AC on in March !!!!

Well, now we've gone and done it. We turned the AC on in March!!! Got home to an inside temp in the mid-80s and simply couldn't get it any cooler with the fans. It was getting awfully sticky in here. The humidity was really kicking in today, too. Feels good now. Hopefully, we can turn it off in a day or two. I think Tuesday is supposed to be near "normal" (mid 50s).

I can tell it's Spring as we're judging the first BBQ of the season tomorrow. Looking forward to some good food and a chance to see the whole BBQ gang. Funny, we see those folks every couple weeks for 6 months straight and then not at all for the other 6 months. Only a few of us stay in touch via FB through the winter. One of those few let me know today they won't be there tomorrow but are encouraging us to expand our horizons and judge a chili contest with them in 2 weeks! Hmmm, need to check our calendar for that one. We've never done a chili contest.

We had a great visit with some friends today. We did get a Japanese Maple for a memorial gift for them. (She lost her Mom last month.) I was willing to go along with The Big Guy's choice of a saucer magnolia since we like ours so much, but the ones they had at the nursery just didn't look great.) The tree was a little bigger than we'd planned and was a little harder to fit in the van. The nursery guy ended up crawling into the vehicle to pull it in and get it situated then had trouble getting out. I teased him that we were going to hold him captive but he found a hole to squeeze through. Amazingly, The Big Guy didn't have a lot of trouble pulling it out, pot first, through the sliding door on the side! They were really pleased with it and were trying to decide just where to plant it when we left. (They do own automated digging equipment that will make that job easier for them.)

Got home in time to squeeze a quick nap in before our neighbor came over for the weekly card game. All-in-all, it was a good day.

Our neighbor did the lawn last night and today so I guess we need to get out there and work the flower beds and do some trimming now to make it "Lawn Beautiful" as The Big Guy likes to call it. Still too early here to really plant yet. Hard to believe it when you look around though. The forsythias are gorgeous this year - very full. The flowering cherries and plums are pretty much at their peak (we've got a tremendous number of both in the general area), the saucer magnolias and star magnolias have actually peaked and are going to leaf now, the red buds are blooming and the earliest azalea breed around these parts popped forth today. Daffodils are everywhere! I even saw a few beds of hyacinths in bloom today. We're a full month early on most of these.

Well, got to head off to bed so I'll be ready to judge in the morning.

Happy weekend, All!!

Last of the BBQ ...

The winner of the Needleworker's Mystery Basket Give-Away is Charlotte. Congratulations Charlotte!! I'll be emailing you privately as to shipping. (I will post a picture of the basket contents after it is shipped. I want Charlotte to be surprised by the contents.)

Took a break from all things craft related today and went and judged at what I think will be our final BBQ competition of the 2011 season. This was a second tier contest in the Sam's Club National Barbecue Tour. Unlike the regular KCBS circuit competitions, the Sam's Club events are a special tournament-style series of competitions.

Sam's held 40 local contests around the country beginning in March. The contest today, in Laurel, Maryland, was a regional event featuring winners from a number of those local contests. Today's winners will go up against the winners of the four other regional events, in two weeks in Bentonville, Arkansas for $100,000 in prize money. The entries today were first rate, as expected. A great way to end our competition year.

Mother Nature cooperated a bit in that it didn't rain until after the event. (Remember it has rained daily for the last 8 weeks or so.) When we left, it was only a light drizzle. I only hope the competition teams were able to pack up before any heavy rain came down. The temperatures weren't helping though. We suddenly got chilly here last night and it never went above 53 during the contest today. Even prepared for it with appropriate jackets, I got cold. We spent 4 hours simply sitting in the cool, damp wind so I was completely chilled through by the end of the judging. It has taken me hours to warm up.

I know in the realm of things, the mid-50s are not all that cold. They won't be once we get used to it but it came as a shock to our systems today when we were in the 70s yesterday.

I find little things like this depressing as it just tells me winter is coming and I absolutely despise winter. On the upside, I do love the smells of Autumn and when we got home, I found it comforting to smell that someone in the neighborhood had a fire in their fireplace. Now, if I just had some mulled cider to drink this evening...

It's been a long week.

It's been a long, tough week and our journey's not yet done.

As I said in my last post, my m-i-l passed away last Saturday after a long and exhausting illness. It is comforting to know she is no longer suffering and is now in a much better place. My personal belief is that her soul is now reunited with her loved ones that went on ahead - her husband of over 50 years and her parents and siblings. She was the last of that generation in her family.

