Sunday, May 31, 2009

Weekend Report...



It's good to be back home...

My brother-in-law Rob became a member of the Old Man's Club yesterday by turning 50, so welcome to the Club old man. You're in good company.

Might cook something today...don't know what...I've still got plenty of work to do...actually I got some things done yesterday but it like to have killed my back, so I think I'll just semi-take it easy today.

Plus...I have to get ready to plunge back into the world of working with idiots...something I'm not looking forward too. I can't wait to see what rules have changed in my absence, what they're dictating that we have to do now and how many hours we have to spend at work so you have no life...

Yep...really looking forward to that...



Think I'll go cook something...

B.D.

Friday, May 29, 2009

This & That...



Left Tennessee to get away from rain and I'll be damned if it wasn't raining in Florida. It didn't rain the whole time, but it rained enough. For a few days the lightning, thunder and heavy rain was pretty rough. Then, just light rain finished out the rest of the week.

What was the first thing you did when you got home? Cut grass.

And the second thing? Drank some cheap beer. Went to the store and got 1 3/4 inch steaks cut and grilled them bad boys.

The beer was $5.50 each for 16 oz. bottles anywhere in Disney. Now...I like beer...but I don't like it that much. I'll never complain about the price of beer at the bowling alley again.

Food...You can only eat so many tasteless Mickey burgers. Now we did have some good food at a few places but for the most part...everything was bland. No seasonings, no grease, no taste...

If we stayed down there long enough, we could learn to speak Latin or Spanish. I would have no idea what I was saying but I could speak it. With my southern country drawl they would ask me..."What country are you from?"

TENN-AH-SEE...I would say, smiling to myself.

Some folks were real friendly. And some folks (Europeans & Asians mostly) were rude, self-centered and was getting on our nerves. And the sea of baby strollers was a convoy of unhappy rugrats that weren't getting their way.

But all in all...



It was a Goofy old time...

B.D.

Thursday, May 28, 2009

Simply Thursday...



We are back from our adventure at Disney World...

I will tell you all about it...in the days to come. It was, to say, in the least...interesting...

I have never been around so many...rude people...screaming kids...inflated prices...forgetful food...and plain and simple...BS.

Did we have fun?

Stay tuned...

I have to figure that out for myself...

B.D.

Thursday, May 21, 2009

Simply Thursday...



MacDaddy's Grill is closed...

We are packing up and heading out on our adventure to Disney World.

We hope, that all of you have a great and safe Memorial Day weekend.

I will try (if I can) to find a computer and make some updates...if not...

We will see you next Thursday, when we return from some much needed...
R & R.



B.D.

Monday, May 18, 2009

Pizza, Wings, and Onion Rings...

Update:

Get any yard work done?

Nope...

How did the meet & greet cookout go?

Didn't...

It rained didn't it!

Yep...

A total washout on all accounts. I give up...

Had a ballgame Sunday, cut the grass after we got home. Ballgame tonight, and got bitch slapped at work because they said we have to work twelve hour shifts the rest of the week. Great...

I've got a million frigging things to do before Friday, and now this horse crap thrown in as a last minute pain in the rear...



Life...

Gotta love it...

B.D.

Saturday, May 16, 2009

Weekend Report...



Rain, rain, go away...
Come back again, some summer day...


I think we have had a years worth of rain fall...in about two months. It's been nothing but rain coats and rubber duckies since April and May.

My daughter Jennifer, graduated high school last night, so congrats to her on this. My son Bruce and his wife, are about to have a young'en here pretty soon, so congrats for that also.

I'm cooking this afternoon for about 50 folks at a (Realtor friend of mine) neighborhood meet & greet. I did this for him at our neighborhood shindig four years ago. Burgers and dogs will be on the menu.



I'm going outside to try and get some yard work done. I got the backyard cut yesterday after work before the bottom fell out of the sky.

The clock is ticking for our vacation trip to Disney...tic-toc...tic-toc...tic-toc...

...and I'm still behind.

B.D.

Wednesday, May 13, 2009

Wordless Wednesday...



"Life is like a mirror. If you frown at it, it'll frown back at you. But if you smile at it, it will smile right back."

B.D.

Monday, May 11, 2009

This & That...



This was posted in The City Paper about my buddy Pat Martin.


By William Williams

Patrick Martin, the hog-loving man behind Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint, is the first Tennessee barbecue owner to be invited to serve as a pitmaster at the seventh annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party in New York City. Just call him “The Pitmaster.”

Nolensville-based barbeque specialist Patrick Martin is headed to New York City to serve as a pitmaster at the seventh annual Big Apple Barbecue Block Party.

In the world of ‘cue, this is the equivalent of being named, say, a judge for the Westminster Kennel Club Dog Show, as the BBQ festival is expected to lure more than 125,000 lovers of this beloved brand of pork presentation.

In fact, Martin has been honored as the first barbecue pitmaster from Tennessee to cook at the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party. The owner of Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint will join 13 other of the nation’s most skilled ‘cue specialists at the prestigious festival.

