Is Square really dull or unfashionable? How old are you anyway?

I have always liked the look of this place. (I admit I have not yet ventured inside.) And the name, SQUARESVILLE, pretty much says it all to most every generation alive. If you were born a Boomer, it conjures up all kinds of scenes and memories in your head. If you're even older, you may remember back to trying to dress exactly like Elvis and swivel and sneer at the girls in poodle skirts as you ran a greasy comb through your pompadour. As the sixties picked up steam, the 50s knock-off group Sha-Na-Na, that performed at Woodstock, represented a more contemporary, acceptable Square music scene, attitude and dress. Now, with generation X, Y and probably zebra, Square is hip, cool and totally retro, dude. Very in, cachet and desirable. So your apartment can look just like the 1950s and mimic your grandparent's place without the scratches and dust and doileys. Squaresville is on South Tampa's popular South Howard Avenue, SoHo. It's been around quite a while and attracts a clientele of just about every age...except for some of our parent's generation who couldn't wait to unload their furniture and knickknacks from the 1950s because it was so dated (they moved to Scan design and never moved back.) On occasion there has been a really fine vintage car parked out front, a Ford Edsel or similar "cool" car of the era.

They carry all the things that you either remember from that time in American cultural history or think is representative of the period after the Korean Conflict (War) and before the Beatles invaded from England. Playboy shirts, wall clocks with Bettie Page and kidney-shaped coffee tables. Very vintage and of an era we celebrated on television from Dobie Gillis to Laverne and Shirley to the all-time classic, Happy Days. Apparently, everything we grew to associate with these TV shows and lovable characters is to be found in Squaresville. Clothes, furniture, poodle skirts and Go-Go boots. The funny thing is, the furniture you couldn't wait to have picked up and hauled away is for sale at places like this. The store attracts all sorts who hang out in SoHo. So you'll see folks on Vespas and the occasional Maserati coupe sharing the spaces out front. Open since 1998, it bills itself as Tampa Bay's Grooviest Store, and If it's out of style, it's in stock. That's really groovy, man.

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The Honest Scrap Award was given to this blog by Jacob of Creative Confections. This is a real honor and I am especially proud because it is given by a fellow blogger. Please check out Jacob’s really fine and creative blogs by clicking on the award at left (and visit Ocala Daily Photo, Cedar Key Daily Photo and The Villages Daily Photo, too) The award is bestowed upon Tampa Daily Photo because its content or design is, in the giver's opinion, brilliant. The Honest Scrap Award is for bloggers who post from their heart, who oftentimes put their heart on display as they write from the depths of their soul. In looking back at the origins of this award, I found that past recipients were all terrific bloggers and honestly gave of themselves. Every day they shared with us their special place in our larger world. I recognize and thank all who have come before me.

The Official Rules are as follows:

1. You must brag about the award.
2. You must include the name of the blogger who bestowed the award on you and link back to the blogger.
3. You must choose a minimum of six (6) blogs that you find brilliant in content or design.
4. Show their names and links and leave a comment informing them that they were prized with Honest Weblog.
5. List at least ten (10) honest things about yourself. [This one I will attempt to comply with at a later date.]

So here, in no particular order, are the next recipients of the Honest Scrap Award, ones I think show brilliance in content or design (or both), but above all, honesty:

1. Avignon in Photos

2. The Skoog Farm Journal

3. Charleston Daily Photo

4. Livorno Daily Photo

5. Greenwich Village Daily Photo

6. Verona Daily Photo

Congratulations to each of my fellow bloggers. I hope you will decide to participate and find other blogs worthy of the award.