Instructions To Wife

Dear Divine Mrs. M.,

I wish to make this public so there's no mistake. Please don't pull my plug...or tubes. If I am hurt in any way (most likely by being shived by an oil can spout dragging Daughter #2 out of a biker bar in 15 years) please keep me alive.

Ok, if I'm sucking up the family finances and you've done some of the more basic tests - like an MRI, or PET scan or a poke with a stick - and been adviced by a highly regarded professional or even these guys you can pull the plug.

But if the most care that is a few flips a day to avoid bedsores and the most expensive piece of medical equipment that I need is a Hamilton-Beech blender - stay away from my tubes. In fact, I insist that you get the top model blender.

Sincerely,
Howard McEwen, CFA

For those of you who sent sympathetic e-mails from yesterday's post - my cell is now working, my website is now up and installed with wordpress (unveiling soon), my new fancy 21st Century phone features are now working (no going through Sara to get Mt. Pilot), and I hear that I may have high-speed at home.

I want to play with these thing....but I have two meetings tonight at 6:00 and a 7:30. More waiting.

Stay You.
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Waiting is the Hardest Part

Next month will be the 35^th anniversary of my birth so I’ve bought myself a couple of early birthday presents, but I have to wait. It's like getting toys on Christmas Day but no batteries.

On Saturday night I signed up with liverack for a domain name and hosting services for a new venture I hope will help pay some of these bills. The site said I should receive an e-mail confirmation within 24 hours. I’m still waiting and have had no response to my queries. Anybody out there ever work with these people?

I also went out and signed up for high-speed internet at home. Yes, until now, I’ve had dial-up…on a free time-limited juno account at that. Hah! But with the aforementioned venture, I think it would aid The Divine Mrs. M and myself greatly to have “blazing fast speed” as the box says. But alas, they have to check the lines so no high speed until Thursday night, maybe Friday. More waiting....

While signing up for high speed at the Cincinnati Bell store, I also signed up for 17 calling features. These were readily available, but just a new program since we turned the phone on in our house in 1999. They just didn't tell us. Oh, well. I mostly just want caller id (no, I don’t have caller id either). That supposedly must wait until tonight. More waiting - and I’m not crossing my fingers....

I then went to Best Buy and bought myself a pay-as-you-go phone. Kind of ugly, but I just need it for the car. I went home to activate and waited for the text message. The voice said it would be about 4 minutes. One episode of The Shield later still nothing. I call again. “Oh, here’s the problem. Please wait 4-5 minutes for the text message. It’s morning and still nothing. I call again. Petulant customer service drone said, “Well, it’s usually 4-5 minutes but can take up to 24 hours. Please call then.” Click.

I thought I’d blog about my childish impatience but blogger is down. I could wait, but I’ll type this up in Word and then copy and paste.

I’m waiting and waiting. I want to play with my new toys. Work is soooo boring. Life sucks. When I grow up I'm gonna really Rock! in my loft downtown, man.

Stay You.
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Real Estate Roundtable Article

Interested in real estate. Check out my roundtable discussion here.

It went very well and the editors laid it out very nice. I don't think the on-line version does it justice. You need to full-size newspaper on your dining room table to get the entire effect. Very nice.

I assembled some very good people. If you look at the meet the panel section, you see Daniel K. Braun who was elected PVA for my county. PVA is the countwide office that's in charge of taxing property. No fun. He's about 30 now so very young. He has recovered already from some kind of cancer. I met Dan when he was running for office. A local attorney decided to run for the Kentucky State House. Several party officials met at my house because they needed The Divine Mrs. M's signature since she was on the executive committe of the party. Dan came in with a light jacket over a t-shirt. It took me awhile, but I then noticed it was a Mega Death t-shirt. Yes, he is a Republican, but as he said, "sometimes you need to Rock!"

Robert Deckert was rather wry. Good guy. Another person I know ownes the home inspection business he works for. The other guy had some commitment to a charity of some sort and couldn't come, but this guy did well.

Teresa was a referral from Mary Ann Ihrig below. She was everybit a Realtors.

