The building craze is over, but is a new craze underfoot: subditions? The housing boom lasted so long, it foiled us into a malaise of thinking that it was normal. “Oh yes, we’ll be breaking ground on another addition next week,” was spoken at many a dinner conversation. That or,...
Surviving Snow & Ice: GETTING AROUND
The best design for getting around during the season of snow and ice is to set yourself up so that your mobility is as safe and easy as possible. For starters, try not to be out and about when conditions are treacherous. This means having what you need before the...
Surviving Snow & Ice: NEW HOME CONSTRUCTION
This article comes full circle to end where it began, with universal design. When designing for the full spectrum of life, universal design is most easily and inexpensively accomplished at the onset, not mid-way or as a retrofit. When building or modifying a home, one can do much to make...
Surviving Snow & Ice: PREPARING FOR WINTER
PREPARING FOR WINTER Overcoming the inconveniences of snow requires preparation. This series of posts provides checklists to help you create and prepare for a better winter experience. The posts in this series are: Universal Design for Winter, Preparing For Winter, Snow Removal, Getting Around, and, New Home Construction. Preparing For...
More than Your House … Your Money!
Another area of self evaluation will be your economic forecast. Most simply, will there be enough financial resources for you to live the way you wish to live? Managing your assets always mattered, however, the retirement model you grew up with has little remaining practical value. To retire at age...
Moving In … With Renewed Purpose
Topics: Blog, Universal Design
Universal Design Resource is completing a year-long transition into a new website. What better time than now to recreate the mission for this blog? The blog at Universal Design Resource is open to multiple authors – that includes you. Like most blogging, it is a place for opinion to be...
NAHB’s course: Universal Design/Build
This blog is an announcement and the body of text that follows is copied from NAHB’s website: UNIVERSAL DESIGN/BUILD This two-day course focuses on integrated home design features and product specifications that account for client differences due to circumstance, physical characteristics, health issues and aging. Universal Design/Build expands on the...
Nature & Urban Gardens
Stepping back from a focused view on universal design, I see that there are other ways to achieve an environment that disappears the effects of many conditions that would otherwise be considered disabling. What is it and how is it possible? A new and beautifully illustrated book, Restorative Commons: Creating...
New Baby vs New Elder
A bit of a rant today: It’s getting to be years ago that I was looking at bookshelves filled with books on having a baby, bringing a baby home, what to do with a baby when it’s home, what to expect next; what it’s expressing and when, how-to this and...
Malia & Sasha Obama
Malia and Sasha Obama are in the White House (almost) and one of the places they will be making friends is in the kitchen. There will be no shortage of staff ready to serve up a hot coco and a fresh baked cookie. And, much to their delight, there won’t...