So, what would you do if you came into an unexpected $1000? In this economy, I'm certain most of us would be far more inclined to pay the bills -- or sock it away "just in case" -- than spend it on a day of food, wine and song. But imagine for a minute that you were well-off, or exceedingly generous, or both. And that you could afford to spend Saturday at the Washington Wines Festival, a benefit held on the verdant campus of Carnation Farm.

Once there, you can drink wines from 50 Washington wineries, eat fancy foodstuffs and donate your money to a seriously worthy cause: Camp Korey -- offering free, medically-supervised week-long summer camps for children with life-threatening illnesses (funds will also support the Washington Wine Education Foundation). Now, what if, come evening, you could settle in with a glass of wine and listen to the woman who recorded the first album you ever bought with your own hard-earned babysitting money as she sits at the piano singing, "Tonight you're mine, completely. You give your love so sweetly. . ."

Would you go? I would! You may beg to differ, though you might feel inclined to do so if it were Pearl Jam, or Tony Bennett, or Beyonce donating time and talent to the stage. Last year's annual Wine Weekend, with 250 in attendance, raised a 1.4 million dollars for the cause (note: tickets are $2500 for the full-weekend shindig).

Anyway, I think it sounds like a grand way to spend an "extra" grand. And maybe you'd feel the same way if you'd worn the grooves out of "Tapestry" back when you looked like this:

Nancy: a "Natural Woman" -- circa 1975 (photo: Spencer Saunders)