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The sun streams right into your bedroom scattering the misty morning air. As you shake off your slumber grudgingly, your eyes take you right towards the mountains backlit by a glorious sun. The lethargy vanishes almost instantly; you are torn between running wildly over the water and snuggling back in your covers, enjoying the sunrise. As you look around, the visions of the natural world remain unobstructed; it is almost like waking up with nature.
Who wouldn’t want to wake up to such heavenly mornings? Actually some people, whom I am extremely envious of, do. The house is nestled high up on the mountains overlooking a serene lake. The house remains tantalizingly poised over the water edge, almost tipping over. The house is entirely shrouded in glass; almost diffusing with the surroundings leaving nothing to imagination to the prying eyes of the surrounding wilderness. There is no privacy, of course but then also there is no one around for miles. Civilization seems light years away. The house in itself does not appear to be a glaring eyesore but blends seamlessly with the roughly hewn granite. Beavers and raccoons might just mistake it as another rock on their way to the lake. Stretching horizontally, the house hugs the earth like a dear child not rising beyond the neighboring green friends.
You almost miss it as your eye follows the dirt road leading up to the hidden driveway. You arrive silently and appear overawed by the greenery. The living space is sparsely furnished; nothing apart from earth colors adorn the cozy upholstery. The space flows freely taking you from one area of the house to another without definite functions. The entire valley is spread out before your eyes and you drink in the azure blue sky above, the crystal clear water in the lake nearby and the gleaming mountains in the distance. The glass walls do not waste a single inch of the view. The cool breeze from the lake travels through the trees, which have obligingly parted to reveal the wonders beyond. As you walk around, you hardly realize you are standing in the verandah when moments ago, you were admiring the view from the living room. The gradual transition has blurred the boundaries of inside and outside. The hovering cantilever over the water lends a godlike feeling. You could swear you have walked on water.
You reluctantly look back at the house and instead see a shimmering reflection of the view you just tore your eyes from, broken intermittently by the barely-visible support system. As you walk back, the contours of the land take you slowly upwards to the sleeping quarters, where the view is equally breathtaking. It is obvious that the existence of the house depends on the view it offers, as if projecting you outwards instead of sheltering us inwards. The sleeping quarters are just enough to fulfill their basic function, prompting you to return to the heart of the house like a long-lost sailor at sea. Communion, not isolation is the spirit of the house.
It is a place where you forget worries of the world you left behind. It is the place that drains you of every negative thought. It is the place where friendships are forged and families come closer. It is the place where you agree to a temporary peace with nature and settle in its comforting arms.
It is the place I would like to call home. Someday.
[thanks to FLW’s Falling Water in PA, Philip Johnson’s Glass House in CT, and Mies van de Rohe’s Farnsworth House in IL for letting me believe that this is possible]
by Patrix | on Monday, August 9th, 2004 at 11:05 pm | 
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August 9th, 2004 at 11:34 pm reply
D’you subscribe to WorldArchitecture? If not, you really should, because they showcase such breathtaking ones every issue that biwi and I can’t take our eyes off’em.
August 9th, 2004 at 11:38 pm reply
Chetan - I do take the time occassionally to browse through Architectural Digest at the bookstore. Some of these archi.magazines are too expensive for me to subscribe right now but I sure will when I can. I was a big fan of Architectural Review when I was in Archi.college.
August 10th, 2004 at 1:00 am reply
Beautifully portrayed Patrix. you literaLLY took me there. Reminded me of the glass house from Fountainhead. it would be gratifying to live in one such house even for a day, in the midst of near wilderness.
August 10th, 2004 at 3:59 am reply
Sounds beautiful! I hope you own a place like that someday. And hope you’ll remember to invite friends ;)
August 10th, 2004 at 5:55 am reply
woww!!!…facts or fiction..for a sec was confused!!
August 10th, 2004 at 7:00 am reply
My my, you ARE feeling poetic today :-D
August 10th, 2004 at 9:21 am reply
Patrix, that was a pleasure to read. And I hate to burst your bubble a bit, but those kinds of buildings are impossible to air condition or insulate….sometimes I wish I wasn’t so practical. I was enjoying your daydream.
August 10th, 2004 at 9:24 am reply
very very like what Roark in Fountainhead would build.lovely post patrix. took me to another place.
August 10th, 2004 at 10:09 am reply
Pompy - Very much Fountainhead..hope you notice that little image in the “I Swear By..” section…and why just for a day?
Leela - Rather after I build it…don’t worry, will remember to invite you if not friends :)
Jo - If you know me well, the line bw fact and fiction is often blurred.
W-bug - Does this qualify as poetry?? I just ramble on…Hope you are enjoying your new Home
Sabra - I am aware that such houses are a torture to insulate but woh zindagi hee kya jisme koi namomkin sapna na ho and who knows, we never thought a hundred yrs ago that we could build buildings half a kilometer tall.
Maya -Now that you are there, please remember your way out :)
August 10th, 2004 at 11:45 am reply
nice and wow! Tumhara har sapna sach ho..including the one that makes me a millionare for spotting this house and making it a tourist attraction. There’ll be a sign “Throwing Stones prohibited”. I’ll even have a gift-store selling Patrix dolls with bobbing heads and a glassy look. See patty, you are a born architect..stop wasting your time doing weird stuff and get back to building castles in the air.
I hope at least the bathroom is hidden. Dont want to give ideas to the bears as to what you do in the private.
August 10th, 2004 at 1:01 pm reply
Alpha - I sure will let you know when that happens to have your little soveneir shop (I’ll need a cut though)…meri privacy ki toh waat..and about the bathrooms, I forgot..I don’t want to give those bears a inferiority complex, right?
August 10th, 2004 at 1:05 pm reply
Wow! Know what you mean…have seen those houses in movies and music videos…Would be great to have one of those as one of my houses (Why limit, as long as I am just dreaming ;) )
August 10th, 2004 at 1:30 pm reply
On a recent trip, we were given an alternate accomodation as the hostel that we had booked online had closed down - a house with mountains in the back and a blue serene lake in front. Maybe next time we will get a glasshouse:-)
August 10th, 2004 at 1:41 pm reply
Spaceman - Do we all have the same dreams? but no MTV Grind at my place.
Aar - Hmmm…seems like someone is renting my dream house.
August 10th, 2004 at 11:26 pm reply
Yea I am :-))))) skinny dipping and all that :-)))
August 10th, 2004 at 11:59 pm reply
W-Bug - I did the peeping Tom thing while you were at it? Is it safe to comment yet?
August 11th, 2004 at 12:18 pm reply
Yeah, no Grind here either…that’s just the most roundabout way of getting down to business or wot? ;-))
August 12th, 2004 at 2:55 am reply
Oh yea safe to comment :-)
August 12th, 2004 at 10:33 am reply
Spaceman - Getting down to business would be very difficult in that case.
W-Bug - Cool !
October 15th, 2004 at 11:45 am reply
Just happened to go back and read this post. Wow !
How can you even claim you don’t have a poets soul ?! Your post created such a picturesque and pleasant image in my mind. Its so tranquil; it’s the perfect place to think about if ever I want to get myself balanced and centred.
Don’t be afraid of the space between your dreams and reality. If you can dream it, you can make it so. May all your impossible dreams come true !
October 15th, 2004 at 11:51 am reply
Ash - If a poet says so, I cannot deny it :) Woh zindagi hee kya jisme koi namomkeen sapna na ho….damn! I cannot get any more cheezier today.