When I first started testing our menu at the MIT truck back in 2008 I was hoping Clover would become something important. I’m hoping we’re still in our infancy, because what I have in mind goes way beyond what we are today.
But I never ever thought I’d find fans recognizing Clover in the middle of nowhere.
I’m coming back from a month long vacation. I borrowed a Clover delivery van that we don’t use anymore, did a simple DIY-camper van fit-out, and drove with my family up Maine (where we checked in with one of our roasters, and seaweed suppliers), through New Brunswick, past our friends in Prince Edward Island who grow our potatoes, through Nova Scotia (where a street vendor back in 2001 gave me the original inspiration that led to Clover’s french fries), up to Newfoundland. On the northern short of Newfoundland we had pulled over at some fossil-like structures called Thrombolites. We were at a pullout and a young couple waved from their car, they might have even honked. I thought they were asking if the stop was fun.
But they rolled down their window and told me they were huge Clover fans. We grabbed a photo, the one of the left above. I think their names were Emily and Jamie. Thanks guys for recognizing us and saying hi!
After Newfoundland we took another ferry to Labrador, the “Big Land.” Labrador didn’t have roads 10 years ago, literally. Now there is one road. The entire land has 24,000 inhabitants.
And there, in the middle of nowhere, in the big land, we were passing a couple that shouted and waved. We met up at the next pullout and found another Clover fan. They were visiting Point Amour to look at some special fossils there. So here we found ourselves 1,400 miles and 3 ferry trips away from Boston, in the big land, in the middle of nowhere, and I was being asked if I have any sandwiches.
It feels so great not because I was always wishing to be famous or something. I’m not nuts about that. But because I know these folks LOVE what we do. And it feels so special to be a part of something that touches people that deeply. I feel so indebted to those working with me to build Clover. Kyori (sp?), the fan in Labrador, asked when we’d bring back the Japanese Sweetpotato. She wanted to talk about Clover. She showed us some of the fossils they were looking at. She was so excited to see us. And I was excited to see them.
