Opening Up the Cottage

"Oh, to own a waterside cottage of my own" you may, on occasion, have thought.  Well, let this curmudgeon tell you, it is a decidedly mixed bag.  Yes, the view can be spectacular, and the clean air refreshing, but there is a price for all this.

When said cottage is quite far away, say on the coast of Maine, something as simple as "opening up the cottage" takes on a whole new meaning.  After all, the Maine winter is a long one.  First there's the discovery of what life forms - or worse, what new life forms - have taken up residence in your absence.  You are, after all, in the middle of nature, and goodness knows, nature certainly has unexpected surprises up its sleeve.  If you're lucky, you only unearth what the odd mouse has left behind and an impressive collection of dust.

Then there are the grounds.  Gracious, things like to grow on the coast of Maine.  I watch my sainted wife patiently feed her plants at home for good health and growth and let me tell you, their growth is nothing compared to what a good spring can do here all by itself.  Driveways need to be recleared, paths need reclaiming, trees need topping, and the healthy gardens growing in your gutters need to be removed.  Weed whacking is an industrial-strength endeavor.  Save the blackberry bushes or whack them to gain access to the trash bins?

And, of course, there are the boats. You are on the water, after all.  There is the painting, the launchings (always an adventure), and putting out the moorings (talk about heavy lifting).  

Congratulations - you have just eaten up half a week of your stay.  But is it time to relax?  Of course not: this is when all the littler things kick in - peering into the shed to see what has made a nest in there THIS year, dragging out lawn furniture, putting up the flag pole, putting the screens and screen doors on, testing the stairs to the beach to see if they still hold you (knowing full well that they age & weaken as you age and fatten).

It's a regular laugh riot, what we innocently refer to as "opening up." And bear in mind - it all has to be undone in a couple months - what joy!