When asked if he’ll incorporate some type of training regimen before heading to Manhattan, Martin said flatly, “I’ll answer that by quoting the late, great Waylon Jennings: ‘This ain’t no dress rehearsal.’”

“It’s the big time.”

Indeed it is, despite the fact that New York City seems no more a BBQ town than Nashville is a place for kosher delis.

“New York is the biggest melting pot of people in the world, and it’s chock-full of folks who appreciate great barbecue,” Martin said, squashing the stereotype. “It’s the Big Apple, it’s the big time, and I can’t think of a better stage.”

Martin will take that stage well prepared, as the veteran BBQ specialist has taken 20 years of industry experience to perfect his signature style: West Tennessee whole hog.

“It started with a grill when I was real young,” he said of his hog-related background. “My dad and both grandfathers were very regimented in that we did not own a gas grill or use lighter fluid. We had a Weber and a charcoal chimney with newspaper to get it started.”

Martin recalled a time on the deck with his pop grilling ribeyes.

“I said, ‘Dad, Billy Long’s daddy uses a gas grill and doesn’t have to do all that stuff to start the fire. Why don’t we get one of those?’ Looking back on it, his answer was very telling: ‘We don’t do that; we do it this way.’”

After graduating from high school in Corinth, Miss., Martin journeyed to Freed-Hardeman University, a private Church of Christ-affiliated college in Henderson, Tenn. The town is surrounded by quality ‘cue emporiums.

“I started hanging around those old barbecue joints and got hooked,” he said.

Years later, Martin speaks the language of the hog.

“The deal is there are just some things in which the right way is the only way,” he said. “Bacon should be made with a dry cure — not a wet cure. Moonshine ought to be made with white corn and not sugar. Baseball should only be played with wooden bats.”

With West Tennessee whole hog, Martin cooks the entirety of the swine instead of individual cuts of meat. The process for both is similar, involving very low temperatures (190-200 degrees for 24 hours or so).

“But the skill lies in cooking your larger cuts such as shoulders and hams without drying out your smaller cuts such as your loins and belly meat (from which bacon is derived),” he explained.

Martin said he admires Jim ’N Nick’s Bar-B-Q, taking cues (weak pun intended) from the respected chain.

“If you are going to be in the barbecue business and be anything other than a single store, I think you have to emulate the model they have set,” he said. “They have awesome food, stunning service and great atmosphere. They have grown without compromising who they are or the quality of their food. When you are at one of their locations, you forget that there is more than that one location you are in. That’s very tough to do.”

Martin would like to both grow his business and undertake some world traveling to sample BBQ.

“I would like to [travel] when I have the time and the money,” he said. “That may be a little while though, as all my money is tied up in the restaurant. Right now, I’m broker than a redneck trailer window.”

Still, Martin has managed to sample some exotic BBQ fare.

“Internationally, some of my favorites are “babi berguling” which is Balinese-style (Indonesia) roast pig that is unreal. There is a floral taste, almost sweet, because of the banana leaves you use in the process. Slow-roasted goat, also known as chivas, is one of my favorite things to eat. There is a stigma with goat. But, I’m telling you that when it’s done well, you’ll eat it like it’s your last meal before heading to the gas chamber.”

As to the Big Apple Barbecue Block Party, Martin said his primary objective is to “have fun.”

“That being said, it’s also important to use this opportunity to promote and grow the Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint brand locally. We’ve been open almost three years, and I feel we still have a long way to go in terms of brand awareness. We’re still an unknown commodity to a large part of the Nashville market.”

Martin said serving as a pitmaster at the festival is like a barbecue sandwich, coleslaw and baked beans dream meal come true.

“To be recognized among your peers and mentioned with the pitmasters at this event is as big as it gets,” he said. “Guys like Kenny Callaghan, Ed Mitchell, Chris Lilly and Mike Mills — these guys are legends in the world of barbecue.”

Patrick Martin has now reached BBQ legendary status himself.

Martin’s Bar-B-Que Joint
7215 Nolensville Road
776-1857
martinsbbq.blogspot.com

Sunday, May 10, 2009

Saturday, May 09, 2009

Weekend Report...



Take a guess of what's NOT happening today...yes, our ever faithful companion Sister Rain is here. Mr. Sunshine must be on vacation.



Ball game canceled last night. Ball game canceled today. Yard work canceled. (I should be happy about that, but I'm not, Disney is fast approaching and everything that is canceled will pile up and go boom.)



Things will pile up from the backlog of cancellations and come roaring through here in one week like a polecat on a summers breeze.

That should be fun...



I've given up on trying to do any BBQ competitions, cooking or judging. I've also given up on bowling. The first, I just don't have the vacation time to burn and the second has become a pain in my side...much like work.

Love the people...hate the game...

I can't handle the frustration anymore...I've gone from pro-bowler back to sub-Amateur status. I gotten to the point about some things that I really don't give a rats pa-tooter anymore.

Because of work...the mental stress...

