as i mentioned in the last post, steph and i visited the Black Bear Winery this weekend. the half hour drive along the chenango river was beautiful, and steph and i determined that we would be making the trip back out once the leaves started to change color.
once we got there, we wandered in to a picturesque log cabin style building that sits just off of the road overlooking the valley. sitting at the wine bar afforded us a great view through the full length windows, and almost made us forget we were so close to binghamton. our host, sandy, handed us each a menu and pen so we could circle which wines we wanted to sample.
Black Bear's unique claim is that none of their wines are made with grapes. instead, they use a variety of other fruits and flowers that are native to new york. Black Bear Winery is a great place to visit if you love wine and fresh air!
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Saturday, September 11, 2010
MEAD!
i started my very first batch of mead this weekend. the yeast seems to have started nicely, and i'm looking to rack in 3-4 weeks. it should be about ready to sample around christmas time.
steph and i are about to take a visit uo to tour the Black Bear Winery in Chenango, NY. i'll be posting about our visit, and you can also expect more on mead soon!
steph and i are about to take a visit uo to tour the Black Bear Winery in Chenango, NY. i'll be posting about our visit, and you can also expect more on mead soon!
Monday, August 9, 2010
the colors of my life.
blueprints, black ink
white dress, silver ring
red brick and trim.
these are the colors of my life.
white dress, silver ring
red brick and trim.
these are the colors of my life.
Friday, February 5, 2010
question of the day?
this question crossed my mind this morning as i was perusing real estate listings.
'does language have meaning or does meaning have language?'
let your mind play with that one a bit, and maybe post what you come up with.
'does language have meaning or does meaning have language?'
let your mind play with that one a bit, and maybe post what you come up with.
Tuesday, February 2, 2010
the liturgy of sport
people often question how the two passions in my life - theology and sport - coincide. as a result i have done a lot of thinking about the integration of sport into the liturgy of the covenant community. here is my thesis:
“Knowing God – having an appropriately awe-filled yet intimate relationship, or partnership with the creator, redeemer of Israel, and sovereign of the universe – is and was the life goal of faithful Jews.” It could easily be added that this is also the life ambition of faithful Christians. As the faithful, we pursue such communion with God via liturgy; that is, by engaging in certain actions with the purpose of drawing us into the presence of God. This paper will then argue that sport is a legitimate liturgical expression by providing a discussion on the definition and history of liturgy and by demonstrating that sport not only adequately satisfies “liturgical criteria” but in fact allows human beings to creatively involve themselves in an act of worship that reaches far beyond the emotional catharsis, existential validation, or intellectual assent that is so often the motive of worship.
i won't bore you with the rest, but i found both an encouraging and stimulating study and hope it has piqued your interest as well.
“Knowing God – having an appropriately awe-filled yet intimate relationship, or partnership with the creator, redeemer of Israel, and sovereign of the universe – is and was the life goal of faithful Jews.” It could easily be added that this is also the life ambition of faithful Christians. As the faithful, we pursue such communion with God via liturgy; that is, by engaging in certain actions with the purpose of drawing us into the presence of God. This paper will then argue that sport is a legitimate liturgical expression by providing a discussion on the definition and history of liturgy and by demonstrating that sport not only adequately satisfies “liturgical criteria” but in fact allows human beings to creatively involve themselves in an act of worship that reaches far beyond the emotional catharsis, existential validation, or intellectual assent that is so often the motive of worship.
i won't bore you with the rest, but i found both an encouraging and stimulating study and hope it has piqued your interest as well.
Sunday, January 31, 2010
glory.
I am guilty, as are so many Christians today of missing the theological significance of the “glory” of our God. It seems that it is often construed as nothing more than a sort of greatness that elicits praise and adoration. This, while certainly being true of our God, fails to recognize the manner in which His greatness has been established and proclaimed throughout the Old Testament.
As I come to understand that God’s glory is rooted in who He is as not only a being of great importance but in fact as the Supreme being in the universe I am led to the idea of what it means to “fear the Lord.” The shear awesomeness of God is both dangerous and good at the same time. This is illustrated in Ezekiel when the “glory of the Lord” departs from the temple and later returns.
Further deepening this idea of “glory” is that YHWH has no equal. Indeed, YHWH has no one mortal or divine that can challenge Him. He is without rival in the cosmos. When He is challenged, like when the Philistines placed the ark (representative of His glory) in front of their god Dagon, He exercises His superior power causing Dagon to topple over and bow before Him.
This is the God that we serve; a terrible, powerful, dangerous, jealous God that demands our allegiance and our worship. And yet in the midst of all that “heavy”, “holy”, and “harsh” glory we also come in humble adoration to glory Him who while able to dominate, instead bowed low and was born a babe in a manger and who humbled himself unto an incapacitating death on a cross.
As I come to understand that God’s glory is rooted in who He is as not only a being of great importance but in fact as the Supreme being in the universe I am led to the idea of what it means to “fear the Lord.” The shear awesomeness of God is both dangerous and good at the same time. This is illustrated in Ezekiel when the “glory of the Lord” departs from the temple and later returns.
Further deepening this idea of “glory” is that YHWH has no equal. Indeed, YHWH has no one mortal or divine that can challenge Him. He is without rival in the cosmos. When He is challenged, like when the Philistines placed the ark (representative of His glory) in front of their god Dagon, He exercises His superior power causing Dagon to topple over and bow before Him.
This is the God that we serve; a terrible, powerful, dangerous, jealous God that demands our allegiance and our worship. And yet in the midst of all that “heavy”, “holy”, and “harsh” glory we also come in humble adoration to glory Him who while able to dominate, instead bowed low and was born a babe in a manger and who humbled himself unto an incapacitating death on a cross.
Friday, January 8, 2010
alexander is dead.
alas, alexander the mallard, the faithful heart and soul of my truck is dead.
named after the late alexander fenson, the mallard duck faithfully accompanied me on many cross country journeys. he is still affixed to the dash of the s-10 and has been recorded saying that he will go down with his ship. no has had the heart to persuade him that the s-10 was not a 'ship.'
sometime within the next month the s-10 is slated for the junkyard, barring purchase by another party.
R.I.P. alexander. you will be missed.
named after the late alexander fenson, the mallard duck faithfully accompanied me on many cross country journeys. he is still affixed to the dash of the s-10 and has been recorded saying that he will go down with his ship. no has had the heart to persuade him that the s-10 was not a 'ship.'
sometime within the next month the s-10 is slated for the junkyard, barring purchase by another party.
R.I.P. alexander. you will be missed.
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