The ideal house, part 2
I may not mind stairs, but I am both
practical and lazy. I want all the conveniences a design can afford, like a garage
that opens on to the kitchen, a well-organized kitchen to cook in, and lots and
lots of storage space. I want hallways and bathrooms big enough for wheelchairs,
just in case, and door knobs, light switches, and faucets designed to be easy to
use. With luck arthritis won't be a problem for us for a long time, but we might
have older visitors. Besides, there are times when my hands hurt enough from
rowing that those would be useful now, or when I have a full armload of groceries
and need to open a door. I could probably write another whole entry on just the
kitchen, but I will mention dark wood cabinets, maybe a dark cherry stain, some
with glass doors, and stone counters. And a double oven, a sink with a sprayer and
a filtered water outlet, and a couple of those dish washer drawers, so you can do
a big load or a small one. Oh, yes, and a small wine fridge.
I'm not
much of a decorator, so someone else might have to fine tune the decor, but I know
some of what I want. I want wood, tile, or stone floors, depending on the climate
and the style of the house. I walk barefoot a lot, so I'd love underfloor radiant
heating. I want bookshelves in almost every room, either built in or free-
standing; I'm lusting over the dark wood ones with glass doors we saw in the
href="http://www.rosenbach.org">Rosenbach Museum. (Though not quite as much as
I'm lusting over the fabulous books in them, including incunabulae that would have
Peter Wimsey's mouth watering. Actually, given their contemporaneous timing and
each of their reputations, Lord Peter would certainly have bought some of his
collection from Rosy.) I'd like a library room, but I also love having some books
right by my favorite chair, cookbooks in the kitchen, some old favorites or *ahem*
special topics by the bed, and reference books in the office.
One
thing I wouldn't change is what's hanging on the walls: there are a few family
photos and then lots and lots of framed photographs from Australia, New Zealand,
Taiwan, Paris, Oregon, Texas, Arizona, Colorado, Utah, and I don't remember what
else. We still need to add some from Korea, Alaska, and Ireland. I think they'd
look better, though, on wood walls -- not paneling, more like the inside of a log
cabin. I could be happy with painted walls if that's not feasible, though I'd like
fewer of them to be white than in the current place. Within those walls, I'd like
leather furniture, maybe with pillows and throws that I could change according to
the season: lighter colors and textures in summer, warmer colors and heavier
textures in the winter. Rugs, too, though I'd likely choose curtains I could use
all year round. (There is no sense deluding myself into thinking that even in an
ideal house I'd get around to changing things more than twice a year.)
I'd like an office each for me and Rudder, both with computers and
Internet access, but both also with plenty of counter space and good lighting and
in mine, space for beading and some other crafts. We also need an exercise room
with room for the erg and some weights, a TV and boombox and mat for stretching, a
work room or airconditioned section of the garage, and a comfy spare bedroom.
I'd like the house to be set somewhere with views and reasonable
privacy so we didn't always have to close drapes on every window. I want a master
bedroom on the second floor and trees around; I loved the MBr in our first house
because it had windows on both sides looking at treetops and when the wind blew it
felt like being in a treehouse. The master bedroom has to be reasonably large,
with big closets and plenty of wall space for our dressers, because though neither
of us is a fashion maven, we have far too many clothes (regatta T-shirts do mount
up).
I want water outside, though in what form will depend on the
climate. Here, the pool is essential; in an area with cold weather I'd just want a
hot tub and maybe a small pond. I think humans just like being by water; I know
we get much more use from our backyard now, even though we aren't really in the
pool all that much, than we ever did with dry yards. Other than that the yard
needs to be nice looking but very low maintenance; the queen palms, other palms,
cactus, bougainvillea, sagebrush, eucalyptus, jacaranda and oleanders we have now
work very well for us. The rosemary I planted is thriving; I'd like to add a few
other hardy herbs and a couple of fruit trees since our climate is good for them.
(Our little orange tree has produced exactly one fruit to date.)
I
wonder what I've missed. I know there must be several things.