It's been a while but the journey continues.

Starting a business from nothing is hard. As if anyone needs to say that. If it were easy... you can finish the thought.

In July 2012, we finally took delivery of the oven. It's first pizzas were cooked on July 16th at home. The following Saturday, the 21st, we sold 46 pizzas at the Farmers Market. That was a great start to build from. Unfortunately, the oppressive heat and drought kept the early crowds away. It was our best day. It was a tough season.

However, on the 14th, I had taken the oven and lit a curing fire to tend during the market. That's when I met Max, Max Lemley. One thing I can say that is universal is that anyone named Max is memorable. Max Lemley is certainly no exception. Max encouraged me to follow my passion for local ingredients and even said that if I got tomatoes grown, his company, M & D Marketing could pack them for my use or even retail in his FDA inspected facility. That sounded far fetched, but I kept it in mind "for the future."

A few weeks later, I made pizzas for the Wine Club our neighbors hosted. After the rush was over, I settled down in their party room and met Mary and Mike Johnston. What I remember most is that Mary wanted a water buffalo for their hobby farm. She asked me if I'd buy cheese if she made it. Of course I said I would.

Well, enter December and I'm working at 240sweet packaging marshmallows to pay my workman's comp insurance bill. Chef Alexa tells me I need to talk with Second Act Farm. They're growing organic produce, she says, and they just might grow on a larger scale for me. A Facebook reminder in January comes and I send a note. My surprise is not yours. Mike wrote me back and was enthused. We met before Valentine's Day and it looks like we're going to have fun with this.

My plan right now is to package it all as crushed tomatoes. We'll package some for sale and if there's way more than we can use, we'll sell them at the farmers markets and maybe the co-ops in the area. I don't plan to add anything other than perhaps to adjust pH and salinity. They'll not likely be Certified Organic, but they will be sustainably and naturally grown and processed.

I'm also planning to add another farm or two. If I put all my tomatoes in one place, I'm turning a farm into a monoculture and I'm risking a lot to pests. By spreading out the crop, we can get a more predictable harvest, we can support more farms and we can help diversify farmland in the county.

And that's how I found myself in the tomato business.