Zaca Mesa

One of the great advantages of joining a local wine club is that they pick selections for you (in our case three reds monthly from Rumbleseat Wine) and you discover new wineries that produce an awesome $20 wine, such as Zaca Mesa, which is located in Santa Barbara County about 150 miles northwest of Los Angeles.  We had this Z Cuvee and an equally tasty bottle of their Syrah.  A little searching uncovered their Viognier (which is often called the white wine for red wine lovers), which looks delicious and a varietal that I personally love.

https://www.zacamesa.com

Sea Jax Tavern

This monster is the Green Egg and Ham Burger from Sea Jax Tavern in Kettering, Ohio, but it's only one treat on the arguably best menu around. More true to their name, they have a great seafood selection including their should-be-world-famous fish tacos.  Add twenty taps of craft beers and my day is made anytime we visit.

http://www.seajaxtavern.com/food-menu

Microwave Design Fail

Our kitchen appliances work very well, but they all suffer from at least one annoying design failure.  It's way too easy to accidentally turn off the oven or turn on the dishwasher, but the worst is the microwave.  As shown below, one little turn of the dial in the wrong direction can result in setting the cook time to 95 minutes.  Fortunately I caught my mistake before my coffee was reheated to the point of evaporation and my favorite mug shattered.

Wi-Fi 6

New Wi-Fi standards come along about every six years and we're due for the latest upgrade next year.  While techies might just love the official, and unmemorable, IEEE 802.11 naming standard, it's good to see that the Wi-Fi Alliance has moved to an easier branding standard, simply calling this next iteration Wi-Fi 6, and retrofitting names for the previous versions.  It comes down to the familiar sequence where 6 is faster than 5, which is faster than 4.  Only took about 20 years ... sigh.

https://www.wi-fi.org/discover-wi-fi/wi-fi-6

Kelsyus Floating Water Hammock

There is just something really peaceful about floating on the water and this hammock was a hit this summer.  Comes in a compact, circular carrying case and it's quick to inflate.  Folding it back up is not difficult, but it's totally not obvious, fortunately a kind soul made this YouTube video that demonstrates how it's done.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cRkLcAaDMQo

A Letter To My Eighteen-Year-Old Self

Over on my Life Experiences blog I penned this letter to my 45-year-younger self on our birthday.  We were just starting on our senior year in high school and beginning the transition from our kid self to the man we became, a journey that was full of good, and not-so-good, times.  What advice would you give yourself, if given the chance?

https://lifeexperiences.paulishing.com/2018/10/a-letter-to-my-eighteen-year-old-self.html

Alpaca Textiles

Looking for a gift for that can't-get-warm-enough person in your life?  You can do that, get a designer style and support a local business by visiting, either online (using the link in the picture or the one provided below), their booth in the Dayton 2nd Street Market or their store in Brookville, Ohio.  Socks, hats, shawls, blankets, sweaters, gloves and more choices, or grab some yarn and do-it-yourself.  Winter is not looking quite so cold now.

https://www.newworldalpacatextiles.com

Zucchini Gratin

As simple as it is yummy.  The first half hour of preparation takes some frequent monitoring as the ingredients are added and cooked, but it's a smooth sail when it goes in the oven.  I'm a big fan of melted Gruyere cheese and the crunch of browned bread crumbs.  My wife hits another "wow, this is great!" home run surprise recipe.

https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/zucchini-gratin-recipe2-1916945

Jack Ryan

Jack Ryan is one of the best streaming series in 2018 and the first we've watched on Amazon Prime.  It was signed for a second season months ago, well before the series "aired" (funny how those old terms stick around even when they have lost their original meaning).  As an avid Clancy reader, I think it holds close to the drama of the books, although time constraints limit the number of subplots.  Both thumbs up!

https://www.imdb.com/title/tt5057054

Tailgate Supplies

I'm a big fan of lists, and what could be more important than a list of all the food, drinks and accessories needed for a rocking tailgate party.  Not that we bring everything to every tailgate, it's more an all-inclusive list of things we might want to consider for a particular road trip and it's organized into sections to help see the big picture. The link below is to this two-column Google Doc that you can view and make your own copy.  Sometimes it's nice to have an already-prepared starting point.

https://docs.google.com/document/d/1uMha-TU33OySMydnK1TopICnDwILNmU0y7RFuUtU8Xw/edit?usp=sharing