First Week Home

 I got back to Minnesota about 10 PM a week ago, with minimal trouble getting through the Chicago airport. I spent Sunday sort of recovering from jet lag, and got myself out Monday to get my nails done and also to get mail from the daughter's home where it had been sent while I was gone. On Tuesday I went to work for an All College Meeting and also began to sort out my office a bit. My office was moved while I was away this summer. I've yet to organize the files and get the pictures hung on the wall. On Wednesday we also had a faculty meeting.

On Thursday I attended the University President's convocation and then the all university picnic. Came home for awhile since my granddaughter was staying with me to make certain she was doing OK. Then in the late afternoon I drove to Stillwater to the Northern Winery. Many of us along with husbands met for a dinner and wine tasting there.

This winery runs as a coop -- getting grapes from growers as far north as Rice, MN and as far south as Viroqua, WI along with grapes from growers to the west of the Twin Cities in Carver County.

Wine is aged in various ways. Here's a photo of the oak barrels. It was fun to look at them and see labels from various places in France and Minnesota. Also the word cooperage is not one we see much anymore.

We had our dinner on a deck along the St. Croix River. The weather was picture perfect as was the river.

It occurred to me that I have done wine tastings for two years in row in May in Hungary and in August in Minnesota. It has been a wonderful 18 months of travel between Central Europe and Minnesota.

Classes start next week, but right now everything I do in online -- but boy I'll be working this semester because two online classes for Spring Semester have to be revised to new edition of text books, one is totally new and so has to be created from scratch, and a 4th is new to me so I have to get up to speed.

But that hasn't stopped me from starting to do internet searches about next summer's travel plans.