Vino Vice - Episode One

Until a few days ago I had planned on today taking a $75 CPR & First Aid class (a refresher course for me) at the 911 Supply House in Paso Robles. However, it was cancelled a couple of days ago and rescheduled for the middle of next month. I had made the choice to sacrifice going on an exciting multi-club rockhounding excursion to Area 54 in Western Fresno County all day today in order to take that class. Therefore, I had planned on taking the field trip after all in light of this development.

Within a day of receiving that cancellation notice for the class I received a telephone call from my buddy William Buchanan who works as a supervisor at the new up-and-coming local security company Vino Vice whose focus are wine events. He asked me if I wanted to come down and work with them as a trainee at today's 31st Annual Paso Robles Wine Festival in the downtown City Park. He has been encouraging me for many months to get a Guard Card and join the team pending acceptance by the owner However, my time and money demands have not allowed for it heretofore. Billy told me if I was interested in his offer to not worry about the Guard Card for now with the caveat of picking it up later albeit sooner than later. Following today's wonderful experience and the motivation I now feel to do this again I am going to get that Guard Card ASAP once I get past college finals next week.

Today I thoroughly enjoyed myself, served the community, picked up vital experience, and hopefully impressed the team, particularly the boss and his three supervisors. It was nice seeing a good number of people I know visiting or working the event and even being recognized by one or two visitors whom I felt badly that I did not recognize, but such is having a 43 year-old's name retention ability.

View southeast from the northeast corner of Spring Street and 12th Street looking into City Park at about 8 a.m. before the vendors arrived.

View from the middle of 12th Street at Spring Street looking eastward towards Pine Street closure at the opposite end. This stretch of 12th Street was closed down for the day for the benefit of pedestrians arriving and leaving the event.

View looking southwest from the middle of 12th Street at Pine Street looking into the park at about 8:30 a.m. prior to the arrival of most vendors.

View north from the center of the park with the distinctive Acorn Building in the distance. This building was rebuilt following the 2003 San Simeon Quake which destroyed the original.

View southeast from the center of the park looking towards Park Cinemas.

View north from the center of the park with more detail of the rebuilt Acorn Building and to the left of it across Park Street from it one can see another prominent downtown building red-tagged by authorities following the quake and was rebuilt in 2005.

View southwest from in the east-center region of the park looking at the Carnegie Library Museum and showing the crowds having disbursed following the end of the event in the park at 4 p.m.

View southeast from the northwest area of the parking looking into the center of the park with the Carnegie Library Museum at right. Note that almost everybody has cleared the park by the point this image was captured.

All photos by Kim Patrick Noyes (all rights reserved).