Over the last few weeks, my schedule in the newsroom was a roller coaster ride of responsibilities.
Last weekend, I tracked grass fires and fireworks for the evening news shows. During the week, I produced slideshows and logged a news conference on a scary house explosion for the website. I suppose it all adds up to a typical week for the gal who produces shows and web content.
When I survive the work week, I hit the road in search of new flavors and comfort food. Thank God for my hubby and friends who enjoy eating and drinking.
A few months ago, Susan invited us to the first Noodlefest in San Francisco.
North Beach and Chinatown restaurants blocked off streets and served up tasty twists on noodle dishes.
From San Francisco noodles to Lodi Wine – we checked out LangeTwin’s BBQ party at the Tin Roof with Susan and Tom.
The ribs were so tender and I couldn’t stop popping the stuffed mushrooms. Mark and I fell in love with the 2008 Petite Sirah Petit Verdot. That bottle prompted us to become wine club members.
For Mark’s birthday weekend, we checked out the Raley Field Brewfest.
It had an impressive selection of beer makers from California and around the country.
Finally, Susan and Tom introduced us to Compassionate Chefs at New Dehli. This fundraiser made sure Tenderloin students had the chance to make beautiful music with the help of world-class musicians.
For a small price, we ate amazing Indian food and a did a little belly dancing. OK – I was the idiot who allowed herself to be pulled up for the belly dancing. Seriously. Yes – there is video of the dancing. No, I don’t know if I’m posting it.
We also met Miss United Nations. At the time, Miss Chinatown was not wearing her sash – so I couldn’t pick her out from the crowd.
Ahoy Facebook peeps and RSS readers – wanna see a cool photo of me aiming an HD camera? You can by checking out the Raley Field slideshow on my blog.
Posted in travel blog on 09/19/2009 09:03 am by Queenkv
The work week is over. Thank God. Now, I’m recovering from a stressful week in the newsroom by going over my vacation pictures.
I suspect I’ll need another break from work. Soon.
On our Buffalo trip, I gave my new passport a workout. This one has my married name on it. Sadly, the border guards didn’t feel like stamping it with a Canada stamp. In retrospect, I should have asked for one.
Bizarre Question at the Border: What do you do for a living?
I think I saw the border guard raise his eyebrows when I squeaked out: “News Producer.”
Hooray for our moms! Terri and Linda took the girls to the beach while we went on a day trip to Niagara-by-the-Lake with Kaine and Missy. Plus Mark rocked as our DD for our personal wine tasting tour.
I was tickled to add some tasty red wines from Jackson Triggs and Hillebrand wineries to our collection.
I also had to see Niagara Falls again. This tourist spot on the Canadian side has become a pilgrimage of sorts for my Buffalo vacations. The misty air feels refreshing on a hot day. The majestic views are free. I’m happy to join the lemmings who are snapping away at one of the 7 Wonders of the World. It’s still a thrilling sight for me. I’d love to take my parents here some day.
If you’re reading this via RSS or Facebook – check out the photo slideshows on my blog.
My first week back in the newsroom felt like culture shock. At 2 AM, I discovered our station was at the heart of two major news stories – Jaycee Dugard and the Auburn Wildfires. I did my best to get up to speed. And as one producer likes to tell me: “Write your ass off.”
So, I think I’m caught up with work and all the death and destruction in the world. I’m also adjusting to my new role as the keeper of the calendar. In addition to producing our morning show, I’m now booking guest segments. Chefs, authors, movie stars, snakes and more. Bring them on, I’ll put them on TV. Just check with me on when and where.
I finally had some time to reflect on our two-week trip to Buffalo, NY. I also carved out some time to go over our vacation pictures.
I never had a two-week vacation. I thought it was time well spent. We caught up with our family – swapping stories about life on the West Coast and life in Western NY.
Oh yes, and the rain sucked. So we took advantage of the sunny days with day trips to Niagara Falls and along the Niagara Wine Trail.
This is the vineyard at Eveningside Winery in Cambria.
Mark’s best friend/man, Kaine, and his family drove up from Pennsylvania to hang out with us. Mark’s mom, Terri, played the role of tour guide on the Niagara Wine Trail.
We zipped around country roads to hit the different wineries. We passed by green lawns and lush farmland. I watched fruit trees, cornfields and aging barns melt into the landscape. Hour by hour, time started slowing down for me. As I sniffed the iced wines and savored the sweet bouquet, I realized I didn’t have to wake up before the crack of dawn. That helped me settle into this vacation.
The $3 wine tastings also helped. A lot.
She’s only sniffing a candle!!!
So, I was wondering how Kaine’s girls would handle driving around and waiting for us as we did our wine tasting. I offered all three of them sniffs of my flights and I got their feedback on wines’ bouquets. Some of their observations synced up with my own. Impressive.
They also decided to help me document our wine tasting experience with my cameras. Some shots were a little shaky, but they also came up with some interesting compositions. I noted who took what in my Flickr notes.
We ended the day with dinner at Pizza Junction in North Tonawanda. I couldn’t stop munching on the honey garlic Buffalo wings. The Pulled Pork pizza hit the spot after a day of wine tasting. Sweet and savory BBQ sauce paired with succulent meat and baked into a cheesy pie. Heaven. No wonder I gained 5 pounds after this vacation!
A few days later, Guy Fieri followed in our footsteps and shot this local favorite for an episode of Diners, Drive-Ins and Dives.
I could barely handle the heat from the gas-fueled flames. Still, I thought it was all worth it. I loved biting into melted marshmallows on blocks of Hershey chocolate and graham crackers. Then we looked for falling stars while I sipped a bottle of Molson’s Triple X.
