aging cynic

Mon, 07 Jul 2008 10:37:22 -0500

1. This is a real estate promotion, Westford is a Lowell suburb. The "pond" looks like an undrained marsh. If the folks like it there, God bless them. Who are we to say they're having a bad time? 2. As someone who has lived in coastal communities for years, locational decisions are a lifestyle choice. I saved up a down payment in my twenties and bought a starter house. Years of tough commutes are the price of liking what you have at your destination. People in JP, South Boston and the So. End pay far more to rent than it costs me to own in the suburbs. (My first down payment was probably 2-3 years of daily Starbucks.) 3.Some of us live in former vacation communities so we DON'T have to own 2 homes. I'm in a safe place with great beaches and neighbors but lousy sushi. We all make choices. 4. Rail lines on the North and South Shores are there because 150 years ago, people wanted to get the heck out of the city. As the middle class grew, escape from city heat became less of a luxury. 5. It's not where you are, it's who you're with. Families and friends creating memories can be done at Jamaica Pond or Revere Beach just as easily as on Nantucket.

rdcf

Sun, 06 Jul 2008 20:01:30 -0500

I think this concept is for people with more money than common sense. I can see if someone lived in a dense urban area like NYC or Toronto, even Boston and having a vacation home an hour or so away in a more rural setting, the family interviewed for the Globe article are people with a home in Tewksbury and a vacation home in Westford. That's ridiculous.

Bostonist: Giving Stay-Cation a Whole New Meaning: Summer Homes Just Across Town

aging cynic

rdcf