After attending faculty in Vermont, Peter Gregg labored as an agriculture reporter for an area newspaper, then fell into a distinct segment subject: He turned a maple syrup farmer.
“I acquired into sugarmaking by way of a pal and neighbor who invited me to hang around with him whereas he boiled sap all day,” Mr. Gregg stated. “I like being exterior in nature, I like timber and I’ve a depraved candy tooth, so it was an ideal match.”
He quickly purchased a thousand-tree maple orchard on the Vermont-New York border, after which, in 1999, he based a commerce publication, The Maple Information, which nonetheless prints 11 editions a 12 months. “We produce sufficient syrup yearly to fill a sizzling tub,” he stated of the farm. “It takes 40 gallons of sap to make one gallon of syrup.”
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Extra not too long ago, Mr. Gregg has leaned additional into his writing profession. His first ebook, “The Sugar Rush: A Memoir of Wild Desires, Budding Bromance and Making Maple Syrup,” was printed final 12 months. He’s engaged on a novel, to be titled “Pancake Cowboy.”
Over time, Mr. Gregg, now 58 and divorced, would journey to New York Metropolis usually, taking his son and daughter — now of their 20s — for visits. Each ultimately went off to school within the metropolis.
“A tiny city in the midst of the woods was no place for an empty-nest bachelor,” he stated. “I wanted a jolt. I needed to reinvent myself as a author. The publishing business relies in New York and there are such a lot of sources for writers.”
He bought his home in Greenwich, N.Y., (pronounced “Inexperienced Witch”) to a few from Brooklyn — “We traded locations,” he stated — and two years in the past rented a studio in Carnegie Hill, on the Higher East Facet. It was extra reasonably priced than different elements of Manhattan and near the city forest of Central Park, in case he felt homesick for the woods.
“Going from a large home to a studio was an adjustment, however I wanted a beachhead and knew from the get-go that I needed to purchase in Manhattan,” he stated.
The studio, in a small co-op constructing, had one closet, limitless beeping from vans delivering to a close-by meals institution, and cockroaches. “I’d reasonably see a bear than a cockroach,” he stated.
He was supplied the prospect to purchase that co-op unit and declined. However he did wish to stay in Carnegie Hill, and he stated he needed his new dwelling to look “New Yorky,” which to him meant having a stoop exterior and uncovered brick inside. His funds for a one-bedroom ranged as much as $600,000; in that space of Manhattan, that meant a co-op.
Structure was necessary. After dwelling within the cramped studio, Mr. Gregg needed some form of hallway and a rest room that was centrally positioned, not en suite.
He linked with Leanne Stella, a licensed salesperson with Brown Harris Stevens. “Renting first is sweet for somebody from out of city since you develop into lifelike about how folks stay and the quantity of house they get,” she stated.
The hunt ended up taking for much longer than he anticipated. “Peter had very particular standards,” Ms. Stella stated. “He needed to stroll to Complete Meals. There have been factors after I thought he was by no means going to purchase something.”
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