The last photo I took just s few weeks ago,

surrounded by her grandson and great-grandson.

Because we had to schedule family members traveling from across country and the need to bring her ashes East, we have not yet completed the burial. That will happen next weekend and will culminate with a gathering of friends and family to celebrate her life. We will share photos and memories and, hopefully, lots of hugs and smiles. Mom always enjoyed her extended family. I think she'd approve.

The day-to-day antics of her
great-granddaughter brightened her days.
August, 2010

In the meantime, we're sort of in a state of suspended animation. We've cried many tears, reminded each other of better times and, in our space and time, have mourned her loss. We will miss her tremendously. We've done all the phone calls, planning and preparations for events on this end. There's nothing to take care of for another week now.

I know we will once again shed tears and share our grief when the rest of the family gets in later in the week. For now, though, it's time to simply wait. We can't just sit and stare at the walls so we have proceeded with many of our normal activities but have done so with heavy hearts.

Summer, 2009, the three if us at a

Friday night concert at the mall.

Yesterday and today we judged a BBQ contest. It was a commitment we made many months ago so we proceeded as planned. This morning was one of the days I set out feeling very down and wanting simply to call and cancel. We were with people we've known for several years but, for the most part, they are not close enough to our family to have been part of situation. Many were aware Mom had been very ill simply because we had been forced to miss numerous competitions this season to tend to family needs.

We dragged her to a riverfront
blues festival in August, 2010 - she loved it!

Quite a few (both judges and cooks) ran over to say hello and ask about the situation as soon as we arrived. They were genuinely concerned to find she had passed. I was amazed at the many kind, supportive and sincere words these friends shared with us. There were several truly warm and comforting hugs and I'm glad we did do the event. I am once again struck by how wonderful, sweet and compassionate our BBQ family is.

She loved a good laugh!!

It was a gray and rainy day - a bit depressing in and of itself but our BBQ friends managed to make me feel quite a bit better.

Thank you BBQ friends. I needed that!

Another weekend slips by...

We'll miss you, June Cleaver!


I awoke to the bad new this morning, Beaver's mom has passed away. Like all mom's, she was the strength in that household, the glue that held it all together. Oh, yeah, she always "deferred" to Ward's authority but she cunningly steered his opinion around to her views. She never cleaned in old raggy jeans (not that she owned any jeans!). Her hair was always salon fresh, her makeup perfect and, yes, she wore pearls while cooking, cleaning and simply relaxing around the house. She brought "style" to the roles of mother and housewife. Later, we learned she could also speak "jive" ! I mean talk about cool moms!!!

Barbara Billingsley (her real name) would have turned 95 in December. What a wonderful legacy she has left us.

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In other news, did any of you catch that talented 5th grader that played God Bless America on the trumpet at the 7th inning stretch in the NLCS game between the Phillies and the Giants last night? He was fantastic!! So sorry I didn't catch his name. I was watching it on a TV in a casino bar located in Phillies country. This little guy's fine rendition led to a rousing cheer there. At least they were able to cheer for him, the Phillies lost in the 9th. (I may come from Oriole-land but where are they now in October? I had to find somebody to cheer for. What can I say? I do enjoy baseball.) Oh well, that was only Game 1. Maybe they can make a come-back tonight.

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Yesterday turned out to be a fantastic Fall day, though a bit on the windy side. The temps were in the low 60s and the sun was extremely bright. We found ourselves drawn to a festival on the banks of the Susquehanna River and it was absolutely beautiful! We stopped in at Smokin' On The River in Port Deposit, Maryland just to hear a little music and maybe grab a bite to eat on our way to our evening destination.

This was not an official KCBS BBQ competition so we weren't involved in the judging of this Tail Gate Cook-Off. As it turned out, we were recognized and drafted into judging anyway. (The cooks had been promised KCBS judges and KCBS judging standards.) There were 17 talented cook teams that had fought the cool wind all day to produce some high quality ribs and there was an extreme shortage of judges. Turns out we only had 5 certifeid KCBS judges and one "celebrity judge", the St. Pauli Beer Girl ! (The guys voted her in, Big surprise!)

It wasn't in our plans but took only about an hour to sample and score these eats and we were glad to do it. Oh, and The Big Guy was thrilled to pose with the St. Pauli Girl, too!