Mary Ann Ihrig and I have been working together quite a bit. She referrs me clients and I try to refer her clients. Two weeks ago I spoke to a dinner of her best clients and many of them may do business with me. Yippee! I hope this pays her back in some way.

Finally, Rob Ziegler helped out. I met Rob about 10+ years ago when we first moved to Northern Kentucky. We had dinner a few times, but then lost touch with him. I called the board of realtors looking for a real estate attorney and they referred Rob. I took me a few minutes but then I remember him. He didn't remember me on the phone, but did remember The Divine Mrs. M. Jealous? Me? Never.

I hope you enjoy it.

Stay You.
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My Lovely Daughters

Setting: Living Room (I'm in the kitchen)
7-year old: Interminable whining in background
3-year old: "You are a clown."
7-year old: "No I'm not. You're mean!"
3-year old: "O.K., then you are a bitch."
7-year old: "Daddeeee!!!"
Me: Firmly biting inside of cheek to keep from laughing, I sternly give said 3-year old a time-out.

I don't mind the swearing so much but it must be used judiciously. Words like that, I told her, should be reserved for teachers, grandparents, and pastors.

Stay You.
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What's a Father to Do?

Ms. Schiavo has been off the tubes for a while now. If, as her parents believe, she is somewhat conscious and can feel pain, the end for her will be a painful horror.

Thinking as a father, I couldn't stand to know this was going to happen. Loving as a father, I would need to end her pain. If all hope is gone (considered by some a mortal sin), I would have to end it myself to have her avoid those last few days of misery. I would have to put the pillow over her face, hold it, and cry.

I believe if there is a hell, that I would go there for doing this, but that's part of the job of being a father.

What would be the price I pay on earth for speeding up a judge's order?

Stay You.
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Coming to America

Here are pictures of my paternal grandfather and grandmother.

My grandfather’s was taken in 1934 when he was 25. My grandmother’s was taken in 1944 when she was 28. The pics are from these documents.

Their citizenship papers.

Family history is always a little interesting. I haven’t reached the point where I look back too much. My father is currently scanning hundreds of family pictures form the 1910 to present. That doesn’t interest me at all, but one day I'm sure it will.

Looking at the pics, I’m try to place myself in their shoes. First grandpa. Look at that hairline. He’s only 25 and it looks like an old man’s to me. Thing is, that’s the same hairline he had when he died in his 80's. He still had some black in his hair even.

My thoughts though, go to where his mind was when he decided to become a US citizen. The documents lists his “race” mistakenly as Irish. I’m not sure how they define things back then, but his father (my great grandfather) was from Perth, Scotland. It further lists his nationality as British. He was from a farm in Dauphin, Manitoba, thus (at that time) British.

I'd like to think all immigrant experience is like that Niel Diamond song, but it isn't. In 1934 the US was still in the depression. The shadow of the British Empire still spread over the world. Why did he give us British citizenship to become a citizen of the US. Yes, the US was a powerful country then, but young (and still is). I can’t imagine myself becoming a citizen of, say, Ecuador, just because jobs were plentiful. I can understand though an Ecuadorian becoming a US citizen. I’m sure that it was all economic, but he didn’t have to become a citizen to work at Ford’s River Rouge plant, did he?

At the time of my grandmother’s citizenship, she was 28. She had two children by then and my father was to be born 2 years later. It’s 1944 and she’s giving up her British citizenship to become an American. From my experience with the Canadian side of my family, there’s still a certain looking to England as the home country. I’m sure it had to be more so in 1944. I had a great uncle, a RCAF flyer, (yes, at one time Canada did have a military and was able to defend itself) grumpily tell me once that while the US dithered, he was fighting the Luftwaffe over London. How did it feel to her to give up that citizenship and tie to her family while London smoldered? When there was the really big fear of her new home of Detroit being bombed? She died at 52 from cancer while my parents were dating. She wasn't talked about much around me.

