I will admit to being someone who has never feared important decisions.  I became a cattle farmer for ten years after graduating from Harvard.  That took me to what many would describe as a Canadian wilderness.

When we left the farm, I went to work for Apple Computer, first in the city of Halifax, Nova Scotia, then Columbia, Maryland, and eventually Roanoke, Virginia.  All those moves were challenging, but at some point in the process, we had weighted everything that we could and had to either move forward or stay put.

We always moved forward, and I do not think we have any regrets in spite of having to face many unknowns in our new areas.

It really is impossible to know what the future will bring.  I try to invent as much of it as possible myself, but that is about as far as you can go.

My family and I have enjoyed a broad experience of living in places as diverse as a farm in rural Canada and in the planned community of Columbia, Maryland.

A little over four years ago, I decided that I had one really important dream left.  I wanted to live on the North Carolina coast.  Even after finding the right area, the challenge of finding a home that matched our needs and budget was great. On top of that I had to build a new career in the collapsing field of real estate.

None of this has been easy, but we have managed to do it, and our lives are richer for having done it.  Twenty five years ago, we could have easily stayed on our two hundred acres of farmland north of Fredericton, New Brunswick.

I seriously doubt that my children would have had the opportunities that they have seen if we had done that.  I know I would have missed some wonderful experiences along the way.

So when considering whether to move or stay, do not forget to factor in what might go right.  If you look just at the downside, it is certainly hard to see the positive.

Also do not forget, not everything can be measured.  Sometimes the only way to figure out the water is to jump into the pool.

Looking up and down the east coast, there many nice areas for retirement. 

I have visited as far north as Newfoundland, lived in Nova Scotia, and considered living as far north as Assateague on Virginia's eastern shore. 

When it comes to the south, I visited as far south as Charleston, and thought about living as far south as Oak Island in North Carolina. 

To the west, we lived in Roanoke, VA on the side of Twelve O'Clock Knob mountain for twenty years.

That is a tremendous amount of territory with which to be familiar.  Also for many years, the only place I would vacation happened to be North Carolina's Northern Outer Banks.  I stayed in places ranging from Corolla to Ocracoke.

When we went to pick a place to live, western Carteret County won hands down.

So what exactly did I see in Southern Outer Banks that I could not find in any of the other places?

Actually it was not just a single thing that persuaded us to put down some roots along the Crystal Coast.  A combination of things attracted us to Carteret County, and eventually reality in what we could afford caught up with us and brought us to the western side of the county.

First I found a rather unique mix of people living along that strand of sand that runs from Beaufort to Swansboro.  There were a good number of outsiders and still some people living in the area who were natives.  Surprisingly they seemed to get along well.

Second the area reminded me of the small town in North Carolina where I grew up in the fifties. There were still some areas where you could walk to things.

Third in spite of being an area of small towns, there seemed to be an increasing number of modern services.  The modern services seemed to be coming to the area to take advantage of the summer visitors.  That they stay open all winter provides a level of service that you could only dream about in many areas.

Years of living in Nova Scotia, taught me the "fun" of driving all morning to get a certain size bolt or what I have come to regard as a basic service.

The fourth reason the area appealed to me has to be water access. Here along the Crystal Coast you are not limited to ocean, sound, or river.  You have them all, and even multiple examples of each.  Also the water here is not what I would consider dangerous water.  There is plenty of easy boating and kayaking available.

The fifth reason we liked the area is that the people living here seem to be active.  From walking the trails of Croatan National Forest to the short trail in Emerald Woods, there  juare an abundance of hikers.  Not only do people hike but they turn out in droves for local festivals which really add a lot to the local color. 

Sixth on our list was the education system.  We have always found that a quality school system contributes a lot to making an area a better place to live.  Carteret County schools have a reputation for quality.  We often run into people who move here because of the school system.

The seventh thing to sway us was the reasonable cost of living.  While home and car insurance have turned out to be more expensive, the huge savings in property taxes and lower utility costs from the temperate climate have been a reason to get excited.  We find it 30-40% cheaper to live here than in Roanoke, VA.

Number eight on the list would the climate itself.  We have practically no snow.  The falls are long and mild.  The winters are brief and hardly require a coat at least in the mind of an ex-Canadian.  Spring is long and sometimes windy, but I still manage to get my first ripe tomatoes around the first of June.  It is a great place to live if you love being out of doors, the Crystal Coast is a great spot to enjoy the outside worldk.

Reason number nine for living here is that we found the type of home we wanted in a desirable area with the features we needed, and it was a reasonable price.  Carteret County has a tremendous variety of homes available in a multitude of settings.  We wanted a new home on the water where we could have a lift and easily go boating.  We also wanted some neighbors so we would not be isolated. We found the right home, in the right setting, in Bluewater Cove. Actually we found more than we were looking for since the area is also great for biking and walking.  I also do not mind being across the cul de sac from the swimming pool and the action of the boat ramp.

Finally the tenth reason we put down roots on the shores of the White Oak River is that this feels like home.  People are friendly.  They look you in the eye.  They talk to you, and they remember you.  We love the area.  While no area, this one included, is perfect for everyone, western Carteret County is one of the nicest spots I have ever found.

It is a great place to live and a wonderful place to host guests.  From the history and charm of Beaufort to the wide sandy beaches of Emerald Isle, I have not found a house or place that I would rather live.  When I slide my kayak into the waters behind our home, I am mindful that I have stumbled upon a personal paradise.

There is not much that I would add to the area that is not on its way.  The list of area additions since we moved here is long but includes Best Buy, Panera Bread, TJ Maxx, and Bed, Bath, & Beyond.  We are getting a new radiology clinic next year in Cedar Point.  Apparently we will also have a Walmart.  Of course I would rather have a Target, I suspect we will see one of those in Morehead City in the not too distant future.