I use to take a breath and count to eight and think to myself, what a bunch of dip wads. These days, taking a deep breath and counting to a thousand don't help, thinking, what idiot gave these morons a diploma from the school of MSDS?

MSDS???

Think about it...

Ah, nope, ain't happening.

Clue: Bathroom vapor trail...(I just saw that light bulb go ding!)

BINGO!!! I got ya.

I got off track here...anyway...back to everything piling up. If Sister Rain don't shut her pie hole for the next week so I can get things done I will be seriously behind. Next weeks plate is full already and getting fuller by the minute.

Some times you win...some times you lose...

My win/loss record this year is 0 and 15 right now. This has not been a good year for the home team.

B.D.

Friday, May 08, 2009

Pizza, Wings, and Onion Rings...

Well...

My girls have given me a hard time since I have not posted since the Weekend Report.

They are my most faithful readers.

Life is dull. Work, rain, cutting grass in between rain.



I haven't cooked anything, I'm lucky to get done what I get done...

My wife is getting ill because I have not cooked anything, I'm trying to get yard work done before we go see Goofy in Disney World and life is not being kind to me.

I'm surrounded by idiots at work. They make the Alamo look tame...Mother Nature has PMS.

I'm way behind on yard work, and I can't cook anything because my free time is spent behind a frigging lawnmower.

I don't have time to post...

Simply Tuesday
Wordless Wednesday
Working For The Weekend
This & That
Pizza, Wings, and Onion Rings


I'm lucky to get the Weekend Report done.

Hell...I'm lucky to get anything done.

Life has not been kind to me these last few months.

I only have so many hours in the day and I'm sure you are tired of me bitching about the rain and work. In the winter...I bitch about the cold, in the spring, I bitch about whatever, in the summer I bitch about flies...

I'm bitched out...

Sorry girls...I'll try to do better.



Hey...if I won the lottery...I'd be one happy mama jammy and have plenty to talk about.

Until then...rain, work, idiots, grass...

B.D.

Sunday, May 03, 2009

Weekend Report (part II)



I made some BBQ sauce for a couple of folks.



One guy at work, has a catering business and ordered half a gallon of sauce. This is the third time he has ordered from me and the order gets bigger each time.

We know another guy from bowling that also has a catering business, so I made some up for him to sample (rub and sauce) for feedback and hope he also starts ordering.

My brother-in-law works for a company that ships products to stores and schools, so I made some for him to try and give samples out to folks that work with him.

The sauce has become just about as popular as the rub has. Both are being sold by word of mouth as the word spreads that I have a very good product. I'm not trying to push it, folks are looking me up for both.

My next step, as so many before me have taken, is to get both rub and sauce to the mass public. Finding the right co-packer and right broker that will work with me is the key.



My lab testing has been done. Now it's time to move on to phase two...

B.D.

Saturday, May 02, 2009

Weekend Report...



It rained all day and night yesterday. More coming in today...

This line of storms is moving West to East and we are right smack in the middle. Fortunately (for me anyway) I got all of the front yard work, mulching and landscaping done. Still to be done is the backyard landscaping, patio work, and by the time the grass dries out, it will be knee deep again.

One step forward...three steps backward. Twenty years worth of cow poop, can turn the backyard into a jungle, with a little rain and warmer weather.

Twenty years of cow poop?

This use to be farmland with a bunch of bovine crumb crunchers roaming these here hills. (Bovine crumb crunchers is southern for cows.)

It's all about recycling...

They eat grass, they poop grass, they eat and poop some more...before long you have the best fertilizer around. When it warms up and begins to rain, you can hear the grass grow.

It's alive...bwahahahahaha!!!

Uh...yeah...whatever...

Anyway, my list is shorter, but once again, I will probably get behind and that will take awhile to overcome. And what's worse is, we are going to Disney World for a week, in a few weeks, and if I don't get ahead of the game, I will be REALLY behind by the the time we get back.

My sister-in-law is going to spend the week here so we don't have to kennel our black bear...maybe I could use my Big Daddy charm and sweet talk her into cutting the grass.

Yeah right...like that's going to happen.

Never underestimate this lowly old white boy and his southern hillbilly charm. I have been known to pull off a few tricks in my time.



B.D.

Friday, May 01, 2009

This & That...

I need to go back to work to get some rest...

Well boys and girls, this whole week, I have been just chugging along outside on the landscaping and yard work. And brother...this lowly old white boy is dang near tuckered out.

I've been raised up to live with hard work and I enjoy the final results of my labor...but...I'm getting too old for this stuff and I'm still not done. In my younger days, I'd of had this knocked out two days ago.

Am I slow walking or goofing off ?

Hell no...the faster I get this done, the faster I can...goof off. But fear not...I'm almost there.

Today, is a special day, an anniversary of sorts...

May 1st, nine years ago on this day I met my lovely wife Julie. Yes...we have two anniversaries, the day we met and the day we got married.



So happy A-Day to us.

Looks like I'm not going to get anything done outside today because it is pouring down rain.



Oh well...

B.D.