What went through these people’s heads? I’ll never know. We aren’t a family that asks questions like that of each other. I’m just glad they made the decisions they did or most likely I’d be very cold on a Manitoban wheat farm.

Stay You.
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A Matter of Place

The Divine Mrs. M and I were talking about life and our place in it. Bellevue is a very close knit community. These people have lived and grown up together and so have their parents and their grandparents. We are newcomers and will never belong. The Divine Mrs. M is pretty active, but there's still that "you're not one of us"-ism. We're not moving though. This is where I've struck my flag and where I'll make my stand to make my fortune and future.

I can see how that would bother the new people. I've never experienced that close-knitness. Where I grew up everybody was from somewhere else. Everybody's parents had moved from some mid-size mid-western industrial town to work in this mid-size mid-western industrial town.

But it goes further than that for me. I've never really felt comfortable with any group. I've touched on this with the death penalty. I'm against it, but I'm not going to be one of those people praying for the man meeting the needle. We have common interests but too different temperments.

Peggy Noonan got me thinking about this with this column. I normally don't read her because I find her writing too....willowy? I agree in keeping this Schiavo lady fed and I agree with Noonan's point. However, although I do agree with the reasoning and description of the forces trying to keep her alive, I don't see myself aligned with those people. I have a deep sense that if I went to Florida and stood with the "Right to Live" people, I just wouldn't like them. I wouldn't feel at home.

I felt the same way when I was active in party politics. I agreed with these people on issues, but not on attitude.

I guess it's just a matter of place and I need to find mine, but I think my place is inside my head and between the walls of my home.

Stay You.
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Take My Wife - Please

Some where on this blog when the whole homosexual marriage debate flared up I suggested that multiple marriage makes just as much sense. I've offered this opinion elsewhere and was derided. However, it's all a matter of perspective. I wasn't too many years ago that they idea of Gabe and Joel breaking the glass would have caused snickers.

My point being that if we are going to fundamentally redefine the 5,000 year tradition of marriage, then you can't really put the genie back in the bottle. How closed minded of you. Polygamy comes right behind (or maybe before) same sex marriage. It's mentioned in the Bible quite a bit so maybe the Jesus freaks won't argue too much. It has historical precedence so the that eliminates a few more objections. Also, until 100 years ago it was part of the fabric of one of those states with corners out west (and in some parts still is). For a good read on this history there, check this book out.

Think I'm joking. Here's reasons that I can see for polygamy:

• It may reduce divorce because the man - being more sexually fulfilled - will not cheat.
• It allows a family 2 incomes with a care-giver at home.
• If one of the partners does leave or die, then their are still 2 or more left to care of the children.
• It also reduces a families costs of living. For instance, if Jeff and Jen have a household set up and their "friend" Kim has her own set up, well that's just a waste. If Kim moves in with Jeff and Jen imagine all the cash that can be saved.

There's 4 good reasons. And if none of those convince you - you're just a hater who wants to dictate how people express their love.

Now comes this National Review article about the benefits and legal rights of polygomy. I'm too bored to read it but in 10-years this will be a national debate and conservatives will be derided as bigots for rolling their eyes and the prospect. Better start reading up folks.

And as for gay marriage. You guys and girls worked hard to kick government out of your bedrooms, I think it's a big mistake to let the government back in just because you think it's doing you a favor. It never does.

Stay You.
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Bill Night

I try to blog every day, but today I'm tapped. I have no opinions - "Yeah, Right!" I can hear The Divine Mrs. M say in my head - and no stories. Nothing to entertain you. Nothing. Nada, zilch, zippo.

So you get the flotsam and jetsam of the life of a family man.

We paid the bills tonight. Why do we put it off? I'm a financial professional and yet the basic act of sitting down and paying the bills sounds horrible to me. Repulsive even. It's not like we're behind or jugling them. We even paid some that aren't due til next month. Not bad for a family on one income where dad's starting his own business. I JUST DON'T WANT TO DO THEM! OKAY!

