his own camel. It would be his small piece of his childhood dream.

When the bar closed, Patch decided to tour zoos to learn all he could and find a new job working with animals.

"It was my chance to start over," he said.

Patch already had a background working with reptiles: Since he was a kid, Patch had run a reptile business. It began when he was in middle school, and continued through college.

"At that period in my life, I followed the reptile industry like investors do the stock market," Patch said. Working out of his childhood bedroom, and then, perhaps, a dorm room that might not allow pets, Patch ordered reptiles for his customers, checked them over for parasites, fed and watered them, and shipped them on. He dealtin the fantastical (bearded dragons and constrictors) and cute (hermit crabs and turtles). All the while, Patch built contacts in the animal industry.

After closing his bar, Patch was on the short list to help the ailing Ross Park Zoo in Binghamton rebuild itself and its reputation, he said. But he ended up not getting the job.

Now, he thinks it was fate. Around the same time, Patch had received an email from his realtor about a farm that had come on the market. It turned out to be a farm Patch had driven by countless times. He'd always admired the rolling hills and lush bog.

A few days later, Patch bought the farm. Then he got his camel. This, Patch is sure, was a delivery straight from fate. Patch noticed