The Warring of Desire

Two Sides:

The side of faith, trust, obedience to law, of eyes gazing upward, of thoughts extending beyond the present towards an eternity totally unknown to the faithless.

The side of emotion, letting go, obedience to myself, of eyes gazing inward, of thoughts grounded in the moment being totally validated by a culture of lost souls.

Each and every one of us upon reading these words can identify in some way or another.

Those who are not saved will not understand what I am referring to because for you, only one side exists. If any of those words in the first side spoke to you and you do not know Jesus Christ as your Savior, then be glad because that means the Holy Spirit has already begun to work within you.

However, if the second side is how you perceive your reality, then I pray that you will find Jesus soon for it will only lead you toward loss and suffering greater than anything you might be able to imagine.

Two Sides:  God’s side or Man’s side. You choose! Paul put it this way in Romans:

Romans 7:18-25 For I know that in me (that is, in my flesh) nothing good dwells; for to will is present with me, but how to perform what is good I do not find. For the good that I will to do, I do not do; but the evil I will not to do, that I practice. Now if I do what I will not to do, it is no longer I who do it, but sin that dwells in me. I find then a law, that evil is present with me, the one who wills to do good. For I delight in the law of God according to the inward man. But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members. O wretched man that I am! Who will deliver me from this body of death? I thank God--through Jesus Christ our Lord! So then, with the mind I myself serve the law of God, but with the flesh the law of sin.

As a Christian I struggle with doubt and fear as a direct result of this warring in my soul. The question of What If remains at the forefront of my mind at all times until I receive a momentary distraction through television, conversation, food, and any other good gift that God has given me that I have abused to satisfy my own cravings and fears.

Fear.

Am I afraid or do I fear? You know what’s interesting about being afraid and fearing something. One is an action verb and the other is a state of being. Puts fear into perspective doesn’t it? You have a choice. You can choose to give in to fear. Sometimes we don’t even know what we are giving into and we do it naturally because we don’t know any better. Man, that sucks! Wouldn’t it be nice if when we responded to something out of a gut instinct it would be the “right” reaction? Sadly, sin has crept itself into even the very core of our instincts so that we respond against God instead of for Him.

So what do we do? Learn from Paul and Praise the Lord that He has forgiven those sinful instincts and given us the opportunity through the Holy Spirit to learn from our sins and turn ourselves towards Christ and His grace.

You want to know what fear looks like. Something like this:

Have you ever asked yourself the question What if? What if I had taken a different job? What if I had married someone else? What if I had been born in a different family? What if I was born in a different country? Who would I be? Why am I who I am today?

What if every decision that we make has a consequence? What if those consequences are real? What if with every word that we speak we are shaping ourselves and others? What if I never got the chance to speak to that person again? What if all of these questions are wrong? What if there are no consequences? What if there is no reason?

Do you know what the common thread between each of these questions is? Doubt and Fear.

I find the insurance industry utterly fascinating because it works off of one pre-supposition: What If? All around the world millions of people have purchased insurance just in case. Someone a very long time ago suggested the idea of insurance and in so doing created not only an extremely marketable business model, but also entrapped us all into paying thousands of dollars every year out of fear. Is insurance good? I would venture to say no. Is insurance necessary? Today, I would sadly say yes.

I ask myself every single day What If? Why me? Why this?

Why has God made me the person that I am and not something else? Why have I experienced the things that I have and not others? Why has God structured my life in such a way so that I do certain things but not others?

I have seen specific events occur in my life that have drastically shaped who I am and I know what the opposite result would have been had those events not occurred. What does that mean? It means there are two sides and my life reflects of the side that I have chosen most often. Does that mean I have always chosen God’s side? By no means! But in terms of the large scale scope of events in my life, I have turned away from giving into my natural desires for doing the harder thing more often than not.

And yet.

These two words haunt me through film and music every day. Why you ask? Because every time I see a movie or hear a song that talks about giving into those desires, expressing who you are, being true to yourself, and living with no regrets, I fall victim to the onslaught of the other side and ask myself, “is it really worth it?” Is it worth it to choose God’s side and not my own?

Honestly, if I were not a Christian, I would probably have pursued going to college at a secular institution like U of M and would probably be seeking to make a career or something like it on Broadway. The instinct to sing and dance at all times is a very natural one to me. The idea of expressing the human experience through voice, instruments, dance, and all other forms of artistic expression is one of the most natural and understandable things in the entire world to me.

I might be the least scientific person in the entire world. I got a C- in Bio 1-0-Stupid. But the idea of expressing one’s self through some sort of physical action is almost more natural to me than breathing.

I look back on my life and I see how the college that I chose truly shaped who I am today in such an incredible way. Similarly, I also see how my grandfather’s death when I was 11 and the depression that lasted for 3 years afterwards also tremendously affected me.

Why do I play the violin? Why do I speak French? Why do I love pizza so much? Did god really have all of these things in mind for me? In my mind I know the answer is yes. And yet, (there are those damned words again) in my heart I know I question it. It is in my heart that my questions and doubts and fears lie. Not in my mind. The heart is the fountain of all things deceitful to me.

Trying to give it away is the most arduous and difficult thing for me to do. I desire in my mind and in a portion of my heart to give my heart in love to God. to fall in love with my Savior day after day and rest in His arms of grace that protect and guide me until the day when I will be called into His kingdom and will enter with tears of complete and utter joy as all of the burdens of this life and warring of my soul has ended. When God’s side will have won and Man’s side will have lost. Where the Creator retains forever that which He has created.

But until that day comes I will continue to war. The warring in my heart and soul and mind will continue day after day. I will doubt. I know I will. I will sin. I know I will. But, (perhaps some have argued is the greatest word in the Bible) I will not change sides. My choice has been made. There is no turning back. I will want to turn back and in the process of always changing direction might become dizzy, but Praise the Lord that His Holy Spirit it right there to stop me from spinning to refocus my thoughts, attitudes, and actions towards Christ again.

Lord, I pray. Do a good work in me. Not for my sake, but for Your Name. That name that is above all other names: Jesus Christ. Amen!

The Plan

Let's talk about "The Plan."

Originally my plan had been to write frequently on this blog about my love of music, wine, food, and occasional observations about working in the food service industry. That plan hasn't panned out quite as I had intended.


Intended though. Has anything in our lives truly been accomplished as we "intended" it? I intended to graduate from Hillsdale College in the spring of 2010 with a music major in violin performance. That did happen....sort of. Although I had finished my music major by graduation what I had not intended when I began my degree in the fall of 2006 was to add a French major and a German minor. In fact, learning both French and German were at the very bottom of my priorities list. The only reason I actually took French in the first place is because of my inane desire to be a non-conformist and NOT take Spanish like everyone else, and I couldn't stand the sound of German.