The Divine Mrs. M and I pay them together. She organizes the bills and writes the checks. I put them into a tracking spread sheet we have, verify the amount, envelope them and mail them off. Beginning and middle of the month. We don't argue, we don't fight, we don't accuse. Although sometimes we whine. But mostly....WE JUST DON'T WANT TO DO THEM!

She thinks it's PTSD from earlier years while she was in grad school and I had an entry level job with The Evil Corporation. A few negative things occurred that really put us behind the 8 ball. Money was tight as a steel drum and one of those calypso dudes was banging away at it day and night. We could hardly sleep. We were in despair. We lived in an apartment in a crappy town and we each drove too far to work for too little money.

I'm not sure if that's it for me. I am a worrier. I worry about everything. If you need somebody to worry over something - I'm your man. I can take your average everyday concern and worry it into a crisis faster than anybody. My capacity for this task is tremendous. I know the bills are paid and will be paid. If there was some financial crisis The Divine Mrs. M would have told me about it. So why worry? That's what I do. I worry. But I also procrastinate. Strangley, it's almost easier to worry about something that probably isn't going to happen for a week, than to drag my sorry ass downstairs, pay the bills in 30 minutes and discover there's nothing there to worry about. But what if there is? I'd rather hide in my work or in this book or that t.v. show.

Maybe, alas, this is a form of immaturity. I don't know....Oh, great.....I'm immature....Something else to worry about. Well, I needed something because I getting bored wondering if this weird looking freckle on my arm is cancer or not.

Stay You.
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Life Trifecta

I'm so happy to Tom Delay and the gang read my prior post and decided to act. I'm sooooo powerful. They really jump to action when they need to i.e. a large section of the country let them have it.

This may be time to work out my politics of life philosophy. I'm conflicted between principle and practice. What do I mean? Well....

In principle, I don't like abortion. I do believe it's the taking of a human life. I can't look at my oldest daughter and turn the clock back day-by-day and decide on what day her existence or potential existence was ok to distinguish. Thinking about others doing it makes me angry. I think that once there was the spark of her possibility, she earned the right to exist. In practice, however, many of societies ills are caused by people who most likely were born unwanted. If in 15 years, my daughter is stabbed at an ATM - mostly likely its by somebody whose mother seriously considered an abortion but couldn't come up with the guts or the $400. So in that case I say abort away! I'll pay.

In principle, I'm against the death penalty. I don't like giving the state the ultimate power of life and death. I do think it's constitutional, but just because it's constitutional doesn't mean it has to be done (I'm allowed to paint my house purple - that doesn't mean I have to). That's simple for me. However, in practice, I think of Jessica Lunsford and I think of drunk drivers killing kids on prom night and all the other horror stories we get every night and I say "Let's fire up ol' sparky."

As far cloning and genetic research and stem cells etc, I don't know enough to have any principals, but it does seem odd that those who are afraid of corn hybrids are gung-ho for stem cell research. I'm probably on the life of don't do it. You're messin' with the building blocks of existence. In practice however, if in 80 years this Wild Turkey on my desk pickles my liver enough that I need a new one and a few tweaked cells can make me a brand new one without much hassle - tweak away!

So my principles say embrace life. It's the whole reason why we are here. Always side on the side of life. Unfortunately, in practical situations I turn into a raving Kill-Bot - kill, kill, KILL!

Which side do I choose? I'll have to think about that. But principles are the only thing holding my psyche together. It's principles that keep me from cheating on my wife and stealing from my employer or clients or abandoning my kids. When all the crap of life is stripped away - principles are all I have. I can get away practically with all the above and not suffer too many consequences.

Stay You.
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Musings from the Elliptical

Where I exercise has what they call a Cardio-Theatre. The movie I was watching was Ladder 49. Not bad. Heck, even I think firemen are sexy. Plus, I like anything that distracts me while getting through the cardio portion of my workout. But this time, John and Joaquin just couldn't hold my attention....

I got to thinking about how that guy in the Atlanta courtroom knocked down that 5' grandmother and shot up the place. I was thinking, "That was stupid. Didn't this woman want some help? Didn't she think to ask? Oh, I know. Probably one of those chicks can do any guy job things."

