The staff of Bellissimo is taking a nice long holiday this year. We will be closing our offices today, but will be back in full force on January 2 prepared for a great 2007.

Whitney, my daughter and our receptionist, is already in New York City visiting her mom. My son Matt, our consulting director, takes off for New York after Christmas to see her too, as well as to help a friend open his new café in Brooklyn. Kris may be headed to California and Jared will head north to Seattle to see family, and, of course, watch his beloved Seahawks play the Chargers. Me, well I am off to find a bit of sun down in the "Valley of the Sun," Scottsdale, Arizona. Considering I lived there for years, it is a bit like going home for me.

The biggest news in the office is all three of our major sites have now been updated. Espresso 101, Coffee School and now, the "all new and greatly expanded" Coffee Universe. Check it out and join the next challenger to MySpace - MyCafe... a great place to network for those who love coffee or who are involved in the coffee world.

In early 2007 I will be telling you much more about the changes to our web sites as well as some amazing news regarding our partnership with the country of Rwanda.

Until then, happy holidays and merry Christmas to all.

Buon Natalie.

Today marks exactly one year since the trucks pulled into the Bellissimo offices in Eugene (two hours south of Portland), loaded up over a decade of business and headed to our new digs in Portland.

Kris, our vice president, said to me the other night she thought it was without a doubt the best move we ever made, not only for the company, but for all of us -- period. I could certainly not agree more. We now have offices on the second floor of our building on Water Avenue, a state-of-the-art school on the first floor and a fulfillment center on the floor below that.

One of the biggest benefits of relocating to Portland is living in the city that I believe is the new coffee capital of the United States. Here we have been able to establish deep friendships with many companies and with four of the major coffee industry magazines: Roast, Barista, Fresh Cup and Imbibe. In Portland, we have more colleagues and friends stop by in a week than came to our Eugene offices in an entire year.

This week we expect representatives from Torani and Caffe D'arte to visit our offices, and we also hope Kent Bakke, president of Espresso Specialists will stop by before the holidays.

Last week the Bellissimo staff had dinner with a very dear old friend, Assaad Benabid, president of LaSpaziale in New York, and Laurel Bird, the company's vice president based in Seattle. Both of these individuals are class acts in the industry. I was also able to spend some quality time with two well-known individuals who attended the ABC's class this month: Jon Lewis from Bumper Crop Coffee in Spokane, Washington, who placed second behind Billy Wilson of Portland's Albina Press in the Northwest Regional Barista Competition and Greg Listino, director of the Eastern office of Rosito Bisani in King of Prussia, Pennsylvania.

Great stuff with great people. Love, love, love Portland... on our one-year anniversary.

In our tradeshow booth at Coffee Fest Seattle this past October there was a lot of interest in the soundtrack to Caffe Ambiance, Bellissimo’s DVD that features scenes of fancy pours, coffee picking, harvesting and processing from around the world. Many wanted to know if the music was also available on CD, without the film portion.

When I was writing the Caffe Ambiance soundtrack, I composed over 60 pieces of music. Putting this music on CD is a project I have wanted to do for months now and one that I finally got around to last week when I compiled the first two CDs in the “Café Grooves” series.

Volume 1 is titled Gasp, Volume 2 Downtime Two. We will be releasing a third CD in the spring that will include some older songs as well as some new pieces I am presently writing for our two new film projects.

When I owned coffee operations, I always found it difficult to find music to play that was hip, yet not in your face. If you have your sound on, the music playing right now is the title track of “Gasp.” I hope you will think this music might be perfect to play during most times of the day in your café.

Through our shopping cart you can purchase one CD for $11.95 or both for $19.95.

To hear more, click on the songs to the left under "B Music."

At Bellissimo we have been working on two new film projects (the exact details of each will be announced soon) for release in early 2007. What is most exciting about these projects is that the DVDs will fill previously exposed educational gaps in both the barista community and the specialty coffee industry.

During the process we have been fortunate to work with some of the best baristas not only the United States, but in the world. One of the projects is now in editing, and shooting on the other will be completed this month. Watch our Website and this blog for the release dates of each of these DVDs.

These two projects have forced me to think about writing music again -- music to use as segues between scenes and some new original pieces. I had taken a bit of a hiatus from writing and these projects have brought me back to something I love doing very much. As soon as it is available, I will announce more exciting news about the music I have written.