Now look at me. Looks at where my intentions got me. Not only taking both French and German but giving up on a career as a violinist all together (as occupation not avocation) and reminiscing on 6 months passed in Europe just this time last year. So what does this tell me? The obvious answer is that we are not in control. Solomon says it best. Proverbs 16:9 "A man's heart plans his way, But the Lord directs his steps."

In other words, each of us has intentions about where our lives will go and where we desire for it to go, but ultimately it is the Lord who governs our paths. Here's the interesting part to me. Whenever I make a plan, I stick to it as if my life depended on it. A bullheadedness that I am sure I got passed down genetically from one of my parents. When I put my mind to something it becomes my overarching goal in all of my actions. Even now, in writing this I am trying to better understand my goals through processing them in words.

And yet, as I consider the plans that I have made in my life for where I wanted it to be and where I would like to see it go, I can safely say, I have no idea.

Seriously. Do I still have desires for what I would like to accomplish? Of course! Have I lapsed into some sort of apathy? By no means! Rather, I am beginning to understand "The Plan."

I have either heard or heard  two or three sermons references in the past week that each made the same point. Each used different words but the truth is the same: There is no Plan B.

When discussing the issue of The Fall and sin and why God allowed Adam and Eve to sin many theories over the centuries have developed. But each of the false ones fall short in one critical arena. They all assume that God screwed up and had to make a new plan that involved Jesus dying on the cross. We were made perfect and we were intended to be perfect for all of eternity, and then something slipped up and either man plunged us into sin, or God allowed us to be plunged therein. Either way, both of these presuppositions assume that God is NOT sovereign and that He somehow adjusted His plan after man sinned.

But that is simply not true. There was never a Plan B. It was, is, and always will be Plan A!

This is not only comforting theologically, but practically as well. Something I am learning most Reformed believers struggle at grasping. I don't mean to criticize, but as a child of the Reformed tradition I have seen in how many ways my fellow Reformed brothers and sisters fail to live out practically the truths we theologically understand. We turn everything into a theological test and as long as we have an answer that retains our apologetic, we are satisfied. For all intensive purposes, we allow our theological understanding to turn us into Super-Calvinists. Although we don't believe that to be true, our actions would speak to the contrary.

What I have seen, however, is many non-Reformed believers who actively pursue holiness and imitation of Christ on a practical and humble level every day of their lives in a way that I have never seen in the Reformed community. I have been both humbled and convicted by these faithful witnesses of Christ as they demonstrate in thought, word, and deed how Christ has changed them forever and there is no turning back.

I believe that part of my obsession with the plan comes from my Reformed upbringing. Some Reformed believers use having a bullet-proof apologetic as a means to appear as if they are in control. That they have a knowledge that will ultimately protect them from the uncertainties of life and the struggles of faith that each person will go through in this life. We allow our answers to every questions keep us from turning to God in true faith because our faith is found in words and logical conclusions, not a heart that is humbly and fearfully clinging to the Cross of Christ.

This has also been how I have looked at the plan of my life. Whenever I hear someone say, "I have no idea what I am doing, and I am ok with that." Although not my first reaction, upon further thought, I realize that I am saying to myself, "Wow! I'm glad I'm not that guy."

What a sick and prideful response. I must be a sinner or something? But it's true. I do think in those terms because I fear not having a plan. I fear not knowing the direction of my life or where God is leading me. Of course this doesn't mean that I sit around and simply pray saying,"God give me direction." And then just wait for an answer. It doesn't work that way. Neither does it always go according to the plan that we believe God has laid out for us.

We can't just sit around and we can't spontaneously just jump into new life changing circumstances either. We must ask for counsel, prayerfully consider the consequences of the potential change, but most importantly, move forward in faith. It's never easy stepping out in faith, and yet I have never looked back in my life and said, "Man, that step of faith was totally not worth it." It's ALWAYS worth it!

Whether not giving up on a seemingly hopeless friendship, trekking across Europe by myself, or entering a new job with no former experience, Christ has guided every step by His amazing grace!

Sometimes I forget about that. I forget the amazing grace that is constantly working within me and in which I can rest, knowing that all things work for good for those who love God and are called according to His purpose. But it's always there working within me, even when I don't think it is.

Seeing the big picture is an essential part of planning as well. Trying to imagine hat my life would be like in 5,10,15,20,30, or 40 years and how my actions now will affect those later years. But God calls us to think even beyond that. In one of the most incredible books I have ever read, K.P. Yohanan calls every Christian to Live in the Light of Eternity. To understand that not only do our actions reflect our futures here on Earth, but that we are called to commit ourselves to Christ's Kingdom in Eternity and that is our true purpose for living on this planet for the short period of time that we are here.

My plan has been to pursue a career in Christian Counseling by going to Westminster Theological Seminary to pursue a Masters of Divinity with an emphasis in Counseling and study under men such as Ed Welch, David Powlison, Paul Tripp, and Timothy Lane. But I don't know if that's where God is calling me. It's been sort of a safe bet for me to go to seminary for the past year or so. I thought to myself, I don't have a sense of direction, but at least I know that in Seminary I'll be glorifying God better than I am here and that must be the best thing, right? Right?

I'm now starting to think that may not be true. Maybe it was simply a defensive diversionary tactic in my mind. Playing it safe rather than taking the hard way. I still don't know.

I ask myself all the time, "Ok, God. How are you putting all of these things together?" Christian Counseling seemed logical to me. It seemed to make all of the pieces fit together in the puzzle of my life according to how I see it. But therein lies the problem. According to how I see it. The fact remains that I can't see all the pieces and I am simply trying to keep the ones that I know I have put together in some sort of cohesive state until more are revealed to me.

I like that analogy of a puzzle. It accurately depicts exactly how I try and manouvre my life. But the fact is that the puzzle will not be put together in this life. It will always be a mess of different pieces being put together in wrong places and being fixed until the day when the Puzzle Maker will put them all together exactly where they belong.

I don't know what pieces the Lord will lay in front of me next. But I do know that the pieces will all come together in eternity and that it is simply my responsibility to continue to trust in God that He is ultimately putting all of the pieces together.

I hope you all find similar peace in the plan that God has for your lives. I pray these thoughts encourage you to give up the false security of a plan conceived in your mind and give you hope and strength to cling to the plan that God has in store for you. The never changing Plan A.

Sleepless Nights...

Sadly, yet again, I have been remiss to post more often on my new blog. Although I try to not get too caught up in the whole, “I ought to post more often” thing, I am still human and like trying to keep myself accountable to my loyal fan…(s?) So dear reader it is 1am on my day off. Why am I still up, you ask? Because, I tell you, for whatever reason, sleep has decided to escape from me for the past three weeks or so. To be honest I blame my sister. She kicked me out of sleeping on the basement couch a couple weeks ago and it’s been downhill ever since.

