The Delights of Japanese Cuisine Two recent experiences:

1. It's hot. You're parched. You stop and pick up a nice, big carton of grape juice. Cold...fruity...refreshing. Rushing home, you sit your sweaty self on the couch. You open the container with much anticipation and take a big gulp of what seems to be congealed milk. Isn't juice so much more refreshing when it's filled with gelatinous sludge?
2. For some fun with foreigners, select the organ in an animal that filters out all the toxins we encounter. Cut it out. Chop it into uniformly-shaped bits and serve with garlic and sesame oil. Feed it to your foreigners and laugh, for they are weak. Liver sashimi, folks. Liver sashimi.

Cow tongue, no problem. Pig intestines, okay. Even raw bacon was better than I expected. But there comes a point when a line must be drawn, my friends. A line must be drawn.

Well, I've done it. I've started a blogand added my voice to the supposed three million other blogs already out there. I'm hoping that it will provide a semi-constructive outlet for all that tends to fly around inside my head. The title, "The Wandering Aramean," is a phrase that has long resonated with me. It seems to me that many of us have a bit of this wanderer within - we perform our daily tasks adequately or even with distinction, but lack that one Life Goal that makes it all cohere. Jacob, the original wandering Aramean, was the grandson of Abraham, whom both Jews and Muslims claim as their father. Not exactly a man of noble character, he was frequently deceitful and spent much of his life fleeing the enemies he'd made as a result of his conduct. Nonetheless, he is part of the family God chose to work through. (Here's a link that summarizes his story: http://demo.lutherproductions.com/bibletutor/level1/program/start/people/jacob.htm) I can't say that I really understand why God chose to bestow such great honor on someone so undeserving. Maybe that's the whole point. Since none of us ultimately deserve to be a part of this thing that God has started, he doesn't allow the pretense. Maybe instead of being a little bit snotty because we've been chosen to be part of God's family, we should be a little bit embarrassed that God thought we needed the extra help.