About Madison County, NC

warm socks at first frost

I love the prospect of warm socks at first frost
and the soldier-like look of them in neat rows
as they line up before me
next to the French-milled soaps
in the second dresser drawer
where they have bunkered
since the daffodils bloomed.

A colorful assemblage, they
in vibrant vermillion,
or sumptuous grey,
or azure- multi-hued,
patiently waiting to be tapped
for duty.

I am dancing now in the hours after donning
the Carolina Blue pair,
with my tweeds and outdoor duds,
cashmere caressing my lucky toes,
I am royalty lifted above the fray
simply to stroll
Doc Silver's nippy back forty
as if it were a mild midsummer's day
but better: no insects or tall grasses where the
slithering creatures play-

just the Land
and, here and there,
on the north side of the ridge,
slender watery threads making icicles
from summer's sweet cascades.

October's fallen leaves,
still wet with yesterday's storm,
are slick on the trail.
Still, I float along, scarf flying,
hiking boots, muddy and well-worn,
with feet smiling in blue-clad luxury.

We are searching for the last wild berries,
you and I, and beneath these,
you unearth the secret:
"... cherished toes pay dividends uncounted...."

~^~ jA Narrin, Wind-in-the-Feather The Spirit Ridge Collection Asheville, 2009

Dateline Asheville, North Carolina, June, 2009

News and Views from Asheville's Greenolina, Real Estate Eco-Steward

I'm sharing here Parts 1 and 2 of a letter that one of our eco-friendly conservation land buyers'received from a member of the "Green Team" at our Firm.

The reason why? Simple. Sometimes people are unaware of the research and energy that goes into the practice of real estate. Sometimes this can be distressing to folks like those seen in the photo ..real estate professionals who spend hours and days preparing for a meeting with clients.....

So here is a clue on just what goes on prior to a client's arrival here in Asheville, and I suspect elsewhere . LAZY? I don't think so!

The letter reads:

Dear Mr. and Mrs. (Smith)

Just want to review with you what, in addition to the property we discussed in the previous email (far below) , we have previewed since we walked this property for you...
this is what has been accomplished....

•1) We have previewed 15 large acreages. In doing so, we have covered about a 300 mile area...we have walked and photographed those acreages that meet your specifications.

•2) Unfortunately, the weather has been stormy and wet. Lots of rain makes some of the larger acreages where roads are old logging roads and tend to be muddy very hard to preview...BE SURE TO BRING GOOD HIKING SHOES!

•3) Please note that most of the land adjacent to National Forest is at least 45 minutes out from Asheville Although it is in your price range, it is not in your specified driving range. Let me know what you think about this, please.

•4) We have completed previewing all the land adjacent to the National Forest currently listed. In addition, we have been in touch with our local farm stewardship contacts to see if they know of parcels that were NOT listed.

•5) We have spoken with and/or met with other conservation real estate Brokers and reviewed what they had to offer, being all the while scrupulous about staying within the price point you specified. We have not gone over this price range, but have tried to stay within or below it.

•6) In our previewing, we have found some very unattractive properties...one was burned out... ...one was just a steep cliff...so about 1,000 miles and 20 forays later, TODAY we finally finished the research ....(it takes about 5 or 6 hours to go out to these properties, walk them...and so forth...but we figure the many hours that we spend in research saves our clients disappointment....)

•7) As a result of this research, we have found a number of properties that could work for you. They meet your specifications. Here's why:

a) they are within the price range
b) they are adjacent to the National Forest and/or to a Conservation Land
c) they have a good water source
d) there are no deed restrictions preventing small organic farming
e) they can be farmed
f) they have workable solar orientation
g) they have privacy
h) they can be walked by your grandparents
i) there are numerous building sites on them
j) they have cascades and/or waterfalls
k) they actually ARE available for real estate transaction
m) they are large 80+ AC land tracts
n) they are at least fairly accessible ...and therefore our clients would not have to add another large sum of $$$ in additional costs just to bring power and improvements to them, and
o) one or two even have cabins that could be used by the family while you are building

•8) This has been quite a project, as you can imagine! We are very pleased to tell you that, having just TODAY completed this project, we can now prepare the tours.

•9) We have set up three different tours for you. First...One to the EAST with the waterfall property you told me you wanted to see (this is not adjacent to the National Forest)...Second...One to the Northwest. ..and finally...One to the West... Each tour will take 5 to 6 hours...

