Dream Living
Ok, I’ll bite.
Over at Reddnight, I came across a thread of sorts where some interesting people are posting their thoughts on an ideal dream home.
The post originated on a blog, EntrePilar, in which the multi-lingual author asks what setting this home would occupy and what salient features, both outdoors and indoors would be requisite. She is seeking input from those in the “techie” industry.
Location:
My ideal location would have to combine both rugged mountain access with the serene tranquility and sun drenched pleasure of a tropical ocean beach. I currently live in Colorado at the feet of the majestic Rocky Mountains, but I spent the better part of my life in beautiful and sunny Florida. Consequently, my dream house location would require both aesthetics.
I can think of quite a few places where the mountains meet the sea; California, the French Rivera, the Chilean coast, New Zealand, etc. For sheer beauty it would be tough to beat the French Riviera, but I’m not sure how accessible the mountains there are to outdoor type activities, being covered with homes and such. In fact, I’m not quite sure there is a place where the mountains offer as much recreation as Colorado (hiking, skiing, kayaking, rock climbing, etc.) and where the adjacent ocean water is as warm and hospitable as Florida. (Maybe 500 million years ago when the Gulf of Mexico washed up against the then ancestral Rocky Mountains)
Visually, Alaska has a few places that might fit the bill, but the climate is much too harsh. So this being a fantasy, I would endow my perfect Colorado/Florida hybrid location with the always comfortable temperate climate of California’s central coast.
Outside the Home:
Since the essence of this home is an appreciation of nature and the outdoors, the outside of the home would be constructed in earthy materials such as stone and slate and the home would be well integrated with the natural setting. Of course there would be plenty of glass to bring in the views. A private lagoon adjacent to the vanishing edge pool would be lovely at the front of the property. ReddKnight alluded to the scene in 2010 where the character Floyd’s home went so far as to integrate part of such a lagoon into his home (there are hotels that do similar integrations with their pools). Having read the book many years ago that image has always stayed with me, so I reserve the right to borrow the idea from ReddKnight.
The back of property would be an ode to the mountains, with trail heads leading out to the foothills and plenty of cool natural rock formations with which to practice bouldering. A mountain stream would provide nice visual and auditory ambiance as would a small open meadow where deer and other local fauna could be observed from the patio.
Inside the Home:
In keeping with the organic themes, materials such as stone, natural hardwoods and rustic wrought iron would flow throughout the house. Design would be minimalistic, but yet warm and inviting due to the earthy color palette.
Technology:
Since my friend Reddnight covered the futuristic possibilities, here are some available today (or nearly) technologies that might be nice: Digital art work on the walls (a la Bill Gates), water condenser/purifiers that remove humidity from the air and produce pure drinking water, waterfall humidifiers (depending on which is needed), automated vacuum cleaning robots, fully programmable control of window shades and lighting. The latter would be programmed to maximize energy efficiency but can also save pre-programmed settings for creating different natural and articfical lighting moods. Software agents for managing the collection of entertainment media with the capability of delivering the content to any device throught the house. Trivial stuff like heated towel racks, heated bathroom floors and the latest wiz bang kitchen products. Also, the house would employ architectural details to maximize the utilization of natural cooling, heating, etc. – along with solar panels and inconspicuous wind harnessing devices to reduce power consumption from the grid.
Community:
Lastly, a dream home must come with dream neighbors with whom we would enjoy many dinner parties complete with stimulating conversation over endless glasses of wine. During the days our children would play together and we would enjoy the all too hard to come by sense of being truly surrounded by a community of friends. So my dream home would have to include adjacent lots for all my best friends currently scattered around the country.
Over at Reddnight, I came across a thread of sorts where some interesting people are posting their thoughts on an ideal dream home.
The post originated on a blog, EntrePilar, in which the multi-lingual author asks what setting this home would occupy and what salient features, both outdoors and indoors would be requisite. She is seeking input from those in the “techie” industry.
Location:
My ideal location would have to combine both rugged mountain access with the serene tranquility and sun drenched pleasure of a tropical ocean beach. I currently live in Colorado at the feet of the majestic Rocky Mountains, but I spent the better part of my life in beautiful and sunny Florida. Consequently, my dream house location would require both aesthetics.
I can think of quite a few places where the mountains meet the sea; California, the French Rivera, the Chilean coast, New Zealand, etc. For sheer beauty it would be tough to beat the French Riviera, but I’m not sure how accessible the mountains there are to outdoor type activities, being covered with homes and such. In fact, I’m not quite sure there is a place where the mountains offer as much recreation as Colorado (hiking, skiing, kayaking, rock climbing, etc.) and where the adjacent ocean water is as warm and hospitable as Florida. (Maybe 500 million years ago when the Gulf of Mexico washed up against the then ancestral Rocky Mountains)
Visually, Alaska has a few places that might fit the bill, but the climate is much too harsh. So this being a fantasy, I would endow my perfect Colorado/Florida hybrid location with the always comfortable temperate climate of California’s central coast.
Outside the Home:
Since the essence of this home is an appreciation of nature and the outdoors, the outside of the home would be constructed in earthy materials such as stone and slate and the home would be well integrated with the natural setting. Of course there would be plenty of glass to bring in the views. A private lagoon adjacent to the vanishing edge pool would be lovely at the front of the property. ReddKnight alluded to the scene in 2010 where the character Floyd’s home went so far as to integrate part of such a lagoon into his home (there are hotels that do similar integrations with their pools). Having read the book many years ago that image has always stayed with me, so I reserve the right to borrow the idea from ReddKnight.
The back of property would be an ode to the mountains, with trail heads leading out to the foothills and plenty of cool natural rock formations with which to practice bouldering. A mountain stream would provide nice visual and auditory ambiance as would a small open meadow where deer and other local fauna could be observed from the patio.
Inside the Home:
In keeping with the organic themes, materials such as stone, natural hardwoods and rustic wrought iron would flow throughout the house. Design would be minimalistic, but yet warm and inviting due to the earthy color palette.
Technology:
Since my friend Reddnight covered the futuristic possibilities, here are some available today (or nearly) technologies that might be nice: Digital art work on the walls (a la Bill Gates), water condenser/purifiers that remove humidity from the air and produce pure drinking water, waterfall humidifiers (depending on which is needed), automated vacuum cleaning robots, fully programmable control of window shades and lighting. The latter would be programmed to maximize energy efficiency but can also save pre-programmed settings for creating different natural and articfical lighting moods. Software agents for managing the collection of entertainment media with the capability of delivering the content to any device throught the house. Trivial stuff like heated towel racks, heated bathroom floors and the latest wiz bang kitchen products. Also, the house would employ architectural details to maximize the utilization of natural cooling, heating, etc. – along with solar panels and inconspicuous wind harnessing devices to reduce power consumption from the grid.
Community:
Lastly, a dream home must come with dream neighbors with whom we would enjoy many dinner parties complete with stimulating conversation over endless glasses of wine. During the days our children would play together and we would enjoy the all too hard to come by sense of being truly surrounded by a community of friends. So my dream home would have to include adjacent lots for all my best friends currently scattered around the country.
posted by Alan at 12:08 AM | Permalink |
7 comments
This sounds very similar to a guy I read about a while ago, but this guy is much more active with his crazy resolution camera than the other guy if indeed they are different people. But still, this camera is incredible. Be sure to look at the pictures as they show the resolution capabilities.
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