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!!

Bend - Sway - Go with the flow ... Maintain F*L*E*X*I*B*I*L*I*T*Y*!!!

"FLEXIBILITY"- "FLEXIBILITY"- "FLEXIBILITY"

Just keep repeating it until you feel it.

Yep, I'm back to the old mantra. I'm finding, once again, that the best laid plans can go awry quickly and one must learn to bend with the changes, sway from the pre-planned course and go with the flow.

I can't believe it has been an entire week since I last posted ! Once again, we were traveling but I thought I would have computer access so I prepared a few items with the idea that I could simply jump on and publish them on the appropriate day. I even thought I would write one or two posts from my destination. Well, the days didn't quite pan out that way. I would have had access to the computer but it would have meant missing out on some of the activities we went to take part in.

In addition to "flexibility", I kept getting hung up on "priorities" and "obligations". One must keep their own priorities straight and accomplish what is most important to you. My priority on this trip was to spend time with folks we love and miss so much. That's why we spent an entire day traveling each way to be able to spend two short days together. Those were wonderful, full days and, yes, we'll do it again, soon. Hopefully, we'll be able to at least squeeze in one more day there.

Our time was short due to that other term, "obligations." This one kind of went hand-in-hand with the "priority" thing. We had to be home on Saturday morning for a family obligation that I considered to be a very important priority on my part because it was an important occasion for another family member.

The Big Guy has previously referred to my struggling to post daily, no matter what else is happening, as an obsession. I was driven to get a post in when possible but, "family" is my biggest priority and there has been a lot happening there - mostly good things. There's been a lot of time going into those activities the last few weeks and something had to give.

I've found I really do need to sleep a bit each night. Then there are those other "obligations" like cooking, laundry and housecleaning. Really, 24 hours a day just doesn't cut it. As I am generally a late-night poster, the blogs were the item that usually gave a bit. I just don't type well with my eyes closed!

At the moment, things are quieting down, so I'm hoping to get caught up here and get back into the daily routine. I've missed it. I've missed putting my thoughts down in words and I've missed spending time each night reading what all my favorite bloggers have had to say. I'm hoping to find time to go back and read all my faves and catch up.

I need the comfort of my routine. It really does keep me sane. (Or at least, it makes me "appear" sane to many people.)

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?

Flexibility

I’ve been working on my flexibility this week. Not my physical agility (though that could certainly use some “work“, too) , but mental and emotional flexibility. Lifestyle flexibility goes along with that. My “planning” and scheduling have been challenged for the last few days and I’ve had to accept last minute changes and a few unexpected long-term changes. (I guess missing a blog post now and then goes along with that flexibility.)
I decided that, beginning June 1st, I was going to reclaim my old self - the easy going ready to roll person I used to be. That was a great time to start that, too. Our weekend plans definitely went differently from the original plan and, you know what? It was still a nice, relaxing weekend - nothing exciting, but enjoyable.
Our Monday went quite differently than my original thoughts had indicated. First, we had last minute houseguests coming for the night. Not a big problem. Then, about noon, The Big Guy called home and announced a major decision as to a major change in our way of life. (I’ll discuss that change at a later date.) Ultimately, it should be a good change but there was an element of surprise on my part. It will definitely change our day-to-day lifestyle and will take some adjusting for all involved. I’ve been assimilating that information for the last 36 hours or so. (I’ve reminded myself about that flexibility thing a number of times .)


Today, our plans were designed around a fun day for the two of us. We made these plans mid-week last week and had a fairly good idea as to how the day would go. Rain was not a part of that formula - lots of rain, to be exact. We flexed a bit, watched the weather and decided to give it a go as it looked like it would be clearing in a few hours. (A decision we made at 6:30 a.m.) The few hours turned into more like 6-7 hours but we rolled with it. Let’s just say, our arrival on any New Jersey beach this Spring has not been met with sunshine!! All of the pictures here today were taken on the Atlantic City boardwalk in front of Bally’s Wild Wild West Casino after it stopped raining. We flexed (a lot) today and had a good time anyway


Hope y’all had a good one, too.

**Don’t forget Working the Shows Wednesday tomorrow.