Dear Reader Column 10-20-05

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Dear Reader,

I've been daydreaming about staying in a house by the ocean. No work schedules, no deadlines, no responsibilities, for an entire month.

I know this house well. I've never actually been there, but my "house by the ocean" daydream is very familiar to me. It's the fantasy that I always start thinking about when I feel like I need to regroup. It's a great daydream. I've added a few new things over the years, but it always begins with a friend saying, "Suzanne, you look like you need to get away. Why don't you spend next month at my beach house? No one is using it, and I just put a new spa in the bathroom." (The spa is one of the new things I've added to my daydream.)

Ah, the use of a friend's ocean front property for free. And of course, my paycheck keeps showing up in my bank account, even though I'm not working for 30 days. See what a great daydream this is? Well, it gets even better.

My friend's beach house has a bungalow, eclectic feel to it. Nothing really matches, no two dishes are alike, yet they look like they were made for each other. Unusual objects show up in unexpected places throughout the house, but yet you know it took the talents of a high-priced interior decorator to give it that disheveled, expensive-feel-to-it look.

The feather bed is covered with a handmade quilt. Six pillows are propped against the antique wooden headboard. Each pillow offers a different firmness for a perfect night's sleep. The kitchen is loaded with gourmet appliances--not that I'll have to do any cooking, unless I want to, because a chef shows up late in the afternoon and cooks dinner for me every evening. The main room of the house, the side facing the ocean, has a set of doors that slide back and completely opens up the room to the outdoors. I can hear the rush of the surf.

You'd love it. Feel free to borrow my house on the beach, anytime.

Thanks for reading with me. It's so good to read with friends.

Suzanne Beecher
Suzanne@DearReader.com 
www.DearReader.com

AUTHORBUZZ: free stuff, tours, personal stories. This week's authors: Heather Graham, "Ghost Walk"; Lynn Sholes & Joe Moore, "The Grail Conspiracy"; Paul Levine, "Solomon vs. Lord"; and Gil Smolin, "Reign of the Rat". Go to: http://authorbuzz.com/dearreader

Comments

[Norma Dulin]

With all the hurrcaines out there, are you sure that would be a dream vacation or a nightmare?

[Cheryl Brooks]

Hi Suzanne,
How would you like a new best friend to come and share that month at the beach house? My daydream is very similar to yours but the house is close enough to the beach so you can see and hear the ocean. I love your column!
Cheryl