There are winners! The 4000th order has been placed! And some personal matters

Just as I was about to go to bed, it happened! The 4000th order has been placed. Because numbers 14000 and 14001 arrived at exactly the same time, there are ultimately 3 winners (also 3999).

It's a great honor for me that I've been able to make so many people happy with this fantastic plant in recent years. The last year, in particular, has been incredibly successful. I'm incredibly grateful for that. Without the many returning customers, this wouldn't have been possible.

What the future holds is still uncertain for me. Three years ago, I had to make the decision whether I wanted to continue and whether I could.

This was perhaps one of the most difficult decisions I've ever had to make.

The decision to continue was also the decision to become homeless. At the time, I couldn't afford to rent a commercial space/cover the costs of the greenhouse, and also rent a house. Not even with a second job I took then.

Earlier this year, I took an even bigger step and left everything behind in Friesland to be closer to the greenhouse. To avoid ending up on the street under a bridge, I used my savings from back then to buy a small boat, which I still live on. Besides the fact that I'm doing something illegal (living on a boat isn't allowed in the Netherlands either), it's also not a sustainable situation for very long. Especially in the winter, it's a lot less fun on the boat. Meanwhile, due to the great success of this year, my financial situation has changed. However, I still don't have half a million for a house here in the Netherlands. I don't qualify for social housing. And even if there were a bank willing to lend me half a million, I wouldn't even want that.

Therefore, it's increasingly looking like there's no place for me here in the Netherlands. I don't foresee any improvement in the housing shortage in the near future. And now that I'm almost entering my fourth year as a homeless person, I'll have to make another very difficult decision to leave the Netherlands.

I'll continue to work incredibly hard in the coming years to keep my dream and passion alive. But I'll also have to think about myself. The lack of even the most basic necessities is starting to take its toll. I can't keep this up for another fourth year. I feel like a refugee in my own country now. I'll be open for a few more weeks. This is necessary to complete the large number of orders received for Black Friday. After that, I'll have a short break to explore the possibilities of leaving the Netherlands. I'll consider Germany (I'm half German) or Spain. I'll probably be back at the end of January. Additional message: I've received some concerned messages. Hoyas are my passion and love, and I will continue to do so. But in the near future, my contribution will be in a different way. Right now, I do everything, absolutely everything, on my own. I manage the entire website myself, handle all the financial matters, and provide all the communication. With the occasional helping hand, I personally pot all the cuttings. I pack every single plant. I do everything myself, from start to finish.

It's not exactly easy to leave, and I'll have a lot to arrange. Just to be able to leave. I will continue to work with this fantastic greenhouse for the coming years. Moving both myself and the company at the same time isn't an option for me.

But I refuse to pay taxes in the Netherlands for much longer, while the municipality here, for example, refuses to register me at a postal address so I can receive government mail.

For example, I recently received a large settlement because I hadn't paid something on time that I simply didn't know about. Because I can't get any ****** government mail. And no, not everything arrives digitally. And to that corrupt organization, I pay a hefty amount of tax.

And now, after three years, that's starting to feel really unfair. See you soon and have lots of fun growing! Roy Cijsouw