'Beep"

'Beep"

'Beep"

'Beep"

I struggle to open my eyes and when I do, the sun's glare from the snow hits them and I become temporarily blind. Feeling for my phone so I can shut off the alarm, I feel the edge just before I hear it drop on the hard wood floor and pray that it hasn't broken. 'Great. Just my luck."

Opening my eyes, I see the old Ferris wheel and the old-fashioned carousel just outside my window over by the Old Orchard Beach Pier. It's winter in Old ...