Monthly Archives: June 2009

 Today marks 2 months in which I have not had a television.  I got to admit.  I still don’t miss it… that much.  I would have liked to watch some of the tributes when Farrah Fawcett and Michael Jackson died.  Not enough, mind you, to run out and get cable or satellite, but I have had moments.  Moments of missing what I considered quality programming.

I will say I miss the Food Network!  I love to cook, and I enjoy watching cooking shows.  I have gotten some great ideas from the Food Network, and I do miss that.   I also miss A & E and especially The Biography Channel.   I am fascinated by people’s lives and the path’s they take on their journey to get them to where they are.   And I miss W Network (The Women’s Network). From the style shows, to the home make-over shows and they always have great movies on Saturday night.

Network television – I do not miss.

Enjoy the summer!

Darlene

 

I love trying new wines, and on the recommendation of a fellow wine snob friend of mine (and by the way, wine snob is a compliment!), I tried the McManis Zinfandel tonight.  Now normally a California Zinfandel is soft for me, I really like a full-bodied wine with lots of bold taste.  But I was very impressed.  It has a rich dark color, and has the raspberry, blackberry and blueberry aromas.  Aged in French and American oak, this is a great wine to go with any meal or to drink by itself.  

I am really looking forward to trying the Cabernet Sauvignon.  I am a big Cab Sav fan and the 2007 harvest took place from later September to early October, which means a great tasting wine. 

Check them out for yourself at www.mcmanisfamilyvineyards.com

Till next time

Darlene

  It was January 1983, and as a young disc jockey at a Radio Station in Corner Brook, Newfoundland, I, like many others around the world, started playing a song that would change the course of history.  That song was Billie Jean, by Michael Jackson from his Thriller LP.  Now for you young ones, who don’t know what LP is, it stands for Long Playing Record.  Yes, Thriller was first released on an LP.

Thriller went on to become the best selling record of all time, and still holds the title with over 50 million copies sold.  Everyone had a copy of Thriller.   Not only did it produce Billie Jean, but also Beat It, Thriller, and The Girl is Mine.  Aided by high energy music videos when MTV was in its heyday, Michael Jackson became the world’s greatest entertainer and was dubbed ‘The King of Pop’. 

And now he has passed on.  Like many others, I am scratching my head over what happened to this talented young man.  Everyone remembers the good looking kid from the Jackson 5 and from the music videos in the early 80’s.  From the plastic surgeries, odd public appearances, his marriages and of course his allegations of child abuse,  his downhill slide was more like an avalanche out of control.  Like the King of Rock and Roll before him, there will always be questions.

Darlene

This ought to get a few colorful comments started.  Let me start by saying, if you are easily offended on matters of Religion, stop reading now!

Many people ask me am I Religious?  To which I always reply ‘No’!  I am however, a big believer in Balance, Respect towards others, and the Ultimate Purpose of why we are here.  I consider myself more of a Spiritual person.   When I explain that to many people, I get looked at like I’m sprouting another head!  The next question tends to be ‘What’s the Difference?” 

I was raised Catholic.  And when I got old enough to start thinking for myself, I realized how much of what I was learning, I vehemently disagreed with.  I do believe in God, but I don’t believe in the Catholic Church’s viewpoints on birth control, living together, and I really disagree with covering up sexual abuse of a child just because the pervert who committed the crime was a priest.  

So here is what I think, and after all, the column is called ‘In My Opinion’.  I think a person can be ‘not Religious’, but still believe in God.    I don’t believe a person is a ‘Christian’ just because they say so.  I believe it has more to with how you live your life, as opposed to how holy you can look one hour per week in Church.  I believe the Catholic Church was at one time the ‘biggest business’ in the world, (think back 1000 years) and I believe that it is made up of human men, just men.  And all men make mistakes.  Every human being makes mistakes.

To err is human, to forgive Divine!  And remember, that’s  just my opinion.

Darlene

  Summer is finally here!  It was a long winter, and I do mean a lo-o-o-o-ng one.  With about 400 cms of snow this past winter, everyone looks forward to Summer.  As short as they are, they sure are appreciated.

I love Summer for several reasons.  Barbecues, glasses of wine on the patio, and it doesn’t get dark until 9:30 p.m. or so.  One of my favorite Summer past-times is reading.  Here are some of the books I have been reading on the patio.

   Fugitive by Phillip Margolin – a great page turner.  Phillip Margolin is one of my favorite writers.  He writes ‘can’t put it down’ type of books, and this story is no different.

  Another Phillip Margolin book.  This was I liked even better than Fugitive.  A word of advice.  Dont start this book if you have any plans for the day.   This book and Harlan Coben’s books make it to the top of the list as my all time favorites.

  This was a good book, however, highly disturbing.  It was the second one of Lisa Gardner’s I managed to finish.  I find some of her books start strong but fizzle out.  Like I said, disturbing, but it kept me interested throughout the entire book.

Some of my books that I have yet to read are ‘Salem Falls’ by Jodi Picoult, Julie Garwood’s ‘Shadow Dance’, Stuart Woods “Santa Fe Dead’, Mary Higgins Clark ‘The Cradle Will Fall’ and Tess Geritsen ‘Gravity’.

What good books have you read lately?

Darlene