Do you have to have the perfect or at least almost perfect sleeping arrangement in order to fall asleep? Let me assure you, I DO! I need it cold, and quiet, and with a big comforter and a supportive and yet flexible pillow. Lord willing I will one day find a wife with similar qualities.

These ideal conditions have evaded me for quite some time now. It’s like when you go back to sleeping on a twin size bed after sleeping on a full or queen size for a period of time. It requires some adjustment. Normally, I can simply position myself against the wall and it works itself out. However, this hasn’t been working lately. Similar techniques such as adopting the fetal position, obscene drinking, and children’s Nyquil have also failed.

Desperation is not becoming of anyone. Except perhaps a small puppy that just wants some love, but besides puppies, desperation is never good. And yet, this is my reality at the moment. Many people have told me that they can identify with needing sleep simply as a needed respite from the work and pressures that the day has brought upon them. During those nights I can typically force myself asleep. On nights like tonight, however, where I have practically nothing to do tomorrow besides wash my uniform and go to the bank, staying up till 3am doesn’t seem so bad except trying to stay up that late doing anything productive is an exercise in futility. And anyone who has exercised often in futility knows how futile it is and has decided to eat a sandwich instead.

Blogging and listening to music seem to be my only two sources of relief on nights like these. Tonight I happen to be streaming through the list of different songs covered by Karmin in an effort to amuse myself. Other nights I seek to educate myself by watching videos of different violinists on Youtube or opera arias sung by my favorite singers such as Natalie Dessay or Cecilia Bartoli.

Speaking of music, this week I purchased the new Maroon 5 album Hands All Over, and honestly, I really like it. I remember in high school when Maroon 5 was very popular and since then they haven’t really done much. I maybe Hillsdale just shut me off from whatever they were doing, but honestly I really like their sound that they have on this album. It’s a lot of fun and it includes a cover of Alicia Keys’ If I Ain’t Got You that is awesome! If you’re looking for a good pick me up album for your chore days or for on your way to work, I recommend Maroon 5 to you.

So my question to you is, how do you kill time like insomnia? I’ve tried reading, but honestly, something within me is repulsed by the idea of reading past midnight. Maybe it’s just bad memories from high school and college, but I want to enjoy my reading with tea or coffee with the daylight streaming in on my couch as I educate myself and pause to contemplate whilst looking out the living room window.

Perhaps I will be fortunate enough to be able to live out this picture tomorrow. Let’s hope so. I would appreciate your prayers that I might be able to find a solution to my sleepless ways. Otherwise, more late night ranting will occur. In any case, I am going to try and reading some music and follow along with a recording and hope that helps. Bruch’s Scottish Fantasy is a great piece for just such an occasion. Have a wonderful night all, and I hope that you all sleep better than I do. Ciao!

How do you spend your time?

Time. The age old vestige. Can’t really escape it. Constantly stresses us out and at some deeper level I think terrifies us all. But without getting all existential and philosophical, I would like to pose a question: What does a 23-year old do with his time? This is the question, as a 23-year old, I have been asking myself. Friends have been discussing how much they miss college and how “real life” isn’t as good as college life. Many people say their college days were their best days. Personally, I always found that to be sad. Did I make the best friends I have now in college? Absolutely! But do our friendships exist only within the framework of college? Absolutely not! We’re all going through the same stuff now that we are graduated. Granted I am not married or having a baby or teaching at some great school. But for the 4% of Hillsdale graduates, there is much to be lived for outside of college and now the question is simply, how do I live it?

So I have a job. This job is great. It pays the bills, enables me to save up a vast majority of my money for graduate school, and at the same time I can still buy great cheese, wine, and other food delicacies that make life fun and demonstrate the incredible diversity of the awesome God that we serve. But there is still more time. The job takes up about 45 hours a week when you factor in the driving time. But if I am being totally honest with myself, I sleep in till about 11 every day. Part of it is recovery from work, but a bigger part of it is simply not having anything else to do.

I remember while I was a student at Hillsdale I would wake up at 7:50AM every day leave the house by 8:45 and not come back until 1:00AM when I would slump into bed and sleep for almost 7 hours and do it all over again. For 17 hours a day I was running my butt off from one thing to the next. It was great! I am very much a workaholic I have noticed. So should I get another part time job? Is that a wise usage of my time? On top of my job I also always feel a need to be learning and therefore I have been reading books like When People Are Big and God Is Small by Ed Welch and A Quest For More by Paul Tripp. These books are part of a series that I purchased from CCEF, which is the Christian Counseling organization I desire to be a part of one day. These authors are the men I hope to study under when I go to Westminster one day soon and therefore I want to make myself as familiar with their works as possible. Since I can’t be in classes, reading their books is the 2^nd best thing.

So do I get another job? Do I focus more on reading and studying? Where does God’s Word fit into all of this? While I was living in France last year I started writing a personal Commentary on the book of Acts. It was extremely encouraging and uplifting and I have been remiss to begin writing them again out of the struggle of being a sinner that exists so strongly in my heart.

Questions of time. How to spend it. And actually having the motivation to do it. Saying to myself, do it yourself and be diligent to stay consistent with it. And of course, all of these ideas assume that there are no other distractions in my life. Like paying bills, or returning overdue movies to RedBox, or shaving on a regular basis. These all take away from the time I have as well. It would be an interesting movie to see how people would act if our time weren’t limited. Make the setting for the movie our same society and culture, but make everyone immortal. I would love to know how many chiropractors and massage therapists there would be. How often people get together for a coffee date. Why rush? There’s all the time in the world to get together and talk. Many more ideas come to mind as well, but I will leave you with those ones.

I have to go get ready for work now because sadly, my time is limited and I only had 20 minutes to write this. Happy Thursday! Ciao!

For the Love of Cheese!

 Generally with my work schedule I usually don’t blog during my days off. I work Tuesday-Saturday and therefore my Sundays and Mondays are rather precious to me in terms of spending time with people and resting and recovering. Last weekend I was able to go to Jonesville and Hillsdale and have a really nice visit with Ben Parker and some of my last remaining friends at the college who are now seniors.

This weekend however, I decided to just stay home, not really do that much. Well, not doing that much ended up turning into a lot, actually. On Sunday I met up with my friends Nathan and Amanda at church and we ended up going out for $5 all you can eat pizza and then to a really cool outdoor expo in Rochester called Arts and Apples. Lots of venders, lots of art, bands playing outside, it was great. Tons of people just walking around and you get to look and, if you have 8 trillion dollars, buy some pretty little things. I ended up purchasing this really cool drawing of Central Hall from Hillsdale with a small poem on it that will end up going next to my diploma that I finally received from Hillsdale earlier this year. It will be my personal little corner of appreciation to Hillsdale.

