Backstory

On 8/20/20, we lost our homes to one of the many fires in the CZU Lightning Complex in the hills above Santa Cruz, CA. We rushed home from a camping trip on the 19th and had a chance to grab a few belongings, stashing them at our new basecamp at a pal's house in town (oddly the same house we were married in, 4 years earlier, to the day). While Taylor minded our 3 week old boy and our dog, I went up and did my best to protect our property from the fire.

With no power, limited water and firefighting tools, and no firefighters (not one), our neighborhood became it's own private fire crew. While our house was among those lost, there would be few left standing if it wasn't for the nieghbors who stayed on the mountain and worked 7 days straight in organized teams with home-made fire trucks and whatever tools were on hand.

Of 90 homes in our 'neighborhood,' ~30 were lost. Over 900 homes in Santa Cruz county burned. Miraculously, only one life was lost.

We love our spot-- it's close enough to town, but private. It's quiet. We've got the best neighbors, lots of trails in our back yard, and enough space to let our son grow up playing in the dirt. People often ask whether we'll rebuild after the fires, and our answer is always the same: of course we'll rebuild. It'll be tough, and there's no way we could make this happen without the support of our friends and family, but there's no place we'd rather be. This blog will serve to keep our friends and family updated on the process- we'll try to update frequently as we go along. Thanks for tuning in!