My husband/partner Jose is constantly feeding me information. A constant source of inspiration, he sent this link to me: Take the 7 Link Challenge Today #7links from ProBlogger.

At the time, I was deep in my Petite Sirah Symposium Land organizing, and shelved it for another day… Like today, when I could pay better attention. It seemed like an interesting premise. I know I’m late getting this done, from the day the challenge went into effect on July 16; but better late than never, as the saying goes.

Here’s the challenge:

The idea is to publish a post that is a list of 7 links to posts that you and others have written that respond to the following 7 categories. Your links should be to:

• Your first post
• A post you enjoyed writing the most
• A post which had a great discussion
• A post on someone else’s blog that you wish you’d written
• Your most helpful post
• A post with a title that you are proud of
• A post that you wish more people had read

This certainly calls for my thinking cap.

• Your first post

My first post, obviously the easiest on the list, and so revealing for those of you who know I rant about the misspelling of Petite Sirah: What is Petite Sirah? Boy, was that one innocent enough as I began my journey on December 28, 2005.

• A post you enjoyed writing the most

Not so easy, as I close in on five years… Hum… Oh, I know, because I was so excited about having the opportunity myself… And to be able to share it… Wow! Contest: Why I Want to Go To Portugal to Visit Enoforum Wines with Jo Diaz This one filled me with glee, as it was a huge give-away that I was going to be setting up for one lucky person. Gwendolyn Alley was the first runner-up, and traveled with me, after Wannabe Wino fell ill to the flu. It was fabulous, and Sonadora made the trip later… In January of this year. Both women wrote about their adventures both during and after, as I also have. What an all around thrill.

• A post which had a great discussion

That one happened very recently, as I was pondering illegal aliens.  How do I feel about illegal aliens… I feel a lot and have a really simple solution. Honestly, this map below should give us all something to think about. [Courtesy of Young and Delleker, with the original Source is the Birmingham Public Library Cartography Collection. This is a map from 1832.] I basically said that people trying to cross the boarder today are people who originally belonged on this land, and if we are white/anglos, our ancestors were the illegal immigrants.

• A post on someone else’s blog that you wish you’d written

This one is very difficult, because I have to be really honest here. I spend so much time writing, not only for this blog, but also for our clients, that I don’t visit the land of blogging much. I have other things I must read, so the best I can answer on this one – because I do spend time seeing what he has to say as frequently as possible, would be Steve Heimoff’s blog… period. His writing is so amazing that anything he’s written, I pretty much wish I could have come up with that one.

• Your most helpful post

Ive written about this one more than once, and I will revisit it when anyone says that he or she doesn’t get the difference between marketing and PR. Without taking a marketing/sales class, it’s hard to define. I’ve got about 16 units in this one, so I’ve been able to boil it down pretty quickly.  What’s the Difference between Marketing and PR? and Wine Company Flow Chart of Responsibility. I know it was helpful, because more than one person told me so.

• A post with a title that you are proud of

There’s a little problem here, because I stopped practicing pride a long time ago, when I realized it’s one of the seven deadly sins. My kids never heard, and still don’t, “I’m so proud of you.” I’ve been filled with great joy, because of the things they’ve said and done, but I’ve never been puffed up. I tell them how happy they make me, and leave pride alone. That said, I can now tell you about one blog that made me very happy. With a PR background in rock and roll radio during the 80s and early 90s, I loved discovering who in rock n’roll is now in the wine business. I was so thrilled to have created a bottle with a guitar for a label… and still add to that blog posting when I find one more rocker crossing over to grapeland.  This is my most current list, but not my first one. To put that one here would leave out my new additions. From Woodstock to Wine Stock ~ These Wines Rock

• A post that you wish more people had read

That would be any of my rants on the misspelling of Petite Sirah with a “y” instead of an “i.” Every time I see it misspelled, it’s like fingers down a chalk board. This list shows you how nuts I can get with this issue. If people would only read any of these postings, I’d stop seeing so many wine bloggers misspelling Petite Sirah… but, they’re not read… They’re not even reading the labels they’re writing about… Oy vey!

1. All the Crazy Things Said About and Done With Petite Sirah ~ Episode 1
2. Petite Sirah Versus Petite Syrah, Versus Durif, The Debate Heats Up
3. It’s Petite Sirah, People. TTB only accepts new labels with the “i”
4. Where Do You Go, When You Find Things That Are So Wrong on the Internet?

I’ll spare you from more, with the exception of leaving you with this image, and knowing that I met the challenge… sorta, kinda… in my eccentric way.