I left my house in Columbus, Georgia at 5:15 am and arrived at the Days’ Cottages at 12:15–7 hours door to door. I flew into Boston, a rented convertible waiting for me, but the forecast was for wind, rain, and cold–all six days. And it was pouring as I ducked into the rental car office to change the convertible to an SUV.
Other than being disappointed I wouldn’t be biking into Provincetown for lunch, the forecast couldn’t have made me happier. There’s so much pressure to do things when the sun is out. And I feel best in cool weather–the prospect of 55 in June was like some kind of miracle.
I had biked to these cottages before and seen them from the outside, but I really had no idea what to expect from the inside. I knew there was no TV–which I was looking forward to. I packed my portable speakers, but I never used them, preferring the sound of the waves.
I also knew from the web that all the cottages were exactly alike inside: a living room with a comfortable cot (that turned out to be a sofa), and ten windows, of which five overlook the bay; two bedrooms each with a double bed; a kitchen fully equipped for cooking with a gas stove, refrigerator, and continuous hot water; and a bathroom with shower. “Also furnished with each cottage is bed linen, dinnerware with cutlery, gas, and electric lights.” [emphasis mine]
I wanted to stay there at least once.
But I fell in love–with the bare walls, the spare furnishings, the lack of things, the fixtures.
A fixture is defined as:
something securely, and usually permanently, attached or appended, as to a house….
*click on a photo to enlarge or to see as slideshow
Other posts in the series:
- journal + photos + summer + preview
- cottage writing room
- different ways of seeing: the cottage
- light-from the cottage
- the day the sun came out: at the cottage
Enjoy your stay. Looks like a great place and me, living in Boston, could access them easily during the year. May do that next year, perhaps in the off season!
You could get to them easily, Tracy. Unfortunately, they are boarded up during the winter. See http://catchingdays.cynthianewberrymartin.com/2012/02/27/winter-days/.
And I should have said I was there the first week in June-now I’m back home missing my little cottage.
I’d love the reprieve of a no sun day (or week) too. There’s something about being able to just stay in and hunker down to read, write, reflect or journal. Or simply do nothing. Or walk outside when others avoid it. To me, all of the above spell “true retreating.”
And that’s just what I did, Debra–read, wrote, and walked on the beach with a sweater under my rain jacket and ultimately, the hood on my head
: )
Oh my goodness, I really want a week there now. Or two. I agree with Debra about hunker-down time. But I can’t help but wonder: What did you eat?
Well…there’s a wonderful little grocery store that has just about everything across from the cottages–you can see a photo of it on the days’ cottages website. For breakfast, yogurt and fruit or a cranberry muffin. For lunch and dinner, sometimes I drove into Provincetown and ate lobster or ordered a lobster roll to take back to eat looking at the ocean. One rainy night I made tomato soup with milk, crunched saltine crackers and shredded cheddar cheese on top….
Love.
: )
Have a wonderful time. I hope that at the end of your stay you feel full, like you got to have a long long chat with a dear friend. Enjoy the solitude.
Thanks, Tina. I did.
You should come to Maine next time if you like cool, wet summers. How wonderful, though, to stay in an inspirational place. The simple fixtures are especially appealing. This is life pared down to the basics, without distractions. Listen to the sea and write away!
“life pared down to the basics”–yes, and it felt just right.