How long had she known me? She gave the date. For a bit I was flabbergasted. My eyes were moist and my lips trembling. Our cottage overlooks the sea, and we paused for a moment on the steps to look at the shipping in the harbor. It was a bright, spotlessly clean cottage, with white washed walls and a big sky light. The furniture consisted of some chairs and trestles. Two of the latter stood open in the center of the room and a coffin rested on them. The lid was in place but the screws had been given only a few turns and their nickled heads stuck out above the wood, which was stained dark walnut. Our lovely coffin took the place of a beautifully illustrated coffee table book. We admired it so much and knew it was a little eccentric and morbid, but what did it matter; we had no friends.