Big Houses Bother Me

Yesterday out on the golf course I was once again confronted with one of my pet peeves -- big houses. In this beautiful wide-open valley I live in, lined with foothills that stretch to the horizon, I am noticing more and more...big houses.

I don't mean 4 bedroom, 2 1/2 bathroom 2000 square feet family homes -- maybe one story, maybe two -- where each kid gets their own room and the extra one is an office. I can live with that (and I still think that's a pretty big house). I'm talking about those monoliths...those big, boxy houses on steroids, with super-vaulted entry ways, two story ceilings, bonus rooms, attic rooms, closets you could sleep a small family in -- inflated with air as much as floor space.

And my guess is a lot of them don't house more than four people, if that many. They're on the newer golf courses, certainly (interestingly, the "mini-mansions" on many of the older golf courses aren't nearly the size, but are still substantial), but they are also multiplying like rabbits in subdivisions all across the valley -- ironically, on smaller than postage-stamp size yards. At least I can't complain they're taking up a lot of land, but this disproportionality makes their size even more obvious and ridiculous.

The eyesore factor is not my main complaint. It's the pure excessiveness for no reason, and what I assume to be a significant energy drain too -- not to mention the materials (natural resources) involved in building these designless piles of wood and ego.

Come on! How much room does one family need? And how many needy people could you effectively house in something that size? I'm for high density housing -- enough rooms for all your needs but not so many of such a size that you're greedily taking up too much room in the world.

I think there should be a square footage limit on houses -- based on occupancy. And if you want to go beyond the limits, your house needs to contribute to its own energy usage -- solar panels, windmills, whatever.

When I win the lottery and get rich, no big house for me. Maybe a couple of little houses in places I'd like to live -- to satisfy my need for year round nice golf weather. Since I'd only be in them half the year each, they could be even smaller than the "average" house. I'd do my bit for the environment.

But these big houses -- they REALLY bother me. It's just not right.