I have had the amazing opportunity to spend a few days here at Lake Chelan with some close family friends. Between skipping across the lake on a SeaDoo (60+ mph!) and hanging out in the sun we visited a fantastic winery called ‘Tsillan’ which is Native American for “Chelan”, the name of this area. Now for those who know me, you will also know that being fresh out of College I have enjoyed the inexpensive perks of Busch Light at the regular social functions, and while I will probably still drink that on my future Yacht.. I also see the need to widen my horizons to the luxurious of drinks: Wine.
My parents have always enjoyed wine, but they have often enjoyed red wines; which if you aren’t very familiar with different Wines, reds have a very distinctive flavor that often comes with a strong after taste. I’m told that starting with White Wines in your “Wine Career” is best because they are typically a little less full-bodied and carry a lighter aftertaste (if really any at all). Tsillan Winery was a great place to widen my horizons as they had some fantastic wines (not just my opinion) and I was able to sample numerous wines. As expected many of the whites won my favors and as a standout I really enjoyed both the Riesling and the Dry Riesling whites.
So if you are open to expanding your horizons, don’t hesitate to start with the Whites; particularly the Rieslings and expand from there. Everyone has a different set of tastes, but hopefully that helps you get started!
This past weekend for the first time in quite a while I had the opportunity to get a little hiking in, it was fantastic! As I was climbing around Kamiak Butte I remembered why I loved hiking so much back in High School as an Eagle Scout. It wasn’t necessarily the exercise (even though it is common knowledge I could always use it 
) but the fact that I forgot how friendly people on the trail usually are, a lot like people in the boating world are. It seems like whenever you are out trying to enjoy the same thing as everyone around you there is an unspoken rule or respect and acceptance because you are “one of them”.
This same ideology is what is behind marketing genius Seth Godin’s book “Tribes” where the idea of a group who is passionate about the same things we are. This unspoken acceptance and perceived quality that this group offers is something that social media is seriously lacking. Why does the average person think that Twitter is just a bunch of status updates about “eating lunch” & “using the bathroom” has more to do with the platforms inability to effectively to consistently connect people who have similar interests in passion. Is it possible to find the right people on Twitter? Absolutely, but you must be actively and consistently seeking out those people based on keywords or singular recommendations. Alas, there is no “genius playlist” for the sea of users on Twitter and that fact is what leaves most users feeling a little empty while using the service.
Ning has become one of the largest networks you may have never heard of because they understand the value that users have with a real community that focuses on a branded and focused method of delivering content that people care about. If you are passionate about a particular type of bicycling then there is likely a Ning network around that exact topic for you to participate in, and if not you the ability to create and moderate that community so that other people can find you and participate in your community.
How do you think Twitter and other social networks (including Facebook Fan pages) could change the user experience to connect users with meaningful groups, pages etc.?
