Tim Baird

Born and raised in central Maine, my youth was spent mowing the lawn, kicking a soccer ball against the garage doors, and trying to sneak sugar cereal out of the kitchen cupboards after I was put to bed. I attended college in southern Maine where I studied economics and art history and I ate a great deal of sugar cereal. In 2001, I met Kiyah Duffey at the Bramhall Pub in Portland, Maine - we were engaged within 4 months. Happily married, we now live in Chapel Hill, North Carolina where we are working towards our PhDs at UNC. Kiyah studies obesity in the department of Nutrition and I am in the department of Geography where I look at interactions between humans and the environment. I still eat sugar cereal.

The availability of organic, locally-grown foods central NC is really fantastic. Every Saturday and Wednesday there is farmer's market within walking distance of our apartment that draws dozens of farmers from the surrounding area. This year will be the first year that the market runs throughout the winter. Several restaurants in Carrboro host farm dinners throughout the growing season which we are generally loath to miss. We are members of the Weaver Street Market Coop. in Carrboro which brings in meat, diary products, and seasonal produce from surrounding farms. Finally, there is a small community garden in Chapel Hill where we have a 4x20ft plot where we rotate vegetables in organically composted soil.

While the bustle of life sometimes prevents us from having people over as often as we'd like, dinner with friends is one of our favorite ways to pass the time. Recently, a close friend of Kiyah's set up a local "soup collective" wherein about 12 of us rotate soup making duties each week to distribute to the group. So far it's been a big success with big smiles and full bellies all around.

Despite all of this the sugar cereal remains.