Urban Escapee

I call my experience here “New Ruralism”, but in truth, I’ve traded one very large city experience (Manhattan) to a microcosm city experience (downtown Staunton, VA pop. 25,000). At both locations a sidewalk leads to restaurants, cultural events, and the arts! And yes: I know I’m lucky...

An omen? He uncovered this on Saturday. Ah, the lucky horseshoe. It seems appropriate. There are increasingly good things happening…and more to announce soon enough. Meanwhile… we await our carpenter’s estimate to start on the floors...

First, the “Meat” of This Post Last night was a real treat! We were invited to a Mary Baldwin College “Global Food Politics” class and meal featuring Joel Salatin of Polyface Farms. Here’s a photo of Brian scrambling eggs with Joel...

The economy is forcing more people to reconsider leaving an urban center for another lifestyle. Here’s the story of one young couple who left Beverly Hills...

We found this antique gas heater on a brief trip to Kentucky. Sure, it may be unsafe and possibly kill us in our sleep — doesn’t it LOOK interesting?? Love the claw feet. I was very pleased to discover it fits perfectly in the firebox! It weighs a ton...

Hooray! The demolition phase of the project is over — and what a difference it made! We’re extremely pleased with our crew. They cleaned up everything, covered the open windows, removed very stubborn nails, and even swept it out. (No more pigeon poop!)...

Hooray! The Jefferson project is officially under way. First order of business? Clean up...

Here is an excellent audio clip about the planned re-development of Tysons Corner (outside Washington, DC, in Northern Virginia). Tysons Corner was originally built on the outskirts of DC. It’s design depended largely on the automobile...

Last Saturday we re-launched George Bowers Grocery to elbow-to-elbow crowds. The response from the community continues to be very encouraging. (Thank you, Newtown/Staunton!) Now we start work really dialing it in so that the store can find it’s place in the community again...

George Bowers Grocery returns to Staunton! The storefront renovation is complete and we’re swinging the doors open this Saturday. Here’s the invitation...

Stay in those lines and vote! Go, Obama!! I’m so excited to take back the country today. And I’ll be particularly proud to watch Virginia’s vote...

Recently Brian and I met Sandy, a cool artist who is a friend of my uncle. She lived in New York City for about 20 years before moving back to Staunton. By coincidence Sandy used to make desserts at one of our favorite uptown restaurants, Toast...

After waiting weeks “Big O Tree” arrived to trim our tree. (Nope, I didn’t get any line jumping privileges!) I admit: I was grumbling a bit about the cost. It seems like quite a bit just to keep a tree healthy. Then I realized that this is the only big tree on either of our properties...

Some sad news as we work towards the grand re-opening of the grocery store and finalize drawings for the Victorian. My great-aunt, and loving grandmother figure, Bertha, died. Her birthday would have been this Thursday. One of the greatest gifts she gave me was quite literally a book of our family...

A big hello to friends and readers of FreshApproachCoach.com! Melissa was kind enough to feature me in her newsletter this month. That’s pretty cool considering she’s in the midst of her own urban to small-town life transition, Atlanta > Roquebrun, France. Thanks, Melissa...

Here’s a great article from Harrisonburg, Virginia, from a city person who made the transition to a more rural life. What I like about the article is the realization that green space, nature, and small-town living is easy to lose if we do not seriously look at urban development issues...

Okay, sure. Now you read my blog. Here’s a local controversy about a local entrepreneur gaining attention: Shocking but true: An American city, in the year 2008, asked a jury to declare that a movie of adults having sex is illegal...

Two recent articles that hit on the zeitgeist of redefining “new ruralism”: From Wired: Why Urban Farming Isn’t Just for Foodies But what I love most here is the potential for cultural transformation...

Okay: I’m going to sell you on my porch. Why? Because I’ve been trying to sell it to myself! You see, the porch is a central figure in many homes. Ours may have played a role in the original owner’s reputation...

A few days ago I did a Google search — “arborist + Staunton” — and who should pop up but this guy: My uncle, Randy. I totally forgot he knows a thing or two about trees. And turf. And a bunch of other outdoors-y stuff. He works at Big O Tree...

Walk this waaay! Talk this waaay! Just gimme a — high score at Walkscore.com! Yep — it’s true. Tiny Staunton, Virginia, and specifically our Newtown neighborhood, scores 75/100 on the walkability scale. Compare our score of 75/100 to #1 ranking American city San Francisco...

For Winter Color (and Screen) Tonight I ordered some emerald arborvitae trees from The Arbor Day foundation...

Nope — fried snake is not a restaurant delicacy. Fried snake is what we discovered in our attic. Yuck! Apparently the little wriggler crawled between the metal roof and wood beams, got stuck, and then slowly cooked in the heat. (What an awful way to go...

Look at this adorable home! Back in 1878 this home belonged to Mr. Benjamin Franklin Eakle (guess who he was named after…). This home probably has a lot of stories within it. I am so impressed by how the present owners have carefully restored it...

Rub-a-dub-dub, three men wanted to take our tub. No more! The mosquito-breeding porcelain was in great shape (even stamped “1918″ on the bottom). But Brian flatly refused to keep it anywhere inside the cottage or haul it up to Jefferson, so, he sold it for scrap. Presto...

Now twitting!Follow us to the Grand Re-Opening at Twitter: GeorgeBowers-and/or-Follow along right here. See you soon! :)

Yes, that's right. Grand Re-Opening. Doors to George Bowers Grocery first opened in 1881. Stay tuned.

It’s impossible to keep a secret in a small town (see: Rule #1)...