Yesterday Nathan and Amanda came over to my place, seeing as how I usually go over to theirs, and we decided to go to the Franklin Cider Mill. As Julie Robison and I have discussed, you don’t live in the Midwest unless your favorite season is Fall. And one of the best parts of the Fall, is Apple Cider. I remember growing up how it was one of my favorite places to go because we got to see the big old water wheel inside the mill and then go get hot doughnuts and cider and sit by the river and feed the ducks. Yesterday I made the realization that this so called river, is more like a creek and the only reason the ducks are there is because they know there is a consistent source of food.

I discovered something else there yesterday that perhaps maybe I was blind to in the past. But the Cider Mill had almost a small farmers market on their grounds. Nathan and Amanda bought an Apple Riesling Salsa that I thought sounded amazing over pork chops. I ended up purchasing two different types of cheeses. One was a butter cheese and the other a soft cheese with lots of chives and garlic that made it taste like Au Gratin potatoes without the potatoes. After picking up these cheeses and half a dozen doughnuts and a half gallon of cider, we decided to walk to the nice little park in the village of Franklin, one of the most historic villages in Michigan.

We opened the cheese, with much difficulty I might add seeing as how the only serrated utensil we had was a plastic knife, and much to our surprise realized that the two cheeses actually tasted quite delicious together and thought they would go great in fondue. Well naturally this lead to us coming back home, but not before stopping to buy a Zingerman’s Sourcream Coffeecake, and finding a recipe for fondue and Nathan using his awesome culinary skills to whip up a great fondue that we had for lunch with some chicken that mom had marinated from the night before and cooked to accompany the fondue.

After eating ourselves into food comas, we decided that the only appropriate course of action was to make coffee and watch Scott Pilgrim vs. The World. If you have never seen this movie and you are between the ages of 20-30, you might not have a soul. JK. No, but seriously. Go watch this movie! It’s hysterical. There really is no other movie like it and you will laugh the entire way through.

Well, by the time the movie was over, mom was talking about dinner and how we had steaks that needed to be cooked. Well, we needed a few more in order to have enough for everyone who was going to be around, so naturally, we went out to Plum Market to find a couple more steaks and on the way we just so happened to run into mushrooms, a sweet Hungarian Red Wine, a very sweet Michigan Late Harvest Riesling, the Best Cheese in the World, and an XO Gouda. How dare I make the claim that it was the best cheese in the world, you ask? Well, it wasn’t me. It was actually voted as the best cheese in the world in 2008. I have to tell you, they might be right. It’s a gruyere from France that has been aged for 18 months. Combined with a good baguette, it might change your life.

So we brought all of this back and had a feast of a dinner with all of cheese, steak, mushrooms, and then we grilled zucchini and mom baked some turnips. It all turned out quite stunningly and allowed for an amazing evening. Oh, I almost forgot. Dessert! We bough some day old Zingerman’s Jumbleberry pies and cut those into quarters to have with Mackinaw Island Fudge  Ice Cream. Nom Nom Nom. So delicious.

By the end of it all, I felt like I had consumed more dairy in that one day than the entire country of Sri Lanka does in a year. It was pretty intense. But cheese is so good! Sometimes I feel really bad for my friends that are lactose intolerant because it’s not their fault that their bodies can’t handle dairy. It’s the manufacturers that stuff so many extra chemicals into it that cause people to develop allergens to dairy. At times I even feel it as well. I generally don’t eat much yogurt anymore because every time I do, my stomach feels like it’s being punched in knots for hours. But cheese isn’t meant to be eaten in gratuitous fashion. It’s meant to be enjoyed for the flavor that it is with bread or jam and sometimes sandwiches. We tend to overload everything with cheese in America. We think, “This stuff is great, give me half a pound of it on my burger please!”

But in France, they eat cheese at the end of every meal like dessert. My host mom would always pull out 5 or 6 different types of cheese and say, “Est-ce que vous voulez du fromage?” Would you like some cheese? Every night the same question. Why? Because the French love cheese. And as they should. Their cheese in great!

The guy who let me sample the cheeses at Plum Market that we ended up purchasing told me he had been working there for 2 weeks. I thought to myself, this guy knows his cheese pretty well. And he probably learned all of this in the last two weeks. I could do that. I’ve been learning about wine and food pairings, cheese is a part of that, right? Just adds to the fun and the pretension. So I might try and get a job at either Plum Market or maybe Whole Foods in their cheese department so I can try and learn about cheese.

Haven’t you always wondered how they make the cheeses the way they do? How they get into the giant wheels? Where they age them and at what temperature? There are so many questions about cheese, and I am sure a whole culture as well, that I would love to become more familiar with. I’ll keep you all posted as to where that goes and hopefully have answers to those questions soon, without cheating by looking on Wikipedia.

That’s all for now. Ciao!

The Cardinall's Musick and Bad Wine

A few things to discuss this evening: Wine, Music, and Work.

I don't want to dwell too much on work on this blog, simply because I don't want it to become a means for me to complain about things that occur at the restaurant unless me recounting a story has some other redeeming purpose attached to it. 

That will not stop me from complaining though about how AWFUL the wine has been that I have been drinking lately. Maybe it's simply because I have been talking about great wines for the past 3 months at the restaurant and so it's caused a change in my palette. But I expect more out of my wine and the wine I've been drinking has just not met the standard. 

If you recall the last wine that I had talked about was a Chardonnay. It wasn't bad. But it really wasn't great either. The Pinot Grigio that I finished last night was intentionally not mentioned upon this blog because it really isn't worth mentioning besides to say that it paired very well with the Triple Layer Chocolate Mousse Cake that I brought home from the restaurant for my Mom for her 60th birthday last night. I have been saving a bottle of Sauvignon Blanc thinking that it would be the best of the three white wines I had left of the collection I had bought from WineInsiders. 

And the result....the worst of the three. It's pretty awful. Considering that Sauvignon Blanc is a more complex wine for a white. This is pretty lacking. Pretty much nothing on the nose and then it tastes like a buttery water when it's in your mouth followed by a few notes of citrus at the end. I'm sorry, but who designs a wine and says, "I want this to taste as if I had both butter and water in my mouth at the same time."? I'm sorry. NOBODY! That's an awful combination. I might have to just pour the bottle out and buy some vodka or something just to get the flavor of the wine out of my mouth and help me forget that this wine ever happened. *As I take another sip.* Nope....still pretty bad. Oh well. I am gonna finish the glass quickly and quietly and try and pretend like it never happened. 

Something I DO want to remember though is the CD I got in the mail today. For those who don't know, I am absolutely infatuated with Renaissance music. Anything by Willian Byrd, Palestrina, Josquin Du Prez, or Thomas Tallis I will pretty much love. It's just that great! The Tallis scholars have been one of my favorite groups to listen to because their harmonies are outstanding and their interpretation is light and true to the style of the period. 

