The affair with Charlie Palmer (no relation) all started at the Salvation Army fund-raiser. I guess I should clarify that — when I say “affair,” I mean evening out. Not the full-blown affair, please understand. I had never met Charlie Palmer, although had heard of him through my friend Jean. Charlie Palmer is a steakhouse. A very upscale steakhouse, not one that I would be likely to frequent. At the fund-raiser there was a drawing for a gift certificate to Charlie’s steakhouse. And I won it! $150 which, I was assured, would just about cover dinner with wine and a tip. For one. Oh. So I went on Charlie’s website and discovered, yep, $150 was probably about right. BUT — there is something called the “Cut of the Week,” a three course fixed-price dinner for $58. That’s more like it. AND it includes wine pairings. Oh, yes, we can definitely… Read More »
I am not Responsible
It is a struggle, but I have come to understand that I am not responsible for finding homes for everything that crosses my path. Except the kittens who are born in my backyard, of course. I was responsible for them, but other things? Not so much. Many years ago a friend gave me a handful of hollyhock seeds. I had seen pictures of hollyhocks growing in front of Swiss chalets, so I didn’t expect them to grow in the desert, but they did! Not only grow, but thrive. They also re-seed themselves, and they are not discriminate about where they land, so they drift across the fences into the neighbors yards. This gives me a stunning wall of hollyhocks every spring and summer. A joyous display to gladden the heart. At the end of the season, when they are done blooming, I collect the excess seeds in baggies. In the beginning,… Read More »
The Phyllis Diller royalty check
“How about an April 1 publication date?” Larry, my editor/publisher, said referring to my book: “Beyond the Spotlight: On the Road with Phyllis Diller.” “Sure,” I said, not realizing the significance of that day. It’s been just over a year since my book came out and whether the April Fool referred to me or Phyllis, I’m still not sure, but looking at my latest royalty check, I’m thinking it might be me. This check combined with the money I earned pouring wine last Saturday will just about cover the cost of my new shoes. Granted, they are Cole Hahn, so pricey, but still by now I expected that I would have made enough money to buy new shoes every week! (Where are Simon & Schuster when you need them?) “It’s not a big house publisher you need,” Shawn told me when I was lamenting this a few weeks back, “it’s… Read More »
Taking a Sip for a Scholarship
“Dogfish Head? What on earth is Dogfish Head?” I eyed the bottles of beer in ice when I finally found Booth 35. I’d wandered through the maze of white tents in the sprawling parking lot for nearly 10 minutes before I spotted it. When I got the e-mail asking if I wanted to work the UNLVino wine tasting, I was thrilled. It’s one of my favorite things to do — pour wine and talk to people. And this wasn’t just any old wine tasting, this was the one honoring the founders of UNLVino on its 40th anniversary. “Big doin’s” as my grandmother used to say. I first went to UNLVino some 30 years ago when the tickets were $25 and it was a 3 hour event at the Thomas & Mack arena. The tickets now start at $125 for each event and there are 4 nights of events. Because the tasting was at the Lou… Read More »
Remember White Zinfandel ?
… I’ll bet you do. It was when you first started drinking wine, wasn’t it? Okay, maybe not when you first, first started drinking wine — that was Annie Greensprings and Boone’s Farm. But I mean when you graduated to real wine — white zinfandel. It had a lot going for it: it looked pretty, you could order it in a restaurant and feel very grown-up, and it tasted well, not exactly like soda pop, but it sure went down easy. And it wasn’t expensive, either. What’s not to like? I am reminiscing because I am sitting here sipping on a glass of “Rose′ of Zinfandel” from Villa San-Juliette in Paso Robles. It has a lovely shell pink color, bright and lively appearance, and would certainly add elegance to any dinner table. But … (My dad used to say, “just tell me the part that comes after the but.”) I don’t like it. It… Read More »
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