There’s a cascarones cartel moving into Santa Barbara, taking over a hot market in the same way developers from Los Angeles are constructing oversized buildings? Although this needs to be shared, sadly this article feels like telling a kid that Santa isn’t real. Here’s what happens: Many of those cute little eggs that turn up on State Street at Fiesta are being shipped from the big city on diesel trucks. Arriving here, cartons are unloaded with hydraulic hand jacks. Our folklore Fiesta is being usurped by a mass-produced commodity. The foil paint, the metallic and plastic confetti, and the customary cracking puts the festive colors onto the sidewalk, and much of it goes into the ocean. Any environmentalists complaining about that one? This irresistible opportunity is muscling out the traditional fare. Our locals save their eggs all year long. Families come together to lovingly craft and share their eggs, contributing to the festivities. Gently capped in tissue with degradable paper, grandparents sit on the sidewalk upon their carefully laid out serapes with their grandchildren. Their comparatively small supply built over the year beside them engages their grandchildren, who delight in the practice. These might not be as impressive as the castles of cartons, but remember this when you see them: You have a choice. And your choices have consequences, impacting families, the local economy and the ocean.
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