The Wine & Gold and “The Streak”

The fire inside. Definitely inside.

1. Wine: The best thing about sub zero temperatures is that you can warm up with red wine. While the weather begs for robust California Cabs and hearty South American Malbecs, I light my fire with Spanish reds such as Garnacha de Fuego. And lots of it this NBA Season.

According to the label, these Old Vine gems grow in crappy gravel where it never rains and no one wants to live.  Lovingly harvested and fermented, it’s spicy and friendly and scored an 87 on the Parker scale. At only $8.99 a bottle, it’s the perfect pair with an Optimistic Schmuck.

2.Gold: My friend Tracy invited me to a “Gold & Silver” party at her house this week. I've  always been a skeptic about these types of things. If it seems too good to be true, it must be illegal. But what the hell. "It can't hurt"

The husband and I went through the vault and found a few things we could part with.  Some were gifts from him to me while we were courting. We are romantic and sentimental, but also wildly passionate about cash.

Judge Judy, the no-nonsense appraiser, inspected my bounty at the kitchen table.  She called me “honey” and threw a couple of fake earrings back as I blushed.  I was nervous, but there was no turning back. 

After a few minutes of separating, weighing, and calculating, she pulled out her money bag and began pulling out bills. I held my breath.

Suddenly she turned into Monte Hall.  “Hold out your hand,” she said smiling as she counted out four one hundred dollar bills. Jackpot! What a (gold) rush!

Everyone Loves Jared

3. The Streak: Our #1 ranked Ohio State Buckeyes are 24-0! These guys have more moves than U-Haul. Jared Sullinger is unbelievable. I’m not sure how many weeks there has been a Freshman of the Week award, but the dude’s won 11 of them.  Here’s the schedule, set your TiVo.