Phase II

Phase II

Part of the deal I made with my parents when I moved to the area was that I would get myself a solid job with a good, steady paycheck. This aspect of my relocation has confused some people, I think. The question I usually get is: ‘But isn’t farming a full-time job?’ and FOR SURE, it most definitely is full-time, and then some. But. Farming is also inherently volatile. You can bust your ever-lovin’ arse 24/7 on a farm one year and just manage to break even. Then the next year, your luck, the markets, and the weather all align in sweet, sweet harmony, and you can make a little bank.

So, to use a word I’ve heard one or two times here of late, to ‘hedge’ my position, I got a day job. It’s a great job, and it’s working out pretty nicely so far. The only not-perfect thing about it is that to get any kind of salary, I had to go to a town about 30 miles away from the farm. I decided that the easiest thing to do would be to get an apartment in the bigger town and just commute to the farm on weekends.

Welcome to The Annex

The bigger town I mentioned is a decent-sized college town. And did I mention that I got my sweet job at exactly the same time that all the college kids were coming back to school? And did I mention that there are NO good places to live when school is in session?! Yeah. I drove around, called through the classified ads, drove around, called real estate companies, drove around … no luck at all. Was getting truly disheartened at the realization that I might have no other choice than to live with my parents. Made more phone calls through the classifieds.

Score – one apartment was actually available! I get directions to said abode, and take off in the general direction. Getting closer and closer to the location, I thought, ‘Wow, I didn’t know there were any apartments on this end of town.’ Then I arrive at the spot. Here’s my train of thoughts: “Um, this is an auto body shop. With a set of stairs going up the side to what is probably the apartment on the upper floor. NO WAY. I am not going to live with paint and cutting torch fumes.’ Then I proceeded to drive away without even looking at it. About two blocks away, I think, ‘Wait a minute. What ELSE have I got to look at right now?! What the hell.’ So I go back.

And IT IS AWESOME. The place is gigantic, the air filtration system is totally separate from the shop so I got NO fumes at all, the shop is only open from 8-5 M-F, I have no noisy neighbors, the landlords are SUPER-nice (They volunteered to help me if I ever have car trouble, they’re paying for a couple of extra utilities they don’t have to, and they even restore old cars. When I asked if they’d let me help them fix up Marge next year, they were stoked), it’s right next to a running trail, it’s fantastic. I signed a lease right then. It already has a name: Broken B East – The Annex.

Oh, and did I mention this college town has a sweet dive bar with Friday night karaoke? Don’t worry, when I go, you’ll hear about it.