Projects and Saturdays

We have a project list.

A list of 20 (well now 19) items to work off when we have a chance.

The idea is that when we have time--or need something to do, we will go to one of the items on the list and complete it. Yesterday, we cleaned out a closet and installed a rack to hold wine. So we have a true wine cellar, so to speak.

It was a project.

Some are not so simple--like crown molding in a couple of rooms.

But it is a plan.

There are so many things to do around here it seems. It will be hard to keep up with them all. And of course there is the expense of funding some of the projects.

But we have a plan--and it keeps us busy in our spare time.

Basking in the Glow of a Win

Baseball season is officially underway for the O's. I always love this time of the season when i can call them the AL East Division leaders. Yeah, they're tied with the Yankees and the Blue Jays with one win each--but it still sounds good.

I had a good evening out at a local establishment with Jeremy, Mike and few other friends watching the game, eating some munchies and of course drinking some beer.

Baseball brings us together, it seems. It gives us something to cheer for, talk about and commiserate about when they fall short. 

And dream about being in the World Series or the playoffs?

Maybe not this year. But we are expecting a winning season to break the 13 years 

I have my tickets for the home opener on Monday and am looking forward to partying with 40,000 of my closest friends in person. The weatherman is even helping--we are now looking at 75 degrees and only light showers possible, up form low 50's and heavy rain.

The sun will be shining though at 2:30 pm as the 2011 Orioles are introduced to the home crowd.

Regardless--

The promise is still alive as the just underway baseball season gets off to a start. One down and only 161 to go.

I-95 at Rush Hour

Can you believe it. Five lanes wide and no where to go. Ugh. Friday night on the highway is so much fun.

Baseball, Summertime, and Sitting in the Freezing Rain

Since the O's have not yet opened the season--and they are playing their first three games in Tampa starting tonight, this scenario shouldn't be a concern. But--Monday is coming.

Opening Day, is slated to be mid-50's, rainy, gloomy. But the sun will be shining bright in the hearts of true Orioles fans as the 2011 version of the team takes the field.

I am lucky, in that I have already actually seen two games, albeit Spring Training, sitting in 80 degree weather and sunshine.  So I can carry a bit of that mindset into the stands on Monday as the home part of the season begins. 

I hope they have a winning record when they get back north from Tampa. 3-0 would be great, but 2-1 is awesome too.

We need a good start to the season to set the tone.

So Monday afternoon, I expect to be in Oriole Park at Camden Yards watching the birds begin another season. I will be filled with hope, as I always am on Opening Day--but most of all, despite the anticipated cool temperatures and rain, I will be sitting there in a heavy coat and gloves thinking about July--and pennant races and just glad that baseball is back.

MD Wine Bill -- Almost There

To follow up on my earlier post--the Maryland Wine Bill (SB 248 and HB 234) has passed, but still require some minor differences between the two bills to be worked out before the current legislative session ends on April 11th. 

According to an article in the Washington Post, the governor has stated that he will sign the bill when it comes to him for signature.

So don't uncork your favorite old wine yet.

But, find out where you have it hidden.

The State Senate approved the bill 45-0.

There was a bit of confusion in the way some of the articles I was reading were worded about the wine bill--one from Friday suggested that the bill was headed to the Governor for signature--however, that wasn't entirely accurate as it turns out.

But, we are getting closer.

Consumers and Politicians and Taxes

The politicians seems to be very concerned about closing budget gaps all across the country this year. legislatures from Maryland to California are trying to figure out how to get more money to sustain levels of service. It goes to the city level as well, Baltimore City is looking to close a tax revenue shortfall, too.

Sadly, the universal answer seems to be in raising taxes and "fees." 

I hate fees.  We pay a fee with our taxes for garbage collection in Howard County. It used to be included in our taxes until about 15 years ago the county board decided to make it a separate fee.  It was $75 then. The problem with government levied fees? There are few controls on them. The country wants to raise the fee this year from the current $250 to $500 per year. If it was a tax--we could challenge it and even vote on it. Since it is a fee--it can be changed pretty much on a whim.

And the state wants to increase property tax, and gas tax, and alcohol taxes and whatever taxes they can get away with.

Ever wonder who pays those taxes?

I read an article the other day about the giant corporation General Electric. Despite being the fourth largest company in the U.S. and posting a $14 Billion profit, the company paid no taxes.

That is $0.

What a deal!

I sure made a lot less that and amazingly I am paying a lot more than $0 in taxes.

So, let me get this straight. Politicians across the country are pinching consumers and private citizens to pay more taxes--yet the 4th largest corporation in America skates. There has to be a story here somewhere.

Oh, and it gets better. GE is claiming a $3.2 billion refund. Read it here in the Berkshire News.

I need to actually pay something in taxes to get a refund---not pay zero and get additional money.

Politicians are clearly looking in the wrong place for additional money. How many private American's taxes are needed to add up to a $3.2 billion refund? I looked this up--329,301 (with the average individual tax bill in America for the 2009 tax year being $8,157). Check out Tax Stats at a Glance and do the math.

Message to the politicians: Go after the corporations in America who are making a joke of tax laws!  That's where the money is.

Consensus Wine Released

We have finally obtained the winning wine form the Keswick Vineyards Consensus blending weekend.

I described the process and the weekend in my blog earlier.

This past weekend, Chris and I went to the winery to obtain a few bottles so that we could enjoy the wine that we helped to create since even though the direct shipping bill has passed, it is not in effect yet.

