In our continued efforts to be innovators in the local food world, I am happy to share with you a new packaging offer that we have available. We have been working with several of our members to build a packaging system that will maintain the highest quality while trying to minimize the amount of plastic we use. We have added a way for you to opt for fewer plastic bags in your order. For those of you who are happy, nothing will change. This will be a new option for folks to choose.

A new year. A new decade. What will our canvas look like 10 years from now? Can’t wait to find out.

I do have to say though that I love when the holidays are over. I am not really good at sitting around the house watching lint collect in my bellybutton. My body and spirit feel better in motion. Not very Zen Master of me, but I am ok with it.

Okie Dokie, let’s dive into November head first. We’ll start with product news and see where the ramblings go from there.

I have to be honest that I am not one who likes to use Customer Surveys when it comes to launching a new product. You probably know that about me. I love surveys after the fact to see how we are doing. I mean everyone needs a report card right? But proactive surveys don’t tell you much. Instead, I like to launch something, throw the spaghetti against the wall, learn from what the demand tells us. Then either ditch it if it’s not working or tweak it to make it a winner at our table.

To begin with this most amazing September week, a huge Thank You! to you all. And you’re probably saying “A thank you…for what? Did my holiday fruit cake arrive early this year?” No, this is a thank you for you understanding on our need to change our delivery fee structure. Let me explain.

There are times in one’s life where you just happen to be at the right place at the right time. Like my first goal that I ever scored in soccer. I was a studly 5-year-old and wondering around the soccer field aimlessly when the opponent’s goalie took the ball and punted it right off my head into his own net. And like any tough little Norwegian kid would do, I began to cheer and cry at the same time. I’ve loved soccer ever since.

OK, so this is probably as good a time as any to reaffirm with you that I have a few bolts loose in my brain. I think about some weird things and then try to see how we can make them a reality. Most recently I have been wondering what it would look like if our Scratch n Dent Harvest Box had a cute little baby with our Weekly Meal Plan. And spoiler alert, let me tell you that this little new-born is freaking adorable. So let me introduce you to this new addition to our family…

So a vision for change can be a curse as much as it brings happiness and motivation. As we all know, change cannot (and does not) happen overnight. It is a long journey filled with distractions, failures, and the occasional victory. And in order to stay on course, you have to love the process more than some arbitrary destination. There is no place that our local food system will arrive where we can declare Mission Accomplished. All I know is that this year our local food landscape is better than it was last year.