Green Acres?

It wasn't exactly "Green Acres," but a few years ago, Robin Cater left the fast-paced world of big-city, retail business in the San Francisco area to be closer to her family, work with her hands and enjoy the more laid-back, rural lifestyle here.

A relatively new potter, growing in skills and experience, she said, "I feel like a different person now. I was so uptight and high-strung. I focused on one thing, and it was driving me batty. Here life slowed down, and I loved it. I said, ‘Thank you, God, for putting me here.'" Cater was born and raised in Roanoke, Va., where her oldest sister still lives. She attended Hollins College, a girls school, then married and moved to Colorado, where she earned a theater arts degree at the University of Colorado at Boulder. Cater came back east and worked in convention sales at Pinehurst Hotel and Country Club in North Carolina. After her divorce, she continued that career for a few more years, including at South Seas Plantation resort in Florida.