Wednesday's Wine - Mouton Cadet Bordeaux, 2005

This will be a short post due to the holidays. So Merry Happy ChrismaHanaKwanzaKah!

My sister-in-law and I drank this with homemade pizza. My brother had a beer. I pick up this red wine blend at a local Austin liquor store for $10.00. It was good.

There are lots of reviews on the web if you want more detail...heh.

I will say that according to the label, this red wine is a blend of Merlot (65%), Cabernet Sauvignon (20%) and Cabernet Franc (15%). All of the grapes are in fact grown in the Bordeaux region of France. It was tasty with very little alcohol burn on the finish and a nice earthy nose (scent for you novices...heh).

My sister-in-law deemed it very good since after half a bottle it put her in the mood... Yeah, where did I pack my ear plugs?

ENJOY!

Saturday and Sunday Surf - Driving the ACTUAL Highway(s)

So Friday we sort of got released early, on our own honor, from work. I ran errands and then went home to get ready for my LONG drive to Austin for the holidays. Lucky dog Tucker spent the day at the Doggie Day Spa. And this time it WAS a day spa. He started out with a half day of Doggie Day Camp where he impressed the Doggie Day Spa workers with his improving social skills. Apparently he's getting over his fear of large dogs. Then he ended the day in the Grooming Salon, being pampered (although I did hear they provide anal gland cleansing as needed...ewww...I'm kinda glad there's someone else willing to do this...heh).

Anyway, I finished my laundry and was trying to geared up to vacuum and pack when I hit the proverbial WALL. I was WAY too tired to drive south Friday night, as originally planned, to stay over at a friend's house in Pueblo, CO. I barely had enough energy to pick up Tucker from the Doggie Day Spa and drive home. I did manage to write several Christmas cards (though probably not all the ones I should have) and watch a couple of shows I had backlogged on my DVR while doing so. Then I went to bed, only to wake up at 4am. WHYYY!?! I did snooze on and off until 5:30am. Prompted by the alarm, I got up, did the packing and vacuuming as well as the usual morning routine (walk Tucker, make breakfast, watch Tucker NOT eat...cajole Tucker...give up and packed the food too).

At 7:30am, I drove across the street to the Diamond Shamrock for coffee and then hit the road for Texas. I stopped briefly in Pueblo to meet my friend at his office (since I haven't seen his office yet and can get a business tax write off for the mileage...I also coach him on retirement plans...heh). Tucker finally ate his breakfast while we were waiting in front of the office. THEN we really started driving. It was all good until we actually got into the state of Texas. WARNING: It is NOT safe to drive even a few miles over the posted speed limits in the state of Texas while in a car with out of state license plates. TRUST me on this. Between my brother and I, we have collected 3 tickets for 11 miles over the speed limit. Not 12, not 13, just 11. If you drive over the speed limit, but definitely under 10 miles over, you will STILL be pulled over and issued a warning. I refer to this as "Driving while living out of state." This will result in, not only a delay, but blood pressure and adrenaline spikes, followed by shaking...go figure. Yep, I got a warning. Thank you cruise control!

I did keep track of flashing lights. Including myself, I witness 5 pull overs. Two were trucks with Texas plates (there are A LOT of trucks in Texas...BIG trucks...and SUVs!) and they do tend to drive really fast. Even when I was only slightly speeding, I got passed a few times and later when I had my cruise control set for the actual speed limit, I was passed left and right...well mostly to the left...heh. The other two vehicles and mine were from the state of Colorado. I'm revising my earlier ticket name to "Driving in Texas while living in Colorado." It's completely bogus that so many Texas vehicles were given a pass for speeding as long as they're under 10 miles over the posted limit, but if you live out of state you get pulled over. I have a friend whose husband is a Texas sheriff. She told me to ask for a radar print out and to also ask the officer when was the last time the radar was calibrated. I don't know if that would work, but since I didn't actually get a ticket, I didn't want to antagonize the highway patrol guy by asking. I did hedge my bets by letting the officer know that I am in fact a Texan by birth...he did happen to ask if I was visiting family after he asked where I was heading which led to my subtly mentioning my home state status...heh. After 16 hours on the road (1 more hour than usual due to doggie exercise and potty stops) we arrived in Austin at 12:30am (for those of you counting, there is a time change from Denver to Austin). And then I was too wired to sleep well...sigh.

Okay, that's my story of driving actual highways, instead of the information highway, and I'm sticking to it! Tucker slept most of the way, which was a good thing, and now after a day of playing with my nephews and meeting my sister-in-law's friends, he's all Tuckered out...heee. Hopefully, we'll both sleep well tonight. Just in case I don't make it back online Happy (fill in the blank) to all!

Sunday Surf - Look What I Got in My E-mail!!!