Then on the screen Joaquin was pulling some dude out of a building and I thought, "I just know there's some 5' grandmother firefighter that's going to come and rescue me in some hotel fire. -- I'm gonna burn."

I'm not a small guy. I'm a touch over 6' in my socks. I weight between 225 and 235 depending on what scale I'm using and what I had to eat that day. Some 5' grandmother won't be able to make me sit up.

If I die because of some feminist orthodoxy, will someone please kick Gloria Steinham in the balls?

Then I hit the weights.

When I got back a Steven Seagal movie was playing. I thought about taking another elliptical outside the theatre, but thought I'd give ol' Steve another shot. The movie ended up being this piece of garbage. It was set in my very own Kentucky I think. The girl next to me was an Indian (dots not feathers). She spoke with an accent so I figured she was going to school around here. I've never found Indian women sexually attractive, but beautiful nonetheless. They always seem to me somewhat graceful and intelligent. Watching the movie with her, I got terribly embarrased. My God, this movie was horrible. THere's senseless violence and a clunky romance and...well, it's a Steven Seagal movie. This is what a few thousand years of western culture has produced? I almost wanted to apologize to her.

But then I thought of India's caste system. Western civ didn't invent slavery but we did invent abolition. And I've seen a few Bollywood movies - silly and laughable if not so bad. Then there's India's poverty which isn't explained by the Raj, but alleviated by it (you know - rule of law, democracy, but not much property rights, natch).

I gave western civ a break. People like shlock. They mostly want to see naked people and thinks blow up.

By that time I did my 20-minutes and went home feeling nicely worked out.

Stay You.
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Terry Schiavo

I haven't blogged on the Terry Schiavo case. That was wrong of me. This is life and it's the whole point of us being here. The AP via Drudge says the feeding tube has been removed. A judge told Congress to go to hell. Now Ms. Schiavo will slowly starve and dehydrate.

Peggy Noonan is right in this article. If Terry Schiavo dies no Republican in Congress gets my vote next time. That' Senator Jim Bunning (who at this time is dealing with the great issue of our time: baseball and steriods) and Representative Geoff Davis.

Stay You.
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Big Night

I have a big night tonight. I speak to about 40 selected top clients of a local mortgage broker. Really no big deal. I tell them what I tell everybody, hope they like what I say and decide to work with me. I speak for about 45 minutes to an hour. But it's exhausting. Not while I'm doing it, but the day after. I think it's the concentration it demands - I don't know how politicians do it during campaigns. Maybe it's a conditioning thing.

Anyway, because I had to get somethings prepared for tonight, I scheduled an easy week. No late nights, light days. Finish up paperwork and relax. Except Monday I had to work late. Then on Tuesday, the Divine Mrs. M. calls from here. Car stalled. Please rescue. I rescue.

We spend the night testing battery, then alternator, then towing, then talking to mechanics. Then dinner at pizza joint (scroll to bottom). Ok, still need to relax.

Wednesday, mechanic calls. He says, "Cars need oil. You didn't have any. Please give me $2,000." I say, "I don't think you understand. I need to relax this week. I have a big deal on Thursday." He says, "$2,000." I say, "I don't have it to spare. Can't you wave some kind of magic wand?" He says, "I'll show you a magic wand!"

Oh, and the lease is up in a couple of months.

But I'm still relaxed. Wish me luck tonight.

Stay You.
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Austin Nichols: Anti-Corporate Revolutionary

My friend Mark Baker in Washington State sent me a gift package. Some CDs he wanted me to watch (sorry Mark, haven't done that yet), a cigar, picture of his kids, and two hotel mini-bar bottles of Austin Nichol's Wild Turkey. It scares many people, but I love this stuff.

Anyway, they are now on the shelf above my desk along with a bottle of The Glenlivet. Liquor in the office is very anti-corporate and that's part of the reason I like having it here. The thought of the big evil faceless corporation makes me bletch.

I think those jobs offer many the faintest whiff of what a totalitarian state must be like.

