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Looming over the luxurious city of Beverly Hills sits Greystone Mansion, a sprawling estate built by Los Angeles’ first oil tycoon family, the Dohenys. It is also home to one of Beverly Hills’ earliest scandals. Typically Greystone keeps its doors closed, with only a handful of exceptions. Thankfully my friend, Kristen, was able to secure…

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A black and white image of the back of an abandoned drive-in, portions of the screen are missing, on the left is the small ticket booth.

Abandoned Places, Neon Wonders, and More from Our Idaho Road Trip

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A road trip is never complete without pulling over to some weird places, including abandoned buildings, amazing neon signs, and more. While Patrick and I have traveled to Idaho a few times, there is always something we missed the time before. So today, I bring you the collection of random places we stopped at during…

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