Wendy Harmer was interested in the architecture of the old surf living club and then compared that to where she now lives, on Sydney's northern beaches where surf club buildings aren't so much having a ''dialogue'' with the landscape. (www.smh.com.au)
After a long and detailed blitz on all this Wendy exclaims: "I'd say it was none of my business how surf clubs manage their books and buildings, except that as a person who loves our beaches it is my business, and it should be yours, too."
And that's just it, it caught my attention, that beach houses have a very different standard to them and that's part and parcel of the fun visiting a beach house. Many Australians at some time in their childhood, had the experience of spending a few days, perhaps a week or even two, in a beach house.
It was either rented for that time slot, given as a gift by a friend, or perhaps even owned by their parents. The traditional beach house was certainly not brick-veneer, anything but. The rooms were set out plainly, the kitchen was quite satisfactory, the dining and lounge were adjoining and the toilet and bathroom generally as one.
As the years rolled on so too did beach house entertainment. There were still good books to read, but now there was a television and in more recent years wi-fi for the computer, I should say iPhones, iPads and Tablets.
The great attraction of the beach house is three fold quite apart from the above.
The beach house is somewhere else. Its the emblem of getting away. A change is as good as a holiday. The beach house satisfies that itching spot that demands a fresh space.
The beach house means long walks in the sand and the surf, a place to regenerate those batteries, a place to talk to loved ones, enjoy the kids, be a family, have no agenda, smell the roses. Studies not surprisingly show that those who have a beach house experience spend more time on the beach in their limited stay than locals do all year round.
The beach house experience brings us back to a more basic or Spartan way of living and life without the rat race, without the pressure, without the multi-tasking of every moment of the day. The beach house allows us to ponder on our great grand-parents life style and indeed their well thumbed bed side table Bibles.
Laguna Quays Respite – beach house
The Well-Being Australia Laguna Quays Respite cottage on Repulse Bay which was opened in 2011 for missionaries and church personnel (on the front line as it were) has these three ingredients in spades (as they say).
Recently Mr Basil Sellers requested local developer John Lyons do an audit on the cottage to see what might need to be undertaken to make it a little more user friendly for the missionaries who visit.
There proved to be very little. A hand rail perhaps, a veranda gate's hinges replaced, a couple of fluro light covers, some mould on the bathroom ceiling, and similar items.
The big one we requested was a concrete pad beside the cottage where it becomes boggy and very muddy when wet. Perhaps a car port down the back yard.
In essence, as John Lyons wrote to Basil Sellers: "The house is most suitable for the Spartan yet comfortable lifestyle".
There you have it - the perfect beach house experience for missionary respite, a place to get away, restore those batteries. Enquiries are welcome – Dr Mark Tronson, Laguna Quays Respite timeout@bushorchestra.com 0487 245 207
Dr Mark Tronson is a Baptist minister (retired) who served as the Australian cricket team chaplain for 17 years (2000 ret) and established Life After Cricket in 2001. He was recognised by the Olympic Ministry Medal in 2009 presented by Carl Lewis Olympian of the Century. He has written 24 books, and enjoys writing. He is married to Delma, with four adult children and grand-children.
Mark Tronson's archive of articles can be viewed at www.pressserviceinternational.org/mark-tronson.html