The corporation offers security (don't all fascists /communist provide basic needs no mater how horrible they are?) with the constant threat of layoffs (concentration camps, gulags, killing fields).

Speech codes are strickly enforced (the fear the HR department causes in many 50 something white males is similar to that of any secret police force).

Speaking out of turn will get you the wrong kind of attention. (Yes!)

The best way to survive is to keep quiet, keep your head down, don't be controverial or you will be label "not a team player." That's death to a corporate career. (Very similar to "non-conformer" or "traitor" or "counter-Revolutionary")

Anyways, mostly I like having the liquor here because it makes me feel like a man.

I always assumed as a kid that I'd be working in some sort of office doing some sort of business. When I watched television shows, I loved the scene where two guys would finish a day and one would bring out two dirty highball glasses from his desk with a bottle of Scotch and they'd slam down a drink. Lou Grant would do this alot, if I remember right. I'm sure in the future if it hasn't happened already, that they will blur out or cut those images like the Warner Brother's Cartoons have been edited or Jean-Paul Satre has been.

The act looked manly, it looked pleasurable. So every so often - although I've drifted away from the habit - I will pour a finger of Scotch (now Wild Turkey) at 4:00 on a Friday as I'm closing out the week. It's a good way to stick it to The Man!

Thanks, Mark.

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He Said/She Said

I had a grammar question for a letter I was writing the other day and came across this cool grammar site. I can use the phrase "cool grammar site" without feeling too stupid, because I'm just that cool.

This article about gender-neutral pronouns intrigued me - mostly because there wasn't an answer.

While I was writing my book, I had this problem. For instance, I wrote something like "When investing, a person should choose a mutual fund he deems appropriate for his risk tolerance." The Divine Mrs. M said suggested I should alternate some she's or use "his/her"and "he/she or something like that so as to not offend any female readers.

I didn't like that idea. It was too clunky. Too unpoetic. It got in the way of what I was writing. It drew too much attention to itself. Plus, I wanted to stick with a grammatical chestnut I had read once: "In grammar, as in love, the male embraces the female." So I was going to use he/him/his all the way through the book.

I could tell by Mrs. M's face that that wasn't going to sit well. So I had to think...

The solution to this was a character called The Pure Investor; and, thus, the name of the book. I introduced him in the first chapter which you can read here. He was a actual character, he was male, I could us he/him/his through the whole book without insulting anyone and maintaining domestic tranquility. There was the added benefit that it made the book better. It is different from other investment books which are uber-BORING. I can't stand them. Mine, I think, is much more readable.

So I have political correctness to thank for forcing me to be creative and writing a better book.

But after reading that above article, I got to thinking. I have 8 years of study of Spanish under my correa and the whole language is strewn with gender/masculine-feminine words. How do they solve this issue? Is it a problem for them or are they just more sensible about it and say "get over yourselfs"?

Any romance language speakers out there that can help?

Stay You.
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My Latest Sunday Challenger Article: Mall Road Chiropractic

My latest article for The Sunday Challenger is on Mall Road Chiropractic in Florence, Kentucky.

I hope that you enjoy.

Dr. Douglas Graham, D.C. owns it and he's a client of mine. Very nice man. He truly does care about his patients.

He's the only client I have out in that area - Florence, that is - and I'm don't mind that too much. But it's way out there. Florence in Northern Kentucky is where the largest mall is. It's the fastest growing area around here. Suburban sprawl choking everthing everywhere. It's godawful.

I live within a long walking distance of downtown Cincinnati and I don't have any idea why other's wouldn't want to either. Whatever! It's a free country.

My favorite story about Florence, however, is that there's this water tower. See it here (scroll down). It stands near the mall. Yes, it says, "Florence Y'All." As in, "You're in Florence Now You Hillbilly." When that mall was built it was a pretty big deal - a coup of sorts for local developers - so the local city government painted the words "Florence Mall" on the water tower. The stores that were already there - and fearful of being bankrupted by the new mall - bitched.

I can't disagree with them. Their tax dollars were going to advertise a new competitor that was getting tax abatements on local government property. It'd be a raging mad if I were them.

