Track 1: "Fantasies of Home"

After reading the three texts in track 1, I realized that home today means a safe place for the family, a place for comfort and a place that can bring people together. In "Town-Building is no Mickey-Mouse Operation," the so-called town brought people together with porches and a huge downtown area for everyone to gather. In "A Home Sweet Home Nestled Amid Junkyards," it showed us that even though a place could look bad on the outside, it could have the greatest sense of community and safety on the inside. Homes today are definitely not perfect, but as long as we have our comfort and safety, we will be alright.

The American dream is one that most everyone wants, but from reading these texts I don't think it is happening any time soon. In the first text when it described Celebration, the people living there said it was nice, but it was nothing like a town. Also, the author described it as being so perfect that it probably could not change, it was always going to look brand new. In the last text, "Pottery Barn Gazing," Hank Steuever described the pictures in the catalogue as having no imperfections, and usually the objects in the photograph are ones that most people dream of having. So, I don't think the American dream has occurred yet for our society, we have too many things we want and it's not ever going to be picture perfect.

Our homes definitely represent our class and sometimes even our culture. The homes in Celebration are all pretty big and the main race that lives there is Caucasians. So, the people are most likely middle to high class, and not really a social culture. In the starlite trailer park the people have different races and live in trailers, so they are a lower class and more social. We certainly stereotype when it comes to seeing a persons home, because it could be the smallest home ever but the person may be of a higher class than you. I also think that the media and consumer culture are affecting the way we want our home to look like. When Pottery Barn shows the perfect house with no wrinkles on the bed, and not a spec of cat hair, we definitely have that picture in our minds when we go to pick out our houses. But, if they showed the normal house, most people would not even take a second look at it.

People have many difficulties in creating a home in today's society, because everyone has a different picture in there minds of what their home should look like. The creator needs to think of the area it is in, how comfortable the home will be, and the houses around the home, because these are all the things the buyer will be looking for. When our parents and grandparents had to buy houses, they didn't have as much to worry about. Crime was not as excessive as it is now, so the homes were always in safer places and it was easier to go outside and get to know your neighbors. But, times have changed and creators have a lot more to think about. I mean, even though the American dream is not here, at least most of us have roofs over our heads and warm beds to sleep in.

"House Hunting"

In comparing Todd Hido to Bill Owens and Patricia Lahrmer, I would have to say that they all capture the life of the suburbs in one a way or another. Owens and Lahrmer however, capture the comforting, loving, neighborhood feel of the suburbs in the day, while Hido shows what occurs in the night. During the night, people are not outside walking dogs, and kids are not riding bicycles, it is just houses lightened by what is inside. There was one moment where Hido was blocking a mans driveway, and the man came out angrily and told him to move the car immediately. Hido tried to explain, but the man kept pushing so he had to move. In the end, I think this shows that the suburbs are definitely not what they seem. People living there may not be very welcoming as it has always been portrayed, and they may be hiding what is really going on inside the house when the curtains are closed.

"Slowly Calling the Burbs Home"

In the article "Slowly Calling the Burbs Home," Patricia Lahrmer discusses the simple life of living in the suburbs. She moved from Europe, to the city and then to the suburbs, because it felt like her small town in Ohio. She described the suburbs as a place where nothing happened, but everything about it comforted her. In one paragraph she talks about dog that she sees collapse and everyone swarm to help it. She then tells her friends the story, but all they did was chuckle and she was then annoyed with herself for telling it in the first place. Lahrmer also describes a time when she saw a building being demolished and she imagined the family coming back and seeing it gone, because it was their home for so many years. She begins to enjoy the suburbs and its uneventful ways; realizing that houses take shape there and human beings live their lives. From reading this article I am now thinking differently about the suburbs and its perfection, because it can be a very comforting place.

Bill Owens definitely captures life in the suburbs. He shows you how perfect it can be on the inside and out. I think Lahrmer and Owens definitely have similar views about the suburbs, because Lahrmer is happy with the comforting yet uneventful ways of them and Owens portrays that through his photographs. The houses are all aligned, there are a lot of family vacations, and sometimes they do neighborhood events. I kind of feel like I live in suburbia, because I live in a neighborhood just like the one Lahrmer described and Owen showed, although big events do happen, it is comforting and where I have lived my entire life. Suburbs, although boring, are nice in the fact that they are comforting and everyone can feel safe.