Thanksgiving '06 is now just a memory of family, turkey and warm fires here in a wet and rainy Oregon. I was fortunate to have my mother come to visit me for a couple of weeks, and of all the things I have to be thankful for, spending yet another holiday with her ranks right at the top.

My mom is 96 and a half years old. She still takes care of herself, cooks most days and does most of her household chores herself. She is a simple, quiet, proud woman, who always has a smile on her face. She is not a big fan of television, so you can usually find her with a book in hand. My mom is the person I have learned more from than anyone else in the world. Whenever she tells me of her pride in anything I might do -- I tell her that every thing I have ever accomplished in this life can be traced directly back to her. She has told me many times with tears in her eyes that she wishes so much my father could have lived to see what I have achieved. She is truly my biggest fan. But then again, if your mom isn't your biggest fan, then who is? Smile.

Both my parents had little education. My father emigrated from Italy when he was only nine and never went back to school. He could not read and could write only three words...Luciano Franko Milletto. My mom was more fortunate. She went to school and completed the seventh grade. My dad, who was fiercely interested in politics, would have her read him the paper each day...an amazingly strong childhood memory for me.

My mom still reads the paper cover to cover. At her wise old age you can still engage her in discussions on global warming, the current war and presidential politics. She is informed and astute, and sees through the politics to the basic right and wrong of whatever issue it is we might discuss.

Before she arrived for her visit I went shopping and bought a large jar of Folgers Crystals -- my mom's favorite. Over the years I have served her some of the best coffee the world has to offer, yet she always tells me she misses her freeze-dried coffee. The white flag went up years ago, and now I just buy the jar and skip the Yergacheffe.

Mom drinks coffee right up until bedtime and wouldn't even consider putting a bit of sugar or cream in a brew I cannot imagine drinking no matter how much I doctored it up. But old habits die hard, and at this point in life, who cares... I am just thankful that I can share a cup of coffee with her and glean yet a bit more wisdom and love from the most amazing person I have ever met.

I just returned from my first real vacation in years, rejuvenated and refreshed. Because I travel so much, many people who know me believe that many, or at least some of my trips, have vacation benefits — nothing could be further from reality.

Usually when I travel I visit a client or attend a tradeshow and spend the majority of my time dealing with specialty coffee. I will be the first to admit that this has been my choice, one I now realize is not entirely smart. Sometimes you just have to get away and do nothing but kickback and re-charge. A few times a year it is good not to bundle anything "work related” with time off.

This trip was a full 12 days of "nothing coffee," and if you keep reading, you will truly understand what I mean.

This trip took me to Mustique, one of the Spice Islands, deep in the Caribbean in the Grenadine chain. The small island is only accessible by private plane or boat. There is not much there except paradise: beautiful birds, flowers and warm ocean breezes. The only resort on the island is the Cotton House. Highlights included amazing sunsets, great food, swimming and a little tennis.

Earlier I alluded to the fact this wasn’t a "coffee-related trip," but I had no idea just how “no coffee” it truly would turn out to be. The Cotton House has the best of everything -- except for coffee. I got to know the general manager quite well and asked her toward the end of the stay what kind of coffee they were serving. She went and looked at the bag, and returned and said it was 100 percent pure coffee. I said this is good -- that means the sawdust overtones it took on were merely from the staleness. I asked her the brand and she told me it was a well-known American pre-ground canned coffee -- a name we all grew up knowing. I tried to explain the travesty of doing everything to perfection (which Cotton House truly does) and paying absolutely no attention to serving fresh ground, excellent coffee. She was quite concerned, and I am hopeful our dialogue will continue so I can help them raise the quality of their coffee to equal their other offerings. I truly could not drink what they were serving, and turned to tea.

As I write this we are approaching winter in Oregon, but it is still good to be back. The entire Bellissimo staff did a great job covering for me in my absence. I had breakfast with Matt Riddle from Chicago’s Intelligentsia Coffee last Sunday. He spent a few days at the American Barista & Coffee School. Matt is a class act, and as most of you know, won the United States Barista Championship last year. As I watched him in Berne at the world championships last year, I truly thought he might win... with Klaus Thomsen retiring, he may have a shot in Tokyo if he wins the U.S. again this year.

As wonderful as it was to get away, it was so nice to come back to a life and business I truly love. Oh, and yes, to come back to great coffee. I left my house this morning at 6:30 a.m. and headed for the nearest Stumptown for an amazing cappuccino followed by a great cup of brewed Honduran. You just have to love living in, and returning to, what I believe is the true coffee capital of the United States, Portland Oregon.

