I’m indebted to the good people at Curbside Splendor: Naomi Huffman, Catherine Eves, Victor David Giron, Alban Fischer, and Jacob Knabb, for their confidence and dedication to making this happen, and to my teachers Sven Birkerts, Susan Cheever, Bernard Cooper, and Dinah Lenney. Thank you to the tacos who got me through many lean years. Carne and al pastor, you know who you are. And special thanks to my parents, Loraine and Joe, for a life of patient encouragement, understanding, and room to grow. You never suggested I become a lawyer. You never urged me to be more practical. When I got lost, it was because of you that I found my way.
I want to dedicate this book to many people. This is for my uncles Howard and Sheldon, neither of whom lived as long as they should have. This is for my grandma Silvia, who always encouraged me to read and draw and think, who squeezed my cheek and gave me books and told me, “Go enjoy yourself, tatalah.” “Are you still writing?” she used to ask. “Good.” This is for my granddad Tom Gilbreath, who bought me countless sketchbooks as a kid, who passed on the creative urge through his woodcarving and carpentry, and showed me through example to never give up, because when a job appears that you want but aren’t educated enough to do, you have to learn how to do it. This is for Dean, who was there on the road during one of my best times, and who’s still with me now, through the hard ones. And for Alex B, whose magical hair and open heart continue to soften my own.
And last but not least, this is for Rebekah, my other half, my light, my Boss Coffee and somehow my biggest fan, you’re a person who sees everything and loves me despite it. Does that make sense? Here’s the thing. Only you, Schiefy, you, you, you.
AARON GILBREATH is an essayist, journalist, and burrito enthusiast. His essays and articles have appeared in Harper’s, The New York Times, Paris Review, Saveur, Kenyon Review, Virginia Quarterly Review, Tin House, Vice, The Morning News, and Brick, and been listed as notable in Best American Essays and Best American Travel Writing. A contributing editor at Longreads, he’s working on a book about rural California and a travel book about Japan. He lives in Portland, Oregon.
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