Suburban Subdivision Name Generator
This was one of my first projects when I was first learning how to do server-side web development in about 2004 (Pour one out for yalestar.com: 2001-2009). Setting up PHP and MySQL and Apache on Windows is truly a bittersweet memory from those times. Sure, it would’ve been way easier to do it all on the client side (as I’ve done here), but I was so determined to figure out how to get my WAMP on.
By the way, my two all-time favorite real-life subdivision names are both in the Denver metro area: the first is SkyRidge at RidgeGate. An instant classic, plus it has that NewEconomy-style spelling to give it a little extra millenial je ne sais quoi. The second is The Hermitage. Hermitage is a type of wine, which is a dumb enough name for a subdivision, but its synonym, a dwelling for hermits, yields the greatest irony.
More recently I’ve noticed that the peddlers of such dream homes have run out of combinations using idyllic and pastoral words, and so some of the newer subdivisions have even stupider names, cheap sentimental shit like “Inspiration” or “Homecoming”. Of course, in today’s insane housing market we can’t all afford to be cutting-edge urban dwellers, but still, how could you let yourself live in a place called “Inspiration”?