Today I received my cd of  Allegri's Misere Mei Deus and The Early Music of Rome as sung by The Cardinall's Musick. For those who aren't familiar with the Cardinall's Musick, which I wouldn't blame you if you weren't, however, they were recently named by England's Gramaphone magazine to be the #3 choir in the world. In comparison, the Tallis Scholars were named #11. I thought to myself, there is no way that there are 10 choirs in the world that are better than the Tallis Scholars. Then I heard them sing. And I was BLOWN away. 

Their harmonies were even tighter than the Tallis Scholars and the richness of sound coming from the men in the choir was stunning in comparison with the Tallis Scholars. Just more power, better intonation, and stunning harmonic understanding. The only negative I can say about the first CD of theirs that I purchased was that the women on the CD were just not as strong as the men. The harmonies were still incredible, but it was something that I noticed every time I listened. The women for the Tallis Scholars were top notch, while the men for the Cardinall's Musick were top notch. Just a matter of preference I suppose. 

Well, boy have they fixed that problem on this latest cd. The cd features as it's feature work Gregorio Allegri's Misere Mei Deus which is one of the most famous Renaissance pieces out there. For those are relatively familiar with Renaissance music, it's the one that repeats five times and the soprano jumps up to a high C for each verse in stunning fashion. 

Now mind you, I have heard multiple recordings of this work with the soprano part being sung by both women and young boys, but none compare to the soprano the Cardinall's Musick has singing with them on this recording. It's really quite remarkable lately. I was listneing to it on my way home this evening from work and thinking to myself, "There's not way that is actually humanly possible!" Of course it's possible that they tampered with the sound in editing, but I don't think that is what has happened with this CD. I think the Cardinall's Musick has something remarkable happening with them and it's this. They are trying to use the unison sound of their voices to imitate an organ. Yes, an organ. I had never considered it before, but the organ has a very pure sound to it. It's often too much for my ears. Although I can appreciate the majesty of the instrument and historically the role that it has played in music, it's just a lot for me to handle. 

But when a choir is so in tune that they sound like an organ they are doing something truly incredible. They turn every piece they sing into an absolute musical gem. If you love the sound of early and Renaissance music, I highly encourage you to get this cd. It's absolutely wonderful! I look forward to listening to it every day going to and from work for the next few days and becoming more intimately acquainted with it. 

That's all I have for now. I suppose two posts in one day will hopefully make up for the lack of posts from some other days. Ciao for now!

Sticking Out in the Biz

Keeping this blog going consistently can be tough. I remember when I was in Europe how much easier it was to blog about everything almost everyday because I was spending so much of my time just soaking in my surrounding and thinking about it in literary terms and how I would describe it all on my blog.

I don't really see myself doing that anymore. I don't really walk into work and say, "As my slip-proof black leather shoes grip the floor and the smell of roasting bacon and raw chicken soaks itself onto my uniform vest making me irresistable to rabid dogs and raccoons alike, I see my Bengali coworkers and think, 'how do you say hello in Bengali?'"

These things don't really happen. They are part of the everyday grind and don't really stick out. What sticks out is the customer that walks in wearing a dress that shows the rolls of back fat that she has and then complains about everything not being absolutely perfect and looking for a way to get free stuff.

This is sadly what has become the norm at my restaurant. A lot of people looking for a reason to not have to pay for their meal or if they do have to pay for their meal, how to get the most free stuff on top of the check where they will leave a 5% tip.

I can't tell you how refreshing it is though when you have a table that is remarkably nice. They love everything. They appreciate every step of service that we take, and when we make their night special by offering them a complimentary dessert for their birthday and write "Happy Birthday" on the plate in raspberry icing and simply add a candle, they light up and then leave you a 30% tip.

Naturally, I don't expect that to be the norm. But I will tell you that customers that really appreciate what the restaurant does truly does make a big difference. Here's why.

Ultimately, my coworkers and I are all salesmen. And everyone knows that in order to be a good salesman you have to believe in the product that you are selling. At my restaurant this is very easy. The meat is absolutely outstanding and we offer an atmosphere of class and fun in a very specific way that most other restaurants don't come close to touching. This helps each of the employees to take pride in the work that they are doing because they know that they are part of something special. They are part of making someone's evening memorable. Helping them to try something new, to learn something, and maybe create a wonderful memory.

Honestly, it's not about the return customers for me. It's not about offering them the best experience so that they come back over and over again. It's about those few minutes that I have with that table to make an impression on them. It's my chance to say to them, "You want to have an amazing time? Let's do it!" And it's fun!!! When something goes wrong like when a table has to order 5 different wines before they finally find one that we actually have in stock, you don't consistently apologize over and over as if I had done something wrong. There was nothing I could do about the wines being gone. So by the time they finally get their wine and they take that first sip, it's truly a victorious moment to see the look of satisfaction cross their face.

It's all in the details. The details make the largest difference in the world at a restaurant like ours. And I pride myself in paying a lot of attention to the details that are written all over my customer's faces.

It's part of the reason I want to get into counseling actually. God has given me a gift where I can read people very easily. I can see when someone just wants to be left alone and when they want to talk some more purely by instinct. It makes a huge difference in the restaurant because you begin to be able to know what's going to get you the bigger tip.

We have a server who will get a tip off of one table of $100 probably once a week. This has happened to me I think once or twice in the three months that I have worked there. Why does it happen to him more frequently? Maybe it's luck of tables. But I think it's something more than that.

I think he sees who is going to be paying the check, and he does whatever he can to make sure that they are impressed. He's looking for the guy that wants to get laid and is willing to pay $300 on a dinner to help him. He will buy the wine that is $150 and then this server will compliment him on his choice and tell the lady what great taste the guy has, thus impressing her and making a larger impression on her for the rest of the evening.

Hate to say it. But this is how it goes. I know because I've seen it. I've had those tables myself and I don't help him. I will recommend a nice bottle of wine and tell the gentleman that the two of them will really enjoy the bottle. But I don't look at any particular male customer and think, "I'll help you out if you help me out." This whole, "I'm gonna get mine" mentality is not at all why I am working as a server.

That's not to say that I don't work hard to get a good tip. But I use the rules of courtesy and good service in order to get that tip, not an overarching sense of greed for money or sex.

These things stick out though. Every server has their ways. Perhaps another time I'll mention how girls will consistently get better tips than guys, especially if their attractive. It's just a fact of life.

In the meantime though, I will continue to do my job to the best of my ability knowing that consistency will ultimately win out. It plays a much larger role than we recognize and I believe that it plays a large kingdom role as well. It demonstrates to those who have eyes to see that we need to be looking at things with a big picture mentality. With eyes looking towards eternity and God's kingdom glory. That's the point. And that's what I hope sticks out.