Now this is the part I like.

Instead of repainting the entire water tower, the local government types - to save money - simply painted out the legs of the "M" and squeezed in an apostrophe so that the water tower says, "Florence Y'All." Very innovative thinking. If it was like most city governments, they would have torn the water tower down. Furthermore, the City of FLorence every year hosts the Florence Y'All Festival making fun of itself. Not a bad idea.

Here's a quick history of Florence - a place I don't want to live. Here's where I do live.

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Cincinnati International Wine Festival

Tickets to Wine Festival $65 each
Hotel Room $120
Meals $40 (cheap)

A weekend away from the kids with some drunken behavior …priceless

First, off – this was the best wine festival ever! - at least for The Divine Mrs. M and me. We tried some great wines and met some great people and had some great fun.

Here’s some photo blogging

Another Shot

Our Ticket

Alicia Is Ready

I'm Ready to Go

Get ready

Beads

General shots. The Barefoot Wines folks handed out beads. Women of all ages wanted beads…beads…beads. These can easily be bought at any dollar store, ladies. Anyway, this picture not only shows the beads, but a little nice cleavage on Mrs. M. Ooo, la, la.

Enjoying the Start of the Evening

Some Before Pictures...

Not bad

Looking Sloppy?

Starting to look a bit sloppy. I’m holding a bottle of Jekel Sanctuary. The vendors hint: Think “Jam” This stuff was full and fruity. Goooood!

Aussy Wines

We love our Aussy wines. That’s what this guy is pitching. Mrs. M loved his shirt with pocket scarf. Our regular table wine is here, but we might have to drink this every so often.

Rosados? Yes!

Our goal was to try lots of Spanish wines and learn about these. We fell in love with Rosado. If we could we would have taken it back to our hotel room and seduced it. Mmmmmmmm. Another one that we liked was the 2001 El Coto Rioja Crianza.

Good Man

This guy was great. We asked him to teach us about Spanish wines and he held forth on everything you’d want to know. By the time we were done a crowd had gathered. Buy from this guy.

Time to Eat

Ok, time to eat something.

He Jugs

This guy wore a shirt that read “I Jugs!” He was selling wine in nice little jugs and was handing out stickers that said “I Jugs!” Several women were wearing them on their chest. Very classy.

She Loves Jugs

Mrs. M expresses pleasure with the wine bottle in a soy milk jug. She loves jugs!

Strange Lady

I was snapping a lot of pictures and this lady asked me why I didn’t take one of her. So I did. She looked kind of scary to me later.

Jerk

This guy was a jerk. Maybe it was because this was the 3^rd and final tasting, but I think it was mostly because he was a jerk. But the guy was from You Bet wineries. With a name like that - have a sense of humor. Dick!

I Jugs

This lady loved jugs. We spoke with this couple quite a bit that night. Very nice couple. Later someone ripped off the sticker. She said she was annoyed until she realized it felt kinda good.

Hat Boy

This guy expressed displeasure with the “I Jugs!” stickers. I expressed displeasure with his wearing of a UK hat indoors at this event.

Good Wine!

Meeker Wine

Good wine and good wine vendor. She’s holding a bottle of Fro-zin. It’s not an official Ice wine where the grapes are frozen on the vine, but it’s frozen after picking. I asked “Why’s that?” She replied, “Because it doesn’t freeze in California.” I think she then called me “dumbass!” I liked her. Cool! Here they are.

Bushmill's

On the way out, Mrs. M. stopped at what she called the fake Bailey’s booth i.e. Bushmills. She had 3 shots which official put her over the edge.

Shoes

Just for Madame Butterfly, Mrs. M.’s shoes.

Artist

We bought the wine festival poster and the artist (on the right) signed it for us.

Red

While Mrs. M took a bathroom break, I spoke with the lady. I thought it cool that her hair matched the wall.

Firefighter!

Mrs. M. took a pic of this lady who was very pleasant…and a Cincinnati Firefighter.

We survived to the morning after…