Neighborhood Lifecycles

I wonder how many of us here in northwest Florida, specifically, Tallahassee, have lived in the same neighborhood for many years, or at least long enough to observe the process of growth that occurs in neighborhoods. When you plant a garden, it is a rewarding experience to observe the baby plants shoot up out of the soil, pass through the state of childhood, and become a full florishing plant, with fruits, vegetables, or and flowers. A neighborhood has its growth as well.

The developer moves in,  clears the land, flattens it, puts in infraestructure, such as  the roads, utilities, water system, drainage, and lighting. Next, the homes are built, perhaps spec homes, if builder is making a quantity of homes, with several models to choose from sometimes. Or, the neighborhood may consist of custom homes, in which the buyer can pick and choose what appearance and style is wanted for the home. Next, the home is lived in, the neighborhood grows, more people populate the area, trees grow, and over time, there is wear and tear of the structures, and the newness fades into history.

One neighborhood in particular here in Tallahassee, the Weems, was a forest a few years ago. I walked and explored that wooded area in east Tallahassee, which is the direction much real estate development is moving in. I was surprised when the Weems Subdivision was developed into a community of many single family homes. The trees were cut down, and new homes built. I then noticed over a few years that the landscaping in the community was developing, and trees planted or put in, were growing. The Weems is still a young neighborhood, but it is easy to notice that it is maturing, and is now established in the hearts and minds of folks here in Tallahassee.

It is fun to reflect on how neighborhoods grow, and change over time. I am always interested in hearing and reading about peoples’ experiences living for a period of time in a community, and the observations they have.

Get Free Acorns With Your Home

The acorns are on the ground now all over, here in northwest Florida, a sign that autumn is here. I like walking in the parks, and in neighborhoods, stepping on many acorns and hearing the crunchy sounds this creates. However, there is more to acorns than just the announcement of a change in seasons.

Squirrels eat acorns. The native Americans ate acorns. This member of the nut family is nutricious, and abundant. There are tons of acorns everywhere, enough to feed a lot of people. So what do you do with acorns? They are on the ground waiting for harvesting hands, and they are free.

When I was an archeology student at the University of West Florida,I had an interesting assignment during a fall semester.I had to gather wild acorns and make bread or muffins out of them. Other students had to gather or hunt other foods in the native American way. We were to have a natural harvest feast with everyone bringing what they were to bring: roots, rabbit, deer, an edible bark type, seeds, vegetables and more. So, I wandered through the vast forests surrounding the University of West Florida, and collected buckets of acorns. Fall is a very comfortable time to be outdoors anyway, after the long, hot Florida summers. I took the acorns home, boiled them in hot water to get the toxins out of them (something you must do), and I let them sit in the water, I think overnight, but I do not remember exactly. I do remember breaking the shell, and roasting the acorns in the oven. They became ready to eat, with or without salt or sugar. Delicious is how I would describe roasted acorns. I took other acorns, and before it was over with, I had tasty acorn muffins, enough to share with professor and classmates.

I only made acorn muffins once, but I would be willing to do it again. Here we have an edible, natural food, right in our own yard, and instead of eating them, we walk on them. Nature is abundance. Just look around.

Kenneth Fach, REALTOR, ePRO
Weichert, REALTORS-Anchor
1607 Village Square Boulevard, Suite B 103
Tallahassee, Florida 32309
Direct/Text 850-339-5753

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