Top 10 Best Wines for Father's Day

Gayot.com has just released their Top 10 Father’s Day Wine List for 2010:

1. Sparkling Champagne de Venoge Blanc de Noirs

2. Gustave Lorentz Cremant d'Alsace Brut from the Alsace region of France

3. Fogdog 2007 Chardonnay, a California white wine

4. Les Vendanges du Domaine Rougie 2006 Viognier, white from the Rhone Valley of France

5. Beckmen Vineyards 2009 Purisima Mountain Vineyard Grenache Rosé from the Santa Ynez valley of Santa Barbara, California

6. Frank Family Vineyards 2006 Napa Valley Cabernet Sauvignon, a red wine, deep purple in color

7. Kamiak 2007 Rock Lake Red from the Columbia Valley in the State of Washington

8. Liberty School 2007 Cuvée from California’s Central Coast region of Paso Robles

9. Quivira 2008 Grenache, Wine Creek Ranch, Dry Creek Valley, another California red wine

10. Matanzas Creek Winery 2006 L'Ultime Red Dessert Wine. This is a Sonoma County dessert wine


Ranging from $12 to $66 per bottle, what a delightful way to toast to our fathers in the coming month of June.  Best wishes and a special toast to all of our single dads from the Single 101 Nation!

Single 101 Nation

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Best Cities in the World for Men

AskMen.com has just released their Top 29 cities in the world for men to live in.  They profiled cities where it’s easy to meet women, where professional opportunities abound and where you can enjoy life outdoors.
Their formula for men has ranked the best cities in which to live, work and party - based on data that includes vacation destinations, weather, unemployment rate, restaurants, nightlife and sports.

Ask Men’s lists are always intriguing and full of surprises. Just the mention of exotic cities like Barcelona, Shanghai or Lisbon will have you wanting to pack your bags. Where would you want to live, work or play?

Here is the Top 10 from their list:

10. San Francisco
9. Sydney
8. Buenos Aires
7. Miami
6. Cape Town
5. London
4. Madrid
3. Tokyo
2. Melbourne
1. New York City

The Summer of Broken Hearts

From my new book, "Single 101: 101 Reasons to Celebrate Being Single", consider
Reason # 7-  No More Broken Hearts


News from Stockholm says that it was supposed to be the Summer of Love in Sweden this year.
Princess Victoria, the eldest daughter of King Carl XVI Gustaf and Queen Silvia, is engaged and plans to wed in June. The crown princess had already taken her fair share of criticism for her relationship with a commoner, Daniel Westling, her fiance. But now he looks like a prince compared to Victoria’s little sister's beau.

Princess Madeleine Therese Amelie Josephine, just called off her royal wedding due to rumors that her fiance, Jonas Bergstrom, a lawyer, had sex with a college student while he was engaged to the princess.

CNN reports that the couple have gone their separate ways.

2010 Book Release!

It's coming! After seven years of research, writing, editing, procrastinating, saving enough money for publishing, etc., etc., the book is coming this summer!

"Single 101: 101 Reasons to Celebrate Being Single" is set to be released in the summer of 2010.

Being single is my life, but not an obsession, as you can tell by my infrequent blogging.  With the release of the book and more, my blogs will become weekly, so I hope you check back often.

"Single 101: 101 Reasons to Celebrate Being Single" will soon be available on Amazon.com and several digital outlets, where you'll be able to take a peek inside, as well as download it on your Kindle.

So, the word is out . . . there are now more than 101 reasons to celebrate!

Guilt-Free Gorging

As I write, the snow is continuing to fall on top of the 10 inches on the ground. The local meteorologists have already named this the Blizzard of 2010 and it isn’t through with us yet.

Our local post office has made the decision to break their “whether rain, snow, sleet or hail, the mail will get through” promise and postpone mail delivery until the first of next week. My road is impassable and the drifts are growing rapidly. A neighbor has just knocked at my door to see if I wanted my driveway ploughed, but he can’t do it for free. The price of regular gas yesterday was $3.29 per gallon, but my car can safely wait in the garage for a couple more days with the hope that the cost of filling the tank will decrease.

The cupboard and refrigerator are stocked, my Saturday gig has been canceled and why in the world do I even want to go out anyway? The blanket of snow, or I should say layers of comforters of snow in my yard, actually give me a warm feeling as I watch the flakes get larger, blowing aimlessly in the wind that swirls around my house.

This calls for cuddling up on the sofa with a bag of the latest chocolate/peanut butter chip cookies I discovered at the market. Once again, the benefits of being single come to the surface. It’s cold, I’m snowed in and the cookies are all mine!

You Can Flirt As Much As You Want

So, the here’s the question: Is flirting an art? Let’s take a look at what some experts say. They have actually created flirting tips:

Give Clear Signals
Since your intensions can be easily misconstrued, make sure that you are sincere and clear with who you choose to flirt with and be cautious of how far you’re going as you indulge in flirting just for fun, if you will.

