Happy New Year!

Posted inHolidays
I don't have too many wild New Year's Eve stories. My wife tends to enjoy smaller, more quiet celebrations. Since we have been together since 1992, that covers a good…

I Want To Go To There

Posted inAmerica, TV
I have to give my friend Dave Lifton (via Liz Chang) the credit for this one. What a way to bring out my M*A*S*H obsession. Growing up, my family watched…

Out of Gas

Posted inColumns, Making an Idiot Out of Myself

I had a few things I wanted to accomplish on the first Sunday of December. I had a few errands to run, a meeting to attend, and I wanted to take a nap before the Ravens and Steelers played that evening.

But it would all start with a trip to church in the morning. I had a good feeling as we braved the cold and jumped in the car. That good feeling lasted less than a few minutes.

We neared the intersection of Middle and York streets when the car sputtered. I had no inkling anything was wrong. I cranked and cranked the ignition with no positive results. This was not how I envisioned my day going.

A Grand Theatre Indeed

Posted inMusic
I wanted to include video I shot with this post, but that will have to wait until later. I did include someone else's file at the bottom and will add…

Happy Holidays – Like It Or Not

Posted inColumns, Holidays

As each day gets us closer to Christmas, I enjoy this season more and more. Not the season of giving or the season of celebrating. The season of annoying people who don’t like Christmas or things associated with this time of year.

Now I know some people may have real and legitimate reasons for dreading this time of year. Maybe they have real turmoil in their family or are reminded of a death of a close relative. They have every reason in the world to take a pass on Christmas cheer.

But then there are the rest. Boy, do I love letting them know how awesome Christmas really is. I mean, do I love letting them know how awesome the holiday season is because I know how not calling it Christmas drives them nuts.

Peanut Butter Burger

Posted inColumns, Food, Travel

One summer in college, I went to Los Angeles to spend the week with a few friends. One of them helped open my eyes to the many wonderful uses of peanut butter.

I had only believed that you could use peanut butter for sandwiches and crackers until this point. Shawn showed me that it could really jazz up a bagel, an apple or even a banana.

Not all of these uses appealed to me, but it definitely made me open my mind a little. I thought back to that week the other day as I sat at a bar in Indianapolis.

I had to travel there for work. Before I left, I asked some friends who knew the city for dining recommendations. One pub showed up on almost every reply I received.

After settling into my seat on Wednesday night, just a few hours after my arrival, I began to peruse their extensive menu. I kept flipping back to one page, the one with all of their burger selections.

They had a burger special which a friend of a friend highly recommended. He worked at the newspaper in Indianapolis for a number of years, and I try to always trust suggestions from fellow journalists.

But this burger – the Shewman Special – had a unique combination. They topped the thing with bacon, cheddar, lettuce, tomato and onion. They also mixed jalapenos in with the cheese. Those aren’t my favorite, but I could survive.

The final ingredient kept me both interested and worried as I considered my order. The burger had peanut butter on it.

I had mulled this situation over ever since I found out about the burger a day or so before I left. I love burgers. I love peanut butter. Would I love them together?