All Work And No Play Makes Jack A Dull Boy

There were no entries from last week because I got a chance to get away with Alaskawife. While I do love this state and am glad to be here, after the last two trials, I really needed to get away. My parents came up to watch our kids and she and I went Outside, a little bit south of Skelly and E. Spat: Oregon.

We meandered around the coast, returning through the Willamette Valley wine country. Started out in Cannon Beach at this place for a couple of nights. We worked our way down the cost, finding this interesting little nugget. Along the way, we ate good seafood accompanied by fine wines.

The food and wine aspect, though, took a substantial turn for the better when we got to Oregon wine country. We stumbled across this place and visited wineries throughout the region. We also ate at two outstanding restaurants: Joel Palmer House and the Painted Lady. Both of them were outstanding. It is hard to describe one as 'better' than the other because they were markedly different. The Palmer House focused on wild mushrooms, which I absolutely love. Served with good local pinot-noir, they were truly outstanding. The Painted Lady, though, was more of a Thomas-Keller-inspired restaurant featuring American regional cuisine.

The wines were also fantastic. I really decided on doing this when drinking that Argyle pinot while in Juneau in trial. So, naturally, I had to go to the Argyle winery. I also hit a few others, including Domaine Drouhin and Rex Hill, bringing back several bottles. The wine that really stood out, though, was Argyle's 2003 Spirithouse Pinot. I ordered a case, although I haven't received it yet. I think it will age some and go well with good Alaskan food, such as grilled salmon or a grilled caribou tenderloin with wild mushrooms and polenta. (Okay, so the polenta's not really Alaskan, but it would go well with the caribou tenderloin and wild mushrooms.)

We had hotel reservations for the first night of our trip. After that, we sort of wandered to wherever we felt like going. If we wanted to sleep in, we did. If we wanted to get up and see sights, shop, or whatever, we did. I replenished some (certainly not all) of the marital capital that the last couple of trials have depleted. Actually, I think before this trip, my marital capital required Overdraft Protection.

This job will chew you up and spit you out if you don't watch out. Be jealous of your time because you cannot give all of it to this job. I recently lamented a good friend, Bill Bryson, who was once encouraged by a court to take care of himself as well as he took care of his clients. There's no substitute for time off. It re-charged my batteries.

Comments

[dave]

Congratulations!!!

[Skelly]

Congratulations! Excellent non- legal advice too!