Good wine

Here are some great wines I recommend:

• Bowers Harbor Claret, Old Mission Peninsula, MI USA
• Chaumette Chambourcin, Ste. Genevieve, MO USA: a hybrid breed of European (French) and American varieties.
• Chaumette Club Cuvée, Ste. Genevieve, MO USA: an excellent blend of Norton varieties, selected with the help of wine club members!
• Quady Electra, Madera, CA USA: A sweet, orange flavored treat! Has a very low (4%) alcohol content.
• Quady Essensia, Madera, CA USA: An orangey-desert treat!

While creating this list, I found a great new website, cork'd. You can view my reviews, wine cellar, and shopping list.

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Mood: drunk (not really)

What I'm reading: Getting it

From Alex Sanchez's Getting It:

Unlike most gay-themed novels for teens, the main character in Getting It is a straight ally. Carlos befriends Sal to give him a Queer Eye-type makeover so he can win the affections of a girl. I thought that this was a great point of view, and hopefully many gay and straight teen readers will enjoy this book. Its makeover plot may even teach readers a thing or two about hygiene and style!

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Mood: refreshed

What I'm reading: The hamster revolution

From Mike Song, Vicki Halsey, and Tim Burress' The Hamster Revolution: How to Manage Your Email Before It Manages You:

I first heard of this book and Cohesive Knowledge Solutions from the "Getting out of e-jail" article in the Sunday, February 4, 2007 The Ann Arbor News. The article, book, and consulting firm are all about managing your e-mail workload. Here are some of the top tips:

• Reduce your e-mail volume by limiting the number of e-mails you send and coaching your colleagues: ask yourself if each e-mail is needed, appropriate, and targeted to the right people.
• Use agreed upon shortcuts with your colleagues: NTN - no thanks needed; NRN - no reply necessary; put your entire message in the subject line followed by EOM - end of message; message headings such as action, info, request, confirmed, delivery.
• Improve e-mail quality: strengthen your subject and sculpt the body of your message.
• Use standard file system to find info fast: the authors suggest a filing system for managing your communications using common business process (COTA).

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Mood: rushed

What I'm reading: The order of the poison oak

From Brent Hartinger's The Order of the Poison Oak:

I enjoyed this sequel to Geography Club that covers the three friends at their summer camp job. The relationships with each other, the campers, and other counselors are very well developed and the basis for this novel. The story of the Order of the Poison Oak is very touching.

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Mood: satisfied

What I'm reading: Geography club

From Brent Hartinger's Geography Club:

I am torn about this book, an accurate gay teen coming-out story, because it is so accurate. At the end of the book, a friendship is very strained and the newfound relationship falters - not a very happy ending. But as is life...

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Mood: aggravated

What I'm reading: So hard to say

From Alex Sanchez's So Hard to Say:

Similar to his Rainbow series, the story is told from multiple points of view, this time two main characters Frederick and Xio. The story details Frederick's transition to a new high school and new understanding of his sexuality. Sanchez did a good job of capturing the eighth grade persona - the issue is as much how do I tell someone I don't like them like them as it is sexual orientation.

As many other stories in this genre, So Hard to Say points out the unfortunate reality that out gay kids are picked on. Nice.

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Mood: nostalgic

What I'm reading: Eats, shoots & leaves

From Lynne Truss' Eat's, Shoots & Leaves: The Zero Tolerance Approach to Punctuation:

Who knew grammar could be so much fun?

This was a great quick read all about commas, "full stops," semicolons, colons, dashes, and other punctuation marvels. The history of these publishers' marks and warnings for the future were interesting; her examples were the best. Ms. Truss sure does like her Opal Fruits.

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Mood: amused