HOME ON THE NORTH FORK
Snowbird Musings
Home is where the heart is. And let me just say, it is good to be back!
Last week I made my annual spring pilgrimage back to the North Fork of Long Island for the summer season. I’ve been a snowbird for three years now, spending my winters in Jupiter, Florida. Freelance life has afforded me this opportunity to work from home anywhere, and I am grateful for an oasis of sunshine, palm trees, and a hammock [IYKYK] in the long winter months.
There are two kinds of people that return home after a trip — those that unpack immediately and those that live out of a suitcase for two weeks. I fall into the former camp, even if it means unpacking an entire car full of one’s life after a 17-hour train ride and an eight-hour drive. I am who I am. But this determination set me up to get back to the things I love most.
On my first full day back home, I set out to enjoy some of the many things I missed about the North Fork. I started my day with an in-person meeting with a long-term client. I love working remotely, but there's just something about those face-to-face connections and in-person collaboration that leave me feeling even more inspired.
Then I set off to meet my mother to celebrate her birthday, first stopping at The Lil’ Farmstand at Lily Pad Acres to pick up some lilacs [they're her favorite!] and then taking her to Barrow Food House for lunch. No matter how old I get, my mother is still the one I call for how best to clean something, to share life’s random complaints, and to confirm, for the 100th time, how to boil an egg. But being together while she enjoys her favorite smash burger and talks about the random things she at her job’s lost and found, those are the best moments.
My next stop was to Sang Lee Farms to pick up arugula, radishes, and my favorite 1610 Sourdough loaf, of which I, of course, ate half that night!
Seemingly making up for lost time, over the next few days I visited my favorite places, like White Flower Garden, Lombardi’s Love Lane Market, and the Village Cheese Shop. On Friday, friends gathered to toast to the next chapter of one of our own [check out the new slowwave studio!] at Suhru & Lieb Vineyards. That weekend, it was off to Pip’s Café in Greenport to get coffee and several pastries, which I shared with one of my closest friends.
With a full heart [and the fridge], I have since been enjoying the comforts of being home. I step away from my desk to look at my little native plants growing in the front yard, check on the strawberries, garlic, and herbs growing in the back, and daydream about what we’ll grow this year.
The proverbial fresh start, spring is the perfect time for a transition. There is something about returning home that gives purpose to every experience, discovery, and lesson learned. It is here that I am most myself and have the opportunity for meaningful reflection.
While I am grateful for being able to work remotely, I look forward to meeting with clients in-person as we finish up their website design projects, which I am so excited to share soon.
With curiosity and intention, I look forward to continuing this exploration of the place I call home, perhaps even discovering something new…
—RB