Congratulations to David, Marni, Tamara and the entire staff of Festivals, Inc., the sponsors of Coffee Fest Tradeshows. I am not sure what the final tally of attendees was at the Seattle show held October 27-29, but the last time I checked in the early morning on the last day, attendance was approaching 8000 -- the largest coffee show ever held in the U.S. The next biggest one I can remember was the SCAA show in Seattle a few years ago, which had close to seven thousand attendees.

After the show ended on Sunday we drove back to Portland... exhausted -- exhausted in a good way, having seen the continued interest and growth in the specialty coffee industry.

Attendance for Seattle Coffee Fest has grown every year. I remember just a month after 9/11, when no one was even thinking of traveling and few were concentrating on opening a business, Coffee Fest attendance was up, I believe, almost 30 percent over the prior year. The specialty coffee business is not only a draw in America, but all over the world. I spoke at length to David, who is going to operate shows next year in Japan and China. He tells me the thirst for coffee in the Asian Rim is enormous.

The show left me excited as well as concerned. My excitement comes from the highly motivated and aware attendees that I met. I spoke to many people who were already open and trying to make their operation better. I feel concern, as the independent must compete with both Starbucks and other smaller, regional chains. Many of these wonderful people have invested their life savings, and we at Bellissimo try to do anything we can to help them, including giving many a half hour of free advice. I believe those of us in the specialty coffee industry are one big family, and most of the vendors and attendees feel the same way I do.

I fully expect all of the Coffee Fest shows in 2006 (Atlanta, Chicago and Seattle) to be dynamic. The SCAA annual conference and convention in Long Beach next year should also prove to be an amazing event that everyone should put on their calendar. The organization is celebrating their 25th anniversary and will not only be a celebration for the SCAA, but for the entire industry. The coffee business is the most amazing business to be associated with -- I truly believe this in my heart - and we are all blessed to be a part of it and watch it continue to prosper and grow in numbers and quality.

As exciting as Northwest Regional Barista Championship was, I am so glad Monday is here and the event is history. I bet Matt from our office is even more relieved, as he no longer has to spend hours every day working with Stumptown Coffee Roasters (the other co-host) on the thousands of details that needed to be attended to pull the event off without a hitch. I attended a good part of the competition on Friday and Saturday, as did Kris from Bellissimo.

Sunday was quite amazing. The six finalists -- Billy Wilson and Kevin Fuller from The Albina Press, Maki Campbell and Lindsay Elliot from Zoka Coffee Roasters, Jon Lewis of Bumper Crop Roasting, and Kyle Larson of Stumptown Coffee Roasters -- were all really great.

I was proud that two Bellissimo employees, Matt and Jared, were judges throughout the competition, and it was quite an honor that Matt was chosen to judge the finals. Klaus Thomsen, the world barista champion from Denmark, was the event's MC, and he was as good an MC as he is a world champion barista. Klaus was engaging, entertaining and also very funny -- you have to love the Scandinavian dry wit of which he is a master.

I knew the finalists would be great, but I think the most shocking part of the weekend for me were the 26 competitors, who were all very, very good baristas. The winner of the competition was Billy Wilson, with Jon Lewis coming in second and Kevin Fuller third.

I saw an air of professionalism at this competition that I would guess is ten times as great as it was five years ago. It is so exciting to see so many young baristas taking their art and their craft so seriously. Many of them are truly stretching the envelope with incredible specialty drinks. I think Billy Wilson, who came in second in the USA last year, has a good chance of winning the title this year at the SCAA show next May. I am hoping to go to the World Championship in Tokyo in 2007 and see even more great baristas from around the world.

Watch the website in future weeks for many photos of the event.

This week is just crazy in our office — the Northwest Regional Barista Competition [NWRBC] has come to town. The event, organized by Portland's own Stumptown Roasters and Bellissimo's American Barista and Coffee School [ABC'S] kicks off this Friday and continues through Sunday at the Wonder Ballroom. I'm sure the event will go without a hitch, as Matt from our office and the Stumptown crew have put in hundreds of hours to make this an extraordinary barista competition. Visit NWBarista for times, dates, directions and a full listing of all events.

