Free Wine Day
Now there's one that doesn't come around too often. But let's start from the beginning rather than in medias res. I ordered a half case of wine from the Wall Street Journal "wine of the month club" which, so far has delivered rather exceptionally for me. I wanted to try a nice looking 2009 Malbec and an intriguing Muscat so I ordered a half case, split between the two. I was probably more interested in the Muscat than the Malbec but I did want to try both. Said half case was delivered today by the smiling FedEx guy (who has a great lilting accent that may be Caribbean) yet, when it was opened actually contained the Malbec and three bottles of a 2009 Bordeaux. I called customer service and was first connected with a CSR who immediately launched into excuses. Strangely, that conversation was suddenly terminated (not at my end) before I could explain that substituting a Bordeaux for a Muscat was not a "like" swap had they run out of the Muscat.
Being charitable and cautious, I called back. This time I connected with a CSR who actually listened to me, checked to be sure the Muscat was indeed in stock and promised to send me the three bottles I had ordered. So, what becomes of the three bottles I didn't order? Well, just as with wines the customer doesn't like, if there are less than six bottles, customer keeps the bottles. I don't think it's economic to arrange and pay the return shipping. Woot!
This makes a total of six bottles I've not paid for as three bottles of a blush pinot grigio I did order were just ... nothing. Like Gertrude Stein's Oakland. Not just forgettable but not even notable when on one's palate. So they refunded my purchase price of those. That is the mark of real customer service as far I'm concerned. Oh, I must also say that I bought a case of this Limonetto and it's purely delightful. As refreshing and bright as any summer deck/pool wine could ever hope to be. Adult lemonade of the best kind.

An Auspicious Day Indeed
Today is blog friend and otherwise friend in many ways Joe Sherlock's birthday! We here at Pugs of War take great delight in wishing Joe a very happy day and many more to come. It would be a lesser world without him.

Terminology
If the TARP and stimulus was a crap sandwich fed to Americans (and it was), Obamacare is a turdrito.
Also: There's a Wootoff going on today so keep your eyes peeled for something special happening all day long.
UPDATE: Is this Shun Pro 300mm Yanagiba sweet or what? (click the pic on the page to see it embiggened) I can hardly wait.

Light Posting
There won't be much on PoW for the next several days as I'm immersing myself in the arcana of IRS regs and the arrival of the ACC tournament. But a couple of things of note in this springing time - I turned off the heat in the house today. I probably could have done it a couple of days ago but didn't think of it. Today is just so pleasant outside that my hand to the thermostat was forcéd. For my internal seasonal calendar, there are a few special days: turning off the heat, opening the window overnight and peepers day. One down, two to go.
Also, should anyone be ordering anything from the Hanes website, I have a $1.99 shipping code for the next 30 days which I won't be using: #103060. Might save you a couple of bucks if you're planning to buy.
UPDATE: Unbelievable! You won't believe where this URL takes you: http://5z8.info/REFINANCE-NOW_r9k5t_whitepower

Woot FYI
Woot is having a Woot Off today, which means a stream of products all day long as they sell out. When I tuned in, it was a $600 Ken Onion knife set. I doubt there were many of them but oy! such a knife you should have!

Massachusetts - Scott Brown
Sweet.

Obama has lost traction with American voters in part due to the slick of blood and internal organs from all the people that have been thrown under the bus. Look for even more furious spinning of wheels in 3, 2, 1....
UPDATE: Congratulations to Lycurgus for getting his brilliant line quoted by the Blogfather, Instapundit.

Discount Woot
I have a coupon code for $2.00 off an order from Daedalus Books and Music. It expires on January 15 and I'm not going to use it by then. Anyone who wants the code can leave me a comment or e-mail me and I'll pass it along. Needless to say, it's only good once.

Knivery
Just a note for the day - Amazon is offering a Shun Ken Onion 3-Piece knife set which is nominally a $595 set for $200 today. These are truly awesome knives and though I can't justify the purchase of any more kitchen cutlery, my cooking eye is twitching as I look at these beauties.

Today's Woot
If you need a good flashlight at a good price, today's Woot is a Brinkmann 3-watt LED aluminum flashlight. Think Maglight but apparently withput the beam focus capability. On the other hand, commenters say that the Brinkmann is brighter. $15 straight up including shipping. Can't touch that with a Maglight.
Remember, it's Woot so even if it doesn't sell out, it's only good for today.