It’s with much fanfare, and great pride,that I announce my book is now available for sale. To recap, the book is a collection of macro photographs of tomato buds
and stories about the plants that I grew last summer. Macro photography for those who aren’t familiar, is photography that shows fine details of the subject being shot. It’s like shooting a photograph through a magnifying glass.

Back to the book, for now it could be purchase two ways;

1. Amazon.com – Yes, I know there’s a boycott by some going on against Amazon, but others are still shopping there, so if you are still shopping there, here’s a link to the page, Future Tomatoes.

2. You can buy the book from my estore at Create Space.com, that’s the online print on demand source I use to publish this book.

The book will be written about in upcoming blog post. Once that happens, I will post a link. The words charming, delightful and authentic were relayed back to me by the person who will be writing about it.

I’m in the process of incorporating into Magic Hat Media LLC. Once that happens, I’ll look into a true eCommerce site where I can sell the books directly, and handle the through my site, and not third parties. I did reserve MagicHatMedia.co, so look for that soon. Since I am self-contained media creation machine, might as well don a magic hat, and let the magic take over.

The check is in the mail…
… to become a vendor at 2nd Annual Heirloom Expo Sept. 11, 12, 13, 2012 in Santa Rosa, CA. There will be a captive audience there, as well as some networking opportunities, so I’m going there to immerse myself and my work.

AT the expo, I will be selling this book, previewing my second book, which is a cookbook based on the harvest of the still to be determined number of varieties of vegetables I’m growing this year, providing that nature cooperates, and keeps the hail storms away. I will also be selling calendars, photographs and hats.

Yes hats! Magic Hat Media, Millineryman, see a trend here. Millineryman is more than the name I write under here. I’m also am a nonpracting milliner who will now be crafting some really cool and funky gardening type hats.

So that’s it for now. The garden should be complete by next week, so I hope to have a complete run down of everything I’m growing by than.

Cheers!

…wear it. Or live it in this case. April was a very interesting month. A few more pieces of the puzzle added, or, more content for this ever growing story I’m writing here. In a some ways, a jigsaw puzzle and a story have a lot in common, especially if you allow the story to write itself.

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One of the main reasons I went to the Growing the Local Appalachian Food Economy forum were the tours the forum offered on the second day. One tour offered a tour of Blue Ridge Food Ventures (BRFV). which is a business incubator and shared used facility. Form their website;

Blue Ridge Food Ventures is an 11,000 sq. ft. shared-use kitchen incubator and natural products manufacturing facility that offers support in product development, guidance through the maze of regulations governing safe production of food products and dietary supplements, advice on packaging and label design, and much more.

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I’m here in Asheville, North Carolina to attend the Growing the Appalachian Food Economy forum. It’s a teo day event filled with thoughtful seminars, and tours. I will attending the Food Heritage and Culinary Arts as Economic Drivers session, which is part of the first day’s concurrent breakout sessions.

Appalachia’s strong food heritage is an asset local leaders can build on to develop sustainable local food systems and strengthen local economies. In this session, panelists will describe how communities across Appalachia are using local food resources to foster entrepreneurship, attract tourists, and diversify local economies.

Sounds like a very interesting topic, and one that is relevant for me.

The second breakout session, Models of Sustainability: The Role of the “Agripreneur” offers me insight into the business of sustainability. As I grow what I do here, this session will be helpful in determining if a food product or products is a feasible way to sustain myself and the concept.

Entrepreneurial farmers and food producers throughout Appalachia are finding new markets and niche products to sell, increasing revenue and creating business ventures that are both profitable and environmentally sustainable. In this session panelists will discuss innovative ways “agripreneurs” are adapting to changing market conditions, satisfying customer demand, and creating new agricultural and culinary experiences.

I’m looking forward to learning about the work that people do to preserve the local food culture and the direction they see it going in.

While I’m here, I will be meeting with  Susannah Patty and Ashley Gillett from the Appalachian Food Story Bank.

The Appalachian Food Storybank, a program of Slow Food Asheville, seeks to acknowledge, honor, and archive Appalachian heritage foods and foodways in order to promote the preservation of diverse local knowledges, natural resources, and food biodiversity.

I love this.

The AFS Storybooth is a portable recording booth that is set up at fairs, festivals, farmers markets, and other venues.

And, the Asheville area is absolutely beautiful. I have a lot to explore and learn about this week, which I will share with you. I’m very fortunate to be here.