The sun came out

… but long that, the roofers showed up, fixed the problem (for free) and were gone. I realize that it is foolish to generalize about these matters but everything does seem to happen more easily – and more genially, on the North Fork. For example, Jose, the North Forker who moved my things from suburbia to here, stopped by the other day to fix the leg of my chaise lounge that he’d noticed had come loose during the move. He didn’t want any money either. “I just like to keep busy” he said.

Was this the real secret of the North Fork – not its food and wine or proximity to water (the ocean, the bay and Long Island Sound) but the fact that it’s a sort of Service Disney Land -where all  repairs are swift and friendly and always, always free?

I decided I’d better keep the karmic balance intact by volunteering my own services too – so I called a couple local volunteer organizations (one with an irresistible title: the Sunshine Society) and asked if I could be of some use. I told them I was a journalist. They didn’t seem to be deterred by that fact. I even called a couple of winemakers too but I haven’t heard back. I’m waiting to hear what they think I can do…

Rain on the Fork

It’s the first day of my blog and it’s raining. The two facts are unrelated, of course, except rain means a lot more here than it does in New York City. It means that the still-unharvested grapes will not be harvested and that the pumpkin-buying populace may be staying at home. In short, it’s not good news for the area’s farmers. In New York, rain is a boon to street corner umbrella salesmen and coat check girls.

I lived in New York and its near suburbs for over twenty years before moving out to the North Fork, just weeks ago. (The story of how my move came about will be appearing in the winter editions of Edible East End and Edible Manhattan.)  All of my friends have told me they’re “proud” of me for making the move – except my friends who live here of course. They think it’s a good idea- maybe even a natural progression- from visitor to resident- though a few of them have made some dark comments about life in November and March. So we’ll see. But I’ve already had some great food and wine experiences that I’ll be describing in future posts. Right now I have to go because my kitchen roof is leaking. I wonder how hard it will be to find a good roofing company on the North Fork.