An Examined Life

When The Sauvignon Secret came out last August, my book tour included doing events on the day of an earthquake, in the midst of a hurricane, during a week of monsoon-like rain, and while undergoing extensive and unexpected construction work to the entire second floor of my home. As a result, a few things fell through the cracks, including the photo gallery I always put together for each book in the wine country mystery series. I plan to remedy that by the time the paperback comes out in late July, so stay tuned. (Hopefully my Webmaster Beth Tindall isn’t reading this because, actually, she’s the one who puts the good-looking galleries together . . . and I suspect she believes she got a pass last year).

In the meantime, here’s a preview of the setting of one of my favorite scenes in the book . . . the 1886 Monte Rosso winery that was purchased by Louis M. Martini in 1938 and became the jewel in the crown of the vineyards that were part of the family-run Louis M. Martini Winery. Monte Rosso is in Sonoma, and the views of the valley from the highest point on the vineyard are breathtaking.

Louis’s granddaughter-in-law Jacque Martini brought my husband, my youngest son, and me to Monte Rosso two years ago when we were in Napa doing research (and she and her husband winemaker Michael Martini invited us to stay at their beautiful guest house). I fell in love with Louis’s old winery, its storied history, and the beautiful secluded setting–surrounded by woods off a dirt road on the property. (It’s now used as a venue for private events). Anyone lucky enough to come to my book signing at Copperfield’s Books in Napa last September heard Michael tell stories about his grandfather and how he started his legendary winery. If you know wines and Napa, you know Martini as California winemaking royalty.

Be sure to click on the links and read about the history of Monte Rosso and the old vines Louis planted in the late 1930s that are still producing fabulous wines.

Today everybody I know—except me—saw Discovery, as the shuttle took 3 (yes, 3) sentimental laps around Washington, D.C. and my backyard in northern Virginia, which is not far from Dulles Airport. I wish I could take credit for these 2 fabulous photos, but I got them in an e-mail from Detective Jim Smith, a friend with the Crime Scene Unit of the Fairfax County Police Department who is one of my go-to sources for forensic and crime scene information. He wrote that the pictures of Discovery and the T-38 escort were taken on the final approach 3 miles out with an 800 mm telephoto lens. The second photo was taken as the 747 pilot flew further west, out to the Shenandoah, with the Blue Ridge Mountains as a backdrop.

In D.C. my oldest son saw it fly by his office; someone from my husband’s office went on the roof of their building (near the Mall) and got some great shots as it flew past the Capitol. At the end of the day, I stopped by my optician to pick up a new pair of glasses and discovered that the entire staff had climbed up on the roof of their building to take pictures and videos (they’re really in the backyard of one of the runways), which are now on YouTube.

So, lots of excitement, traffic a snarled mess as many people pulled off highways to watch, but all in all an unforgettable day of history. Eventually I will get to see Discovery: it will be on display at the nearby Udvar-Hazy Museum.

PS: Many years ago I flew over Washington with a traffic reporter in the days before traffic cams. I wrote about the experience as a freelance reporter for the now-defunct Journal newspaper here.

This year Passover and Easter coincide – Passover begins at sundown tonight, which is also Good Friday – so this photograph seemed fitting to post today. It is the altar of St. Matthew’s Cathedral in Washington; I took the picture when I was in D.C. last fall doing research for the new mystery series I’m writing. There is a scene set in this beautiful church, where I often attended Mass when I lived in the city.

You can learn more about the church’s history and architecture here. And the new book, by the way, will be out in Spring, 2013. Details to come.

To everyone who celebrates: Happy Easter and Happy Passover!

I know I’ve posted this photo before (taken last year when I was in New York during Edgar Week), but I couldn’t resist posting it again because of this article in today’s New York Times.

There really isn’t a lovelier time of year in Washington, D.C. than cherry blossom season and no more idyllic place to view them than on the Tidal Basin across from the Jefferson Memorial. This year, the trees bloomed earlier than usual because of our No-Winter Winter and our uncommonly warm temps – high seventies! — for March.

2012 marks the 100^th anniversary of the Japanese gift of the trees to America. If you’ve never seen the cherry trees in bloom, put it on your bucket list.

