May 9, 2006

UglificationWhile in Door County, Wisconsin recently, I picked up a real estate guide the size and heft of a Sears catalogue. Recovering from the resultant backstrain, I paged through the offerings. One, above all others, caught my eye.
"Exclusive private island . . . a true paradise for the selective buyer . . . a true sampling of all Door County is meant to be . . . the home has been meticulously planned and lovingly hand-crafted . . . a private pier provides easy access to the amphibious auto, which is included. . . ."
But as you can tell from the photo - this is the most crass new dwelling - designed like a mock colonial mansion, to feed the need for status with no thought to the environment nor energy saving issues, nor design. Vast expanses of red brick waste the opportunity for new high tech materials, that are better and cheaper. I was suprised the property was not sold together with one of those "Lordships" you can buy on the Internet.
»Keep reading 'Visually illiterate'
May 8, 2006

Charis from Fox's Jeff O'Neil showIts off-shore and off the grid. You can rent a houseboat on one of the dozens of navigable lakes across the U.S. You can also rent houseboats for down river adventures (e.g. Mississippi) and some sea-based vacations (Florida). You'll be surprised by the affordability and availability of comfortable floating homes and it's an ideal way to take in the scenic beauty of some stunning countryside.
But houseboats have rules - like no drinking while driving. And you have to be careful of National Park and other Environmental fees, that can eat into your budget.
The Houseboating.org (tel. 888/454-8825; www.houseboating.org) website features rental opportunities across America, with boats available on all of the most popular lake destinations including Lake Powell (southern Utah), Lake Mead and Lake Mohave (Nevada /Arizona), Lake Shasta and Trinity Lake (Northern California), Lake of the Ozarks (Central Missouri), Lake Amistad (Southern Texas) and Lake Cumberland (Kentucky).
»Keep reading 'Houseboat rental USA'