bierkergaard

For Valentine's last night, Lina and I went to Josephine's Restaurant in Marietta for dinner. Quite lovely. As the website notes, " Josephine’s Restaurant, set in a 1792 log home in historic Marietta, offers fine international cuisine in a comfortable atmosphere. Exposed beams, fireplaces and classic design are joined by arrangements of fresh fruit and flowers in making guests feel at home. The menu is eclectic, changing with the seasons and designed by chef/owner, Daniel LeBoon, whose creativity and innovation are as important ingredients as the fresh foods he chooses. Also a Certified Sommelier, his wine list reflects the best up-and-coming vineyards of the world." Needless to say Lina, eats at more fine dining restaurants than I do on a monthly basis as part of her travels for Hershey. Me? I don't even eat the school lunches where I work. Even by Lina's exacting standards, this place is exquisite. New York City or Philadelphia level quality, yet only 15 mi...

One of my favorite websites, Lager & Gospel posted a new music video from one of my favorite bands "Burlap to Cashmere" called Love Reclaims the Atmosphere. Talk about a win-win! I know that defending drinking alcohol as a Scripturally-permissible practice is controversial and for good reason. Human beings have a strong proclivity towards legalism or licentiousness. Alcohol can rocket us in either direction. What can fill the space? It is what put Jesus on the Cross. LOVE. Anything less than love causes human beings to recoil from service and sacrifice. Love picks up where duty leaves off. Mere duty does not motivate us to take the nails with a plea for forgiveness for the guilty. Here is the challenge...the mere drinking or not drinking of alcohol is not the real issue. I wish it was...it would be a breeze. I'd probably be a Muslim. Sure, I will pray five times a day and make a pilgrimage to Mecca and give Alms and fast during Ramadan. Check, check, check, check....

Do you ever have a hankering for Pizza? Well, I did...for about two months and I finally did something about it. Tonight was the night...see the half-eaten pie squared. Pizza is one of those things that is not terribly complicated...flour, cheese, tomato sauce, onions, and some meat. Sausage is my pick, but bacon, pepperoni, and/or anchovies suffice. It does get hard to choose, so why not put em all on? Better to err with too much than too little. I read somewhere that Pizza is becoming the food of the world...basically cheap ingredients, easy to make, and high profits. Why break your brain writing software? The profound simplicity yet rewards of pizza first became apparent to me in college. While slogging through courses, the local pizza joint owner in town tooled around in a new blue Mercedes. I remember having some second thoughts about the benefits of the books versus the box. I am sure he derived some sense of satisfaction of us college students eating out of his hand while hi...

As part of my quest to halt my cold, I did some research of strategies to reduce the chances of catching one. I was surprised to learn that the moderate consumption of alcohol on a daily basic (about two drinks), greatly reduces the chance of getting a cold, as well as reducing the likelihood of many other diseases. Well, OK, give me a beer, I guess. See this link on the benefits of drinking alcohol in moderation . Human nature tends to want to distill issues to simple "yes" or "no" categories. Whenever we exist in the undifferentiated and unclear middle, it can be disconcerting to have to reason through the pros and cons. There are clearly attitudes and actions that are always wrong; there are other attitudes and actions that are always right. Then, there is the middle ground of "maybe and depending." I think evangelical Christians have wasted a great deal of credibility in making things yes or no, where the Bible gives some latitude. Drinking alcohol ...

Man, how does one follow up on a blog about leprosy and ingratitude? Crawl back from the edge Bierker. Since Lina wasn't feeling well on Friday night and neither was I (for I had been sick and had infected her with my durable cold), I decided to take her for her favorite soup at the best Vietnamese restaurant in Lancaster, whose name is so long and Viet/French complicated, that I just call it "The Vietnamese Place Across From Clipper Stadium." The Asian cuisine in Lancaster, and Asian culture in general, is lacking as a rule. Yet, there is one exception. Due to the generosity of Central Pennsylvania people, churches, and ministries in the 1970's, a hefty number of Vietnamese refugees settled here in the aftermath of the Vietnam War. The Vietnamese culture and food relatively thrive here and it has been a great comfort to my ethnically Taiwanese/Chinese ancestored wife. She is also an full-blooded American woman who loves a good Rib-Eye Steak but her soul food is Asia...