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Once upon a time, there lived a fun grandmother called Tutu who enjoyed spending time with her darlin’ grandchildren. One day she bought a new children’s book called The Ant and the Grasshopper. She remembered this Aesop’s Fable from her childhood and knew the moral of the story: those who work and save will survive; those who are lazy will starve and freeze to death.

She read the new book to her grandchildren and almost threw up her soup when she got to the end. In the latest edition, the ant works all summer to store food while the lazy, able-bodied grasshopper plays the fiddle, but when winter comes the grasshopper moves in with the ant and shares the abundance of the ant’s labor. Tutu was sad that misguided political correctness was interfering with the original message of the story. She also noted that the book was published by Simon & Schuster, a huge corporation with more than 2 billion dollars in annual revenues. Why didn’t such a big and successful company give away the books for free? Maybe their readers didn’t want to work to earn money to buy the books. Didn’t S&S have an obligation to share and redistribute the products of their hard work?

Tutu then took her grandkids to see the new movie, The Lorax. They all enjoyed the music and animation, but the story had been altered from the original message of Dr. Seuss. The movie implied that all corporations were greedy and that the boss only wanted to destroy the planet and keep the profits. The boss’s own mother left him when he ran out of money, and she said she liked the other son better. Great message for the kids! Tutu knew that some corporations are bad, but not all. She was grateful that her jobs had provided a nice income and opportunities. She also wondered why Universal Studios, a multi-billion-dollar corporation, charged a fortune for tickets to see the movie. Why was it so expensive? After all, Tutu could have purchased a nice pair of shoes and a bottle of wine for what it cost to buy popcorn, drinks and tickets. Those evil, capitalistic movie theatres!

Tutu decided she would turn such events into teachable moments and tell her grandkids why it’s good to be industrious and self-sufficient. She also decided to continue helping handicapped and elderly grasshoppers, but no lazy, able-bodied grasshoppers could share the wine in her pantry. She had earned the right to make that decision. The End.

Today’s blog was fueled by a bottle of Menopause Merlot from Bitner Vineyards. The yummy flavors of loganberry and blueberry will make you forget all about those irritating, fiddling grasshoppers. It’s about $26 a bottle. Check www.bitnervineyards.com for locations.

My friend is dying of cancer. Today, it doesn’t matter to her if there are activist liberals, conservatives, pro-lifers, or gay, left-handed librarians without free lunch. What matters is that her husband can rest beside her one more time and that her adult daughters can kiss her cheek and gently place ice chips on her lips. Nothing else has any meaning.

I see and read about all the protests and I wonder how we all became so offended by life. Why is political correctness and self-righteous indignation more powerful than common sense, courtesy, and decency? I see the tortured faces of the pawns of politically-orchestrated outrage, and I wish they could realize they’re being used by selfish politicians seeking reelection. I was in college during the “burn the bra” protests, and I refused to participate, mainly because these girls need all the support they can get. There always will be women who support or oppose polarizing issues such as abortion, so let’s start with that fact and work together to replace grievance with gratitude.

I’ve traveled to 32 other countries and have witnessed true oppression. I’ve cried at the sacred ground at Dachau Concentration Camp in Germany, I’ve visited a cooperative in a shanty town in South Africa where women are making vases from pieces of broken glass, and I’ve seen a school in India that has dirt floors and no books. Young children walk miles to school because they know education is their only way out of poverty, and they compete for the luxury of borrowing a bicycle so they can peddle to school. They are equally poor, destitute and driven, and they cannot comprehend the glorious opportunities we have in our country.

Let’s stop all this whining and raise a glass of wine instead of a fist. We can’t pit women against women, ideology and rhetoric against theology and democracy and ever hope to succeed as a civilization. We should understand our differences and accept with amazement and gratitude that we each bring unique perspectives and beliefs. Show me a utopia of bliss and contentment and I’ll show you a movie called The Stepford Wives. It’s time to cut all the caustic crap.