•10) We have poured over research details and have assembled maps, plats, surveys, topos, aerials and all the MLS information that could be found. This now is assembled in folders ready for us to review when we meet at our Asheville Office on Monday morning at about 10:30 AM...

____________________________________________________________________________________________

__~o
-\_<,
(*)/'(*) .......... ............to keep on rolling into the sustainable world you can create today and tomorrow!. ......................... .............with OBJECTIVE FIDUCIARY COUNSEL.

ECO STEWARDS' LEARNING TOURS.Serving Asheville's First Time and Relocation LAND and Home Buyers.

Asheville Conservation Land Buyers - "GREEN" Real Estate and Relocation: The Eco-Steward Firm, ALL Eco-Certified® Real Estate Consultants! Copyright © 2009 All Rights Reserved

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Dateline Asheville, North Carolina, May, 2009
News and Views from Asheville's Greenolina, Real Estate Eco-Steward

Early morning is a splendid time to view property . There is the fresh mountain air of Asheville. There are the songs of cardinals. There is the sense of adventure as you head out from Asheville. Today we aimed north and west to a property one of our favorite colleagues requested we review. Rolling down the highway we enjoyed the pale-blue mountains almost feathered into the still-pink skies. We anticipated something very special as the description hinted: .

- 9.31 Rolling and usable acres, recently surveyed
- 3 acres of cleared, ready to till pasture with Southern Exposures!
- 2-3 acres of former pasture currently wooded, but could easily be cleared
- Pasture areas are set back away from the road! No car exhaust or tire remnants in your growing area
- Incredible water resources (two wonderful springs, one of which feeds the pond, and almost 400 feet of trout stream frontage)
- Great state road access, with nice dirt roads already in place on the property
- Multiple building sites that do not encroach on the pastured areas with views, both short and long range views.

That intrigued me. And so did the asking price: $150,000.

I considered how this opportunity could play out :

• It might be a place for envisioning... .(see photo) an investment for the future
• It could be the dream farm for a First Time Home Buyer
• It could be someone's prized find on which to build a sustainable GREEN home.
• It could be the perfect family compound, a mountain retreat with distant mountain views, two homes, two guest cottages. . .or a small organic family farm ...or, with the gently rolling terrain, a small horse farm!

I know, I know - I'm dreaming. Early morning anticipation is a wonderful thing....Certainly we looked forward to seeing a most versatile opportunity and not more than half an hour or so from Asheville!

___________________________________

__~o
-\_<,
(*)/'(*) .......... ............to keep on rolling into the sustainable world you can create today and tomorrow!. ......................... .............with OBJECTIVE FIDUCIARY COUNSEL.

ECO STEWARDS' LEARNING TOURS. Serving Asheville's First Time and Relocation LAND and Home Buyers.

Asheville Dream Farm. Asheville First Time Home Buyers - "GREEN" Real Estate and Relocation: The Eco-Steward Firm, ALL Eco-Certified® Real Estate Consultants! Copyright © 2009 All Rights Reserved

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As I looked at this photo I shot at a very, very special location, a sense of possibility crept over me (here in Asheville, NC, that is not too hard to do as we are blessed with incredible viewscapes at almost every turn--

yet--there is something extraordinary in the spaces I see here. . . and so I call this photo FREE THE MUSE!and created the MuseQuest (just below).... so you can enjoy that sense of possibility, too!
WELCOME HOME!

MUSE QUEST..fill in the blanks (poetically)

•1. The shine on a mountainside is like- ___________________________________

•2. The leaves on the old oak waved as if_____________________________________________

•3. Everything had changed now that it was ____________________________________

Pure possibility awaits you when you come Home to Asheville. . .Tell me when you'll be arriving. . .
_________________________________________________________________________________________________

Asheville "GREEN" Real Estate and Relocation: The Eco-Steward Firm, ALL Eco-Certified® Real Estate Consultants! Copyright © 2009 All Rights Reserved

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Getting beyond the apparent -where it appearsthere is only a veil of mists and mysteries- is today's challenge. Appearances fool us . . .. from the way we (naturally) view past, present, and future, to the way we experience our (apparently) three-dimensional world. No wonder you and I can get five minutes before or behind our schedules in the cold morning air.

I love the practice of real estate! It gives me the opportunity to get beyond the "apparently-so" -and what do I find there? This photo reminded me to expect a panorama, a wide view, all astir with pure potential.

ASHEVILLE MMONRNING MISTS