Hi, Reader

I'm writing to you from my dear friend Marit's house in Pasadena, California.

If you read my last email, you might recall that this is not where I said I would be this month. I said I was still going to be in Oaxaca, Mexico. Well, I can explain.

Plans Change

A few things happened in Oaxaca to end our time there early, but the driving reason behind leaving was the drought.

Oaxaca can only supply something like 30% of the city's water, and the rest is supplied by private companies — which were also suffering from the drought. Ultimately, Phil and I just felt too guilty taking very limited water from locals.

We ran out of water a couple of times during our stay, which was pretty uncomfortable. Especially in the days of 95℉+ (35℃). With no air conditioning and only a couple of fans, having no water is an even bigger deal. That said, our host was extremely generous in bringing us over water to refill our cistern. It just wasn't sustainable.

Colonizer Guilt?

Interestingly enough, I have managed to feel guilty both about staying in and leaving Oaxaca. As I explained to my therapist, my ability to escape a difficult situation as I did in Oaxaca is simply not a privilege afforded to many of the locals there.

When I contrast this privileged experience of escape to the experience of cultural rage, which is very clearly visible on the walls and electrical poles in Oaxaca, it's almost impossible not to feel guilty.

This experience has heightened tension between my values and my actions. It's forced me to confront a truth I like to continuously push aside: My value of decolonization is sometimes at odds with my own behavior as a privileged traveler.

It's a painful truth, but this is the kind of self-critical acknowledgment that brings me into closer alignment with my values. Most nomads don't even bother acknowledging the negative impact their presence has (or can have). I want to be better than that, and I know I can do better.

In Between Oaxaca & Pasadena

After leaving Oaxaca, we spent a few days visiting our friends in Puerto Vallarta, which was really fun. It had been three years since we were last in PV. And yes, there was definitely water there!

And then we DOLLOP'd!

Our change in plans brought us back to LA earlier than anticipated, which meant we were there at the same time as the 10th-anniversary show of my favorite podcast, The Dollop!

I had been trying to see these guys live since my now-ex got me tickets for my birthday back in 2020. I was super excited to finally see them live!

Fun fact: The host of the podcast, Dave Anthony, knows who I am. He once shared my viral Elon Musk tweet on his Instagram story, and I responded to it saying, "Hey, that's me!"
and he said, "It was a solid tweet,"
and now he follows me back.
Dave is cool. I'm pretty sure we'd be pals in real life.

The Words I've Been Weavin'

For some reason, 2,500 people now follow me on Threads (Meta's X/Twitter competitor platform). I'm pleasantly surprised that I've been able to find and connect with a decent leftist community on this platform.

Now, hold on, wait a minute, there, buddy. What I post on Threads is not for everybody reading this email. However, if you are interested in reading my leftist musings:

Disc Golf

I enjoy throwing plastic circles in the forest and have been doing so quite often as of late. (Thank you, father, for developing my throwing arm from a young age so I have a basis of skill level upon which to sling the f*** out of some discs).

There is a disc golf course just a 10-minute drive from where we are in Pasadena. Here are two back-to-back long putts that gave me pars (3 tosses) and Phil modeling the disc from the distance that I shot the putts:

Next month I will be in northern California catsitting and then Guatemala City for our friends' wedding.

Thanks for following along with me,

Writer | Marketer | Activist | Humanist | Digital Nomad

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