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As a hatchling, I was called an “old soul” which, as it turns out, meant I was one odd bird — they didn’t know what to do with young Federico who ate shrimp with his third talon (pinky) out and spent hours trying to nail Lauren Bacall’s vocal fry. But I did, so I flapped all the way to the one city as absurd as my affectations: the Spanish-named birthplace of the American Dream.
The John C. Hayes Residence, a shining example of Los Angeles craftsmanship designed by architect/owner Charles Lantz in 1895, is a true American Pastoral: a cunning mix of folk architecture’s simplicity and the intricacy of Queen Anne detailing (a Nineteenth Century staple). Transplanted to its current location overlooking the San Gabriel Mountains and Mount Wilson in 1925, this home’s cottage touches — the ornamental gable in shades of sage, the dainty spindle work, the elegant brackets — seem anachronistically mystical amidst the cacti and the desert roses, but the welcoming wrap around porch and Douglas Fir floors ground it to its second (and final) locale.
My wings have caught up to my soul now, but so has my appreciation for those things which we consider anomalous, so when you’re touring the John C. Hayes Residence, keep a third talon aloft for the hatchling odd bird we all once were.
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