Fruit of the Vine

My nephew and his wife were up from Maryland to show the family their new addition, a beautiful baby daughter, Julia Elizabeth. While we were catching up on things he told me that he was tired of still seeing “The Bucket List” on my Blog site. I told him that entries for me are not as easy as they are for other members of the family. They have so many things to write about, new kids, new jobs, home remodeling, trips, you name it. While I on the other hand have been type caste as a bitcher, moaner and overall grouchy old fart. The only time I get inspired is when I’ve got something that annoys me to the extent that I feel it needs to be shared with the world.

Well, I started to think about this and decided that I do have stuff going on , maybe not super exciting, but if you people are crazy enough to read my stuff I’m going to start telling you what’s going on. For example, we’ve started to make our pilgrimage to all the Connecticut wineries. Over the past few years the Connecticut wineries, all nineteen of them and growing, have what they are calling “A Passport Program”. At the first winery you visit, you pick up a passport and get it stamped at the winery. You then must get your book stamped at a total of fourteen wineries. In late October, you turn in your passport at the last winery you visit. The wineries then hold a drawing for various prizes which, in the past, have included trips to Germany, Spain, California, and Canada along with other prizes. Don’t really expect win anything but our wine tasting trips have been very enjoyable. We travel with another couple and usually visit three of them with a picnic lunch in between. At the visits we taste five or six of their wines, and buy a bottle or two to replenish the wine cooler which shows a great deal of winter depletion. The trip usually takes us thru many small picturesque Connecticut towns. We cap off the day with dinner at a restaurant on our way home. Kind of a senior type of day, don’t you think?

Played golf today in the old guy’s nine hole league and decided that I still don’t understand many things about the game. For the past few years I have driven the ball quite well, not super long but straight. Don’t lose balls anymore. Today, I couldn’t buy a decent tee shot, but ended up shooting 40 with the absolute best putting round of my life. How does this happen? Played this past Sunday and couldn’t make any. Today, I couldn’t miss ……made a bunch and even came close on the chips and long putts that you don’t ever expect to make…..strange game, kissed my putter several times and decided I was taking it to bed with me tonight and continue my love affair.

Getting late so I’ll wrap this up, but still have an entry coming up in a few days on how I became a “Gentleman Farmer”.