Tuesday, January 12, 2010

Jealousy and architectural plans (still)

I was talking with Nomad on the phone today about painting and going to school and studying and getting a masters, and I was so delighted with what she is thinking of doing, of what she is considering.

I also found myself unpleasantly jealous.

Such a human emotion and such a nasty little poison.  I am trying to think of it as a goad for further action.

Problems I have with achieving this sucker are only time, space and money.  No biggie.

Pertaining to that theme, we met with the new architect and the city planner to see exactly what we can and cannot do with the house.  Seems that should have been done a while ago with architect numero uno, but whatever.

The windows in the front and the back...no problem.  WOOT!!!!

The terrace that we want to put up on top can be MUCH larger and can go right to the front of the house!  Another big fat WOOOOTTTTT!!!!!

That little room with a view I want to put up on the terrace, so I have a space I can paint in, so the man and I can have a space where we can hang out in any season with a wonderful view.  So I can have a space where I can hide.....where guests can stay, or kids can stay when guests of greater seniority arrive and the kids are kicked out of their rooms......that room is a problem.

*deep, noisy, belly-filling inhalation, hold, and exhale*

*fingers tapping*

I have an idea for that one....

The town planner mentioned that we could actually raise the roof almost two meters if we wanted to and put another room upstairs.  I briefly toyed with the idea, as we have to redo all the roof anyway.  Then I asked for a ball park figure on the cost.  50,000 Euros, or 60 (or more think I), plus we wouldn't get into the house f.o.r.e.v.e.r......plus, it is just too much house.  I don't want four bedrooms.  It'll be monstrous!  This does however mean that we have space above the house we can use.

My current idea, which we have bounced off the architects is to....whew...how to describe this.

OK.  Picture a terrace, rectangular. One side of it is filled with a small house that comes about half way up to the front of the terrace.  This is where the stairs come up, and where I could be quite content.  That little room

No go.

The little house can only push forward for the width of a flight of stairs.

OK says I...we push the entire little house back inside the house creating an overhanging intrusion into Eldest's room.  The bottom of the room, instead of ending at the wall of her room would actually appear in it, fairly high up.  Sort of po-mo-ish, but with a 200 year old Catalan twist.  The ceiling of the structure would easily remain within that imaginary (approx) 2 meters of allowable space we have above the house.

If it is done badly it will look like crap, but if it is done well, it will look great.  For resale we market Eldest's increasingly 'character' room as a ladies dressing room.....we are putting a sink in anyway, we put in a bunch of shelves before we go and hangers and shoe racks.....you should hear the women here craving walk in closets and dressing rooms.

Women decide on houses.  A lot.  Me thinks.

The current idea.

Fingers crossed.

It would give me a space......which is where this kind of started out.


8 comments:

J.G. said...

I was thinking "tent" until I heard your creative solution. Love it! Way to think outside the box. It will be lovely and quirky and charming, I'm sure.

Just don't let them tell you no when there's a way to go over, around, under or through. Get what you want!

(I must be on the mend. This is the most enthusiastic I've felt all day.)

Hula Girl at Heart said...

It sounds like a great idea. Can we see pictures of the space?

Nomad said...

My dear sweet friend, you are MILES more intellectual than I could EVER be even on my smartest and most-able-to-fake-it days...it is So within your reach, YOU would be ABSOLUTELY BRILLIANT! (I am sorry you felt bad tho!) I do really appreciate your support...cross your fingers for me I just pushed the send button on my applications....*holding breath*

Beth said...

I can picture it quite well from your description and I think it will work out great. And I sure enjoy seeing how that crafty brain of your works!
Best of luck, fingers crossed and all that!

Lynda said...

Sounds glorious.. a lady's dressing room.. la de da! You sound so different than you did the last time you mentioned the 'A' word. Excited maybe?

BTW Nomad went in my cull last night... I wondered where she skipped off too.

Word Verification Today: canersta - That is, Cannister if you were raised as a mouth-breather.

swenglishexpat said...

Wow, you definitely have some decisions to make. Don't you sometimes wish somebody could decide for you? Freedom to decide equals effort and work, I guess. Recipe: Make a list of requirements/demands. Then go about it in the same way as you eat an elephant, one small piece at a time.

oreneta said...

JG, glad to hear you are feeling better, nothing like having to work when you feel like crap. So sorry.

Hula, I'll go by tomorrow and see what I can get....

Nomad, I didn't feel bad, jealous and wistful....then again, the man reminded me that I said the same thing when we were on the boat in the Bahamas and we found out you were moving to France...grass greener and all that......you are stupendous....it will all be good.

Beth....hope it works out indeed.....

Lynda, seems like a marketing resell, and for the time being a very funky teenager's room! I am feeling more optimistic and less like singing this chorus from "The All American Rejects" every time I think of them:

When you see my face
I hope it gives you hell, I hope it gives you hell
When you walk my way
I hope it gives you hell, I hope it gives you hell

Swenglishexpat.....hope this proves easier than eating an elephant one bite a time

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