Typical log home company advertisements in popular log home magazines talk about the "log home lifestyle" or "it's not just a home, it's a lifestyle." What does this mean? What is "the" log home lifestyle?

It's often difficult to discuss the particulars of log home living without also talking about where the log home is located. It all goes together. A house on the side of beautiful mountain certainly offers a different lifestyle than the same house in a city.

Therefore, the log home lifestyle is actually induced by the combination of the attributes of the house and its location. If the location is one of natural beauty and serenity that creates a feeling of closeness to nature and escape from the pressures of everyday life, the house should complement and enhance those feelings. Everything should fit together as part of the lifestyle "package."

For many people, logs and stone represent a return to a simpler natural lifestyle. Log homes are often described as warm, cool, quiet, cozy, relaxing, enchanting, secure, or comfortable. Often, a pleasant childhood memory or experience in a vacation log cabin or log lodge helps build these kinds of feelings.

A log home's features and furnishings also contribute to the lifestyle. A screened porch overlooking a babbling mountain stream, spacious ceilings with exposed timber beams, roaring fires in a natural-stone fireplace, a wall of large windows offering a view of the morning mist over the lake, comfortable "country" furniture that invites a long restful sit, a rustic staircase climbing to a cozy loft, large rocking chairs on the front porch from which to view the sunsets, and maybe a relaxing hot tub that, together with a glass of mountain wine, dissolves all the troubles of the day.

Many people start with a small weekend cabin and soon realize that they love the lifestyle so much that they want to live it permanently - a kind of "try-before-you-buy" approach.

Log homes can also be considered a form of connection with ancestors who may have lived in similar structures long ago - a way to turn back time and live a bit of the old lifestyle - with modern comforts and conveniences, of course.

Al Hearn is owner and operator of http://www.LogHomeAdvisor.com, a web site for log home enthusiasts. The site provides comprehensive information, resources, and advice about log home planning and building.