Last of the BBQs

Okay, so maybe that "getting back to my regular routine" didn't quite go as quickly as I'd hoped. I've had to recite my "flexibility" mantra a lot these last two weeks!
Things have leveled off a bit and Saturday was somewhat "normal" for us. We judged a BBQ competition and had an opportunity to see some friends that we won't catch up with until Spring and the start of the 2011 competitions. Today, we simply stayed in and watched the Ravens' game. (I concede. Staying "in" on a Sunday is NOT normal in our household!) The Big Guy will go back to work tomorrow as scheduled and, hopefully, things will be a bit calmer this week.

Saturday's judging was the last of the year for us. We'll just have to savor the memories, smells and tastes for a few months. The new season will begin in April which sounds like a really long time away. So much can happen in between.
This last event for awhile was, thankfully, a great one. The Mt. Airy Smoke'n BBQ (in Mt. Airy, MD) was a fantastic KCBS competition combined with a terrific community Fall festival that included music, entertainment, a car show, spaghetti and wing eating contests and even a yo-yo demonstration and lessons by a representative of the Duncan Yo-Yo Company! This was the first spaghetti eating competition I ever witnessed. they could use their hands but no utensils. I only thought spaghetti could be messy before this!

The weather was ideal (I even got a little sunburn! Last of the year I guess.) and a good time was had by all.

The Ravens topped our weekend off with a strong win over the Denver Broncos.

All in all, we had a good weekend!!

I'm back! (I think.)

I really didn't go anywhere I just didn't seem to be here, posting. What can I say? It was just a very busy and hectic couple of days around here. Like most weekends, we packed as much as we could into those couple of days.

Our Friday night plans became a wash out but "candle power" does not a computer run. Friday Concerts in the Parks were supposed to start but Mother Nature had a different view of that plan. We were on our way to the park when the rains came. Reversing directions, we found the storm had knocked power out at home so any computer contact was a no-go for the entire evening. The rains did not, however, break the heat or humidity. Temps hovered at 80 degrees through the night and the humidity hung in there at about 90%. It was sticky! (Typical Maryland summer weather.) Saturday dawned clear, hot and sticky. We judged the Beltway BBQ Showdown in Upper Marlboro, Maryland and stayed to enjoy some fantastic blues music performed by a group known as Memphis Gold. They played some heavy duty blues mixed with a little jazz, soul and they really got folks up out of their seats with a resounding performance of When the Saints Go Marching In. I thought I was in New Orleans, again! I was ready to go dancing in the streets behind those horn players!The organizers wisely moved this event form the shadeless Equestrian Center to a fantastic green regional park in the area. Believe me, those big shade trees were very welcome on this hot, sticky day. After judging ended, we settled in under a big tree to just enjoy the entertainment and people watch. (The latter was really interesting!) Some menacing dark clouds began to circle late in the day but didn't hurt the crowd. There were still folks arriving as we left, shortly before the entertainment ended. What can I say? Good BBQ draws a crowd!! What we had there, was some of the best.

We headed Northwest on Sunday to catch the last day of the Western Maryland Blues Festival in Hagerstown.

The Hard Swimmin' Fish

This festival opens on Thursday evening with a free concert in the plaza in the downtown business district featuring a popular local band.

A paid event on Friday evening (again downtown) features four better known regional groups and truly gets the party started. Saturday's paid event is also in the downtown business district and offers eight national, regional and a few local groups, a huge selection of food and beer vendors, and more, from noon until 10 p.m. At that point, a lot of the crowd simply disperses to the many local venues who also feature blues music throughout the weekend.

Flat-Foot Sam & The Educated Fools

Sunday is billed as the Family Blues Picnic and takes place in the beautiful City Park (also in downtown Hagerstown) where they encourage folks to bring their chairs, blankets, picnic baskets and kids. Again, national, regional and local performers are featured. (This year there were 5 acts on for Sunday.) They also offer free children's music workshops and activities. Adult music workshops are usually also offered in the Museum of Fine Art which is on this property and is open on that day. Food vendors in the park offer some unique "festival" foods not always found at such events.

We particularly enjoyed the music of The Hard Swimmin' Fish and Flat Foot Sam and the Educated Fools on Sunday. Both have a hard-driving approach to the blues that appeals to our inner rock fan. I must say, the Fish have the only stand-up bass I've ever seen decorated with flames!
Although we only got there for Sunday this time, we usually go on Saturday, spend the night and make it a mini-vacation.

