Baseball’s Grapefruit League
They are gearing up for the baseball season in Southwest Florida, affectionately known as the Grapefruit League. Mind you, the players will not show up for about a month. Pitchers and catchers first, thank you, followed by the rest of the gang about a week later. Preparations are well underway for the 2011 baseball season, […]
Cooking with lager
For over 500 years, the Benedictine order thrived in Italy. While their motherhouse was Monte Cassino, their greatest abbey was located in Maçon, Burgundy. In 1112, a group of thirty monks established a small monastery in Citeaux, located in the heart of a forest just north of Beaune. They took the name Cistercians from the […]
Feeding the uneducated palate
“You’re drinking liquid with liquid!?” The wine expert was shaken, even stirred. “Well, it’s my wife you see,” I began. “She has this book group and they…” The verbal shovel with which I was about to dig us a hole was grasped by more resolute hands. “Two soups, two wines—one red, one white. That’s the […]
Staying warm
Here I sit in the early morning light, with my feet jammed into great big, warm, fluffy slippers, in a state of utter confusion and fear. Oh, do be quiet. I’m probably not anymore confused than many of you when it comes to energy. And I’m as afraid as the next person to crank up […]
Alsatian style wines
Once the Holy Roman Empire stabilized northern Europe, the demand for wine outpaced production. The present major wine producing areas of Bordeaux and the Loire Valley were devastated by Viking raiders, which resulted in increasing the importance of the wine regions of the Rhine, Moselle, Rhône and Burgundy. Within these areas monasteries were founded and […]
Just another game
I am certain that Coach Dave Cameron had a strong inkling that something was amiss when he called “time out” after the Russian Juniors had potted their third goal to tie the game in the third period. The Canadians had roared to a three-goal lead to start the third period. They had the home field […]
It happened too soon
I wondered when it would happen, the realization that I am, indeed, a senior citizen. In a weird way I don’t feel like I’m a senior. In fact, if I don’t actually spend too much time looking in a mirror, I can ignore the physical aspects of aging altogether. In my mind I’m just me. […]
Wine in the beard
The emperor Charlemagne expanded and consolidated the Holy Roman Empire from the North and Baltic seas, south of the Alps and Pyrenees. This is an important fact as now many of the wine-producing areas fell under the influence of the bureaucracy inherent to such an Empire. Lands were granted to Nobles and Monasteries and the […]
Scamming Aunt Mildred
I’m still reeling from the news. The national press reported a few days ago that the mighty Internet retailer Amazon.com has patented a system for surreptitiously returning unwanted gifts. The system is being referred to as “Aunt Mildred.” According to Amazon, gift recipients have the option to “convert all gifts from Aunt Mildred” before delivery—in […]
Tell me a story
It started, several years ago, with the birth of a very close friend’s first child. What started? Well, my storybook buying spree. I had it all planned. I’d started with one of my favourites, Mike Mulligan and his Steam Shovel, and then head off to see what the shelves of Books & Co. had to […]