Ciao!

Work and Creativity

Dear Reader,

I am sorry I have been remiss in my writing for the past few days. My work schedule makes it so when I get a day off I try to visit with real people, as opposed to those virtual friends I hold so dear.

Last night, I finally finished the bottle of the River Crest Vintner’s Chardonnay that I had been working on for over a week. So glad that bottle is finally over.

I was glad that last night is over as well. As I have mentioned before, the restaurant industry can be tremendously inconsistent and the past two days have proven this. Tuesday was pretty slow until 9 o’clock when we had about 40 people come in totally unexpectedly. And last night we had over 200 people in the restaurant and yet I still didn’t get many covers.

It’s hard sometimes in the biz because everyone complains nonstop and therefore, I relate to everyone on these terms. We talk about how we didn’t get enough covers. Or a manager wasn’t there when we needed them, or a busser, or there weren’t enough napkins. There’s always something. And this is sadly how we all relate. It’s just a little sad to me sometimes. Of course it’s not the only way in which we relate. When we have a slow night we have an opportunity to talk about stuff going on in our minimal lives outside of the restaurant. In fact, we are talking about going to a Lion’s game when they play on Monday Night Football if we can get tickets. Not sure what the chances are, but it would be fun to go and watch the game and just hang out during a day when we aren’t all working.

In other news, I just finished a great book. It’s called A Quest For More by Paul David Tripp. This book’s premise is simply this. You have been designed by God for much more than your own life. Something greater and bigger than your own dreams and desires. He then talks about what this looks like in terms of kingdoms. When you live your life only for yourself and for your dreams and desires, you limit your satisfaction and contentment to your own life. Essentially it’s like a box and saying, “This box is my life. When I have accomplished these things, then my box will be complete and I will be happy and satisfied.”

What Paul Tripp does so well is to point out that this is instinctively what every single human does because of sin. And as a result we engage in warfare with God because God is inviting us into His Kingdom and we are settling for our own. We think that our kingdom goals and pursuits will satisfy us, when in reality, it will only leave us totally empty and searching even more fruitlessly.

In one of the chapters Tripp makes an incredible analogy to Jazz music. In Jazz music the musicians are given a set of rules and a key signature and a time signature. However, the notes are left totally up to their own creativity and how they respond to what the other musicians are doing. What’s amazing about this is that God’s plan for humanity works exactly the same way. He has given us the key and time signature and the framework that we can work with. But when everyone else is playing in E Major and you decide to start playing in A-Flat. Of course it’s not going to be pleasing to the ears. This is exactly what we do when we live outside of God’s Law. We typically view the laws that God has given us as a negative. As a set of rules constraining us. But do Jazz musicians get upset because they are playing in E Major? Of course not. It’s the music that they have been given and they will make the most of it that they can.

We don’t look at God’s Law as a means of creativity, but that’s exactly what it is. God has given us every opportunity to be as creative with giving, showing love and mercy, forgiveness as we can. It’s really amazing when you think about it in those terms.

I hope this encourages you. I will be back later with more about wine and other delicious things. But until then, rest in the creativity that God has allowed you to share with the world. Ciao!

Detroit's Finest?

So let's talk about my job for a minute. Or maybe a few minutes. For those who don't know, I am currently employed at a Brazilian steakhouse in downtown Detroit. For the sake of my career I have decided to not name any names of anyone at the restaurant as well as refrain from keeping the name of the restaurant off of this blog.

However, this will not stop me from talking about some of the intricacies and sometimes consistent frustrations of being a server in Detroit. Here's the thing. For those of you actively seeking employment I offer one small piece of advice: If you need the approval of others, don't become a server! You will come across so many inconsistencies and scenarios that you could never write them all down.

Imagine if this blog were entirely dedicated to me talking about every single customer I had every night. You would not want to read this. Of course there are customers that are rare exceptions, (Mr. Drooly Man, so named for having drooled on the floor of the salad area while I got him some salad dressing. A.k.a. "That weird guy" by my manager.) But the sheer number of inconsistencies is absolutely remarkable.

Here's how it works and then why frustration begins to develop. Essentially based off of how the table looks, dresses, acts, interacts with you, and speaks, you can pretty much make an accurate estimation of how much they are going to tip you. Mind you, this restaurant has as it's starting price for dinner $39.99 so  20% of a bill of two dinners that's $84.78 with tax is about $16. Of that $16, I get 50% if it's a credit card tip, and about 85% if it's cash. So just off of 2 dinners I can get about ten bucks. Say I get 30 dinners in one night, I could make upwards of over $150. Not bad for a server. Particularly one who has never served in a restaurant before.

However, there are always going to be cases where people stiff you and leave you nothing, or almost next to nothing. It's awful to say, but sometimes when a party walks in, you pray to God that they get sat in someone else's section so that you can get the other table that hopefully won't stiff you because they look "normal."

But even these stereotypes fail as well. Judging a book by its cover has never been 100% accurate. Nor will it ever be. Of course there are some factors that will indicate that they probably won't tip you very well. Some people consider the restaurant to be like a really high end All-You-Can-Eat-Buffet and think, "I don't tip at the buffet. Why would I tip here?" Other people are just jerks. And still others are Germans who don't know that servers only make $2.65 an hour here in the USA.

In Germany, if you give anywhere from 5-10% in a tip, it's considered generous. Extra spending cash that goes straight into their pocket. Not the case here in the US. We need our tips. So when my two Germans tonight end up with a bill of $144 between the two of them and then leave me $150 total. It can get irritating.

Here's why. You do your absolute best to not only offer exceptional service, but to stick out in their mind as an amazing server who has done their best to try and impress you so that you recognize the work that your server is doing and give them a little bit extra on the side.

We are referred to as "The Best Servers in Detroit" Or as I like to think of it, "Detroit's Finest!" Within these two subtle words lies a double entendre, one of my favorite things in the entire world. In the restaurant industry, to walk into a restaurant and say, "Give me Chicago's Finest, New York's Finest, or Detroit's Finest," is a really fancy way of saying, "I'll just have tap water."

Sometimes I feel like we are just tap water though. We do our best to be that bottle of Saratoga Natural Spring or Sparkling Water that costs $5.25 a bottle. But in reality, we are just tap water. Detroit's Finest.

Somehow though, it always seems to even itself out. It's really amazing how one table that should have given you $15 and left you $5 instead will be instantly be followed by a table that should only leave you $8 and give you $18 instead thus the two cancel each other out. Interestingly enough as well, so far I haven't had a night where it hasn't evened out, at least almost fully. I haven't had a night where everyone just screwed me over, or everyone really tipped me very well. It's always about an 18% average. And at a place like this, that's really not that bad.

