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Ultimately, not everyone will make it home.
Below, read the opening pages ofThe Astrology House(out now).
This weekends group, in particular, were likely taught the opposite lesson.
I imagine their teachers jauntily lecturing that you do not have to accept what the world gives you.
That they can nay, they must keep strategizing and negotiating until they receive exactly what they want.Carpe diem.
They have no idea what a privilege it is to live like that.
Adams wife, Aimee, and Margots husband, Ted, have similar pedigrees.
Ted works at Goldman Sachs with another guest, Rick.
Her husband, Joe, is a local politician with his sights set on the White House.
As charismatic as he is ruthless, according to the news.
It rolls six inches to the east.
A slope could indicate a rotted joist, I know that.
Andi would point out that knowing the issue isnt the same as fixing it.
Erics status as my ex-boyfriend makes it complicated to call in favors from my contractor.
Confirming foam (or preferably latex) pillows, my brother is allergic to feathers.
Instead they learned they sleep better with hypoallergenic pillows.
I leave her text unread.
Well deal with it when she arrives.
No matter who my guests are, I always maintain a pleasant smile and an even tone.
Thats the unspoken code between guest and host.
They demand things, I nod, and we call it vacation, not entitlement.
It didnt take a building inspector to see that the 7,500-square-foot house was uninhabitable.
The windows were broken, the roof sloped, and most of the shingles and siding were missing.
You get what you get and you dont get upset.
I never heard from my father again.
His youngest daughter was legally an adult.
His support obligations, as tenuous as theyd ever been, were over.
Happy birthday to me.
I didnt sell the house as land per the suggestion of my fathers hack lawyer who handled the transfer.
I got a job waitressing at Claudios Seafood Restaurant while Andi consumed YouTube tutorials on plumbing and drywall.
Once again, it wasnt enough.
And it got worse.
That winter, a pipe burst in the house, gushing and threatening to flood the basement.
It was a bigger job than we could handle, and money was tight.
He scoffed and hung up, but called back an hour later.
On a lark, I combined my roles into one.
The house was booked every single day that summer.
With one celebrity sighting a few years later, the Stars Harbor Astrological Retreat was an official success.
I have learned to persevere in a way none of my guests would when faced with my challenges.
Ive ignored messages from the Universe that I should curl up in a ball and surrender my dreams.
What will happen, and what can I do about it?
The front gate chimes, alerting me that the first guests have arrived.
I cannot afford to be a coward.
Excerpted from THE ASTROLOGY HOUSE by Carinn Jade.
Copyright 2024 by Carinn Jade.
Reprinted by permission of Atria Books, an Imprint of Simon & Schuster, LLC.
