We are encroaching on a year since my last post to this blog, and there are a myriad of reasons of why that is, but  will spare you the internal drama!

Let me catch you up! Since last April, we have moved to New Braunfels, started a Coffee Roasting Company, bought a food truck- expanding to catering, Wyatt turned 5!, and I endured the most mom guilt I have ever encountered. More on that last one next post.

I have not been writing as much as I would like to, only working on and off on a fiction piece inspired by real life events and my love of Stephen King novels. Instead, I have been incredibly busy baking, cooking, planning, and cleaning more dishes in the last 7 months than most people probably clean in a year.

We spent a few good months attending the Legacy Farmers Market in San Antonio selling our coffee. It was super fun and I met a lot of great people who I hope to continue being friends with. But let me tell you something people, Farmers Markets are funny places. Maybe you haven’t noticed, being an attendee, but as a vendor you see all sorts of crazy. I don’t know what emboldens people to tell you exactly how they feel about, oh lets just say…coffee…. but something about you sitting there with all your hard work on a table in front of you makes them want to either: A- tell you how much they love coffee and know about coffee and quiz you about how much you know about coffee (this is the best scenario) OR B- tell you how much they hate coffee, why they can’t drink it (trust me I never need to hear this), or how they would never drink your coffee because they only drink coffee that comes out of unicorn butts and is filtered through a solid gold mesh filter. So. Much. Fun.

Before I had the means to sample our coffee at the markets I had quite a bizarre moment that is worth re-telling for its comical value. There I was, standing hopeful, staring at the gentleman walking toward my table who looked interested in our coffee. “Good Morning! How are you today?” I beamed. “Oh, I’m fine! Tell me what you have here.” He said. So I began, “We are a small batch coffee roasting company located in New Braunfels, we roast each bag individually. Today I have our Curly’s Cowboy Coffee, which is a Brazilian Bean-” He cut me off. He cut me off by giving me the thumbs down sign. Not just a thumbs down, but a thumbs down 3 inches from my face, complete with an annoying buzzer sound he made. I stood there staring. I was really not sure what to do. I almost wanted to laugh. I almost wanted to punch him. But I didn’t do anything but look around to see if anyone else had seen what just happened. No one seemed to have seen. He pointed at the next bag, “What’s this one?” I picked up the bag, “This is our signature roast, a Honduran” He cut me off again with his thumbs down 3 inches from my face and lovely buzzer sound. I backed up and put my hands behind my back. He looked at the last bag and asked where that one was from. I said also Honduras. He couldn’t get his thumb in my face this time since I backed away from the table so he just gave me the thumbs down from afar and walked away. It was really unbelievable. Even more so, that no one else noticed. I sat down and texted Rodney what had just happened. It was such a bizzare encounter. Hind sight, I wish I would have given him the bird. You know, trade a finger for a thumb. But, it was one of those things that was so unexpected I was torn between anger and laughing hysterically at the absurdity of it all. The next week I told my other vendor friends about the encounter, they were of course applauded at the rude behavior, and a few weeks later when he showed back up and I pointed him out, they all knew him and said he was an ass anyway.

It was also interesting to hear people try to haggle prices down with some of the other vendors. Here is some advice. If you want to haggle on price, go to a flea market. I think that is where you are able to make deals. Farmers Markets are full of people who work super hard to create from scratch a product for you to purchase at a price they set. That doesn’t mean you can go up to someone and say things like, “I would never pay $10, how about $4?” Or, “Your prices are too high.” Or, “I can buy something like this at Wal-Mart for half that”. Then get in your car and go to Wal-Mart, the Farmers Market is not for you. Proper Farmers Market Etiqutte should be taught somewhere. Or maybe I can start an online class. Would you like to attend your local Farmers Market? Then here are few helpful tips for getting through this experience like a decent human being.

First, be a pleasant human if at all possible.

Second, if you see something you don’t like, continue to walk on by. You can pretend that the table did not exist, or that you just realized you have to pee and walk quickly by, you can even say no thanks. But whatever you do, do not be rude to that person because you don’t like coffee, or plants, or sweets or whatever it is.

Third, probably don’t compare anything at a Farmers Market to products found at Wal-Mart. Ever. Never. Ever. I can assure you, more thought, love and work went into creating whatever it is that person is selling than anything Wal-Mart sells that is mass produced in a factory somewhere. Shopping at a Farmers Market is shopping local and supporting your community. Shopping at Wal-Mart is the opposite of that.

Fourth, I know you are interested in every table at this market, go ahead, check it out! Talk to the vendors. Thank them for their time and move on if you are not going to purchase. If it makes you feel better you can even say, I’m going to circle back around to you! It’s ok, you’re not hurting our feelings we know it will be a wide circle away from our table on your way out! No worries! 

Since we bought the food trailer we have stopped attending the Farmers Markets, which I kind of miss, mostly for the social aspect of it. It was super fun. But now we are on to much more complicated and crazy days. Of course, right? We wouldn’t have it any other way over here.

Here is our set up at an event with the Farmers Market crew!

Table at Legacy Farmers Market

The big orange food trailer!

Our very first customer, my good friend Analisa!