Life is good on the Crystal Coat.  Come visit.

This post was originally written in late 2006.

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Fall is pretty glorious on the east coast.  Recently we were enjoying some great  late fall weather in North Carolina's Crystal Coast area.  We had a very enjoyable breakfast at Yana's Ye Olde Drugstore Restaurant on Front Street in Swansboro.

We ran a few errands and decided to go over to Emerald Isle for a walk on the beach since the weather was so warm.  We were surprised to find a fair number of cars in our usual parking lot, but there turned out to be very few people on the beach.

We headed off down the beach for a leisurely walk on the firmer than normal beach surface.

It pretty hard to describe how nice it was on the beach.  The pictures can actually do a better job than my words.  The water had just enough coolness to provide a pleasant contrast to the warm sand.  The surf was pretty quiet and there was just a slight breeze.

We kept watching the schools of small minnows swimming in the surf.  It was amazing how many we could see.  It was about then that I started wondering if I had stumbled on the reason the Crystal Coast is called the Crystal Coast.

The clarity of the water was pretty hard to believe.  I spent a few minutes trying to capture an image that would adequately show what I was seeing.  I finally got the right small wave and snapped the shot below and to the right.

The picture doesn't do the water justice, but I'm just excited that there is still water around this clear and so full of marine life.

I hope that we can preserve the wonderful waters of the Crystal Coast for the next generation.  If my guess is wrong about the "Crystal," in Crystal Coast, I would be interested in hearing the real story.

I have more area fall pictures at this website. These are some of my favorite beach pictures. Of course sunsets and sunrises are worthy of their own album.

Find out about area events at this Crystal Coast website.

Our annual tomato contest ended on June 5 this year when I decided to pick my first two tomatoes. Over the next few days, the two challengers to my throne eventually admitted defeat.

Victory came a little later than last year's June 1 tomato, but after all the years of barely getting tomatoes in Canada in August, June 5 looks pretty good.

I first wrote about our tomato gardening in the spring of 2005 in a post called, The Spring Tomato Ritual.

Growing tomatoes is often thought of as something done mostly by aging southern women.  I suspect that idea is kept alive by the media.

There are southern women who do grow tomatoes, but in my opinion most of the tomatoes are grown by the men of the South.  That is the way it has been for as long as I can remember.  The ladies might grow a few plants, but the men would often put in rows of tomatoes.  My mother was a great gardener.  Tomatoes were one of her favorite crops, and she would always plant four or five plants each year.  My wife's father, however, planted row upon row of tomato plants.  He often had them growing up the side of his house.

My mother continued growing wonderful tomatoes into her nineties, but I picked up most of my tomato skills trying to convince tomatoes to grow in the cool Nova Scotia and New Brunswick climates.

While I am now limited by space to four or five plants, they produce so many tomatoes that we are often searching for people who want tomatoes by early July. Our tomatoes do make a significant impact on our summer food budget.  The return on investment on a few tomato plants is huge.

During the summer, a tomato sandwich is often lunch at our house.  Sometimes it becomes a BLT, and often it ends up in salad.  It is amazing how little work it takes to grow such a large number of tomatoes.

Now that our contest to see who got the first tomato is over.  I can relax and enjoy the tomatoes, and plan my next year's victory.  The next thing is to see if we can beat last year's giant tomato which weighed 1.33 pounds.

This post was originally written in October 2008.  I figured that re-posting this might remind the folks who organize the lobster dinners, that there are people who count on this happening each year.  I am looking forward to the first advertisements of this year's festivals.

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There are foods that come with special association in your life.  Lobster has particular meaning to me.

My first meeting with a lobster took place in the fall of 1967 when I went off to college in Boston.  I remain convinced that my first lobster was eaten in Union Oyster House near Faneuil Hall.

I went on to eat several more lobsters during college.  Some of the best were ones we cooked ourselves along the shores Maine.  We would eat them almost like cavemen, needing only the handle of a Buck knife to crack the shells and something to hold the melted butter.

I can remember having some in fancier surroundings like Anthony's Pier IV where I remember taking a few dates during my college years.

Of course in New England lobster was not just a meal available in fancy restaurants.  There were plenty of less expensive spots to get one of the tasty creatures of the deep.  I can remember stopping at the reasonably priced Valle's Steak Houses for inexpensively priced lobster dinners.

Then there is also Legal Seafood which started out as a humble restaurant, and I remember enjoying lobsters in their spot near Cambridge.

After college, I moved to Nova Scotia, and lobsters were even cheaper during certain times of the year.  When the lobstermen had filled their quotas for the year, you could get lobsters for a couple of dollars a piece.

While this might sound like I ate lobsters at every meal, that certainly wasn't the case.  However, in those early years of the seventies, I probably had a lobster at least every three months.  I even got very good at cooking them.  I can remember the simple recipe, cook lobsters for 16.5 minutes after coming back to a boil.

Probably the most memorable lobsters were the ones I cooked for my wife on our first date in 1973.  I was visiting Mount Airy, NC where my mom lived.  In an attempt to keep me home for another few days, my mother arranged a blind date for me.  Having just come from a college roommate's wedding, I was in an accommodating mood and said yes.

I ended up driving 70 miles round trip to get the lobsters.  I had a great time instructing my date on how to eat lobsters, and 35 years later I am still cracking the claws for her and making sure she gets her lobster properly eaten.

The picture in the post came from a Lobster fest that we attended in Salter Path, NC Saturday, October 25, 2008.  It's an annual event.  The lobster was as good as any I have had recently.  I am down to two or three lobsters per year now.

That Saturday, my lunch date, which was my wife of course, and I had another memorable lobster meal.

Last year I wrote more about the Saint Francis by the Sea Lobster Fest.