It’s always such fun the first time I get to show off the jackets for my upcoming books. I really love the paperback cover for THE SAUVIGNON SECRET, with that spectacular view of the Golden Gate Bridge and the Marin Headlands. SAUVIGNON will be out in late July, published by Pocket Books. Once again, the talented Wendell Minor designed the cover; in fact, he has been the artist for every one of the paperback editions of my Virginia wine country mysteries. If you want to see some of Wendell’s artwork, check him out  here or on Facebook.

And, in case you’re wondering, Rex Bonomelli, Art Director at Scribner, designed all six of my hardcover jackets. I love the fact that the hardcovers and the paperbacks have their own distinctive look – thanks to these two artists. If you want to see what I mean, check them out here.

The other day I dropped my husband off at his office, which is across the street from the National Mall, not far from the U.S. Capitol. I drove back through the city, heading west toward the Potomac River, and took Madison Drive, one of the streets that runs directly along the Mall. Aside from giving me a chance to bypass traffic and the lights on Constitution Avenue for a few blocks, I also get to drive by some of my favorite museums. The Mall, however, was a complete eyesore, looking like it had been invaded by a species of giant gophers– heaps of dirt everywhere, chain-link fences, enormous pipes. In other words, completely dug up.  I did some searching on the Internet and realized it had slipped by me that there is currently a design competition underway to “reimagine” America’s Front Yard, as folks from the Trust for the National Mall call it. The Reflecting Pool, which is near the Lincoln Memorial, is being completely overhauled as well.

But my biggest surprise was the photos you see here. If you’re not from D.C., can you guess what this building is? New office building going up on K Street? Nope. Half-way through a demolition project? Almost.

It’s the East Wing of the National Gallery of Art, which was built in 1978. Apparently the pink Tennessee marble is popping off the façade, so all 16,200 panels are being pulled off to allow repairs to be made and then the building will be “reclad.” One article I read said that some of the material “had come to the end of its useful life.” Thirty-three years? What if they’d said that about Stonehenge?

The best article I found to explain what happened to the poor old East Building, (which is just next to the re-sodding construction zone  I drove by on the Mall, by the way),  is from the Wall Street Journal. One picture I didn’t include was taken during football season when some construction worker took red spray paint and wrote PITTSBURGH STEELERS on the brick façade. Ultimately it will be covered up by marble, but he managed to immortalize his team in stone. Well, for at least another 33 years if we have to do this again.

Oh, yes, nearly forgot: the Washington Monument is closed indefinitely due to earthquake damage.

Yesterday we had a dusting of snow that covered the ground but left the roads untouched. It’s the first of this winter season, which has been unusually mild. I’m not complaining; we have a driveway that’s as long as a football field and shoveling it, even with the snow blower, is no picnic. But by the middle of today, the temperatures were up in the 50s and it was positively balmy when I took a midafternoon walk to clear my head after a day of writing. I took this picture in the morning as the sun came up and the sunlight flashed on the ice on the trees. Love the contrast of the brilliant blue sky against the ice-covered branches and dark trunks.

Our family has a tradition – now going on for nearly 30 years – of putting candles on our Christmas tree. My husband’s family, who immigrated to the US from Europe, did this while he was growing up in New York City and it’s one of our most cherished memories of the season. On Christmas the candles are red; on New Year’s Eve they are white. We pour champagne; put music on the stereo (though this Christmas it will be an iPod, thanks to my sister-in-law at Apple), and life slows down, as it should during a sometimes too-hectic time of year. There are “rules” for the candles: everyone chooses one and the person whose candle goes out last gets their wish. (It must be the absolute last candle, so there are years where no one “wins”). My husband refuses to put 13 candles on the tree so we either have 12 or 14. And on New Year’s Eve, each person must share the best thing that happened to him or her during the previous year . . . and at least one New Year’s resolution. Happy Holidays to all!

For anyone who has wondered about Lucie’s vineyard, it is based loosely on Swedenburg Estate Vineyard in Middleburg, Virginia. Juanita Swedenburg, who passed away in 2007 and was a pioneer in the Virginia wine industry, was my advisor for the series for many years and taught me a lot about the business of growing grapes and making wine. I wrote her appreciation for The Washington Post: she was an amazing lady. I happened to be passing through Middleburg today just as the sun was setting and saw that the vineyard is up for sale.  The magnificent tree in the distance is a sycamore; it’s the reason (and inspiration) why Montgomery Estate Vineyard is on Sycamore Lane.