With one small stipulation. You have to have covers! Covers = Customers. At the end of the night we each ask each other, "How many covers did you have?" Essentially we want to know, did you have more than me, are you going to make more money than me, and if so, when am I going to get my shot at making that much money?

Of course there are going to be those tables that walk in, absolutely love you, and leave you $120 on an $80 check. Those are the outliers though that throw off the whole system. Tuesday this past week was an outlier night. It was really amazing to see every single server walk out at the end of the night knowing they were going to be seeing over $100 on their paycheck the following Friday from that night. That never happens. Lucky tables and having a lot of people walk-in, helps with making this a reality. But yet again, this is the outlier.

Tonight was a much better example of a typical night. Where we have 11 servers on the books and the fact is, in splitting 200 covers between all of you, you are probably going to end up with somewhere around 20 and its just luck of the draw, (Or perhaps how the hostesses are feeling) for how much those covers decide to spend, and then in turn give you as a tip.

But the fact is. You never know. It's always inconsistent. You wanna know how every server story begins, "So one time I had this table..." Every table is their own story and has their own shtick. (Yay Yiddish!) I have hundreds of stories I could tell and I have only been working there for three months. I could tell you about the experience of each of my tables tonight. Tables I thought I gave awful service to, who gave me great tips, and tables I thought absolutely loved me and I did everything perfectly, and they leave me 10%.

It's totally inconsistent. "So Ben, how do you deal with all of this inconsistency without going insane?" Well Reader, thank you for asking. In fact sometimes I feel as if my sanity is totally on the brink of explosion. However, I have been trying to train myself to incorporate my mother's advice into this area of my life. "In all things, have an attitude of gratitude." When a table spends $96 and leaves $100 total. Be grateful that they paid the bill and even left you something. Of course, when you get that triple figure tip, it throws off that whole system and you start to think to yourself, "Wow! Every table is going to be like this!" Even though you know as you are thinking it that will never be the case.

It's entirely up and down. You win some and you lose some. I often think to myself. Would I prefer a salaried position where my pay wasn't determined by my performance with each customer? I honestly don't know. Somehow I think that Office Space sort of living might drive me more insane. However, I also think that the security aspect of it would be awesome. I might make $1,000 in a week. I might make $300 in a week. you just never know. But honestly, that's life. You never know. It has its ups and downs. You win some and you lose some. Here's what I have been learning though.

Some people at this point might say, "It's not about how many you win or lose, it's about the game" Or perhaps they would talk about "the journey" that makes the whole thing worth it. Allow me to say right now, that all of that is false. It's not about how many you win or lose. It's not about the game, or the journey, or whatever you want to call it. It's about knowing that you live for something bigger than the game.

You exist in an arena larger than just the game itself. You were designed by God to play His game and play it His way. It's not about your game or your perception of what the game is. It's His game, and it's going to be played exactly how He wants it to be played. So stop measuring your wins and losses, and start looking at the big picture of glorifying God in every action, thought, word, and deed.

As I drive to work every day, I find this task more and more daunting. Trying to step outside of the realm of the game, while still being a part of the game. (I know the game metaphor has been going on for a while, I'll stop soon.) It's not easy. It's constantly put right in front of you. You just have to be aware that there is more. That God intended us for more. He intended us for perfect glory with Him. And the more we focus on being conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ. The more and more we will step out of our own worlds, (games) and begin to live for the Kingdom of God.

I highly recommend (one "C" two "M's") the book A Quest For More by Paul David Tripp. It is these themes exactly of learning to get out of living for our own personal kingdoms and start learning how to live for Christ's Kingdom and His alone, that make this book so invaluable to Christians everywhere. Often we masquerade our own personal selfish kingdoms with Christian talk that makes it appear as if we are living for Christ and are wholly surrendered to Him, when in reality, Christ is but a shallow veil over our otherwise selfish lives and our perception of our needs and desires.

This book has been teaching me a lot and has really opened my mind to see how much more there really is out there in the world that God has intended us for. We were not designed to lead insignificant lives as statistics that go to work from 9-5 every day for 60 years and then die. We are meant for so much more. Surrender to Christ, and begin to see the surpassing fullness of His grace in your life and in the lives of those around you.

I hope and pray Christ blesses you this evening and always. I am going to bed! Ciao!

Why, Thursday? Why?

So it's Thursday. Normally Thursday is a decent night at the restaurant. There have actually been nights where we have had 300 covers on a Thursday. P.S. Covers = Customers in the restaurant biz. Tonight however, was not one of those nights. Rather I had 4 tables and a total of 16 customers. To be fair, considering I only had 4 tables, I did pretty well for the night. But last Thursday I thought someone was going to die at the restaurant, and tonight I was doing ok and then something set in and I felt absolutely miserable.

My boss always says, "If you don't wanna be here. That's fine. We don't want your negative attitude to affect our customers anyway." Well fortunately I was able to get through the whole night without too much of a problem. But the fact that I only had 4 tables definitely helped.  I got out of work at about 10:20, 50 minutes after we "close" to the public.

It's strange how these nights exist at the restaurant. Sometimes you are totally on your A-Game, and other nights you are totally off. For example, I know I am not supposed to eat anything that goes on the Salad Area portion of the restaurant, and tonight, directly in front of the chef, I just put something in my mouth. The sad part is, I don't even know what it was. I tasted it and it was awful. And then the residual flavor stayed in my mouth even past drinking some delicious Arizona iced tea. Not only was it in front of the chef. But it was in front of my manager as well. I just zoned out and then when my manager asked me why I did what I did, I gave the worst answer ever...."I don't know."

And it was true. I really didn't know. Somehow, the thing that I put in my mouth appeared to me to be a scallop. Do we have scallops at the restaurant? No. Have we ever had scallops? No. So why would it be a scallop? Because I wasn't thinking about the logical circumstances that were surrounding me. Rather I wasn't thinking at all and almost ruined everyone's evening because the chef has the capability of saying whether or not the employees get food at the end of the night, and things like that will make him say no.

Anywho. I was in such a frustrated mood tonight that I came home and made a really strong batch of Sangria with Merlot, Peach Schnopps, Captain Morgan Black, and Vernors. It honestly is quite nice, with the exception of the fact that it's very strong...

Here's the thing. (Normally, for those who know me quite well they know that when I say Here's the thing, a long explanation is required. I will refrain this time for the sake of your sanity and eyesight.) I am not even upset at anyone in particular, besides myself. I have been reading this amazing book called A Quest For More, by Paul David Tripp, one of the men I hope to study with at Westminster, and it's talking about how our entire lives we live believing that we are living only for ourselves and our purpose here on this Earth. When in reality, God is using each and every one of us to fulfill His kingdom purposes and when we act as if we run our own mini kingdoms, which we all do, we forget that God has designed us for something better.

