The more use you can make of a given space, the more efficient your planning. The entrance hall can often double as the telephone booth. Multiple use of space is an evidence of good planning. Consider the human body: if a separate organ were provided for each function, we wouldn't be able to carry them all around with us. Think of the mouth and its many uses. Aside from its principal uses as a base for lipstick and for kissing, it is used for talking, for sucking and blowing, for emergency breathing, including snoring, for biting off thread, for taking in food and grinding it up preparatory to swallowing it, for holding pins in sewing and nails in shingling, for forming a smile, a grin, or a grimace, for laughing, clucking and whistling, and too rarely to say a kind word. The Living Room When you pass from the hall into the living room, what kind of room do you like to be in? There are almost as many types of ideas as to the size, shape, colors, and uses of the living room as there are people. Some have the idea that a living room is similar to the old-fashioned parlor that was shut up all week and was opened only on Sunday, was usually musty, and generally unused and uncomfortable. Others go to the other extreme and think of the living room as a place where the children study, where people lounge and read the paper or the latest magazine. A living room is to be lived in, isn't it? Oh, to get away from this bedlam! How often have you thought that when the children get to playing Indians and cowboys, or some other equally exciting and din-producing game! A house needs a quiet spot, a den, a library, a family room, or some other place where some members of the family can escape from the rest of the gang at times. A quiet retreat from the din of living. There is usually the need for more than one area of living: the children want to look at the TV; Dad wants to read his paper; Mother wants to telephone; the older brother has to study and do his homework for high school; friends drop in for a short call; someone comes to see Dad on some kind of business. These things must all go on simultaneously. They can't very well all be in the same room at the same time. Open planning is fine, but it has its limitations. Some families have hobbies that they work on at home, whereas others are content to read the newspaper, turn on the television, and drop off to sleep in an easy chair. If a quiet corner can be found for a writing desk or if a well-lighted alcove with an easy chair and a bookcase can be managed, the livability of the house will be greatly enhanced. The living room must not be the principal hallway through the house, although careless planners often make it just that. Every living room should have a point of interest aside from the television set: a fireplace, a picture window, a mural, an interesting grouping of elegant furniture, a music center, or something that reflects the tastes, personality, or interests of the owner. It is a good idea to use a mortgage calculator if you decide to purchase land or a property.
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