The Master Plan

One of our first tasks upon arriving in the Philippines is to go find a nice piece of land, preferably in a commutable distance from Brent. We need the land as a place to take the dogs, first of all, but more importantly it is the essential part of the "Master Plan."

In the "Master Plan" we will build a sustainable farm to provide fresh food for our own table (how nice to know exactly where your food comes from!). The farm is Stephen's job. For me, the pool and farmhouse is the bigger draw, sitting in my lawn chair sipping margaritas and sidecars (delicious--rum, triple sec, and lime juice!). The sketch of the farmhouse here is what Stephen whipped up on his computer. It is really rendered 3-D and you can take a tour through it, but on this still image you can see the general plan is for something open, airy, and made with local materials as much as possible.

Our inspiration comes partly from some of the fabulous homes displayed in the book Tropical Living, some of which was photographed by friends of ours (which we didn't know until we bought it). The places are pretty high rent, too rich for our blood, but they can give us great ideas. The spectacular place on the cover is one of our favorites, one of the Ayala family's estates (one of many--they are among the richest folks in the world) in Puerto Gallera (a two-hour ferry ride from Manila).

The plan also includes building a natural swimming pool, which we will have to adapt to the tropical climate. The general idea is to not have to use chlorine and harsh chemicals, but still have a same and clean place to swim. This is mostly accomplished through the use of a deliberately-engineered but all-natural symbiosis of animals and plants. This is a part of his new study of permaculture, a movement of sustainable agriculture where crops and animals are designed to support and help each other grow through sheer beauty of design, like creating your own ecosystem.

All for our dogs...spoiled cads, they are.