Rustic elegance might be the best way to describe the on-set of a recent Eugene Oregon excursion I took through wine country. Our wine blogger conference excursion group was courted by some great people from  Eugene Cascade Coast and AMTRAK. This historic restored 19th century barn is the home to Heidi Tunnell Catering Company. Heidi may live in a small town, but this is no run of the mill catering as she took home the title of Iron Chef OR in 2011.

We were happily greeted in the barn by Heidi and a cold glass of bubbles on an unusually ...

My new friend Sharon can give hugs out all day long with open arms and humor. If hugs were acceptable in todays society from a near 40 year old man, without being weird, I would have given them out all day too.

Thank you, danksche, gracias, merci, however you say it, the magnitude or level of thanks is rarely understood in the English language. When someone holds the door for us, most of us say "thanks." When a waiter brings us wine we say "thank you." When I see a man or women dressed in a United States military uniform ...