Sin gets in the way.

While I was at work I was thinking heavily about this book and asking myself the question, "Am I living for my kingdom, or for God's? And naturally, because God is a loving, just, and kind God, He decided to test me. I realized that in my actions at work I was gossiping. Promoting more autonomous behavior amongst my coworkers, and having an attitude that reflected a bitterness towards not making more money, and more importantly, not finding contentment in God alone.

This of course just frustrated me further and caused me to become even more self-conscious of how much I needed to fix my attitude and why I wanted so desperately to leave work.

God's word, and those who preach it well, is tremendously challenging. Sometimes I don't feel qualified for the challenges that God puts before me. I feel totally overwhelmed and unqualified. And the fact is, I am unqualified. However, by God's grace, I know that He only allows me to go through trials that I am equipped to go through. I know that if it were too much for me to bear, I wouldn't go through the trial at all. Praise be to the loving God, who so tenderly cares for us that all of our trials are hand picked by Him according to His will, in order that we might be more and more conformed to the image of His Son, Jesus Christ. I thank God for giving me the trials that I have already gone through because I know they have made me that much more dependent on Him, and His decrees. May I ever and only cling to the Author and Perfector of my faith, Jesus Christ.

I hope that you all are encouraged by my words and know that if you have ever doubted God's personal love for you, know that He has arranged every little detail of your life. You simply need to choose to recognize Him as the provider of those details. He knows you better than you know yourself and all of your needs.

I hope this post encourages you and turns you towards prayer and Christ. Have a wonderful night. Ciao!

Showtime!

Good evening ladies and gentlemen and thank you for joining me here on this lovely August evening for the first of many posts on my new blog entitled, VinesofLight.

It took a while for me to come up with a name for a new blog because in some respects I believe that the title of the blog in some ways determines part of its character. It’s always in the author’s mind as part of the foundation that he/she has developed. My last blog, Longtimetraveller was started as a means to document the 6 months I spent living in Europe, primarily living and studying in the countries of Germany and France.

Since then, trying to find inspiration to start another blog has been difficult but restraining myself from writing has also been difficult to manage as well. I simply couldn’t find the right thing to write about. Notes on Facebook always get ignored. Emails are way to personal for something this abstract. Yet finally after a lovely visit with two very good friends who both actively blog on a regular basis, I have found inspiration to start writing again.

Some things will be consistent on this blog. I will consistently write about food, wine, music, opera, books, my restaurant job, and my faith as a Christian.

But enough introduction. Tonight there is wine being drunk, music being heard, and observations to be shared. As I write this, I am drinking a glass of River Crest Chardonnay 2010. I received this wine from WineInsiders.com when I found a $75 gift certificate for $15 on Groupon. And then put it towards a case of 12 bottles for a total of $50 including shipping. I figured at less than $5 a bottle it would be worth it.  As it turns out, the majority of the wines haven’t really been that great. But I guess you get what you pay for eh? I really enjoyed the red Zinfandel they gave me. But other than that one gem, the rest have just been ok.

The Chardonnay I am drinking tonight is one of the just ok wines. Although the nose gives off notes of green apple, the actual flavor profile reflects more peach in the wine than green apple. The wine is crisp and refreshing but very light and not complex enough for my liking. Although, this is often the case with white wines. Although not the greatest wine I have ever had, this River Crest Chardonnay 2010 would get a solid 6 of 10 in my book. Not something I would offer to impress guests, but something I would definitely enjoy by myself while writing after work like I am doing tonight.

Last summer while I was in Germany I had a very good opportunity to learn a lot about white wine while I was living in Wurzburg, Germany. Located at the northern part of Bavaria in southern Germany, the region is very “bekannt” for its white wines. Every day in the city I would look outside the city limits and see hundreds of trees filled with delicious green grapes that would become some of the best wines Germany has produced reflecting its tradition of hundreds of years of wine making in the region.

Wines like Bacchus, Silvaner, Gewurztraminer, and Riesling come from this region of Germany and are wonderfully refreshing on hot summer days with an entrée of chicken breast and mushrooms. The contrast between the heavier mushrooms and the lightness of these white wines was truly spectacular and part of the reason why I find that this River Crest Chardonnay doesn’t quite measure up. These German white wines, although relatively simple in terms of flavor, have a quality about them that enables them to compete with the stronger flavor profiles of heavier entrees.

Musically I discovered a really nice piece on the radio on my way home. Allow me to take this opportunity to share how disappointed I am with the quality of American music this summer and in general. Everything not only sounds exactly the same, but people aren’t even trying to sing anymore. They just allow everyone to autotune their voices so they sound better.

Meanwhile, in Canada, many different strands of originality in music are finding their way onto CBC2 which, because I live in southeastern Michigan we get on the radio at 89.9. Every early afternoon before I have to go to work I love listening to Peter Tonye on Tempo and then I listen to the Signal on my way home after work at about 11pm and discover some great stuff that would normally never find its way onto the mainstream radio. Tonight I found a very nice treat in the form of a piece called Lotus Eaters by Sarah Kirkland Snider, ft. Shara Worden and Signal. I’ll include a link so you can listen to it and enjoy its minimalist quality that makes late night driving such a blessing.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hi9R0ig3TTE

I love the sound of her voice. There is something abstract and almost transcendent in the quality of it. I look forward to falling asleep to it for many nights to come. J

This evening at work something truly hysterical occurred that is entirely unprecedented in my life. The result of which also resulted in something unprecedented in my life.

While going about the usual hustle and bustle of the restaurant trying to meet every customers demands as quickly as possible I happened to notice along my path one of our hostesses was talking with our general manager getting a question answered about how to handle a situation at the hostess stand. I arrived just as the conversation ended and she turned around and didn’t see me at all and we ended up chest bumping like two bros after they beat two other bros in a mid-Saturday morning basketball game. It was entirely unintentional, and entirely awkward, but the stunned look on her face when she realized what had just occurred will probably stay with me forever as she appeared to have just woken up from some drug enduced state and the first thing she said was, “Oh, I’ve left the water on…” The moment was indeed an amusing one with the only problem being that the first thing it made me think of was the movie Friends with Benefits where Justin Timberlake and Mila Kunis chest bump one another. No, I haven’t seen the movie. It was in the preview. And thus, for the first time in my life, I felt like I couple identify with Justin Timberlake. A goal I had never aspired to.

In case you didn’t know, there are real reasons why guys don’t bro hug or chest bump with girls. It’s weird. Just weird. Don’t do it. Just don’t.

And on that terribly beneficial and awkward piece of advice, I bid you adieu for the evening. I hope you enjoyed this first post. There will be many more to come, I assure you. Ciao!