The Center Lovell Inn Contest

In a small town in Maine

Is the Center Lovell Inn

With an essay and money

You’ll have a chance to win

A beautiful place

In the winter with snow

But in the spring

The daffodils grow

On summer nights

A bon-fire is lit

Swapping stories

While around it they sit

Each room's decor

Is very unique
And all are furnished
In lovely antiques

Four poster beds
High off the ground
And a step stool
That's easily found

The old claw foot tubs

Are nice and deep

A relaxing bath

Can cause you to sleep

When it's wintertime
There are many repairs
The Inn will be closed
Both up and downstairs

But the other months

Buy wine and cheese

To eat out on the porch

Enjoying the breeze

The same people come

Almost year after year

Though they've gotten old

They'll still reappear

A restaurant on site

Serves three meals a day

The guests will order

But they’ll have to pay

With an Inn to run

And a restaurant too

Plus not knowing how

Would be real hard to do

The Inn does look nice

But what will I earn

I won't enter this contest

I'm too old to learn

By, Randee Saber 3/17/2015

 All you need is $125 and a dream. Oh, and a penchant for the written word.

Running a quaint New England Inn is the dream of many. But often, quaint comes with a steep price. Here's a chance to win an inn -- the Center Lovell Inn in Maine, about three hours north of Boston -- estimated to be worth 900k.

And all you have to do is write a short essay and with your submission, a $125 check.

The current innkeeper, Janice Sage, herself won the inn in an essay contest 22 years ago, according to The Boston Globe. But after 17-hour days, $500,000 in renovations and serving up to 120 dinners a night in the inn's restaurant, Sage is ready to move on.

The inn reportedly comes with all the furnishings, but no food or alcohol. And the person who wins the contest must agree to "maintain the property as a country inn and restaurant for at least one year after the hand-over, keep the building painted white, and maintain the roofing and shutters in forest green, hunter green, or black."

Sage expects about 7,500 entries. That would come to almost $940,000 for Sage to enjoy her retirement.