I've blogged before how absolutely GREEN with envy I am about author Mary Kay Andrews' new beach house, The Breeze Inn. It's bad enough she has access to her place 12 months of the year -- but now I have to get brochures in the mail, telling me how I can make our family cottage available to me 12 months of the year.
I didn't recognize the name of the address on the hand-written envelope that arrived the other day. Was it a fan letter from someone who'd tracked me down? Nope. It was from a construction firm. Do I want to just rent their equipment to do the job myself? (Can you see me driving a mini dump truck or an excavator, because I sure can't.) If not, then I could hire them to jack up the cottage, dig a foundation and the next thing you know, I've got a million dollar house on the water. (Without the million dollars to pay them to jack the place up -- dig a very big hole and put in a foundation.
Or--why don't I hire them to put in a new breakwall. We really need one -- but then I don't own a boat. We didn't even put the dock out last year.
Would I like to do this? Yes. Is it ever likely I'll do this? No. Our neighbor took a cottage and converted it into a year-round home. He told us it was the biggest mistake of his life. He told us what he should have done is tear down the place and start from scratch.
I wouldn't want to do that. I have nice memories of our little cottage, of parties and picnics, hot summer days, cool clammy nights. But the thought of being able to spend winter weekends there is really, REALLY appealing.
Luckily I don't have the kind of money to even consider it. Instead, maybe I'll buy a new kitchen trash can.
With a foot lever.
It's almost as good, right?
