We spent many summer days at various beaches along the Atlantic Ocean during my childhood. My parents took us out of town for vacations every chance they got. Sometimes we drove a couple of hours to get to an ocean beach or a lakeside cabin. Other times we took the train or flew to someplace exotic, like the Bahamas or Puerto Rico. Usually our vacations were centered around access to water – lakes, rivers, bays or oceans. Worst case, a nice swimming pool at the hotel.

We almost never got a hotel room for the beach – my parents would rent a large house right on the beach or maybe a 1 block walk from the beach in high season. My mom liked having a kitchen when we traveled, although we did eat out a lot, too. Dad always said that a vacation should mean no cooking for my mom, but many times it was more practical to have breakfast and lunch right there, then a nice dinner out together as the sun went down.

If you have seen the beach houses along the New Jersey shore, you know they are a mixture of sizes, styles and materials. Some are even like this photo of a dilapidated house that one of my friends shared.

When I see an old house that has been abandoned to the elements, I always wonder what happened to the people who built this house? Why is someone letting the house fall apart? Is it up for sale or is it a part of an inheritance dispute? Is the person too busy with an important job or large family to worry about taking care of the house?

I have no idea where this old house might be, but the fact that someone installed boards across the lower level door is puzzling. There are two windows with no glass in them on the same level. Putting a handful of boards across the door is not going to stop anyone from getting inside if they want to. I wonder if the locals tell children that it is haunted? Do teenage lovers sneak in through the windows and have some privacy that is so hard to find when you are young and in love?