Well, comfort, for one. Many vacation-home owners seem intent on teaching their children and guests a lesson about how things were before modernity, and thus outfit their getaways with creaky beds and unreliable showers. Civilization, for another. The invitations I've received to second homes throughout the Northeast—which I do apreciate, really—have always been a cause of anxiety. I spend the drive fretting about the availability of the two essentials for a decent summer weekend: air conditioning and the Sunday Times.

Of course, during the summer-home heyday, expressing such sentiments marked you as a loser.What, you only have one home? Second homes are still popular. According to the NAR, the U.S. has 8.1 million vacation homes and another 40.5 million investment properties. But in this period of deleveraging and simplification, in this age of the "staycation," there's no shame in sticking to a single home.

This summer, I'll finally be able to rusticate in my acre of BSH (bourgeois suburban heaven) without apology or self-consciousness. Plenty of wildlife traipses through the woods in our backyard—deer, coyote, wild turkey, the stray hedge-fund manager scrounging for food. And our pool, hammock, basketball hoop and (new this year!) trampoline provide plenty of outdoor diversions. The air conditioning will be cranking (don't worry about the planet—we buy wind-generated electricity), and the Times arrives reliably in the driveway at 7 a.m. every day, including Sunday.

Gross is NEWSWEEK 's economics editor.

© 2009