When we lived in Maryland, The Big Daddy worked for The National Institutes of Health. Before you think it was some cush government job, let me tell you that we moved there on a salary of $24K a year and that’s not much anywhere, but a mere pittance on the east coast with a new baby. A year into it we qualified for rental assistance from the county, and every month a small check would come to the landlord to be used towards our rent. 47%ers, you could say and grateful for it. We were broke for all five years we lived there, but they were some of the most memorable years of my life.
Mark worked with a technician who had a house in Annapolis……….right on the bay and she invited a bunch of her coworkers over for a summer crab party. She hated bridges so thank God we didn’t have to cross this monster which gave me the heebie jeebies every time we went to the beach……………
She was married to an architect. When the house next door to them became available they bought it because of the view, started their new project and sold their house when it was finished.
She wanted to be able to see the water when she was sitting in the living room, and so when the foundation was poured she brought over her lawn chair and sat down. Nope, she said, can’t see it. Three times they poured the foundation before she gave her stamp of approval. I thought that was a little nutty until I sat down in the living room and saw that beautiful Chesapeake Bay.
They had a screened-in porch with tables set up and brown paper covering them. The crabs and corn were dumped on each table and the beer was flowing as fast as the conversation. It was a dinner party that felt like a summer vacation day and like all good vacations I didn’t want it to end.
The whole house was built so you could see the water wherever you were while inside, but the coolest thing was her garden room. Off in the corner of the living room was a small, glass enclosed potting shed where she grew and potted her plants. The floor was concrete and had a drain so she could hose the dirt down. In a different house this might have seemed odd, but in this house it was perfect.
The house with the lady who had a bridge phobia, who knew how to throw a great crabfest, and was smart enough to realize that if you surround yourself with people, the sea and a garden you’ll have everything you need.