Happy Friday y’all! I’m looking forward to this weekend because we gots stuff happening in this Mayberry of a town we call Comer.

Fourteen years ago when we drove across country with all of our belongings (mostly tools and bee boxes) in 2 trailers. It was a harrowing adventure. We got a flat tire on a trailer just leaving the driveway. That set the tone for the whole trip. 5 flat tires, 2 failed fuel pumps, a faulty ignition switch, some electrical problems, a trailer that almost flipped, a jack that busted and almost dropped the whole car on my leg, and much of that in the dessert Southwest during the heat of late summer. We slept nights in the tiny bed I built over our valuables in the camper shell on the back of our truck, while our two sweet old dogs slept in the back of an old Mercedes station wagon. We made it almost the whole way across the country on veggie oil we collected and processed along the way as our fuel source, and we slept very little, because we were hunting for grease at night and needed to get to GA in time to plant 4,500 strawberry plants before it was too late.

Steve & Mandy loaded up to hit the road with their veggie oil fuel supply wagon!

I’ve crossed the country 8 times like that (hunting for fry-grease along the way for our eco clean fuel source). Mandy has been with me for 4 of those adventures, but never have I had so many challenges as that trip. I’m skipping a lot of the drama, but when we finally got through Atlanta and within a short hour and a half drive from our new farm and our new home and our new life….we just couldn’t make it any further. It was 2 a.m., and we were utterly exhausted from the trip and all the lost sleep from the fixing of the broken everything and the late nights searching for oil and the 14 hour days of driving. We agreed it was too unsafe to drive any further, so we found a parking lot to sleep in, tucked the dogs in, and dragged our ragged selves to the camper shell to find the next lil’ joke. The camper shell’s lock broke shut. The key was an unheeded suggestion – might as well have been a piece of al dente spaghetti. It did nothing. We couldn’t get in. Dying for a nap. Needing something to go right. To not feel like life was deliberately throwing huge fish at our windshield to stop our progress or popping every tire we own. Nothing left in the tank. Melting in our shoes. Life said no.

The fun continued from that point, but there’s too many details and only so much time, so let’s just sum it up by saying it was a hellish trip to get to Comer. But get to Comer we did!

Mandy led the way on much of the trip, and I followed in the truck with the big ol’ trailer, staring at my two dogs in the back of her car along the way. They laid in the back the whole way. Never got up. Never jamming a head out a window. Never nervously pacing. Just laying down and chilling in the back. Old. Wise. Waiting patiently.

When we finally….finally got to the edge of Comer, just as we got to the cute little sign that says “Welcome to Comer. Make our town, your town.” Gypsy got up and started eagerly wagging her tail. She’d never been here before. Mandy hadn’t said a peep to her (I immediately called to ask, because it made such an impact on me). She just seemed to know that after bouncing around from place to place over the years, and hurtling through chaos in that car for the better part of a week, we were finally home. It was the first good omen we had in over 3,000 miles of constant bad luck. My shoulders softened. My heart-rate calmed. All is well. Comer is home.

Kali-Brie Jones Art Party at Comer Coffee Co. this Saturday!

So this weekend, in our sweet little town, our very own Kali-Brie Jones, who heads up our flower studio, is having an art party (emphasis on Party) this Saturday from 6-10 p.m. at Comer Coffee Co.  Her art is so awesome and fun and is inspired by her years of doing set design for a real life “School of Rock” for kids.  Well, not always rock…yacht rock, etc…whatever the kids and parents are into, but that’s neither here nor there.  It’s super cool, there’s gonna be food, tunes, and a dance party.  BYOB.  Many thanks to Comer Coffee for not only fueling our community with good beans and good vibes, but for giving our town a hub and giving Mandy and I a hint of a social life.

The Comer Spring Artisan Festival is also this Saturday!

Speaking of booze.  The distillery (Soldier of the Sea) is opening at noon on the same day, because there’s a local art fair happening in Comer that day too!  So, grab a Comer Coffee,  a Comer pastry, then a Comer Cocktail, then grab some Comer art, then come to a Comer art party/dance party, then pop back over to the distillery, and make a full day of art and fun in Comer.  Bring a designated driver :).  Of course, don’t forget to come to the Farm Store as it is in peak beauty right now and while you're out here, pop on over to Neat Pieces Antiques.  So close and soooo awesome!! Oh and the farmers market has started again too.  So much to do this weekend…..hence my initial enthusiasm, which spilled into a long story about flat tires.

Visit the Farm Store while you are out this direction!

Anyhooo.  We did get those hellebores in and are already half sold out, with no plans to restock this year, so if you’re looking to get some….don’t hem and haw any longer or you might be waiting another year.

Our last restock of hellebore plants!

Mum growers, we have just updated our inventory on ready to ship mums!  So, if you are looking to get started, you won’t have to wait months, these are ready to ship now!

Ft. Vancouver chrysanthemum blooms

Flower fans wondering why there’s less inventory on our site……our spring bounty is already past its peak like I warned about. We are listing a lot less, so we can ensure our spring flower subscribers all get their orders filled. We’ll continue to add inventory as it becomes available, but just won’t have a limitless bounty like we have for the last 6 weeks.

That said though, I just harvested the first 5 peonies of the spring. They’ll trickle in for a few weeks before they really start producing. Subscribers will get the first bundles, but once they’ve all gotten a bundle, we’ll start offering them on the site. Keep an eye out.

The peonies are budding up!

Local gardeners, the Plant Sale is still on, but is wrapping up too, so get your order in now and pick up your happy plants asap.  Of note, a frost is possible this Saturday night!  Forecast says 38 for us, but we commonly get 4-8 degrees colder than the forecasted low.  Keep an eye on your green babies.

Rachel watering the Plant Sale plants!

As for the farm, the lunaria have dropped their petals and created their silver dollars. The viburnum’s snowballs have shattered much of their petals into a beautiful earthen dandruff below. Probably an inappropriate description. Figs and plums are forming already. The Sand Pears are getting color on their fruit. The maples anthocyanin have all been obscured by luscious green chlorophyll and the weather has been delightfully perfect these last few days with nary a mosquito to ruin the vibe.

Lunaria making its “moons”

Wishing you a happy weekend and maybe we’ll see you in Comer at one of our town’s many cultural, artistic, delicious, and inebriating events this weekend. Huzzah for Mayberry!

Steve