Editor's note: This is the second in a series of stories exploring changes southern Kenai Peninsula residents are making, why they're making them and what those changes may mean.

By McKibben Jackinsky

Staff writer

One look at the massive, fortress-like house with three wind turbines outside the front door and it's easy to see the title of homeowner Robin Lipinski's newly published book "Signs of a Free Mind" says it all.

At a time when people are seriously considering smaller, energy efficient homes, Lipinski and his artist wife, Margareta, are headed in the opposite direction. Located north of Anchor Point, the house they're building is big, 11,240-square-feet to be exact. Energy needed to keep the home warm, lit and running smoothly comes from a system Lipinski designed that allows wind and sun to create all the power that's needed and then some.

When looking for a place to relocate from Montana several years ago, a realtor cautioned Lipinski away from Anchor Point, describing it as a community of "redneck loggers."

"I was home," Lipinski said, laughing at the memory. "I'm a logger from Montana."

Lipinski also served in the U.S. Marines and the Coast Guard. The couple met in Margareta's homeland of Sweden, where she was employed in the U.S. Embassy.

Land purchased by the Lipinskis faces the Sterling Highway, two sides are bordered by ravines that naturally drain groundwater and the fourth side drops down to the beach. A point overlooking Cook Inlet, with a sweeping view of three volcanoes Augustine, Iliamna and Redoubt became the spot chosen for the couple's home.

Stockpiling enough wood required the help of local logger Marc Roderick. With 24 log-truck loads of local spruce, Lipinski had what he needed.

The structure is modestly described as a three-bedroom, four-bathroom house. Wood, stone, steel and glass are the Lipinskis' favored and often-used construction materials.

Stairs descend to a basement, under which is a foundation strong enough to support a 20-story building, according to Lipinski.

The above ground, rough-finished spruce walls zigzag, rather than create a square or rectangle outline. Wall and floor space provides ample room for Margareta's paintings, her silver work and the works of other artists the couple has collected during more than 20 years of marriage.

Patting an upright log grayed from exposure to the elements, Lipinski referenced frequently shopping at "Home Depot." Translated, Lipinski is referring to items harvested from the beach.

The first floor includes two bedrooms, each with private bathrooms, and a large mudroom. Windows are small, aimed toward the inlet for a sense of privacy. Railings for stairways are works-in-progress, with uprights made of diamond willow and antlers.

Up a floor, bigger windows allow more daylight. Here, Margareta will have room to pursue all her artistic interests jewelry making, pottery and painting. A roomy kitchen and pantry are planned for this floor, opening onto dining and living room areas that face the expansive view.

"This was my first piece of stained glass," Lipinski said, pointing out a conglomeration of glass and found objects set in an opening between the kitchen and dining room.

Aware of the contrast between this fragile, artistic expression and the large, solid wood house he is building, Lipinski adds, "The wife's art is rubbing off on me."

An area for a waterfall and pool is tucked between the kitchen and Margareta's studio. Its purpose is two-fold: increasing humidity in the electrically heated interior and offering the soothing sound of flowing water.

One floor up, a master suite is destined to take advantage of the view. Glass doors open onto the top side of an 18-inch thick roof that gets its thickness from six inches of reinforced concrete, six inches of high-density, blown-in foam and six inches of wood. Here will go a hot tub, as well as a clothesline so freshly laundered clothes can soak up the scent of the outdoors.

The last flight of stairs leads to a single room occupying the uppermost level of the house. Above the treetops, it is encircled in windows through which sunlight pours.

"This is for plants," Lipinski said. "Hundreds of plants."

When will the house be finished?

"I'm an optimist," Lipinski said. "When people ask that, I say, 'This year.' If they ask again next year, I'll say, 'This year.'"

When asked why he's building such a large house for the two of them, Lipinski's answer is, "I always do things for the future. If I die, my wife can sell it."

Margareta isn't considering selling the house.

"It's the kind of castle I dreamed about when I was a girl," she said. "I never thought I'd have a house like this."

Providing power for the house are three wind turbines, affectionately nicknamed by Lipinski "Thor," "Thunder" and "Titan." Generating his own electricity is a dream dating back to childhood days pedaling a bicycle. It also is the result of years of reading and research.

Made by Proven Energy, the turbines spin almost noiselessly. They are built to handle winds up to 150 miles an hour. As wind increases in strength, the spring-loaded blades flex.

Power produced by the turbines is stored in 24 2-volt, single-cell batteries, each weighing 300 pounds.

In addition to the wind turbines' capabilities, Lipinski has installed 36 solar panels on top of the five-story house. The end result is more power than the house can use, but Lipinski didn't stop there. A self-described survivalist, he prepared for the "worst case scenario: no sun, no wind, end of the world," by installing a 35-kilowatt generator, complete with a tank of fuel on which he has inscribed "500 gallons of dead dinosaur."

"It's overkill," Lipinski said, again with a laugh.

Overkill, perhaps, but the stamp of creativity and self-sufficiency making the home is a dream come true for Lipinski and his wife.

As he writes in his book, "You must set your mind on 'manual control,' and not cruise control, a mode we all mostly run on 95 percent of the time"

It's the sign of a free mind.

McKibben Jackinsky can be reached at mckibbenjackinsky.@homernews.com.