The Path of Love

I choose the path of love. Pain and loss have taught me that nothing else matters and nothing else works. With humility I accept the charge that has been given: to love without exception along the long road of life, no matter where that road may lead.

Chris and Thomas

Finally the courage to produce beautiful music with powerful harmonies and sparse instrumentation. You can actually HEAR the lyrics! And what they say is transcendental, true, and not obscured by elitist pretense! A refreshing touch of warmth in a Coldplay world!

Can't wait for their next album, due some time next year. Until then, you've gotta get Land of Sea.

“Sottano” Malbec I. P. Mendoza 2004

I stopped in at Lloyd’s Liquors in Prescott on the way out to the ranch. While I was poking around, looking for a good Cabernet to go with the steaks we were cooking, the man behind the counter asked me if I like Malbec. He pointed me toward an $18 bottle that he and his friends had blind tasted against more pricey wines in the store. The price was right, so I went for it.

The 2004 Sottano Malbec is a dense ruby-purple in the glass with noticeable extraction and no visible signs of aging. Aromatics include bright red currants, cassis and cedar. Very expressive on the nose, a little like a good Zinfandel. In the mouth the wine is incredibly smooth with a lovely, mouth-coating texture. Flavors of red berries and savory herbs predominate with a characteristic roasted meat taste that I’ve come to associate with Malbec. Very harmonious and pure, and did I say smooth? Amazing stuff, really, at just under $20. I’m going to purchase four more of these, and share them with--you?

My score: 90

My New T-Shirt

By the way, this is a reference to an SNL sketch starring Will Ferrel and Christopher Walken.

The Truth of the Holidays

As the New Year descends upon us, we all feel the stress and strain of this uniquely American holiday season. Nowhere else does flagrant materialism collide so violently with forced introspection. Another way of putting it: we are compelled to focus heavily on meaningless material symbols while the spiritual nature of the season becomes commodified or covered over. The result is heightened tension within the collective psyche of all peoples. This tension bleeds over into many areas of life, forcing us to grow, or not grow, depending on our resistance to the truth.

So when you're feeling stressed out this Holiday season, remember that it's just the world asking you to give something up in order to gain the inner peace you didn't know you had.

-t