25 SUNSET LAKE RD (The Maples)

Jim McCormick

How I ended up here:

I had been coming up to the lake to visit Fred & Lisanne almost since they bought their property and just loved the community and the setting. I had been living a pretty transient life between work and retirement over the last 25 years and, during Covid, decided to put down some more permanent roots. It turned out to be perfect timing when Neal & Agneta had decided to move up to Lebanon to be closer to their family. 

It happened fast. A quick visit and tour of the house with Neal, a 5 minute discussion on terms and a handshake and we were done. The two years since has done nothing but reinforce that it was the right decision.

Neal and Agneta Brown
A brief history of life on 25 Sunset Lake Road  

March 2002 - July  2009

How we ended up here:
When our daughter and her family moved to Peterborough in the late 90's, we decided to sell our home in Northboro, Massachusetts and re-settle in the Monadnock region.  To this end, in November of 1999, we purchased the lakeside cottage owned by Albert and Carol Atwood of Terryville, CT. 

Thanks to the Parrotts, a year-round residence became possible:
The Atwood cottage was not habitable, nor was its so-called septic system acceptable. In May of 2000, neighbors Hilda and Charles Parrott sold us a one-acre parcel immediately across Sunset Lake Rd. from the Atwood cottage. This "Parrott" piece was formally annexed to the Atwood parcel to form the single 25 Sunset Lake Rd. property currently registered in the Greenfield tax records.     

 In the Spring of 2000 the old Atwood cottage was demolished, and a plan was developed to build a year-round home on its "footprint". In the Fall of 2000 and the Winter of 2001 we built a post-and-beam styled clapboard-sided cottage, exploiting the annexed Parrott parcel to locate an artesian well and septic system, and, a year later, to erect a matching garage-workshop.

Life on the Lake:
In March 2002 we moved in and joined the ranks of the lake's other year-round residents - the Jill and Ted Butler family, Dick Eaton, and the various tenants of Linda Bruno's place.

 As we settled in, we found that there was much to learn about the unwritten "code" of neighborly behavior.  For example, take the rule governing "skinny dipping".  If it weren't for the watchful eyes of our neighbors Sylvia Robbins and the Geers - Russ and Charlotte - we never would have known that "skinny dipping" is not permitted before 10 PM!  Nor would we have discovered that one doesn't pick more than one's share of the north shore's unclaimed blueberries - whatever that "share" might be.  Like Frost's "fences", good rules good neighbors make!

 Now, after 7 years here, we have finally mastered the rules and become committed members of the Sunset Lake community.  Living on the shore of this little gem and experiencing its annual journey through the four seasons have been sources of great joy for us.

 A (tongue-in-cheek) observation of a year-round resident:
There are two times of the year which are most eagerly anticipated by this family.  The first is Memorial Day when the summer folks arrive to cheer us up and rouse us from our long Winter's funk. The other is Labor Day when these same folks leave and our funk can once again be restored.