Klaus Thomsen, the 2006 World Barista Champion from Denmark, brings his super-star credentials to Portland for the competition and he spent the day with us yesterday working on a large project. I first met Klaus last May in Berne, Switzerland, where I hung out with him in a casual setting after he won the competition. I was very impressed with him — he is a class act and consummate professional. Watching him work yesterday at ABC's was such a joy. There is not one wasted motion when he walks up to the espresso machine... much like a Formula One driver, he operates the machine with beauty, speed and grace.

Today, ABC's is hosting judge's training for the competition in addition to numerous other events throughout the weekend. Stay tuned for pictures and news as it all unfolds.

I returned to the office on Monday after the long trek to Cherry Hill, New Jersey for the last Fresh Cup Roadshow of the year. Once again, Jan, the show's organizer, did a great job. My afternoon seminar drew a capacity crowd, with most of the attendees hailing from New York, but a few from Philadelphia and New Jersey were also in attendance.

My flight into Philly was delayed an hour and a half, and the Fresh Cup bunch was nice enough to wait for me and share a cab. Over dinner that night, I had the opportunity to express my opinion about which cities I would like to see next year's Roadshows. I am thrilled that Cleveland (my old home town), Austin (how cool is that!), Nashville (love that city) and best of all Portland, Oregon made the final list. When the Roadshow comes to Portland, we will throw a big party for all the exhibitors and our industry friends.

I spent an enjoyable day last week cupping some new coffees at Boyds Coffee Company in Portland. Boyds may be one of America's largest roasters, but it's still a family business run by David and Dick Boyd. Matt and I spent a good part of the day with their roaster and head cupper, and our guide was their marketing director Daryl, with whom I am very impressed. Daryl is a New Jersey transplant who loves the Northwest and working in specialty coffee. Before joining Boyds and after finishing graduate school, he worked for a large company that produced canned coffee. He is thrilled to be a part of specialty coffee.

We cupped a number of new coffees that had just arrived in the Boyd warehouse. Some of the standouts were a wonderful Mexican Peaberry from a finca very close to Guatemala, a rare full-bodied Kona, a nice bean from Java and a washed Ethiopian Yergacheffe. I also cupped one of the best coffees I have ever cupped... a Rwanda Virunga Bourbon. This coffee, from the "land of a thousand hills," was 100 percent washed and table sun-dried. The medium brew had floral berry-sweet overtones and was extremely balanced and bright. Over the past few months I have been drinking a lot of coffee from Rwanda, and I am continually impressed by its amazing flavor in the cup.

Matt and I went on a full tour of Boyds state-of-the art facility, which houses two Scolari and two very large Probat roasters. Boyds provides great coffee not only to the food-service sector but also to many specialty outlets across the country. I left with a pound of the Rwanda Bourbon, and I can tell you that I wake up each morning thinking about this brew as it beckons me out of bed.

When I walked into my office on Friday, October 6, I found a surprise...my daughter Whitney had made me a beautiful birthday cake (with coffee frosting and decorated with beans).

My entire staff made me feel great on my special day. I used to dread birthdays, thinking about age and all the hang-ups many of us have surrounding growing older. Now I have come to appreciate being allowed to enjoy life another year.

I am so blessed to have such a great staff, two of whom are my offspring. Whitney is now our receptionist (and doing a great job, I may add) and, of course, my son Matthew, who is as passionate about coffee and the business of helping others as I have been. I can honestly tell you it has never been about the money for me in this business, and to see Matthew on the same page is very heartening. He truly is all about passion.

We have two more celebrations this month. Matthew has his birthday on October 11th and Kris, my VP, will be celebrating ten years with Bellissimo. It continues to be a great month with much to be very thankful for.

Last Monday evening, a group from Bellissimo enjoyed visiting an old friend -- Longbottom Coffee and Tea, located right in our backyard, Hillsboro, Oregon. The occasion was the company's 25th Anniversary Celebration. The party went on all day, but the main festivities started after the workday was over.

The founder and owner of Longbottom's is Michael Baccellieri. I met Michael for the first time in 1994 at the Houston SCAA show. At the time Bellissimo was a one-product company, and we displayed our "Espresso 101" on a tabletop. Michael's booth was located just a few aisles away, and I remember how we talked and discovered that our families came from the same part of Italy. This was the start of a long-lasting friendship.

