I had a winemaker from Italy in town yesterday and this involves a lot of driving around Los Angeles. These winemakers trip out their first times in LA cuz most spend their entire lives in a village of 600 people and suddenly find themselves in a city of 5M (I'm sure they feel the same going to NYC the first time).

So we're driving through Hollywood to our next appt and he's commenting on the Tesla diner and I'm like fuck it lets go inside and we can try to sell them your wine. The Tesla diner does not have any alcohol license.

Had to go down to Northwestern, get my hearing checked, and my right ear cleaned out. Something I do every 6 months. As soon as my feet hit the floor Rodney Dangerfield was in my head saying "Doc you gotta help me"

My audiologist thought it was hilarious. Leah, not so much

I interviewed for the position I’ve been trying to secure this morning. Third time applying, second time interviewing. It went much better than the last time I interviewed, although I did stumble through a couple of hypotheticals. It’s for a different park than the one I’ve been working. It’ll be a bummer to leave if I get hired, but it’s a nice park and campground on Lake Travis, and I’d be doing more interpretative work. Giving talks and expanding awareness of flora, fauna, geology, and history is my favorite aspect of my job, so more interpretative work would be great.

Sitting at the airport, waiting to board a plane to Mexico City. Looking forward to a break from ‘merica.

Edit/update- Airport to Condesa was a breeze. We ate dinner at an Italian/Mexican fusion place and had an insanely good meal, gnocchi with corn smut and a crema sauce. It was so rich and good that it doubled as dessert. Planning on eating my weight in various tacos tomorrow. The jacaranda trees are blooming, so the green spaces are purple with blossoms. I doubt I’ll go beyond Roma, Condesa, Hipodroma, and Chapultapec Park during this trip, but I’m ok with that.

I learned this morning that Joe Satriani sings backup vocals on the first Crowded House record. He doesn’t play guitar on it. He just sings.

Cool animal of the day: Tropical velvet earthworm

I’m still in Ciudad México with my gf Elizabeth and our friends Kevin and Bob. Elizabeth and Kevin are hyper- focused on seeing all the sights listed in the guidebook. Bob doesn’t like to plan, but will go with the flow. I like to see the sights sparingly, but I mostly enjoy wandering around and stumbling on little things. I’ve been separating from the group because they’re focused on sights and fine dining. I want to wander aimlessly and eat tacos.

This is truly one of the loveliest cities I’ve ever visited. I could spend the rest of my trip people-watching in Parké México.

I made guacamole in a molcajete, marking the last time I don’t make guacamole in a molcajete.

Dave N. wrote: Mon Apr 06, 2026 11:08 am I’m still in Ciudad México with my gf Elizabeth and our friends Kevin and Bob. Elizabeth and Kevin are hyper- focused on seeing all the sights listed in the guidebook. Bob doesn’t like to plan, but will go with the flow. I like to see the sights sparingly, but I mostly enjoy wandering around and stumbling on little things. I’ve been separating from the group because they’re focused on sights and fine dining. I want to wander aimlessly and eat tacos.

This is truly one of the loveliest cities I’ve ever visited. I could spend the rest of my trip people-watching in Parké México.

I love CDMX. Next time I go I wanna do the skyline ride across the city. I think they call it cablébus. Looks like a great way to spend a day.

Happy you are enjoying it.

Tree wrote: Mon Apr 06, 2026 8:01 pm I made guacamole in a molcajete, marking the last time I don’t make guacamole in a molcajete.

Yeah, it's the best. Somehow distributes the chunky vs creamy parts of the blend just perfectly.