Top Ten Most Popular Posts on Left Coast Cowboys During Feb 2009

I may be the last person in America or maybe in the English speaking world who has just discovered the huge steaming pile of sanctimonious, arrogant ego that is Stephen Fowler. But that’s because I don’t watch reality TV. (And hey, don’t accuse me of being elitist. I love my TV. I’m just watching too many episodes of Law & Order to fit in non-crime-oriented programming!

One thing I’ve learned from facing the slow, lingering death of a loved one is that no one can give you a roadmap for that journey. Even people who’ve been through it can only offer you limited advice because everyone faces death in their own way. What brought comfort to one person’s dying relative might not work in your situation. You’ve got to play it by ear.

After more than 20 years married to a Brit, I’m still amazed at their eating habits. Not only do they eat strange stuff like Marmite and Lucozade, but they give it bizarre names. Like Spotted Dick, Toad in the Hole, Rumbledy-Thump and the the ever amusing Drowned Baby. Add to the confusion, the tendency they have to call every dessert, whether it’s cake or ice cream or a fruit tart, a “pudding”.

Remember how just a few weeks ago, I was complaining about the drought we’ve been having here in California? I’m not sure I would say it’s over, but we’ve had two weeks of back-to-back storms that have done a lot to alleviate things. Good news! Except that it’s keeping me from burying the evidence of one of my most glaring failures at Two Terrier Ranch.

 One of the best decisions we made when we first got our land in Sonoma, was to throw up just a tent cabin and spend the next few years developing the land rather than buildings. Even the word “developing” has to be qualified. What we aimed to do was work with what was there, just making it a little bit tidier and a little more accessible.

I went up to visit my mother this weekend in Lake County. It’s the next county over from Napa, but a world away. I won’t say she lives in a One Horse Town — her town probably has more horses than cars in it which is great. It’s real Cowboy Country. But it does only have one main street. Except for the paved highway and the Espresso shop, it probably doesn’t look much different from when Lily Langtry first showed up there in the 1800s determined to put her money into a winery that would make “the Best Claret in California”.

It never fails. When I post up something that hits Google with keywords like “cowboy”, “country music”, “Indians” or “Wild West”, Eastern Europe goes wild — judging from my stats. After yesterday’s post about taking my mother to an Indian Casino, there was hardly a soul east of the Elbe who wasn’t tuning in. However much of that traffic could be attributed to the fact that I served up some choice pre-surgery Kenny Rogers.

An English poet, other than the one referenced above, said “April is the cruelest month.” Not to argue with the inestimable Mr. Eliot (who riffed here on Mr. Chaucer), but I would suggest that February is crueler. Especially if you are a novice farmer. Certainly if you are one in California.February is the month where everything is dormant. Unless you’ve planted a winter crop.

Last week, Two Terrier Vineyards hosted a prestigious group: The McNabb Family of England. Old friends from way back, the McNabbs are also very knowledgeable about wine. Knowledgeable as in lifelong oenophiles with two members (Paul and John) being graduates of a prestigious and difficult wine course in France which I understand is aimed at training top level sommeliers.You may ask if we were nervous having such distinguished palates at Two Terrier Vineyards.

Taking advantage of a rare break between our back to back storms, I rushed up to Sonoma to finally deal with those rogue Brussels Sprouts. You’ll remember, these are the sprouts that went feral after our two heat waves in January and blowsed out into fist size cabbages instead of tight little heads. (Note to self: outside of the coastally cooled areas, you cannot grow Brussels Sprouts in California.