Me and my wonderful boys Marlin and Koda chilling out, trying to find the energy to declutter the house
Sue and I have never shied away from big changes. We’ve always enjoyed the buzz and energy of change, whether a new job, restaurant, hobby, tomato in the garden, pet in our family, or originating in news from our daughters. Living in one place for 28 years brings with it a sense of falling into patterns and habits, and change becomes less common. Getting into a rut isn’t bad, especially when it is an enjoyable and comfortable one, and people do seem to be creatures of habit.
For some reason, as we’ve watched our birthdays add up and feel morning creaky joints more often, the urge to move has been growing for a few years. It’s interesting to note how despite being very different people, our 40 year relationship seems to bring synchronicity into our decisions. It seemed totally natural to start the process of going from place A to place B - partly driven by the need to get our lives onto one floor, partly by the feeling that a move would shake us up a bit, reset our daily routines, and add in some exploration and discovery.
We always thought that my speaking schedule would provide glimpses of target destinations for our move. Hendersonville emerged as a leading option a few years ago when we stayed at a bed and breakfast there while speaking at the Mother Earth News Fair in Asheville. We love craft beer, hiking in the woods, and a small town setting. We have been growing tired of the increasingly hot and humid summers here, as well as increasing traffic and population. I’ve longed to dig into the ground and plant a non-driveway garden once more, and it makes me dream of a long awaited return to crops like corn and squash and melons.
Howling Mob corn making its debut in the 1905 Burpee seed catalog
Sue and I made our second house hunting trip to Hendersonville on Sunday, after finding a nice candidate on Zillow. We saw a house that will work great for us, made an offer, the offer was accepted - our drive back home to Raleigh was in a state of shock as we discussed the implications of the one day trip. We close on the house in early January. Sometimes, life happens fast - and this change will be significant. We are thinking of it as a great adventure. We are moving!
The changes this move triggers are many, of course. I get plugged in to the Raleigh area gardening community more and more each year, and so many associations will become very different. Spring seedling sales, which we’ve done on large and, more recently, smaller scales will come to an end. People can always ask for seeds - particularly for those more hard to find varieties. I always thought way back when we first started plant sales that my job was to put myself out of business - Epic Tomatoes and lots of gardening talks had lots of info about home seed starting. I know that many of my customers have become very skilled at doing so. I am always available to provide help answer questions for those who have yet to take the plunge. Quite a few of you will be receiving emails from me to offer my gratitude for your support through the years.
Local tomato dinner, local tomato and other gardening topics workshops will now have to come to an end. I’ve loved them all - Durham or Wake libraries, Eno, History Museum, Logan, Atlantic, various smaller gardening groups, master gardening groups - such great memories, and such fun. I hope to find niches in the Hendersonville area to provide workshops, and that is something I will attend to pretty quickly. I admit to be really excited about exploring a new community with whom to share garden stories.
As to the timing of our move, we will likely have ownership of the new house in early January, so this is bound to happen really quickly. It may take some time to sell our Raleigh home, and if this span reaches into April, there could indeed be some seedlings available, though they will have been started in Hendersonville (traveling seedlings!). Watch my blog and newsletter for updates.
Pages from my dad’s garden diary, which I discovered when cleaning out my parents home after my dad’s death in 2007
Another significant change is my decision to completely depart from Facebook; this means my book page and Dwarf Tomato Project page as well. As I’ve already departed from Twitter, the main social networking tool I will regularly use is Instagram; I can be found there @nctomatoman . I hope to encourage all of those who were connected to me via Facebook to register for my newsletters (both regular newsletter and the one created for participants in the Dwarf Tomato Project). I also hope to be a much more regular blogger. You can always get my attention using email also. These changes make me feel more consistent with my personal philosophy on what’s happening these days, and also carve out more time for me to adjust to our new lives in a new place.
Aside from decluttering and getting the house ready to list for sale, and preparations for the big move in January. there is no shortage of things to do. I hope to get to seed sending very soon - certainly in the coming weeks. Then there is completion of the Dwarf Tomato Project book. Just those things will keep me busy well into next year.
Happy Thanksgiving, everyone!
That’s Scout - who we fostered as a tiny puppy with her brother Bodhi (we named them Betts and Mookie) spending Thanksgiving with us, having a nap with her pal Marlin