Until about two hours ago we were offline. Kablooey. Kaput. Apparently, SuddenLink (who just took over Cox Communications) had a meltdown that kept their customers off line for about 12 hours, even two full days in some areas.
L’il Red tagged me.
Four jobs I’ve had in life:
Four movies I’ve watched over and over:
Four places I have lived:
Four TV shows I love to watch:
Four places I have been on vacation:
Four of my favorite foods:
Four places I would rather be now:
Four best qualities about me:
Four people I hope will respond:
Yesterday I awoke with a large piece of music in my head. It was a theme and variations for the following scoring of instruments:
2 Flutes
2 Oboes
2 Clarinets
2 Bassoons
2 French horns
Timpani
1st Violins
2nd Violins
Violas
Violoncellos
Contrasses
The theme was To Celia, which is better known as Drink to me only with thine eyes, an English song that was composed around 1770 by Ben Johnson. My dreams. God only knows where this stuff comes from…
During my dream, I could hear most of the thing completely finished, especially the Adagio and Minuetto:
Last night I composed the Theme. The wonderful thing about a piece like this is that I can compose whatever movement strikes my fancy, and none of them will take too long to scribble out.
Of the wines I tried, my favorite was the Ardales (ar-dah-lays) Noble Organic from Spain. A bit like a merlot, but even smoother, the Ardales is something that I could drink all evening chatting with friends around a fire. It’s light, not too dry/not too sweet, and went down easily. When I stuck my impressive proboscis into the glass, I immediately detected the aroma of a spring pasture. So clean! My favorite white was the Clean Slate Riesling from Mosel-Saar-Ruwer, Germany. Truly a clean, clear taste and not as sweet as most Rieslings. Of course, I’ve always loved the wines from the Mosel region. It was Nettl’s favorite. Before we left, we went into Cork’s and bought a bottle of the Ardales. Only $12! Guess what I’ll be stocking up on this winter.
My only disappointment was that no Oklahoma wines were represented. Most people don’t know that this state has 34 vineyards, and more are sprouting up every year. We talked about taking a Saturday to “vineyard hop” with some friends next spring. When I still lived in California I loved going up to the Santa Ynez Valley for a day of winetasting. I used to have a large number of glasses that I’d collected on these grape safaris, but I guess my ex kept them. Time to start anew!
You know me, I’m no wine snob. Hell, Pete and Fran (Peter Vella and Franzia) always top my party A-List, but I do love winetasting. I love getting all of the senses working, and ultimately, my philosophy is this: If you like the taste it’s a good wine. If you don’t, it’s a bad wine. On this, John Cleese and I are in total agreement.
A couple of years ago there was a long, involved book meme that went around. Well, here’s another one, but it’s not as much work shorter and more concise. Compliments of Chasing Vincenzo.
1. One book that changed your life
Not one, but a set: The Diaries Of Virginia Woolf. They made me begin a journal, which I’ve kept for over twenty years and of which there are 58 volumes.
2. One book you have read more than once
A Literate Passion: The Letters Of Anais Nin & Henry Miller.
3. One book you would want on a desert island
Stalking The Wild Asparagus by Euell Gibbons.
4. One book that made you cry
The Lord Of The Rings, when Gandalf dies. My mother and I were on a 6-week motoring trip around the country, and we read the entire Hobbit and trilogy to each other. When Gandalf was taken down by the Balrog, we had to pull over because she couldn’t see to drive through her tears.
5. One book that made you laugh
A Year In Provence by Peter Mayle.
6. One book you wish had been written
For the money: Interview With The Vampire by Anne Rice.
For the writing: Under Milkwood by Dylan Thomas.
7. One book you wish had never been written
Mein Kampf.
8. One book you are currently reading
Selected bios, letters, etc. that aid me in historic portrayal online.
9. One book you have been meaning to read
A Brief History Of Time by Steven Hawking
