Thoughts while down with the swine...flu, that is

The week didn't turn out quite as planned. After our delightful lunch with Ally on Black Friday, we headed up the coast to Malibu, and I suddenly started coughing. A dry cough. Out of nowhere. The last time this happened - in August - it wasn't pretty. We had a nice drive, went home, and I was in bed by 8:30 because I was not feeling well.

Saturday morning, rose early as Ana was coming to clean. Was still coughing a bit, but felt OK. Had breakfast with the gang, got over to Pasadena and got our hairs cut by Gina. By that time I was coughing more and getting worried because it wasn't developing into a cold, but it was definitely something. Went back to bed, had BAD night - high fever, ague (I love that old-fashioned word!), really bad, weird dreams, and the cough that wouldn't stop - and felt bad enough on Sunday that I called the doctor. She listened to my symptoms, said, "It's probably the swine flu, but don't worry about it." I said, "WHAT!!??!!" She suggested that I might just want to ride it out, but I was nervous about it, so she called my pharmacy with a prescription for Tamiflu. Four days later, I'm much better, but have spent most of the week sleeping or watching TV. And pretty much had to reschedule my life for the week. Now I'm just trying to get it together so I'll be OK to teach the LearnAboutWine Wine Camp class on Sunday!

For those who want to get started learning about wine, Wine Camp is a great place to start. We taste some great wines, using them as a basis for understanding how to taste wine, what wine pairs the best with what foods and brings out the best in food, how to purchase and store wine, and there's history, anecdotes, laughs - lots of laughs! This Sunday, we'll be tasting the following wines:

> Scheid, Sauvignon Blanc, Monterey, 2007
> Matanzas Creek, Chardonnay, Sonoma, 2006
> Joseph Faiveley, Macon-Prisse, France, 2006
> Pali "Huntington", Pinot Noir, Santa Barbara County, 2007
> Rosenthal “Devon Vineyard” Merlot, Malibu, 2000
> Signorello “Estate” Cabernet Sauvignon, Napa Valley, 2005
> Starlite Vineyards, Zinfandel, Alexander Valley, 2005

You should join me! The class is casual and fun, and there's wine!

Cheers!