If you find yourselves in this end of the world, Hagerstown makes for a great week-end getaway. By day, there's shopping at both an outlet mall and loads of small unique shops in town, nearby history (Antietam is only a 20 minute drive), great restaurants and a lively club life at night featuring live entertainment most weekends. If that's not enough to keep you busy, the casino in Charlestown, West Virginia is less than 40 minutes away, too.

We needed to hurry home as we were expecting house guests for the night and The Big Guy also has a weekly Pinochle game at our house every Sunday night. We kept the activity rolling on Monday with a graduation ceremony which kept us out late again! Congratulations to the Class of 2010 at Kennard Dale High School and to ALL 2010 Grads!!

Boy, am I tired. I'm going to get some rest and get back to y'all soon!

Weary Weekend

I'm still having trouble getting back in the groove here at home. The suitcase is still on the guest room bed, packed for the most part. The laundry from the trip has made its way to the laundry room but not into the machine yet. There are still a few things simply dropped in the living room.

Saturday, we found ourselves at yet another BBQ competition. This one was in Middletown, Delaware where we knew a large number of the judges and many of the cook teams. This was a first time event and, surprisingly, hit the ground running with 42 teams competing !!
Today, we were also out of the house for the day, arriving home just in time to view last week's Lost before tuning into tonight's final episode. I'm not really sure how I feel about how the show ended. I think it seemed like a let-down or a cop-out. I don't think it answered all my questions as promised. I'm not sure where I thought it was leading but it didn't get there for me. Any of you have comments on this one? Please 'splain it to me!

I'm sure I'll be back on track by tomorrow. Hopefully, I can find a dose of energy somewhere between now and then.

Giant Squirrels

They say things grow bigger in Texas but what about these squirrels in Iowa ?

For perspective, bear in mind The Big Guy is 6'4" (That's him in the pic.)

We were in Bayliss Park in Council Bluffs to judge a BBQ contest (If you look hard, you'll see the competitors' tents set up around the edges of the park.) but I fell in love with the squirrel statues. They're all over the park. Other than size, they are very realistic looking.






I couldn't wait to get back to the house and show the pictures to our little niece. She and her parents had spent the week nursing a baby squirrel that had fallen from its nest and she was totally infatuated with squirrels for the week.




I got so wrapped up in checking out the squirrels, I never took any pictures of the contest itself !!

Seriously, it was a great contest. It marked the first time we've ever judged in Iowa and we met a lot of terrific fellow judges there. Once you are a certified KCBS judge, you can judge at any KCBS contest, anywhere.

Even 1200 miles from home, we worked with a contest rep we've been with before. All KCBS contests go by the same rules and procedures and judges all undergo the same training. We truly have a lot in common with these strangers.





I always leave a contest with the name and email of at least one new friend - and this one was no exception. My newest friend and I are exchanging recipes and ideas for using barbeque leftovers. (Yes, true bbq lovers have a lot of leftovers to use up!)

Another weekend bites the dust.

Another weekend draws to an end and I have the aching muscles to prove it!!
We had our first judging event of the season on Friday and Saturday. Trekking across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to Salisbury, Maryland, we set off Friday afternoon for the 2010 (7th Annual) Pork In The Park BBQ Competition. Growing by leaps and bounds, this event went from 90 competitors last year to 134 this year! This makes it the 2nd largest BBQ competition sanctioned by the Kansas City Barbecue Society (not including the American Royal).

The weather was fantastic!! Friday afternoon saw temps in the mid-80s and bright sunshine. This, and the top-notch musical entertainment combined with great food, carnival rides and other festival events drew huge crowds.We settled in Friday evening to judge Anything Butt (a chef's choice category) and Seafood entries. My personal favorites were a peach pie made in the style of a Southern fried pie but cooked on a grill and a great lobster bisque. I'd have loved to have had larger servings than just a judge's sample of each. Unfortunately (or fortunately, depending on your point of view), all judging is blind judging which means we have no way of knowing whose food we've judged. So, there's no wandering over and begging for more! (Good thing, that would then turn into a waddle!)

Saturday morning, we arrived at the fairgrounds early so The Big Guy and I could both perform our duties as "Pig Police" (aka "Pork Police" or "Pig Patrol"). Our duties in this assignment are to supervise the preparation of whole hog entries. Each cook team entered in this category must cook a whole hog in one piece, then cut and present six samples of five specific areas (shoulder, loin, etc.) for judging. Our job is to observe to verify that all samples came off of that one pig. A team cannot begin cutting their entry until we arrive at their cook site. We then stay with the team until turn in time. Another group of judges then judge the whole hog entries.