It goes without saying that it is no accident Longbottom Coffee is one of the most successful roasters in the Northwest. It all starts with Michael's passion, integrity and business savvy. You will never meet someone with more of a commitment to quality and his customers than Michael. Night after night in the summer, he takes them on cruises down either the Willamette River or Columbia River on a boat he bought and restored, which was originally an Alaskan fishing vessel. Michael's intense spirit and work ethic was no different in the restoration of this boat than it is when he roasts great coffee. The boat is truly a work of art. I will always remember the night Bellissimo and Fresh Cup Magazine were the guests on a special cruise. It was one of the last evenings I spent with Ward Barbee. He was so mellow that night; being on a boat was his ultimate passion. The trip was a little different that night. Rather than the usual four-hour cruise, ours turned into almost seven. We docked on the Willamette River in downtown Portland where we had an extraordinary view of the city lights at night. Like the party on Monday night, we ate like kings and felt the true spirt of both the man and the company called Longbottom Coffee.

I just want to thank Michael and all the Longbottom staff for the excellent product and dedication they bring to this industry. At the anniversary party as the band broke into a love song from the 60s, Michael rushed over to where I was sitting. He bent down and whispered in my ear, with the exuberance he is famous for, "I used to sing this song out loud when I worked in a lumber mill putting myself through college, but I was really singing it to that woman over there who became my wife." Michael... on so many levels you are truly amazing and I am honored to be your friend.

A few entries back I wrote about the thrill of seeing on Broadway the Tony Award-winning musical "Jersey Boys," the story of the life and times of Frankie Valli and the history of his group the Four Seasons. When I wrote the entry, I already knew I was going to see Frankie, one of my childhood idols, in concert on the Oregon coast a few weeks later. What I did not know was what a dream come true the experience would be.

Through myriad events, way too complicated to go into, a group of four of us were asked to visit him back stage after the show.

The show was amazing. Frankie sang all the songs you would expect: "Sherry," "Working My Way Back to You, " "Dawn, " "My Eyes Adored You," "Big Girls Don't Cry," "Can't Take my Eyes Off of You," and so many more. After the show and encore, we made our way back to Frankie's dressing room. To our surprise, Frankie suggested we leave the casino and go to a quiet little restaurant to have a drink and some food. The experience was great. I sat next to the man whose songs provided the soundtrack for my early life, and we talked and bonded for almost three hours.

I think you have to see "Jersey Boys" to understand just what a wonderful person this guy is. The story follows the evolution of the Four Seasons and Frankie's life, which begins in the New Jersey projects. His response to the trials and tribulations he faced showed a level of integrity and trust that is so rare in this day and age. P.S. -- the music and the cast were incredible!

After five minutes, I felt like I was sitting with an old friend -- not a record idol. We talked about life, love and the pursuit of happiness. It will be an evening I will not soon forget, and I hope it will be the start of a future friendship. Frankie invited all of us to the San Francisco opening of "Jersey Boys," and asked us to visit him the next time we were in Southern California, where he now lives.

Hoping Frankie was a fan of espresso, I stopped by my car on the walk to the restaurant and grabbed a bag of great southern Italian blend coffee to give him as a thank you for his generosity and friendliness.

Our experience was not a star "meet and greet," but an instance where a few people had the opportunity to bond with someone who truly made music history.

I just returned from a very invigorating and successful two days of planning for the 19th Annual Specialty Coffee Association of America Conference and Exhibition in Long Beach, May 4 through 7.    

I have served on various SCAA committees for 14 years. This year I took a hiatus from the Communications and Marketing Committee to serve on the Conference Committee. I have always wanted to be part of planning the conference and contributing in some small way to making the spring event a huge success.

In all these years in committee meetings I have never worked half as hard as I did in this particular meeting. Mary Petit (the incoming president of the SCAA) headed the committee and the master facilitator in the universe, Linda Smithers, a former SCAA president, facilitated our session. We worked non-stop and came up with great ideas, all of which I truly believe will make this coming tradeshow and conference the most successful in the history of the SCAA.

I remember 1991 when the event was held in Orlando, Florida. It was the first coffee show I ever attended and it featured a real tradeshow floor in addition to the meetings. I was walking the show floor looking for a distributor for an Italian Coffee I was importing, when I ran into Brandy Brandenburger from Torani who was doing the same with his four bottles of syrup. A far cry from the presence a company like Torani has today! I remember having lunch with a group hosted by Roger Sandon, publisher of the now defunct publication Café Olé. Also in attendance was Howard Shultz from a small company called Starbucks.

