A friend of mine lives right by the seaside. Last autumn, she swapped her lovely three-bedroom flat for a studio. At first, I was completely flummoxed by her choiceher old place mightve been on the cosy side, but it was brilliant!
But once she shared her reasons over a cup of tea, suddenly everything fell into place.
Ladies, you honestly wont believe it. Living in a studio has given me the sort of peace I only used to dream of. Dont get me wrong, living by the coast is marvellous! But try having a horde of relatives stuck somewhere in the Midlands, all dreaming about their annual seaside holidaypreferably free of charge. They show up in droves, whole families, and rarely bother warning you ahead of time. I mean, why would they let me know? Were family! Of course, well somehow squeeze in. It was like running a B&B without the pay. During summer, my flat was bursting at the seams. And naturally, the kindly landlady (me) had the privilege of sleeping in the kitchen. Delightful!
So, I gave up my three-bedroom palace and moved into a studio. I absolutely love it and havent looked back for a second. Finally, Ive found the perfect way to put off unwelcome guests. Now, people have to actually pause for thought before descending on me. This summer, only the distant relatives of my relativesand a friend Id invited because we hadnt caught up in agescame for a visit. The rest? Well, they rang up and announced they were on their way.
I casually gave them my new address. They didnt seem the least bit puzzled that Id moved. A few hours later, four of them turned up on my doorstep: my cousin, her husband, and their two kids.
Hello! Were here!
The look on their faces when they clocked the single room was priceless.
But we heard there are three bedrooms! We specifically brought the children along I told them they must have had some duff information, but offered up the hotel down the road.
Cant your friend move to the hotel? Im sure well all fit in somehow. Its a squeeze, but we are family, after all!
In the end, I strolled them over to the hotel myself. Id had more than enough of my home turning into a free-for-all. These days, I live in perfect peace and quietbliss at last!