Saturday morning on the Smokis Porkis BBQ team's smoker!

I always enjoy this particular assignment as it gives me a chance to meet and get to know the team I am observing. It gives us a chance to chat and each see the other's jobs. This year, I was sent to a relatively young team, new to competition cooking. They had two experienced members and three who have only participated in 3 contests. We spent some time discussing what the judges look for in the standard required four judging categories. Turns out, they fared fairly well in the overall judging of the required categories. (Anything Butt, Seafood and Whole Hog are not required categories. Participation in these categories are optional.)
A few hours later, we were seated for the regular judging session. These were the four categories required of every team in every KCBS competition - chicken, ribs, pork and brisket. Being forced to eat samples of some of the best prepared smoked meats known to mankind is a tough job, but somebody ahs to do it. I'm just glad I'm one of those somebodies!! This competition was no exception and the food was top quality. In fact, I think this was one of the best overall selections I've come across in quite some time.

After several hours of gorging, we mosied over to the entertainment area where we heard some really fantastic music. First a rock band followed by one of our favorite blues artists and his band. I'll admit we snuck out during the awards ceremony (although, considering a crowd of at least 10,000-12,000 people, I doubt if anyone noticed our departure.) We had several hours of driving ahead of us to get home.

Belated congratulations to Chix, Swine & Bovine BBQ of Jessup, Maryland who walked away Grand Champions!!! Absolute best of 134 teams. Way to go !!!!

After all that walking around the fairgrounds (probably several miles on rough terrain) and a long car ride, (not to mention a less than stellar motel bed), I was definitely stiff and achy by the time we got home. Unfortunately, The Big Guy had already set an agenda of working in the flower beds for today. Sore muscles and all, we were out ther bright and early in chilly temperatures working the soil.

Thank goodness we have a frost warning tonight, or we would probably have spent a lot more time in planting today, too. Looks like I get a chance to recover before all that bending in a week or two.

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My new blog, Splish'n'Splash Kitchen launched today !!!! If you're into food, maybe even consider yourself a "FOODIE", please stop over and check it out here.

Bits'n'Pieces

You never know who you'll spot at the Post Office "just taking care of business!"

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I've had some odds and ends of news and stuff floating around for a few days but had specific posts planned so just held them in. (I should have made some notes!)

Facebook:

First, and foremost, I FINALLY set up a Facebook Fan Page for my Estsy shop, Splashin!!! I started out to do this almost a year ago. At that time, I didn't set it up correctly and ended up simply canceling the account. Recently, after being begged by quite a few friends, I rejoined Facebook with a personal account and have had a ball reconnecting with old friends and setting up quicker communications with family members. (Most of the younger ones moved on from e-mail to Facebook quite a while ago.) It was those younger ones who were pushing me to get a Fan Page going.

As many of you know, Facebook requires you to have 25 Fans before allowing you to have a short page title. When you start out, it's a little bit of a complicated link with several parts and lots of numbers. Right now, 30 hours into this venture, I'm still a few short of that number but you can check out my page and Fan me if you'd like by clicking on the Facebook button on the left sidebar here. Or, you can click here and get there, too. Whichever you'd prefer, I'd love to have you stop by and check it out. Please let me know what you think of the page and what you'd like to see there, either by commenting on the Wall, leaving me a note here or even e-mailing me from the Splashin page.

Splish'n'Splash Kitchen:

In other news, I'm developing a second blog. This one will still be my daily spot to chat but I wanted a designated place to discuss food and everything related to food. Yes, I admit it. I AM A FOODIE. So, to deal with that fact of life, I'm diving into a food blog.

I'll be launching Splish'n'Splash Kitchen this weekend (probably on Sunday.) There will be a recipe from time to time but this will mostly be a place for food news, food humor, cooking tales - good and bad, family cooking and eating together, features about folks who are involved with food in some way or do a craft that is food oriented or inspired (I've already lined up a few of those.) I have some food events I plan to tell you about and maybe even a food game or two. The reviews of all those culinary mysteries I love to read, will now appear over there.

This will NOT be a low-fat venture!!!

I don't know if I'll be posting there daily but I hope to get something up at least 4 or 5 times a week. I've spent some time preparing some posts to start off with and I will be reprinting a few that have run here over the last two years, also. I hope you'll take a few minutes to check it out from time to time. I'll let you know which day it actually takes off.