Times have certainly changed.

Now the show is the annual highlight of the coffee industry worldwide. There are hopes that up to 14,000 will attend this year. The 2007 show will feature the largest show floor and best-organized educational seminars ever. No matter what part of the specialty coffee industry you are associated with, a trip in May 2007 to Southern California will be well worth your time and money.

It was great to see old friends and meet many new people who were at the planning sessions for the first time. The weather was typical "Southern California beautiful." It would have been nice to be able to enjoy it more, but I was able to stay over on Sunday and experience just a touch before returning to Portland.

Hotels and airplanes are quickly becoming my two least favorite places in the world. Last Sunday, I returned from the Fresh Cup Roadshow in Dallas only to immediately start preparing to depart again on Thursday for the Specialty Coffee Association of America Fall meetings. September and October are always jam packed with business travel for me, and I am looking forward to a true vacation this November in Italy after all of this required travel is over.

The Fresh Cup Roadshow was once again very successful in terms of exhibitors and attendees. I like the Roadshow concept because of the small size of the show, which allows vendors to spend quality time with clients - both new entrepreneurs and existing retailers.  Often it is difficult to spend more than a few minutes with a client at the bigger shows due to the sheer number of attendees.

Before the show opened, I gave a seminar on how to start-up a coffee business. I will give the same three- to four-hour presentation (The 10 Essentials to Opening and Operating a Coffee Business) one more time this year at the Greater Philadephia Roadshow on October 11 (my son Matthew's birthday). Twenty-six people signed up for my class in Dallas and all of them had great questions and concerns about their specific situations in opening a coffee business or taking their existing operation to the next level of profitability. You can sign up for the class on the Roadshow Website.

Matthew Milletto (Bellissimo's consulting director and the director of the American Barista & Coffee School) and Philip Search taught four short down-and-dirty barista training classes. At one point during the show, Tracy Allen from Zoka Coffee Roasters came in to my booth and said, "Bruce! You have to go to the training area and get a picture - quick. Matthew is teaching a nun how to pull shots!" At the end of the show, Matthew told me that the students were great and the short trainings and latte art demos were a success.

So many people often dish Texas (I am not sure why), but it has always been one of my favorite places to visit. Like most of the South, I have found that it is the great attitude of the Texas people that makes the state such a fun place to visit.

Like in most of America, specialty coffee in Texas is in its infancy. The fact that Dallas is home to more than 400 Starbucks shows you there is an appetite for specialty coffee. And now the independent is beginning to follow in the footsteps of Big Green. We all need to thank Starbucks for blazing the trail for the one- to three-store chain by familiarizing consumers with specialty coffee.

I would like to thank Jan Weigel, who after picking up the pieces after the death of Ward Barbee (her partner in Fresh Cup Magazine), is back with a renewed commitment and energy to make each of her shows better than the last. Included in the schedule of events was a Friday night Texas barbeque party hosted by Jan. Great job Jan!

I spent last week in New York City, my favorite place in the U.S. [well, except for maybe Portland :-]. I'm back in the office today, but need to pack again tonight to catch a plane to Dallas, Texas tomorrow for the Fresh Cup Roadshow. I'm trying to remember not to pack lip balm... are you kidding?

I love New York - what a great city and so hard to leave. There is so much energy in that town that there truly are not enough hours in any day to consume it all.

Without a doubt the highlight of the trip was having courtside seats for two days at the U.S. Open. What I saw was Incredible tennis in an amazing setting. I was very lucky to see on center court three out of the four players I most wanted to see: Rafael Nadal, James Blake and Roger Federer. I also saw my other favorite, Andre Agassi, warming up on an outside practice court for his evening match. All of us who love the game will miss Andre when he goes into retirement, but he went out in style, displaying the class and level of play we all admire him for.

Another highlight of the week was catching the Tony award-winning musical "Jersey Boys!"  Wow. Who does not love Frankie Valli and the Four Seasons? The "Color Purple" was also great - the message is timeless.

I drank some really great espressos after dinner at il Bigatto and Gnocco, both in the East Village. It is so nice to finish a great Italian meal with a properly prepared shot of great coffee. If you are ever in the city and want a great Italian meal, these restaurants are two of the best ever.

As Portland was experiencing off the charts summer heat, New York was feeling the tail end of tropical storm Ernesto. It mattered not, as nothing much can dampen a trip to New York.