Soft and Supple at Lake Manapouri

Just when I thought the scenery couldn't get any better nor our location any remoter, we left that beautiful sheep ranch across from Mt Cook and headed further south and west, eventually ending up at a motor lodge on the shores of Lake Manapouri. The view here was arguably even better. Green mountains ringed a turquoise blue lake, with a low hill island rising from its center. Clouds skittered across the mountain tops, occasionally letting the sun shine through just so. The whole effect was magical. Amanda and I went for a walk along the lake shore. We examined the multi-colored rocks at our feet and marveled at the landscape. We discovered two rope swings attached to sturdy branches of a big tree up from the beach and laughed as we swung out and twirled around, carefree. Later that evening, we gathered with the rest of the tour group for dinner in the motel's empty cafe. Our guides are real Jacks of all trades and make most of our meals. That night, they'd set out some hors d'oeuvres for us to nibble on before dinner. Wine was passed and poured. During a lull in the conversation, we started reading the wine bottle labels aloud. Somehow, I ended up as the primary label-reader. I channeled all of my high school drama class training to make them as entertaining as possible, although they didn't need much embellishment. One of the labels described the wine as "soft and supple." Ronan, the Irishman, latched onto that phrase and asked me to repeat it, which I did in what I tried to make a sultry voice. It instantly became an inside joke with the group, repeated over and over during the evening (and the trip). "This butter is quite soft and supple." Etc. Thanks to my excellent reading and analysis of the wine labels, I was challenged to write one of my own, for a fake wine. I haven't put it to paper yet, but I have some ideas in mind. Maybe I can get a side job writing wine labels when I get back home. They will all describe the product as "soft and supple," of course.