The waiting is the hardest part

Tom Petty, I couldn't agree more. I know I've got a streak of impatience, so waiting and wondering how a batch will turn out has occasionally gotten the better of me. Things appear to be correct, but there are lots of variables that I have to track to know what, in retrospect, I've done right or wrong. The most important thing, and I try to focus on it as much as I can, is that my competence and understanding of the process improves daily. But, oy, the waiting...

Progress

Things have been moving along in a generally positive way over the past few weeks. That's not to say that everything has gone perfectly.

I continue to love the work. My main concern right now is getting the make formula just right and consistent. Next, I'm focusing on finding a home for the cheese. The retailers I've spoken with have been terrific--I'd like to single out Claire Thomas at Surdyk's Cheese Shop in Minneapolis for her detailed tasting notes. This weekend I'm going up to visit Scott from Great Ciao, a local distributor of fine foods and a cheesemaker in his own right. He has a farm about an hour's drive from me--should be a fine time, and I'll be sure to post on how it goes.

Working alone, on balance, has been wonderful. I can tune the radio or Ipod to whatever suits my mood, and no one is there to distract me from whatever it is I'm doing. Still, there are moments when I feel an onset of cabin fever. Self-doubt can creep up on me, and I don't have a trusted ally to lean on. Here I fall back on the notion that this is a journey, a process, an adventure. And that works...most of the time.