I also used my new passport at the Canadian border. We crossed the border with Mark’s best friend/best man, Kaine, and his wife, Missy. We spent a lazy Monday afternoon sampling the wine region in Niagara-by-the-Lake.
Our bartender at the Irish Harp said we had to try the Strauss White if we were red wine fans. She said we’d have a change of a heart and become white wine fans after sampling this bottle. It’s a fine white wine, but I didn’t move mountains for me. Bring on the Pinots and Zins.
Home cooking is also a highlight for our vacation. My mother-in-law whipped up this hearty dinner of BBQ pork, peas, coleslaw and macaroni salad. She used a sweet glaze on the meat and I went back for seconds. It paired nicely with the cold pasta and steamed peas. Yummy!
So – s’mores, wine and BBQ. I guess I need to fit in another run this week. Or else, I’m going look like a blimp by the time I get back to Cali.
LOCKPORT, NY — Today, I listened to NPR’s Morning Edition while driving by farms and Lake Michigan. No deadlines, no beat checks, no IFB checks and no scanner traffic. Life outside of the newsroom feels good. I’m a recovering workaholic settling into her vacation. According to the University of Pittsburgh’s Mind-Body Center - my mind and body needed this vacation.
It’s good for you.
We’re visiting my in-laws in upstate New York. We’re in Lockport, near Lake Ontario.
The other day, we went to an outdoor mass with Lake Ontario as the backdrop.
Beautiful.
Lockport is hot and humid. Everyone is quite friendly and they love their steak, potato and wings. Our neighbors are families, farmers, cows, horses and endless fields of corn. I can’t wait to throw some sweet corn on the grill! I also can’t wait to introduce my in-laws to the gourmet wonders of the bacon explosion.
Yesterday, I stumbled on hidden gems in Lockport’s wine region. I was a little worried when people raved about the ice wines. There are so many apple/cherry/fruit fields in this area. So, it makes sense that ice wine would play a starring role in the Niagara Wine Belt.
Still, I fell in love with two wineries on our wine tasting tour.
We stopped at Eveningside Vineyards in Cambria. The wine tasting room was inside a tiny barn. The winemakers played a jazz vinyl record. Iced wine fans were a little disappointed with this spot. As for myself, I was impressed with the reds. The 2005 Merlot tasted fruit-forward, bold, with a nice, jammy finish. I also enjoyed the 2007 Shiraz – smoky nose, complex and finished off with berry tones. Eveningside folks said they’ve been experimenting with Hungarian Oak casks. Plus, they’re getting some wonderful grapes from the Long Island region.
Freedom Run Winery is also importing grapes from Long Island. This Lockport winery has a beautiful tasting room with leather seats for the bus tours. (At times, It felt like we were racing those buses to the next winery. I’m not a fan of crowds at the wine bar.)
I liked the Cabernet Franc at Freedom Run. It’s a well-made red with a peppery nose. It popped in my mouth and it had a smooth finish. The winery folks said the combination of clay and limestone at their vineyard helps build craft the character of some of their wines.
Wine fans – Clarksburg rocks for tasty vino and beautiful picnics. Plus – St. Helena has a wonderful boutique family winery just off Highway 29. If you drive by Dean & Deluca, turn around. You went too far.
Last weekend, my hubby and I checked out this adorable town in Yolo County, next to the Sacramento River. I blogged about it on Sac Met Blogs.
On the July 4th Weekend, we explored St. Helena with our So Cal buddy. Thanks to @frankloveswine, we discovered our new favorite winery. Frank gave me a wonderful opportunity to guest blog about my experience with Arger-Martucci Vineyards.
It’s still early in the summer season. Where should I go for my next wine tasting?
Posted in cali_lovin on 07/08/2009 06:01 pm by Queenkv
Following up on A Really Goode Job: I tied for 11th Place with 40 other amazing candidates.
Thank you to everyone who voted and who blogged/twittered/facebooked about my application. Thanks again to an amazing group of people who produced video references for my Goode Job bid.
Finally, I’d love to see the next Wine Country Lifestyles Correspondent produce a video like this one for Murphy-Goode.
I stumbled on this amazing video from Randall Grahm. Fun use of nats, music and the goat herder soundbites.
Thank you for your support! Andrea, Matt, Ann, Kendall, Fally & Sara – you rock with your video/blog references.
It’s A Really Goode Job. I’m keeping my fingers crossed!
Hi. Sara O. here. I’m hijacking Kris’s blog to supplement the video that Andrea shot endorsing Kris for the really Goode job.
See this? It’s a post card with a date stamp of Oct. 31, 2004. It was sent to me in the Czech Republic from England by Kris, husband Mark, and Andrea, back when we were all living in Europe as part of our journalism residencies. If you look at it closely, you’ll see several stains on it.
Those are wine stains. Having traveled and visited and dined with Kris before, I can vouch that food and wine are a big part of her life. So are sharing her food and drinking experiences. I mean, they got me, a relative non-drinker, to go cavorting about Napa just this past January.
I also want to add that, sure, she’s got the multi-media thing going for her (does she ever), but don’t forget that she’s also great with personal touches. Like the post card I’m sharing with you now. I hope it’s worth a thousand words to help her land the Murphy-Goode Winery job.
Imagine cooling off with these jello shots and whipped cream. Relaxing, yes? Everything’s better with jello shots!
Apparently, my co-workers have some vivid memories of my alcoholic desserts. I worked with some amazing and talented people in Kansas. I produced some rockin’ news shows with them. My reporters knew how tor run with breaking news, grab the best video and sound and turn it all into a compelling news story.
Kendall Jones did that quite well. He’s a great writer. It was a pleasure to work with him on my shows. This is his video reference from North Carolina.
