out the door

Once upon a time (yesterday, for those of you who insist on specificity), the Brothers Cotton rose early, not to save towered princesses or bejeweled dragons, but to find a new castle in the Magic land some call Mexico.

And, as in all tales of this type, they encountered beautiful and strange creatures on their quest. 

Starting with the enchanted Queen Allison of Primavera, who wished us godspeed as only the charismatic can -- especially when she is burdened with an escort who would rather be anywhere else than wearing a suit and sitting on the hood of a pickup in 90 degree weather.

Happy as brothers could be, they wandered away from Queen Allison's gracious presence only to be accosted by the not-so-good-but-not-quite-evil wood fairies -- Sandy and Melanie.  The twins who receive their power from an elixir provided by the Magic Hand of Endora.

Sandy decreed that The Brothers could not pass unless they could say three complete sentences that did not include a pun.  "And then what?  We'll get fairied away?," chortled the younger brother.

With a swish of her empty elixir bottle, she called forth what she thought would be her flying monkeys.  Instead, she conjured up a motley gang of pavement-bound monkeys and lions and bears -- all of them wondering just how much longer they would need to be wandering around in their silly costumes.

But our protagonists were safely on their way to search for that new castle where everyone lives happily ever after.

And they found some possibilities.  A castle in Villa Obregon owned by an enchantress of the north.  And conveniently located one home away from Ed the Artist -- whose exploits we have heard in other tales.

Another castle.  This one in Barra de Navidad.  With a magic pool in the center.

And a castle with a view on Barra de Navidad's primary canal.

Last, but not least, the castle that brought the Brothers Cotton together on this request (buying property with bob dylan).

This is the point where most good fairy tales wrap everything up in a nice little package.  But that package is going to have to wait until the Brothers Cotton convert themselves into the Family Cotton to come up with a nice ending.

But -- not today.