Love it or hate it, that iconic PDX airport carpet is on the outs. Starting in January 2015, the 25-year-old turquoise carpet – with its whimsical blue, purple and red pattern (which corresponds to Portland's intersecting North-South runways, as seen from the control tower) – will be ripped up and

trashed

recycled.

To 20-something Portlanders, who never knew another PDX carpet, the changing of the floor guards has been an occasion to mourn.

To mark the change, Port of Portland commissioned local artist Nancy Wilkins, who crafted an 11-foot by 16-foot collage made of carpet from different locations throughout the airport, appropriately titled "Carpet Diem!"

It's a fitting memorial, but it's far from the only celebration of the '87 design. Last year's announcement launched a sudden nostalgic response from some Portlanders, leading to the creation of a Facebook page and Twitter account for fans, as well as a bounty of memorabilia, including T-shirts, socks, mugs, water bottles, pillows, totes, posters, iPhone cases and even bike helmets.

Don't be surprised if the airport starts auctioning off pieces of the well-worn carpet itself. Stains included!

The nostalgic hysteria took over Portland, even overshadowing the announcement of the new carpet design (which happens to look a whole lot like the old carpet design). So as the carpet replacement project begins in January 2015, expect to see your Twitter and Instagram feeds flooded with shoe-selfies atop the iconic design, beside a melancholic #RIPDXcarpet.

Until then you can wax nostalgic in concourse D, where "Carpet Diem" will hang through the end of the year. I would task you all to remember it well, but given the deluge of early memorials, there should be no doubt of its lasting place in Portland carpet history.

--Jamie Hale | jhale@oregonian.com | @HaleJamesB