May and Senioritis Runs Rampant

May came quite fast this year, and on May 1 were we treated to the first 80 degree weather of the year in Sonoma County.  Hurray!  There are only three weeks of class left before Final’s Week.  Graduation is on May 28^th, and my classes are filled with graduating seniors who have a bad case of “senioritis.”  This means they can’t stop talking, fidgeting, and swinging betweens moods of euphoria over graduating and anxiety over entering the job market.

In the vineyards the green leaves are growing rapidly under the warm sun.  Small baby clusters of grapes are being formed.  I spend much time in my vineyard “suckering” the vines, which means pulling off unnecessary leaves and shoots which take energy from the grape bearing vines.

And so during this very busy month of the year, I have found a quote by Ernest Hemingway which reminds us to relax a little and enjoy life and wine.

Wine is one of the most civilized things in the world and one of the most natural things of the world that has been brought to the greatest perfection, and it offers a greater range for enjoyment and appreciation than, possibly, any other purely sensory thing. 

Ernest Hemingway, Death in the Afternoon

April Brings BudBreak

Budbreak in the vineyards arrived especially late this year in Sonoma County.  In my hobby vineyard, which is located in the cooler climate of the Petaluma Gap – just like SSU, the first pale green buds with their pink tips did not burst forth until Sunday, April 3!  That is two weeks later than the past seven years!  But since March was one of the rainiest months on record this year, I can understand why the vines waited until April.

On campus everyone seems very pleased that the sun has finally come out again.  We’ve had a few warm days in the 70’s (F) which caused the students to flock to outdoor tables, chairs, and the lawn to grab some rays of sun.  Shorts and flip flops are now familiar sights on campus again.  More importantly, April brings Spring Break – which is late this year (the third week) – and everyone looks forward to a relaxing week off.

In gratitude and celebration of the sun’s return and the beginning of a new harvest, I jotted down the following lines:

When the dark barren branches of the vineyard

push forth their pale green buds

joy surges through my heart.

For I know Spring has returned,

and with it Hope of warmth and sun.

I raise of glass of wine in anticipation

of the new harvest that has begun

to stir in the Spring vines.

Shamrocks in the Vineyards and Other Green Rites of March

March came in smiling this year in Sonoma County with much sunshine and bright green grass on the hillsides.  The vineyards are still dormant, but I am beginning to see more clover (shamrocks) as a cover crop between my vines.  If you weren’t aware, many vineyard owners plant specific plants between the rows to protect the soil from erosion, to improve soil fertility, and regulate vine growth. Common cover crops include not only clover, but winter peas, mustard, oats, and fava beans.

Besides shamrocks in my vineyard, the month of March brings St. Patrick’s Day which is held in reference by college students across the nation as a great day to party.  Thus when I accidently scheduled my mid-term exams on St. Patrick’s Day this year, there was a rather loud uproar from some students.  However, when I reminded them the exam would only last 30 minutes and they would be getting out of class early that day, this appeased most.

I also love St. Patrick’s Day and anything to celebrate being “green” and “sustainable.”  Therefore, this month’s wine quote comes from Paul Dolan, CEO of the Mendocino Wine Company, the first carbon neutral winery in the US.

“Like children, vines need a good environment and nutrients to grow.  Our responsibility as wine grape growers is nuturing the environment so the vines and grapes can express themselves.  Adopting sustainable winegrowing practices makes this happen.”

Paul Dolan, p. 91, How to Launch Your Wine Career

February – Classes Commence and Mustard and Valentines Adorn Our Vineyards

February is upon us, and at SSU this means new classes are starting.  The first few weeks are always hectic as students are jostling to find seats in our crowded classrooms.  Due to budget cuts, we have less seats.  However, due to the large group of Millennials coming through the university system now and until 2015, we have more students than we have seats available.

So it is best to look on the positive side.  The vineyards around campus are filled with yellow mustard, and Valentine’s Day is a special part of this month.  It is good to take some time out each day to think of these small blessings.  Thus my wine quote for February focuses on the romantic side of this month.

Wine Quote of the Month:

“A Book of Verses underneath the Bough,

A Jug of Wine, a Loaf of Bread-and Thou

Beside me singing in the Wilderness-

O, Wilderness were Paradise enow!”

Omar Khayyam

Welcome to a New Year at SSU

January 2011 is upon us, and I believe that this will be a wonderful and exciting new year!  After weeks of cold and rain, the month of January is starting bright and sunny.  Classes don’t resume until Jan. 31, so I’m hoping that many of my students are enjoying the Winter Break.

As for me, I’m back at my computer writing research papers, but also enjoying long walks past sleeping vineyards.  The vines are bare of leaves, but the black cordons and slender shoots look like sculptures in the bright sun.  Pruning season is upon is, and soon yellow mustard and orange California poppies will fill the rows between the vines.

January 2011 Wine Quote

My quote for this month comes from D.H. Lawrence’s poem “Grapes”:

Our pale day is sinking into twilight,

And if we sip the wine, we find dreams coming upon us

Out of the imminent night

December and Final Exams Are Upon Us

We are now entering the last few hectic weeks of the semester.  As a professor, I am busy grading papers and preparing final exams. Students are cramming and desperately trying to schedule assignments from multiple classes so they don’t have to pull “all-nighters.”  Yes — I remember what it is like to be a college student in December. However, keep in mind, it is just as crazy for professors, who have to grade all those papers.  This semester I have 129 students!  This is why I save my “stress management” lecture for this time of year….  It helps me, just as much as the students.

Anyway, enough complaining. I still love my job, and know that in a few weeks, we will all be celebrating — perhaps heading to the snow in the Sierras, drinking Cosmopolitans in Palm Springs (I’m heading here), and always enjoying lots of lovely wine and food with family and friends during the holidays.

So I end this post with a wine quote from the Bible – Ecclesiastes (31:35-36) and also one from the Koran (47.15).  During this season of thanksgiving and joy, we can celebrate from multiple perspectives.

“Wine drunk with moderation is the joy of soul and the heart.” Ecclesiastes (31:35-36)

“Here is a Parable of the Garden which the righteous are promised:  in it are rivers of wine, a joy to those who drink.” Koran 47:15

 

Enjoying Autumn in Wine Country

Autumn is definitely in the air.  Nights are cooler, the leaves are slowly changing to gold and red, and the grapes are ripening on the vine.  We are deeper into the material in our classes, and students have started on team projects.  The campus is even more beautiful this time of year, with autumn flowers amongst the changing foilage.  Students relax on lawns, and often we have bands playing music at noon.

It is this time of year that I always remember my favorite Jack London quote — and of course, Jack London adopted Sonoma County as his home, establishing his “Beauty Ranch” on the Eastern side of Sonoma Mountain, with the House of Happy Walls.

“The air is wine.  The grapes on a score of rolling hills are red with autumn flame.  Across Sonoma Mountain, wisps of sea fog are stealing.  The afternoon sun smolders in the drowsy sky.  I have everything to make me glad I am alive…”