Hello from my office as I finish up the first week of classes.

It has been a busy few days, but as is always the case, there is a period of figuring out a routine. Routines are an amazing thing. As the cliche notes,"we are creatures of habit." It is only the second day of class and in my morning class, students sat pretty much in the same seat they did on Wednesday. That does not hurt my feelings because it helps me learn their names more quickly. I am always excited at the beginning of the academic year because there is no much new and there are so many possibilities.

I am finishing up some writing for the winery today. While it has been only shortly over a month, it seems so much longer since I was there in Placerville. I am excited though as I will be there a week from today. I will have a quick trip and try to finish everything up for the winery’s next newsletter which should come out the beginning of October.

Last night I had a Wine and Spirits course that I am sitting in on. It was great to listen to Peter and I come into it this time with some much more knowledge of viticulture and enology. I am excited to see what is happening with harvest. It will also be a chance to catch up with some people at Starbucks and try to get some other things arranged. I think some things have been figured out in that realm too. What I believe to be the case is that nothing in the long-term is figured out because the variables are so dynamic. That is okay, however, because it does tell me about options and things I must consider.

In a letter a short while back, there was a conversation about the "unpredictability" of things. I think things are perhaps most unpredictable when we feel helpless or unable to create a change. But such a place tends to create a sense of paralysis or that we are merely victims of circumstances. It is probably more accurate to say it is our lack of action that creates such a senario. That is not to say that sometimes we are so fragile or overwhelmed by those things that are beyond us that the result is our inability to "do something".

And so it is with students too, indeed, there are things that are assigned and decisions that are made outside our pervue of control, and certainly those things affect us, but we still have the choice in how we respond and what we do to manage those things. I think it is exponentially more complicated, however, when our emotions are a central part of that equation. You can also add that when small people are affected, the stakes are even more difficult and that terrain more treacherous. But ultimately, we have to make a choice and then go for it with all we can. If you give it your best and fail, failure is acceptable. If you fail because you did not try, for me that is an entirely different issue.

I will have a busy weekend as the first things come in Sunday and I have more work to do just staying ahead of the train, which is called the semester. I have appreciated your comments, so if you have a thought please do post it. The picture today is from below my house on the lake looking at the campus.

Thanks for reading!

Michael