• Choose a category
• All
• Classic-Fiction

He also helped mold our philosophy. For Terry, life is all about experience. He has managed to carve out a life for himself doing exactly what he wants to do—and has stayed remarkably happy in the process. That’s part of what attracted his girlfriend, Rachel, a talented artist in her own right who designs and makes beautiful beaded jewelry. Like Terry, she has built a life around her art. She used to run a shop near the Bakery that she opened with Terry’s help, but about a year and a half ago she sold it so that she could devote all her time to designing jewelry. Today, ten years since they started to date, she and Terry live at the top of a narrow dirt road in a converted greenhouse with a view of the Pacific Ocean, supporting themselves by doing what they love.

Together, Terry and Rachel are a major inspiration in our life at the Bakery. They’re living proof that you can support yourself with your art, whether it’s sandal-making or beading, baking or cooking. At the same time, they’re a constant reminder that life shouldn’t just be about work, no matter how much you enjoy what you’re doing. You have to make time for other things.

Most of all, they’ve taught us that it’s important not to let daily frustrations get in the way of the bigger picture. And every time February comes around, we keep in mind one of Terry’s favorite sayings: “If you’re unhappy in Big Sur, you’re looking at it wrong.”

Photographs by Sara Remington

Photographs by Sara Remington

PROFILE: TERRY/SANDALMAKER RACHEL/BEADER

Photographs by Sara Remington

Story of your house:

It was built by Jack Curtis, a writer who wrote screenplays for Bonanza and Rawhide. It used to be his writing studio and a greenhouse.

How long have you lived in Big Sur?

Rachel’s been here for fifteen years, Terry for thirty.

Rachel’s nickname for Terry:

Commen-terry, because he has something to say about everything, but there’s nothing common about him.

Rachel’s oddest Big Sur job:

Llama walking. We were trying to train them as pack animals.

Terry’s hidden talent:

He has a degree in psychology and is working on his second book.

Terry’s signature foods:

Hide bread, toasted with butter, and rocket fuel (black tea with honey and half-and-half, brewed strong).

What are Hide sandals?

Handmade leather sandals, custom-crafted to fit your feet. Terry’s been making them for years.

Ordering instructions for Terry’s sandals:

Stand on sheet of paper. Outline foot. Trace between big toe and the next one. Scribe inside of arch. Repeat for opposite foot. (Also, if you pay first, they’ll get made faster.)

Where does Terry find business?

It finds him.

Philosophy toward work:

Work smart, not hard. What’s the point of living here if you’re not getting to enjoy this place?

Recipes

* * *

Hide Bread

Terry “Hide” Prince is known up and down the California coast for three things: his hand-crafted leather sandals, his homemade Hide bread, and his uncanny ability to look at the bright side of life. Terry has been making this bread for over twenty-five years, basing the recipe on his knowledge of nutrition and his love for toast. The result is an unfussy, simple loaf that’s somewhere between an Irish soda bread and a grain-filled English muffin. Terry packs patties of Hide bread with him when he goes camping, and has even been known to carry one in his pocket, pre-toasted and buttered, as a snack.

When we first moved to Big Sur, we were fascinated by Terry’s habit of feeding his friends with a constant supply of these little breads. He would toast them up, make us the best cup of tea we’d ever had, and inspire us with stories of his adventures. These quickly became our favorite bread to snack on, and Terry’s patties powered us through our long days of work as we started the Bakery. A few months later, we drew inspiration from his recipe and created the nine-grain whole-wheat baguette that we serve on our daily bread plate.

Terry buys his flour and seeds in bulk and creates his own bread mix, which he stores in a five-gallon