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 Perspective
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February 20, 2010 – 9:04 pm
Growing up in the Sacramento Valley I had plenty of opportunity to experience fog so thick you couldn’t see the house across the street. In the Napa Valley, we only experience ribbons of fog that lace a vineyard together or tuck into a hillside. I captured the picture above on my way to work this week. It struck me how quickly the fog formed and meandered amongst the vines and trees. Unlike the tule fog that sticks low to the ground and makes it …
February 6, 2010 – 2:55 pm
Unlike most commuters, I enjoy my drive to the office each day. It’s no surprise since rather than being stuck in traffic watching motorcyclists zip by my mirror, I get to drive by vineyards, between hills, and some days under hot air balloons. One of the benefits of life in the Napa Valley is the ever-changing scenery.
Earlier this week, I was traveling the back roads to work when I saw the clouds tucking into the hills. I tried stopping in the middle of the road to get a picture but wouldn’t you know, just …
January 25, 2010 – 5:13 pm
I arrived at the airport parking lot to see the dark clouds moving closer. Before I could exit the car the lightening began to strike all around. Not being a big fan of flying, I felt my anxiety level rise. I scurried off to the terminal to get out of the downpour.
I quickly forgot about the threatening weather as I moved through the security line, then fumbled to get my shoes on, and looked up to read the monitor one more time in search of the correct gate number. Off I …
January 11, 2010 – 12:52 am
I recently packed up the SUV and headed to southern California with my family to spend Christmas with my oldest son. On the morning of Christmas Eve the kids and I headed up the road to the local ski resort. It was a beautiful day and we couldn’t wait to get onto the snow. After a few warm-up runs at the lower part of the resort we took a chairlift, to the top of the mountain.
At 8,000 feet I skied off the lift to the trail head. …
December 18, 2009 – 2:18 am
My journey resumes in the Napa Valley, more specifically at the top of Spring Mountain above St. Helena. Yes, that is snow along with some “lovely” graffiti. Love and romance go perfectly in the Napa Valley. In this case, the love is being spread throughout the vineyards. This actually makes sense to me because the real love for wine begins in the vineyards. So let’s explore further this love affair beneath the vines.
Not often thought of as romantic – it’s the dirt that makes the difference. We don’t …
November 27, 2009 – 9:32 pm
Welcome back to my journey into Virgina. I last blogged about my visit to President Madison’s estate. Just down the road is Monticello, home of President Jefferson. This visit was more like Disneyland for history buffs and those who are curious about Jefferson. Once again I was thrown back in time and asked to imagine what it was like to live on this massive mountain-top estate. No matter what your political slant this self-taught man was a genius.
For instance, he designed the home and water collection system based upon his self study of …
November 18, 2009 – 8:57 pm
During a recent business trip to the East Coast I had a chance to explore part of Virgina. The photo above was taken from the balcony of President James Madison’s home. I must admit, growing up history classes bored me to tears so the thought of another history lesson wasn’t at the top of my list.
Boy was I surprised! The inspiration I received while on the tour of the Madison’s estate was unbelievable. I guess this is why I always liked field trips more than the classroom. Then again, who wouldn’t. As our docent described …
November 3, 2009 – 11:01 pm
Let me take you to Lancaster County PA home of the Amish and Mennonites. Here the longing for a simpler way of life although far from easier is practiced. During my exploration of the countryside I watched how a family would harvest their crops without the use of machinery. Across the road another family had large silos to store their corn. It is my understanding that the Amish do not believe in the use of machinery unlike the Mennonites. Both still work very hard to maintain their self sustaining …
October 28, 2009 – 12:12 am
 Amish Country I recently traveled to the East Coast to visit relatives and participate in my consulting accountants round table. Along the way I visited Amish country in Pennsylvania where I discovered a different way of life. Granted it isn’t one I would choose but it did provide a glimpse into how farm life used to be. You truly can appreciate how mechanization has improved many parts of a farming operation.
In wine country we still are reliant on a large labor force to perform many manual tasks. …
September 23, 2009 – 3:26 pm
Harvest is underway in the Napa Valley and there are many growers still looking for buyers of their grapes. The irony is that this is shaping up to be a great crop. So what happened? Well growers that often operate by the traditional handshake are finding that wineries just aren’t willing to take a risk this year. With fine wine sales off 20% + many vintners are getting nervous about growing inventory.
I have heard that some big wineries cancelled their long-term contracts which has left the growers with fruit ready to …
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