One-Thousand Words

By Keith Fisher

It’s getting cooler out, time to bring out your soup and stew recipes. Nothing better on a cold afternoon of raking leaves than a hot bowl of chili and homemade bread. Since summer is all but over it’s time to shift gears and put on warmer clothes. Don’t let your pots rust.

Growing up in what I call the media generation, 1957-1980. I learned the value of a good object lesson. We had media pushed on us. Most of us realized a person learns better if they’re shown, rather than told. So I use pictures, video, and objects to teach and explain.

I looked on Picasa the other day and discovered that I have posted 129 pictures on this blog since I started posting in May. If it’s true what they say, that each picture is worth a thousand words. Then I have posted 129,000 words.

So, let’s get out our pictures and show how fun our summer was. We can speak volumes about how much fun we’re having, and tell others about our love of outdoor cooking without ever saying a word. I’ll get us started by posting my summer collage. You send yours to me and I’ll post them here if you want. Let’s cheer each other’s camping and backyard culinary successes.


It has been a busy summer, with many successful dinners, Parties and camping trips. Friends and family relationships renewed. Now, I look forward to the winter. To cooking in my carport, finding an inner desire to entertain. Cooking lunch while ice fishing, elk hunt, and tailgate parties. Stick around my friends the fun has just begun. If you put your gear away to go into the house to vegetate, we’ll drag you off the sofa and force you to peel the cousins of that couch potato you would turn into.




Return to the Neighborhood.

Update

By Keith Fisher

Well, its time for the big announcement, how many Jelly beans were there anyway? You will remember two weeks ago when I started a guess how many, contest? I am pleased by the number of responses it received, so pleased, in fact, that I think I’m sold on the idea. Check back often to see the new contests and send me an email if you have any ideas.

I discovered to my shame, however, that I had my comments feature limited to Blogger members only, so some of you weren’t able to participate. For this oversight I am sorry. I have reset my settings and it won’t happen again. You can always reach me at bloghole57(at)yahoo(dot)com please feel free to send me an email but please don’t send spam.

Now, I know you are waiting with baited breath, so to speak, but I want to talk about something else and drag out your apprehension.

What do you think of my desktop? I stole it from the Internet. I used to wish I’d been born a hundred years earlier so I could be a chuck wagon cook, but with all the group cooking I’ve been doing this summer. Not that I haven’t enjoyed cooking for my guests, I’m just not sure I could keep up the pace. Chuck wagon cooks had to break camp, hang around the herd for the noon meal, then race to the next campsite, get set up, make coffee then make supper. He also stopped along the way, picking up firewood.

After dinner, he’d get to bed because he had to be awake long before the others. He had to light the fire, get coffee on, and put some kind of breakfast together. Clean up and start all over again. I’m not sure, but I think that’s how chuck wagon races got started at rodeos. The cook always got the bellyaching from the cowboys. Of course the cook learned how to get even by giving the nice guys good food and the complainer got the garbage.

Yeah, life is different today, with modern inventions like refrigeration I can cook fresh meat. I use the best ingredients my grocery store can provide and its only two blocks away. I get to cook on a raised table instead of in the fire. I use positive pressure lid lifters instead of forked sticks. I can have a cold glass of milk with my meal because the bag of ice in my cooler. Yeah, life sure is different.

So are you ready to find out who guessed correctly?

You know I went to the large retail sporting goods store the other day. I looked at the enamelware. Lots better than the tin plates, cups, and rusty spoons the old cooks had to use. Yes, sir, things sure are different. I noticed all the fancy do dads in the camping section. Sleeping bags that keep you warm in the arctic, folding cots that keep you off the ground. Not like the old cooks who had to freeze to death all night, battling hard rocks and a thin blanket. Yep, things sure have changed.

But I digress . . . Time to announce the winner—did I ever tell you about . . . okay, okay, drum roll please—it took an hour to painstakingly count ever single bean—I had to restrain myself from eating any—okay I ate a few . . . but not after I counted. I counted in tens and wrote it down. For awhile I thought we had a winner who guessed within four of the actual number, then another guess came in. The correct number was—did you ever hear about . . . okay the correct number was 741. The winner is Randall Mcneely—he guessed 743.

I’m really impressed with Ranes Carter from the Storm Mountain Chapter of International Dutch Oven Society. I’m sure he owns one of these Dutch ovens and could have cheated. It’s obvious he didn’t.

Randall I’ll be in touch with you by email and you can make arrangements to get your prize. I’d be glad to help you get started with your Dutch oven madness. Maybe we can put a class together and invite all the authors we know.

Drop by again and check the new contest, what ever it will be.

Return to the Neighborhood.