BBQ Competitions:
We'll be judging at the first BBQ event of our season this weekend. Pork in the Park will take place in Salisbury, Maryland Friday through Sunday. This particular contest has grown quickly to become one of the largest competitions in the country and the biggest this side of the Mississippi. They are expecting 125 competitors this year.

Keep your fingers crossed that we'll have good weather. The first few years, this event was plagued by monsoon-like rains but last year was absolutely perfect and the crowds definitely turned out. Over 31,000 people came for the food, crafts, music and other entertainment. We're definitely ready for some great slow-cooked BBQ!!! It's been a long winter.


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There were some bits of national news that fired me up earlier in the week ("enraged" might be a better word) but I've had a few days to calm down and won't repeat my tirades here. ( My family and friends were already subjected to to that!)

Post BBQ Leftovers

After every BBQ contest, we are faced with the same old question: "What to do with all these leftovers?"

We are accredited by and judge for the Kansas City Barbeque Society which is the largest bbq organization in the world. As such, they are the sanctioning body for the majority of the BBQ competitions held throughout the U.S. When you watch specials on the Food Network about the American Royal competition held annually in Kansas City, you are watching a KCBS event.

All KCBS sanctioned contests MUST include four basic categories which are always done in the same order over a two hour turn-in period. There may be additional categories associated with any specific contest and those may be judged the same day or on the previous night but any KCBS event will consist of chicken, ribs, pork and brisket, in that order.

The judging process is serious business. Every judge is asked to sample and rate six samples from each category. Each sample is tasted and rated on its own merits. Sample #1 is tasted and then completely graded before moving on to sample #2. They are not compared to each other. There are specific elements we are looking for in each entry.

Ultimately, each judge will be presented with 1 1/2 - 2 lbs., or more, of meat at a contest. Obviously, most of us cannot eat every piece of food in its entirety while judging. Most take two, maybe three, bites of a sample before grading it. When the category is done, we are entitled to go back and eat the whole thing if we desire, pack it up to take with us or throw it away. I, like most judges, carry ziplock bags and a cooler with us to contests.

In the chicken category, turned in at 12 noon, we are most often served six thighs. Cooks can submit any part of the chicken but most find thighs cook the most consistently and retain their moisture in the submission box. (Breasts tend to dry easily. Wings and legs tend to turn out less consistently.) I have been served all parts at various contests and this week my table was served five thighs and one submission of sliced breast meat. Obviously, between the two of us, we have a pretty good stock of leftover chicken at the end of the category. (Incidentally, spouses cannot judge at the same table so we never judge the same entries.)

Ribs tend to produce the least leftovers. Often, by the time we've taken 2 or 3 bites, there really isn't much left on the bone. Nonetheless, I usually have a few ribs left over.

The pork category consists of pork butt and can be served as pulled pork, sliced or chopped. When we first began judging back in 2005, the vast majority were turned in as pulled pork but we are now receiving just as many sliced and frequently chopped samples these days. This is usually another large batch of leftovers as samples tend to be sizeable servings.

The final category, turned in at 1:30 in every contest, is beef brisket. We are generally served one decent slice per sample. This doesn't sound like a lot, but by this time, we are getting somewhat full. Most judges test for tenderness by pulling a chunk off of the slice with a gentle tug. We then taste that piece but often have the rest of the slice left over!

Believe it or not, we have judged contests that included additional categories at this point. Many events include a sausage or dessert competition. Some have an "anything but" category and quite a few have "whole hog" judging. The most categories we've faced in one day have been seven. After that event, we brought home nine pounds of leftovers!!

Needless to say, I have learned the best ways to warm up leftover ribs and brisket slices and have come up with a variety of recipes for the leftovers. Since chicken is a mainstay of regular diet, I have never had trouble finding uses for those scraps. I've had to be a little more creative with the other categories. Tonight we had enchiladas made from the leftover pork samples.

Pulled Pork Enchiladas:

I generally dump the pork in a bowl (shredding any sliced or chunked samples) add just a speck of my own rub for seasoning, some chopped onions and bell peppers (precooked in the microwave) and some shredded cheese. Mix well and fill and roll soft tortillas to form enchiladas. I open a can of black beans and poor it into a large rectangular glass baking dish and then add one drained can of black beans and two drained cans of diced tomatoes with chiles. Stir this well and then place the enchiladas on top of the bed of beans and tomatoes. I drizzle a little sweet bbq sauce over the top of the enchiladas and sprinkle a little more shredded cheese over that. Bake at 350 degrees for about 30-40 minutes, until the cheese browns.