Tonight I’ll go outside and silently appreciate the solitary splendor of a full moon as I say a solemn prayer for my dying friend. And, in her honor, I refuse to protest anything but resolve to be grateful that I have one more day tomorrow to love my children, rock my grandchildren, embrace my husband and whisper, “Thank you.”

Since ancient times, joyful people have shared wine to celebrate important events. I have enhanced that tradition. I’ll drink some fine wine if my hangnail heals.

My splendid son and delightful daughter-in-law are expecting a baby in September, so I’m sampling wines to commemorate the grand birthday. I believe that sipping and sharing an exquisite wine is a better tribute than shooting bullets into the sky or organizing a regional festival complete with marching bands, roasted pigs, and jumping castles.

After my daughter had her first baby, we shared a Quintessa Cabernet. It was a sobering decision to choose between wine and a week’s groceries, but the special occasion called for a superior wine. And, continuing my valuable bloodline certainly is cause for jubilation and excessive merriment! While the perfect little cherub nestled in her handmade basket swaddled in an organic blanket, her proud parents and I toasted her birth and savored our way through the Quintessa.

My serious research to find the best wine to welcome Baby Boo Nielsen will involve global strategy. I prefer bold Italian reds such as Amarone or Ripasso, but there are some excellent Malbecs from Argentina, Cabernets from France, and delicious Pinot Noirs from Oregon. Or, I could limit my search to Napa Valley because it’s close enough to drive home with several cases. (I’ve eliminated the cheaper option of getting a keg of Budweiser from the Silver Spur Saloon in Wendell.)

I recently found a nice wine from Idaho, a 2008 Snake River Valley Cabernet from Fraser Vineyard. It’s velvety and peppery, and it’s recommended by Ilene Dudunake, owner of A New Vintage Wine Shop at Eagle Road and Fairview. It sells for about $24, so I can purchase several bottles to share as I continue my intense market research.

Right now, Baby Boo is the same size as a grape. By the time he/she is the size of a potato, I hope to narrow the selection of celebration wines to a dozen choices. It’s a demanding task, but I’ll raise my waiting glass and power forward, knowing that the future brings laughing families, more celebrations, and another bundle of wonder who will crawl into my lap and say, “Tell me another story, Tutu.”

There once was a jolly old soul.Giving gifts was his generous goal.So I waited all nightwith suspense and delight!All I got was a bucket of coal!So I screamed at the fat man in red,”A curse on your silly white head!I try to be nicethough I’m guilty of vice,can’t you just give me something instead?”Then ol’ Santa returned in a snit.And he said that my whining must quit.”You have lots of stuff,and enough is enough.So be grateful, you ignorant twit!”Alas, that dear Santa was right.I have not a cause for a fight.So not to be hateful,I’ll try to be grateful.Peace to all, and to all a good night!

Tonight’s blog was fueled by a glass of Bruno’s Blend IV from Va Piano Vineyards in Columbia Valley, Washington. It’s a yummy blend of syrah, malbec, merlot, cabernet sauvignon, and cabernet franc with an elevated alcohol content of 14.2%. I discovered this excellent wine at a recent tasting party at Season’s Bistro. I must have really liked it because I bought a case for holiday giving to the 12 top-tier friends worth a $27 bottle.

Last week I ran into a community cafe to share a pot of tea and scones with a business associate. I stopped at a Christmas tree in the entryway and noticed the tags that listed gifts to be donated. An 8-year-old girl wanted a doll, a 10-year-old boy wanted some paints, a senior male wanted size 10 slippers. Three tags brought tears to my eyes: senior female…any gift. Somewhere near me lived some older women who only wanted a gift for Christmas, and it didn’t matter what it was. I returned later with three gifts, left them under the tree and whispered a blessing to the women. For my New Year’s Resolution, I’ve decided that I will think about these women throughout the year and try to be kinder, more loving, and less hectic. And I wish I could share some tea and scones with them.