And what’s the title have to do with brain cancer?  A friend of mine, who is a long time Microsoft Partner, invited me on a great weekend getaway, wine tasting, meeting new people, meeting other Microsoft Partners, visiting Walla Walla, one of my favorite places to visit–of course I had to say yes. 

Tasting new wine is always fun, but my real mission is for all of you, brain tumor patients, survivors, care givers, because the real reason, the big reason, of why I went, is to connect with people who can help the Chris Elliott Fund, with our vision/mission:  to end brain cancer through education, awareness, advocacy, and research.  So what’s a little fun along the way—laughter is the best medicine, along with good company, and a little vino…

I arrived with mission in hand at http://www.vineandroses.com/ and checked into the Rhone Room, where I barely had time to change my clothes and off I went to http://www.whitehousecrawford.com/ for dinner.  It was amazing because wine brought us all together, as I sat there and absorbed the moment, and perused the room, the common ground was the wine that brought us all together—same with my work and my outreach as I reflected for a moment, that the patients, the outreach, and helping others with brain cancer, brings us all together.  It’s the connectivity of the moment and I lingered on the thought and smiled. 

New day, I was hoping for sun and sandles, but ended up wearing a sweater and cowboy boots, despite the previous warning, that the days only required  t-shirts as it was “so warm”.  That’s how life is, oh well…

The sunny spot of the day………..pursued by the bear…  http://www.pursuedbybearwine.com/ I had the pleasure of meeting Kyle MacLachlan, aka Brie’s husband on Desperate Housewives, and sharing with him the Chris Elliott Fund and our mission.  It was fun to share with him, his brother’s involvement with the Chris Elliott Fund, his band/fundraising years ago, as he helped us raise funds in the early years. 

While having my picture taken with Kyle, I had an epiphany, tying back with our celebrity spokeswoman Jean Smart, http://jsdaily.net/ and suddenly thought about tying her back to another fond winery that I will mention below and doing an event for the Chris Elliott Fund.  Yes, it was good wine, and sometimes we need that to get the juices truly flowing, however I have saved the best for last.

After a great day of wine tasting and meeting fun folks, I settled back at the http://www.sinclairestatevineyards.com/ tasting room for a private dinner cooked by Chef Maddrey  http://www.fatduckinn.com/ with a small group for a lovely dinner and great conversation.  Guess what I talked about, hmmm………..

I do have to say that the 2007 Merlot Columbia Valley, –only four barrels produced, was my absolute favorite, and certainly one of the highlights of my day.  Pull me out of the barrel and bring me back to brain cancer and the Chris Elliott Fund–it was an amazing weekend to taste and to connect. 

Even after great connections and wine tasting,—yes, I have several action items.  The first one is (Jean I’ve got a Chardonnay for you, and we are going to Walla Walla)—yes, I volunteered Jean to be our Kyle MacLachlan, meaning Jean could be our spokewoman and do an event at Sinclair Estate Vineyards, and help build awareness for brain cancer.  Action item:  design wine label-lol. 

So, on that note, it was indeed a weekend of Vine & Roses http://www.vineandroses.com/, and brain tumor awareness, and well worth the trip.