For the holiday weekend this year, I was invited down to Ashland, Oregon to visit my very good friends Wade and Noelle. I used to live in Ashland for about five years, but moved away in 2000. I wasn’t the only transplant that was back in town. Our friends Penny and Dave drove up from San Francisco too.

Noelle and Penny prepared an amazing meal, and we all enjoyed every bite. We all shared a great family atmosphere and spent our evenings catching up, laughing, and having a great time. I took a bunch of pictures and I am happy to share them with anyone interested.

Ashland itself seems to be changing though. I certainly felt a difference from the last time I was there, let alone the change it’s gone through since I moved away. There are more empty homes than I remember, most likely due to more people using Ashland as the location of their vacation home. There also seemed to be an age range missing from the social scene. Young adults and young families seem to be struggling to make Ashland their home. There seemed to be a gap between the college students and the successful professional types who wander the streets. Ashland used to be full of free-spirited people, adventurous and open minded. There was an energy to the place that felt inspiring and made no one a stranger.

Now it just feels like California. In fact, it seems that some people in Ashland struggle with that new identity. Apparently, many Californians (and some Oregonians as well) have driven up Ashland’s real-estate market so that young professionals struggle to get into their first homes. Coupled with Ashland’s small town businesses, the challenging real-estate situation makes it easier for the younger adults to live in Medford, Talent, or Phoenix in order to settle down in a home.

That means that the only people wandering along Ashland’s beautiful streets are the vacationers and tourists. No offense to visitors or semi-permanent residents, but without the creative, unique locals wandering around, there seems to be no character or culture left to the town.

Even with all this change, I still had a fantastic weekend spending time with good friends, eating wonderful food, and enjoying the Southern Oregon fresh air.

Please enjoy the pictures I brought back from the wonderful dinner and gathering of friends. Happy Holidays!