Brief Retreat
I’ve uploaded some farm photos:
http://eric.trailfaqs.com/photos/farm/
The big news since my previous update is that we’ve decided to sublet an apartment in Blacksburg for the summer. We’ve done this for a number of reasons, mainly because living in the trailer without amenities was highly stressful. It was never our intent to rough it for so long, and having an apartment has definitely brightened our outlook. It wasn’t too difficult to find a cheap place, either, as most students spend their summers elsewhere and invariably wait until the last minute to find someone. We’ve also bought some reasonably priced furniture from recent graduates to furnish the apartment, supplementing these purchases with housewares and other furniture from local thrift stores.
Also underlying the temporary move is a desire to make friends and really be part of the local community in Blacksburg. Our neighbors on the farm have been great to us, perhaps in part because I’m related to those who originally settled there, but Melissa and I have very little in common with them. Everyone that’s stopped by has offered to help me find work, but I’m not really interested in learning to drive a tractor-trailer or taking up a trade like pipefitting. We feel much more at home in Blacksburg, especially now that the students have left town for the summer, as the atmosphere is more laid back and conducive to meeting the people who live here year-round.
But we certainly haven’t given up on the farm. We’ll still drive out now and then to tend the garden, and soon we’ll be selling our produce at the farmers’ market in downtown Blacksburg on Wednesdays and Saturdays. We had our first out-of-town visitor last weekend, Melissa’s grandmother, and it was exciting for us to show her around the property and lay out for her our future plans. It’s unlikely that we’ll be undertaking any major projects this summer, but the brief hiatus should give my father and brother a chance to drive out from Indiana and visit, as it’s important that we’re all in agreement as to the future plans for the property. The farm has been dormant for decades, so I guess it won’t hurt us to wait a few more months.
Melissa and I are both diligently looking for employment now that we’re in Blacksburg, though we don’t have any solid leads just yet. I won’t be teaching my first course for Kaplan until August, which is a disappointment, but I will be doing some freelance writing in the meantime. I’ve been working on an article about the New River Valley’s best outdoors recreation spots, which has been a great opportunity for me to get out and see what the area has to offer. The search for full-time employment has definitely been frustrating, but the upside is that it’s forcing us to think creatively about how we’ll be earning a living in the longer term.