***A little pulled pork really stretches this way. I made 8 enchiladas tonight - enough for two hungry men and myself. Oh, and we had leftovers! I put three in the freezer. These make easy, quick lunches for the guys. I wrap them separately and they can just grab them frozen. By lunch time, they've thawed and they warm them in the microwave at work.

Sunday, already??

Sorry I've been a little scarce this weekend but it's been a hectic schedule for us and, frankly, I've been exhausted when we walked in the door each evening and have not been able to keep my eyes open or my mind on long enough to put anything together for you.

Friday was the first night of the annual Maryland BBQ Bash in Bel Air, MD and The Big Guy and I judged the back yard grill competition where anyone can participate in a rib cooking contest from noon to 6 p.m. Some of the KCBS rules are suspended a bit, or at least very loosely enforced, for the rib contest. The ribs are basically grilled as opposed to smoked.

This year, there were 17 back yard teams and only 12 judges. We would normally only judge 6 samples per person but, due to a shortage of Friday night judges, we were forced to judge more. The Big Guy's table did 9 ribs each and we did 8. Bear in mind, it is not necessary to eat the entire rib in order to rate it. Generally, we take 2 or 3 bites of each in order to score the sample. You can always go back later and eat the whole rib if you'd like. I bagged my leftovers and we nibbled on them later while we listened to the live music. Many of the back yard grill winners go on to form a competition cooking team and appear in subsequent years in the real competition.

Saturday, we needed to check in at the judging tent by 10 a.m. There were 52 cooking teams in the KCBS competition. This meant we needed 63 certified judges for the contest. Judges came from as far away as Ohio, Upstate N.Y., and Arkansas this year. By the time the judge's meeting began at 10:30 we were still short a few folks. They had committed to the event but were not yet there. Judging begins promptly at noon and the KCBS reps needed to scramble a bit to locate judges and have them in place by that first turn-in. Some non-certified folks were found to fill in for some support positions, freeing up certified judges to do the actual judging.

When judging of the four competition categories ended at 2 p.m., we migrated over to the stage area and settled in with some friends to enjoy a few cold ones and listen to some quality live entertainment. Though music was still flowing until 10 p.m., we've had a long week and decided to cut out early before the headliner. I was in bed by 10 p.m. and sound asleep. That's almost unheard of for this nightowl!!

The Big Guy has been fantastic through everything for the past ten days. He has chauffeured my sister and I all over for funeral related activities, fixed food, made grocery runs and just patiently guided us through the week. He earned a rest last night and an activity of his choice today. He chose to go to breakfast and then to the casino to let off some steam. Nothing like a little mindless gambling to relax the mind and body. I lost about $10 and then went outside to sit in the sun for awhile and make a few phone calls. I did actually find it relaxing.

Now, it's back to the grind. I've already made a list of "MUST DOs" for tomorrow and it's a daunting list. My shopping and errand list has stretched to two full pages!!!

Looks like another tough week ahead.

Another busy weekend!

Well, I’ve been working on that old “flexibility” again this weekend! On the downside, I didn’t get to post either Friday or Saturday. The good news? I was enjoying my weekend and wasn’t able to find the time. This week, I was able to simply shrug and say, “Oh. well.” (Actually, my shoulders are getting a little tired from all that shrugging.)

Friday was a very busy day culminating with the first free concert in the park of the season. It was beautiful sitting on the hill overlooking the water. I had intended to take some great pics to share with you but, alas, I left the camera home on the charger. (Flex, gal, flex!) I came home happy and content and promptly fell asleep in my chair! So much for posting that night!
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Saturday was a fun day all around. I started out in the afternoon attending a baby shower for a close friend’s daughter. The Big Guy met me there afterwards and we traveled on across the Chesapeake Bay Bridge to Centreville on the Eastern Shore of Maryland for the Bay Music Festival, an annual event held by the Queen Anne’s County Lion’s Club. We missed the first two bands but managed to arrive just as the third group took the stage. Next came the featured entertainer, Bill Kirchen (Think Commander Cody and the Hot Rod Lincoln), a man we’ve seen several times along the way. Bill always gives a great high energy performance and gets the crowd worked up. The last group, a rock band, was still rocking the world when we left shortly after 11 p.m. (We did have a long trip home ahead of us.)

