It has bean awhile.

What a year so far. Every morning when I am being overtaken on the A66 by literally everything I think to myself "what the hell am I doing?!" but I soon remember I am doing what I love! Serving fantastic coffee and meeting brilliant people every single day. It doesn't get much better for me.

This week I met an old school friend, who like I did, "got a proper job" for many years before finally realising her dream and packing it in for an actual proper job; one that she loves! It was fantastic to reconnect and find out we had both taken the risk and were both loving the journey - you can always get the money back somehow, you can never get the time back. Take the risk.

The Van

What a superstar! After a steady start at The Arena traffic has gradually got busier and busier and I am massively grateful to everyone that stops by every morning. People say they come back for the incredible coffee but I am convinced it is mostly for my superb craic.

Away from The Arena I've had some fun events all over Darlington and Middleton St George. I've also been over to Marske and down to Hamsterley Forrest. I have a number of other events in the pipeline for October and November and I am very excited about these opportunities and massively thankful for the invites to them.

*I reserve the right to delete all of the above nice stuff about the van if it breaks down in the morning and as you read this I am sat on a grass verge waiting for recovery!

The Roastery.

The real grafter behind the pink van! The Roastery is busier then ever right now, with the increased demand for fresh coffee beans on the van and the online orders coming in every day, it is very much working the van 7-12, brief lunch, then roasting coffee from 1pm onwards!

I am this week ordering more of the fresh harvest of my Colombian Dulima. I love this coffee it is such a beautiful all round coffee. There is also a new Brazilian single origin on its way...

I will try to update these blogs more often. Below is a brief summary of the highlights of my year so far and the low points!

Highlights

Every single customer I have served and met.

Every single order online.

Low points.

Being overtaken by a combine harvester.

Wasps.

Being asked if I am an ice cream van constantly in the summer.

2 breakdowns (van not me).

Brazilian Peaberry running out.

Lastly just a massive thank you to everyone for your support over the past few years.