It’s an overcast May 11th. Though it is 20℃, it is not inviting nor enticing me out. I shall procrastinate, linger and grumble a bit before heading out to do some gardening chores. I am hard pressed for inspirations to lift me up and out of my malaise. I did come across Jim Hadfield’s baking story recently. It is pretty inspiring. He learned how to bake in retirement because it was difficult to find bread he could enjoy. Over time his baking menu grew and became a business out of his home in Milestone, Saskatchewan.

Surprisingly, I’ve never heard of Milestone. It is 50 55 km from Regina with a population of 672 – 682 residents. It is 321 km from Saskatoon, a 3 hour drive away. I find it remarkable that he has a thriving business. There’s quite a demand for his Christmas cake. He has orders from across Canada. He started out with 28 cakes the first year. It grew to 724 cakes for 2025 and his Christmas cakes are already sold out for 2026. I think he has an order of 1264 cakes this year! He will be turning 75 later this month. He has a Facebook page.

All this did sparked my brain and heart this morning. It made me think, Why don’t I do something like that? I’m thinking of doing the baking thing, too. Once upon a time, I tried out all kinds of things after I perfected the bread. I tried cinnamon buns, baguettes, Chinese steamed buns, sourdough bread, pie once. I bought 2 new pie pans and have not used them once. I still have a binder full of pastry recipes. Maybe it’s time to experiment and bake again. I can try to be a smaller version of Jim. I will not take any orders.