Dress for Success
Your appearance will be the key to how successful your flirting attempts will be, whether it’s your hair, what you’re wearing or even your accessories. Some women say they carry something just to get noticed. Is that how the miniature dog, (pet) thing got started with Paris Hilton?

Keep Your Distance from Your Friends
If you’re planning on making serious moves on a certain someone, the experts say you’ll need to split from your friends or buddy. It’s that three’s a crowd principle.

Use Diplomacy
Maybe you thought he was cute at first. You made your move, said something cute and funny. Then he laughed like a pig and it scared you to death. How you politely walk away and hope that he doesn’t try to approach you later is the defining moment, especially if you have your sites set on someone else.

Use Your Best Voice
Guess this one goes without saying, (no pun intended). It would be interesting to find out if some women actually rehearse in the mirror or record their voice to see if it’s sexy enough.

After finding these tips from the experts of flirtation, it’s evident that yes, flirting is an art. Practice makes perfect!

Planning For the Future

I know, we can’t get the year started without making those good ‘ole New Year’s resolutions. How long do we keep them anyway? For many, the single life is all about discipline and commitment to oneself, so it’s the perfect time to take inventory, reinvent ourselves and get on with life.

What can we do different this time? Does it always have to be a new diet or exercise resolution? Why not make a list of dreams, wishes or financial goals? If you’re working hard at building wealth, what can you add to the plan to give it more muscle? For example: I resolve to stop wasting money on frivolous items that I don’t need and invest it in the future.

Maybe 2008 is the year to focus more on friends and family. Maybe it’s all about balance in our lives. What if the whole world would focus on balance, love and peace~ together? Okay, so I’m getting off of this computer, stop working and starting on that one ~balance~ right now!

Happy New Year, stay strong and I’ll see you in blog land in 2008! Single 101:)

Best Wishes to Single Parents!

Never having been blessed with children of my own, I can’t begin to understand what it feels like during the holidays to be a single parent. Meeting the demands of the regular routine and schedule must be tough enough, let alone the additional stress of shopping, decorating and planning the festivities for Christmas Day.

Attitude, compassion and hope make up a great recipe to survive the holidays as not only a single parent, but a single person. The greatest blessings we have are the people in our lives, our family and friends. Best wishes for a wonderful holiday and I hope this season brings much joy and many reasons to celebrate being single along with those who are special in your life.
Merry Christmas! Single 101:)

Free Drinks in Pubs and Clubs

One of the 101 most popular reasons to celebrate being single includes the advantages of being unattached when you’re partying in pubs and nightclubs. Whether it’s Happy Hour, Ladie’s Night or a free drink for singing karaoke, there are more places you can imagine where the booze is flowing freely.

It’s also amazing to learn how many women have this thing down to a science. Even if they don’t admit to mooching off of their friends and favorite bartender, they’re organized right down to the hors-doeuvres at wine tastings. Just how easy is it? Here’s Miranda’s story:

My girlfriends and I have a weekly calendar, or “party-time schedule”, as we prefer to call it. Monday nights are specifically for ridding our woes of the typical manic Monday at the office. Jordan’s Harbour Pub gets the evening started with free goodies on the buffet and complimentary flute of wine. For just us girls, it has to be pink on Mondays, so the zinfandel is perfect.

Skipping to Wednesdays, our favorite karaoke spot is Mandy’s, where the free cocktails keep flowing for the one who is the most popular singer. If the audience keeps voting for that singer, one can have all the imported beer or wine of their choice!

On Thursday nights we head out to Moe’s Sports Bar, where it’s Ladie’s Night. Ladies get in free and the first drink is on the house. Everyone is always checking out ring fingers, even though that really doesn’t matter anymore. Every other Thursday, they offer free salsa lessons, where the main room cuts loose and gets wild.

Friday’s is a must at Club 19. They have a great deejay and the girls get two free drinks before 10pm, plus no cover charge for ladies. If we’re partying into the weekend, Shannanigan’s downtown offers a “Girl Classic Card”, where ladies can drink free Long Island Tea’s from 9:30pm and on into the night on Saturday nights and also get 20% off anything on the menu. Cheers! . . . Miranda

There are some who contest the whole principle behind Ladie’s Night. If women can receive a free drink, many men believe they should have the same benefit. One man actually filed a lawsuit against several night spots promoting Ladie’s Night. An attorney in Manhattan, he states that an establishment that offers Ladie’s Night enticements, violates the 14th Amendment’s guarantee of equal protection under the law. His class action suit accuses several NYC clubs, such as the Copacabana, Sol and the China Club of “invidious discrimination” against men in their policies for admitting patrons.

This is one man’s fight over clubs who, in his words, “discriminate against men”.
It will be interesting to see if he wins his case and no, if you’re wondering, we don’t know if he’s just ugly and can’t get a date.

Happy Holidays and celebrate responsibly! . . . Single 101