POODLE PLAYS BALL: Scott “the Mailman” Pickering has been reading The Santa Barbara Independent since it started in 1986, a couple months after he arrived in town to be a proud, shorts-wearing Postal Service carrier. He took a copy while on a trip to Chicago with his girlfriend to enjoy deep-dish pizza and see his beloved Angels play the Cubs at Wrigley Field. He’s even better known as the trumpet player for the SBCC Symphony Orchestra and SBCC Concert Band, as well as the founder of the Holiday Horns Brass Quintet. “Music has afforded me the opportunity to be creative, be a part of the community, and to connect and share with others,” said Pickering. “I enjoy so many aspects of our beautiful, vibrant stretch of paradise.”