**The camera was still home on the charger! (Flex, again.)

It was after 1 a.m. by the time we got back across the bay, picked my car up and walked into the house. Again, I was happy but way too tired to post and went to bed.
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Since we’d paid a sizeable entrance fee on Saturday, I tried to even things out with a freebie today. We chose to go to the Beltway BBQ Showdown in Upper Marlboro, Maryland about an hour and half away in Southern Maryland. There were two good blues bands scheduled. We intended to simply sit back and enjoy and maybe eat a little BBQ. Since we were up late Saturday night we didn’t rush this morning and got a later start than usual.

Now, as many of you know, The Big Guy and I are Certified BBQ judges for the Kansas City Barbecue Society. Most (90-95%) of the KCBS contests around the country are Friday-Saturday events. Very few take place on Sunday and most of those are still judged on Saturday with some entertainment happening on the Sunday schedule. I did not sign us up to judge this event as I knew I would not be available on Saturday. Had I read the listing carefully, I would have realized this was a Sunday judging event and registered. (A little background info - Once the awards have been handed out at a competition, the cooking teams can rival the best fire department‘s time in getting packed up and out of there. For the most part, they’re tired, hot and drained and just want to get home at that point.)

We were surprised to see all of the cooking teams still set up when we arrived today. The Big Guy went over and asked a competitor why they were all hanging around and learned this was a Sunday judging. Judging had begun about 15 minutes before we arrived but we walked over to the judge’s tent to say hello and see if they needed any additional help in processing the entries. (Note: If you are not a CBJ, never approach the judging tent during judging. Distractions are not welcome.) For those unfamiliar with the judging process, it takes an amazing number of people to pull these events off and there is often a shortage of help. Turns out they were extremely short-handed and we were greeted with open arms. (Again with the flexibility!!)

The Big Guy quickly slid into a role of accepting and numbering contest entries from competitors and, in his spare moments, helping put together what those of us familiar with the procedure refer to as “the grazing table“.

I was asked to assist a new, inexperienced Table Captain who had been pressed into emergency service due to the lack of help. I also picked up a few other chores here and there during the judging period. Judging is, at a minimum, a 2-hour period of non-stop activity. We spent the next two hours working under the judging tent and then spent a little more time sitting there chatting afterwards. We did have a good day and both of us took on some roles there that we had never done before in our judging experiences.

**Oh, I did remember the camera today but didn't take any pictures!

So, I’m sorry I fell off on the postings, but, all in all, I’ve had a great weekend. How was your weekend?

What a weekend!!

What a fantastic weekend!! The weather was the best we’ve had this year and the first “nice” weekend of Spring.


Literally, at the crack of dawn on Saturday, we headed out for our first BBQ judging event of the season. The trip to Maryland’s Eastern Shore for this first contest on our annual circuit (Pork in the Park in Salisbury, Maryland) would take almost three hours. The drive was uneventful and we made excellent time. It was so good to see and talk with so many of our fellow judges that we haven’t seen since October at the last contest on the circuit.


When all was said and done, 92 teams participated in this contest making it the largest contest East of the Mississippi and raising the bar for the rest of the East Coast contests.


We certainly ate some excellent BBQ at the judging. Unfortunately, all judging at a KCBS (Kansas City Barbecue Society) event is “blind judging” which means, as judges, we have no idea whose samples we are tasting. We are just as surprised at award time as everyone else and I applaud just as loudly for each winner. I don’t play favorites. All have worked very hard to produce the best tasting food they possibly can. (A lot of you have asked, so I’ll tell you more about the whole judging process later in the week.)

Some of the cook teams awaiting the awards.

Saturday had absolutely perfect festival weather - warm and sunny, but not so hot you thought you’d burn up. It did get up to 76 at the height of the afternoon and the sky looked like a painting. There was an abundance of shorts and flip flops in the crowd and many a person started working on their tan. And there was “many” a person there!! I have not heard any attendance numbers yet, but something in the range of 30,000 just on Saturday would not surprise me in the least. We left while there were still 2 more bands to perform for the evening and it took us over an hour to get from our parking space to the park exit! There were still, literally hundreds of folks walking into the event from quite a distance away.

Saturday's sunset. Just before 8 p.m.!! I kept trying to catch the actual sun but the trees kept blocking it out. (I was in a moving car!) So, I finally settled on the beautiful clouds showing the reflection.

We also had a busy Friday and a fun day today. So, it's been a long, full and fun weekend. Now, we're exhausted and it’s time to say goodnight. Se ya’ll here tomorrow.