Wine-making 2007 looks pretty much like wine-making 2008. Only...this is Arizona wine-making rather than wine-making at The Lake. Just a 2000 mile difference.

Word of the Day

Mogulate - To make a fool of ones self.

Gypsy and I haven't taken our morning training walk yet. I had an orchestra practice at the church this morning so I had to hit the road about the same time that Gypsy and I take our walk. Maybe I'll take her out later this afternoon.

Yesterday, I went out shopping at Saver's with a friend of mine. I needed some "new" jeans. I've lost enough weight that I only had two pair of jeans to choose from...everything else was too big. So...off to Saver's (Boys and Girls Club of America thrift store) to buy some "new" (new to me) jeans or capris. I'm still dieting so I've got hopes to lose more weight. Besides, I have jeans at The Lake that would probably fit. Unfortunately, they're at The Lake and I'm not...at The Lake. I bought four pair of jeans, three pair of capris, and three sweaters for less than what it would have cost me to buy one pair of jeans. I'm not sure what Eddie Bauer jeans go for right now or what the fleece-lined LLBean jeans would have cost me new but I didn't pay that much. Thank goodness for Saver's. Actually, I love getting "new" jeans because they've already been washed and broken in so there's no doubt that they'll still fit after I throw them into the washing machine and dryer. I know that my sister loves garage saling for clothes but I prefer buying my "new" clothes at the thrift store where I can try things on in a dressing room.

My friend and I also stopped at the grocery store so I could pick up lemons and oranges and golden raisins for my pyracantha wine. My wine-making supplies arrived last week so I was able to get the pyracantha wine started....but first I needed to purchase the rest of the ingredients. Citrus and raisins. I started the pyracantha wine after I got back home. Since my Mom picked nine quarts of the pyracantha berries, there was enough to make NINE recipes of wine. I was able to start three triple batches which meant that I had to juice 18 lemons and 9 oranges into three large buckets. I'm not sure exactly how much wine I'm going to end up with but I added the yeast to the buckets this morning. I'll have to stir the "must" a couple of times a day for the next week before I can strain out the pulp and transfer this new wine into fermentation jugs. In the meantime, I need to rack the pomegranate wines and prickly pear wine today. It's a good thing that I'm not expecting any guests who need to occupy my guest room in the near future. My guest room is full of buckets and jugs full of what will some day become wine.

Murphyism of the Day

Handy Office Excuse - Number Eleven

I thought I told you.

Noteworthy Quote of the Day

If our early lessons of acceptance were as successful as our early lessons of anger, how much happier we would all be.

- Peter McWilliams