Why 5280?

The drive from Denver, Colorado to Wahoo, Nebraska seemed a lot longer than 8 hours. Not just because I was sitting in the backseat with a 5 year old, or the fact I kept peering in the rear view mirror for a glimpse of the overly large U-Haul to ensure Dustin was driving safe, but because I physically felt we were entering the twilight zone when we crossed over the Nebraska border!

Not to say we weren’t used to Nebraska, we made that drive a few times over the past 5 1/2 years, but this drive seemed particularly gut wrenching. I found myself saying things like, “it’s going to be great,” “small towns have perks I need to get reacquainted with,” and “oh look at that cute billboard advertising the only restaurant in town, I bet it’s good? I am sure they serve the food we have become accustomed to in Denver?” I was convincing myself, my 5 year old knew it and so did my parents. After 7 hours my heart and mind was made up and I was feeling pretty good about our decision. Then I saw this sign:

Why was it so bright? Is it necessary to have such a large sign pointing to the town with a population 4,500? I felt this sign was mocking us, and as we drove past, the image remained with me for days afterwords.

It has been 9 months, and I can authentically report we are happy to be on this new adventure (I promise, no more convincing talk at our house!). However, we had to mourn our Denver losses first, go through the necessary stages of grief, in order to grow and really appreciate that sign I swear was mocking me. That is why we re-branded as “county road 5280.” We now live on a country road, but we wouldn’t have been here had it not been for the mile high (5280) city. I believe if you grow up on the farm you never really get all the dirt out of your boots no matter where you go or end up. I am happy to return to a county dirt road, but I still need 5280 in my life to feel whole. It was there where we experienced other types of farming that ignited a fire within us to start this new adventure. We owe a lot to our roots as well as our branches we grew along the way, and now we hope to continue this growth and find a tribe here as well (good thing I have a big sign to look at now to direct me in the right direction!).

We are still mourning our beloved cafe shop https://www.cafezuri.com/ we would frequently visit, morning chats with our neighbors, and enjoying the diverse entertainment Denver would attract from all over the world. It is much different than our new routine now, which mostly thanks to the pandemic, consists of home brewed coffee, me waving a little too excitedly at the mail lady in the afternoon, and for evening entertainment, watching the neighbors cows graze the harvested corn fields. We are all in this together, and I am happy you have joined us along for this journey! Stay tuned for more of our adventures on the farm at County Road 5280.

Peace,

Amy