Bryan D. Brown

So I am back in Santa Barbara after an amazing three and a half weeks in Oaxaca. Despite the illnesses - both the Montezuma’s Revenge and a rather nasty cold I managed to catch post-Montezuma, I still had an amazing time. I saw some lucha libre (including finally getting a photo with my favorite luchadore), went to Puerto Escondido, and hit all the major tourist sites (Monte Albán, Mitla, Hierve el Agua, etc, etc.). I drank my (and your) share of mezcal, ate plenty of mole, and made some really great friends. As much as I am glad to be home, I already miss Oaxaca - which is a testament to the amazing place it is. And, once again, thanks to Andrew and his restaurant (El Naranjo) for making my last night in Oaxaca very memorable enjoyable.

And I’d like to thank the Acadamy (I’m starting to ramble a bit)….

Unfortunately, coming home yielded some not so positive things. Typically, when I am away, I like to leave a window open to keep the place from getting too musty. There was some bad timing in that decision, as the Sedgewick Fire managed to coat Santa Barbara with a fine-grained soot - which also includes most everything in our place. I’ve spent my first day back cleaning the entire our place four times times. Compared to other places in SoCal, I should consider myself lucky. The fire in Irvine, for example, was a mere mile from where I grew up - and my parents have some friends who were evacuated (they are all back home now).

Still, not the best welcome home present.

But who am I to complain (aside from, well, me). Over three weeks in Mexico is still a great time - and no soot can rain on that experience.