We are celebrating our fifty-something anniversary in our family cabin. Love the "boat coat" and will implement that with the next generation. I have my own preserver that is the best I could find; it fits me and I won't let anyone wear it -- even though, or perhaps because, I am the better swimmer. I am so pleased that everyone understands the treasure that this knotty pine cabin provides. Nothing should be thrown away, just repurposed. I even like the orange countertops, but agree that there are better choices. I would just ask for ones that are level and actually drain towards the sink as in "drainboard." All of this fuss over the kitchen is amusing because I don't cook at the cabin -- or anywhere else. If there is to be a lot of cooking, I would move any sink to the best view in the house. Just kidding. It is true that the freezer is used less in a vacation home than in a year round home. And the kind of bunk beds that are full beds on the bottom and twin beds on top, work in any attic space. Trundle beds, and captains beds; good beds, as we grow older are needed. We even installed a full size washer and dryer in an even smaller cabin; their tops provide additional food preparation space. It is said in our famly that in order to be invited to the cabin, one must be married, or at least betrothed to one of us, or be a blood relative. In that order. Anyone who does not intend to marry one of is not invited; divorce us, and you will never see the cabin again. And if you don't like the cabin, well, find another spouse. Cabins are for families first, and guests second. Climate and personal use dictate what is and what is not left in the cabin for long. If there is freezing weather and the cabin is not heated, don't worry about leaving liquor, but be sure that sodas are removed. Alcohol does not freeze; soda cans explode. Leave a radio on to discourage mice. It has taken 50 years to keep the varmints out. Every year there is a new pest; the year of the ant, the year of the spider, the year of the bee. Our stash of containers to move food 35 miles from the grocery store to the cabin is getting larger each year even though the availability of delicious and nutritious food increases. The trip to civilization is needed. Ditto for flashlights, matches, assorted tools; I wonder if the lighting has passed inspection? I did not see any smoke or carbon monoxide detectors. Critical equipment. Remote locations are where those noisy, pneumatic toilets make sense. As well as fans. Also useful is a gasoline powered chainsaw for removing downed trees from the road away or into the cabin. Shovels in the car for forest fires. Garbage bags. Lots of garbage bags. It sounds as if there is a need for a chest freezer in the basement, and maybe a refrigerator for drinks. Upstairs can be "bar" sized. Freezers are good for fresh caught fish. Ice. The kitchen is so small -- I suggest that a good barbecue may be the main source of protein cooked to order. Only in really bad weather will there be need for an indoor bar stool -- people will be on the porch enjoying the lake view with their coffee in the morning, their soft drink at lunch, and their preferred beverage in the evening. Paper plates, or sit down dinners? Is there a picnic table outside? A beach firepit? The main floor kitchen appears to be a catering kitchen, and there may be need for a larger outdoor kitchen in the near future. Larger tables on the porches are useful for group cooking. After moving the refrigerator to the opposite side of the kitchen, I would use the cabin for a year, and then determine priorities for kitchen remodeling. If you remodel a kitchen, you have to cook in it.