Since I had this supposedly all day training class that ended up lasting about 6 and a half hours instead of 9, (with a 1 hour break for lunch), I left Tucker at his BFF's house for an overnighter last night when I finished studying for the class with my old office mate. My old office mate and his wife have custody of Tucker's BFF (Rufus) since their daughter is in college. Apparently, the old office mate's wife decided to let them run themselves ragged in the backyard, after which she bathed them both and dressed them up. Although I know she loves it, she's actually a saint for doing this! Anyway, I thought I share a picture of the results:

















That's Tucker on the left and Rufus on the right. Which is actually appropriate since I'm a lefty liberal and Rufus' folks are right wingnuts...just kidding...sorta...heh.

Update: I was informed this evening that Rufus is, in fact, NOT the daughter's dog but the old office mate's wife's dog.

Friday's Fling - Going up...or maybe down... in Flames (and other random thoughts)

So today was mostly a sucky day. Maybe it's just been a sucky month or four. I really dislike having a boss. But really, I hate that I was hired under less than favorable circumstances and have been rather off kilter and working from a defensive position ever since. I'm definitely NOT in the zone at my JOB. This has resulted in poor communication at times and general paranoia. Though, I've been assured that it's not all paranoia...like that makes it better...sigh.

On the other hand, for my finance business, I had to read 108 pages on Long Term Care insurance over the past week and then take a test on the subject today. Unfortunately, all I had time for was skimming briefly over the information. Good news, since I have at least 10 years experience, I knew most of the answers anyway. Whew! Of course, tomorrow I get to take a follow up class for 8 hours. Gee, I better make a lot of coffee for this.

Now I'm just relaxing and surfing the net. Over at East Jesus I found another one of those cool quizzes we all love. Funny enough, I actually got another rather accurate assessment. It also kinda suggests that I need to go back to finance (and in particular my current company based on what we do...heh). Here's what it said:

I took the 43 Things Personality Quiz and found out I'm an Extroverted Money Managing Builder

Thanks to Trop and one of her pals! And by the way, to get to the quiz visit Trop at East Jesus.

Wednesday's Whine - I Forgot to Call in Gay.

So, I got word Tuesday evening that we of the "alternative lifestyle" were to call in GAY on Wednesday in support of the ongoing protest regarding California's Prop 8 as well as being second class citizens in general. Due to the time sensitive nature of my work (I work with kids who have learning and emotional disabilities) I had some work due on Thursday that I could have possibly finished on Tuesday or on Thursday morning if I had more warning. Sigh. And Wednesdays at work are THE longest days for me. I generally leave the condo at 6:30am and don't get back until 5pm. So in my work induced haze, I forgot to NOT spend money except at gay owned or gay supportive businesses. I'm a bad gay. I hope Pet Smart is gay supportive. Tucker needed dog food and boots. Course in my haze, I forgot to buy the boots (dog food comparisons took about 15 minutes). I'll do better. Really, I will...

Make My Monday - Answer to the Bible Thumpers Regarding Gay Marriage Rights

I could call this Monday Surf, but it doesn't really roll off the tongue that nicely. Anyway I found a Newsweek article online that's also in the December 15th issue. I was going to post it here in it's entirety, because I wondered how long the link will be live. Alas, I could not figure out how to cut and paste the text without all the extra formatting code that was messing up the blog publishing program... You can cut and paste to your own document program to send out as an attachment to your favorite church going right winger...heh.

Saturday Surf - What Color IS Your Rainbow?

I was over visiting The Gentleman (and The Lady) and reading responses to their blog posts when I discovered a new blog. First thing I see is a FUN Rainbow quiz. Ya know I love them quizzes. Here's my result (though for some reason you can't see the actual rainbowy picture). What's yours?

Your Rainbow

Your rainbow is strongly shaded indigo and violet.

What is says about you: You are a proud person. You appreciate beauty and craftsmanship. Friends count on you for being honest and insightful. You are patient and will keep trying to understand something until you've mastered it.

Find the colors of your rainbow at spacefem.com.

Friday's Fling - Christmas Present Idea

For those of you who have a lesbian in your family and are looking for gift ideas, I thought I'd provide the occasional random idea for you. Think of this as my community service plan...heh.



















Click on the image above to go to the website for more information. Then check back here for other ideas over the next couple of weeks. Feel free to share some of you own random ideas! Okay, I'm fishing for ideas here...heh.

Wednesday's Wine - Insatiable White Wine, no year noted

Here's the white wine I promised. This Californian blend is nice and crisp and good with leftover turkey as well as chicken burritos. The blend includes Semillion, Sauvignon Blanc, Chardonnay, and Pinot Grigio. It can be had for just under $10.00, although I got it for about $8.00. As with most of the white wines I've reviewed, it's fairly easy on the palate and slightly sweet.

Here are some tasting notes that were pretty much what I found:

"Light-to-medium bodied, with with floral, citrusy accents on the nose, ripe citrys, peach and pear flavors on the plate, with a fruity yet crisp finish. This wine is easy to drink and lends itself to light appetizers before dinner, pairing well with a wide range of dishes."

Enjoy!