Wine is such a team effort to create. Not just the blending, the part of the team we participated in; but the winemaker had to blend it and it had to be bottled and this was after the grapes were grown and picked and crushed.

We tasted the wine while we were at the winery--and it was every bit as good as we remembered. It should be good for many years to come.

It was exciting to taste the wine as it was poured at the winery for others to buy. They made 245 cases of the wine. A very small and exclusive run.  And they told me at the winery that it was selling very well. Over 30 cases were sold on release weekend--which was the 19th of March.

Ah, the memories! 

Projects and Cold Weather

Last evening, Tina was over working on some projects.

It was cold outside--to cold for the paint to dry that she was using for one project and too cold for the glue to set on another.

The operative words here are that it was too cold.

Too cold.

We have moved to daylight savings time--(btw--did you note that Russia has moved permanently to daylight savings time?) to have more daylight in the evening for projects and now it is too cold for the projects.

So can we get someone to turn on the global sunlamp and get temperatures up to normal at least?

The cold weather is a problem for the grape vines in central Virginia--the low there last night of about 27 degrees is right at the point where damage could occur to the new growth. hopefully, the vines are still slumbering.

The cold is also going to make the Aloha Shirt Day I am sponsoring at work on Wednesday seem a bit premature--but we should have fun with it nonetheless.

Alas thought, I too have many outside projects which need to be started--but it is too cold. By the time it warms up enough to work on them I am afraid it will be too hot to work on them.

Well, Opening Day at home for the orioles is Monday--hopefully it will not snow on Monday. It did one year.

Monday Musings - March 28, 2011

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1. March is over this week (amazingly enough--where did it go?) and we launch into April. The weathermen are reporting that April will begin with weather more suited for February.  What a downer for such a promising month. Only 30 days until pool opening day--weather permitting.

2. College basketball is fun and this March the madness has been incredible. Consider this--of the 68 teams in the NCAA Men's tournament, 4 remain to vie for the crown of National Men's Champion. Of the four, there are no Number 1 or 2 seeds left. That, friends is what sports are all about. You have to play every game.

3. We had a great wine weekend. A quick trip to Charlottesville to get some of the consensus wine that we helped to blend, a quick stop at another winery and then back home. Yesterday, we went to look at some homes for sale--just because.

4. Birthday weekends are busy. This week we celebrate with Patrick--and then next up is Ethan. Dinner at On the Border last night was a lot of fun and a good spur of the moment idea. A lot better than pizza.

5. I'm hosting a conference at work this week--so the blog may be a bit late or thin. Bear with me. Conferences drive me crazy.  So many loose ends. Changed schedules and the like. It is far easier to attend a conference than to plan and host one.

6. Japan and Libya are still occupying the bulk of the news from around the world.  Both situations seem not to be showing many signs of improvement.

7. This week we said good-bye to a faithful companion of Mike and Nicole and I grieve with them on the passing of Calvin (or Cal)--the cat that came free with a $10 bag of cat food some 12 years ago. He was a fixture around their house and he was one of those cats who really took charge of things--be they children or yappy dogs. It was both sudden and sad the day he passed and like so many other good friends--he is missed and will be missed. Sadly, I don't think I have any images of Cal to share.

8. Here is a thought. Plans are made to be changed! You knew this of course. But, this weekend really drove that point home for me. Nothing happened that way it was planned or envisioned. That, is the spice of life.

Maryland Wine Bill Passes

Consumers and wine drinkers in Maryland are celebrating the beginning of the end of archaic rules which prohibited legal access to over 95 percent of the wines available in the United States.  The Maryland Legislature, as reported late Friday, passed the long awaited direct wine shipping bill, which while imperfect, will finally allow at least direct shipment of wine from wineries to consumers in the state.

I am excited that my favorite wineries--Keswick in Virginia and Chateau St Jean in Sonoma Valley, California, can finally ship my wines direct to me; but there is still more to do. I still cannot join a retail wine of the month club, nor have wines shipped from retailers.

Why is it important to have wines shipped from retailers?

First, consider this interesting fact that was reported in The Standard Times on November 26, 2005: 95 percent of all wine purchased is consumed within 48 hours.

So, clearly, the idea of ordering wine for expediency or probably even reduced cost is not a factor for direct shipping. It is an issue of access to product. Some wineries do not sell all of their wines on the retail market. I know this for a fact from visiting so many wineries across the United States.

Wine, however, is a world-wide product. Direct shipping of wine from wineries is great for US wine--but how about the South African, or Australian, or you the name it country wines that are not carried by Maryland retailers? I want to support the local retailer, believe me. But the tiered system in Maryland does them a disservice as well and they cannot carry all of the wine available and cannot order the wines I often ask them about.

We, the consumers, should have access to all of the wines available without unreasonable red tape and confusing rules. As I travel the country, I often find wines that I enjoy and want to buy in Maryland. In fact, favorite Chris' Merlot, the Hart & McGarry, is not available in Maryland. That is why we need direct shipping to include the ability to receive wine from retailers.

Retailers in the state feel threatened--but they should see direct shipping as an opportunity--they would be allowed to ship out of state. This then gives them access to compete on a bigger market--especially if they offer a unique or not widely available wine.

Remember, we are looking at 5 percent of the total wine sales here--and there is a good chance the retailers won't even notice the 5 percent because it is possible much of that is already making its way into the state via other means.

And so, I will tip a glass of wine tonight to celebrate success--but continue to push for complete access to the wine available in the world.