Sideways

"Sideways" - seitwärts, von der Seite, schräg, schief; ausweichend.

MAYA
Why are you so into Pinot? It’s like a thing with you?

MILES
I don’t know. It’s a hard grape to grow. As you know. It’s thin-skinned, temperamental, ripens early. It’s not a survivor like Cabernet that can grow anywhere and thrive even when neglected. Pinot needs constant care and attention and in fact can only grow in specific little tucked-away corners of the world. And only the most patient and nurturing growers can do it really, can tap into Pinot’s most fragile, delicate qualities. Only when someone has taken the time to truly understand its potential can Pinot be coaxed into its fullest expression. And when that happens, its flavors are the most haunting and brilliant and subtle and thrilling and ancient on the planet.
I mean, Cabernets can be powerful and exciting, but they seem prosaic to me for some reason by comparison. How about you?

MAYA
I do like to think about the life of wine, how it’s a living thing. I like to think about what was going on the year the grapes were growing, how the sun was shining that summer or if it rained... what the weather was like. I think about all those people who tended and picked the grapes, and if it’s an old wine, how many of them must be dead by now. I love how wine continues to evolve, how every time I open a bottle its going to taste different than if I had opened it on any other day. Because a bottle of wine is actually alive -- it’s constantly evolving and gaining complexity. That is, until it peaks -- like your ‘61 -- and begins its steady, inevitable decline. And it tastes so f... good.

Scene from the movie Sideways.

Slimy Honor

"Slimy Honor" - Schleimige, glitschige, schmierige Ehre.

President Bush, Vice President Cheney and Secretary of Defense Donald Rumsfeld have shared a common political vision for most of their careers. Now each will share something else — a slime-mold beetle named in his honor.
More here and here.

Continuous Form

"Continuous Form" - Verlaufsform.

"Es gibt in der deutschen Sprache so manches, was es offiziell gar nicht gibt. Die sogenannte Rheinische Verlaufsform zum Beispiel. Die hat weniger mit dem Verlauf des Rheins zu tun, dafür umso mehr mit Grammatik. Vater ist das Auto am Reparieren, Mutter ist die Stube am Saugen. Und der Papst war wochenlang im Sterben am Liegen."

Here is an amusing article about the Rhineland dialect (that I grew up with) and it's idiosyncratic use of the continuous form: Wie der Rheinländer die Sprache am Verdrehen ist.

Thanks vowe.

Irrational (Non)exuberance

"Irrational (Non)exuberance" - Irrationale (Un)Ueberschwenglichkeit.

"...Germans don't think the present is a particularly good time to be doing business in their homeland... While the Americans were in the grips of irrational exuberance, the Germans were seized by irrational nonexuberance... It could be that there's something cultural at work here. The 20th century was punctuated at its beginning and middle by disasters resulting in part from an excess of German enthusiasm. Could German businesspeople suffer from some lingering sense of shame or self-consciousness over the fact that the world starts to get upset whenever Germans get too enthusiastic about anything?"
More: Gloomy Gustavs

Lanyard

"Lanyard" - Traggurt, Kordel, Schnur, kurzes Seil.

I am currently testing the ultra-simplified and stylish Apple iPod shuffle. What an amazing device! It doesn't weigh much more (22 grams or 0.78 ounces) than the lanyard that comes with it but sounds just as good as its bigger siblings. I haven't made up my mind whether or not I could live without a screen... give me few more days at the gym.

Update: I decided that I do need a screen and returned the shuffle. No new toy yet...