Nobody Cares about Country, everybody loves Ribs

Welcome to my blog. It's me, my writing and a limit on words so i can do things other than write. I'll write about what I want to and sometimes that and what you care about will intersect. And if they don't...well...i don't give a....

Some will be serious and tense and driven by race and hate. And sometimes I'll just talk about food...

Today is the Fourth of July.

This fact holds very little significance to me. 

I don't really have a lot of love for the Founding Fathers, which I am sure would have been mutual. For this reason, I've never been a big fan of the Big Deal people make about the Fourth. In my family, however, the 4th of July never meant any of the Independence Day Will Smith bullshit, but it was instead an opportunity for the entire family to get together for the birthday of the Matriarch of the family, my grandmother. 

But what it also meant, it was another time for my mothers brothers to get together to play that famous family game: who made the best ribs. Their prowess on the grill was only enhanced by their geographical diversity: an uncle from North Carolina, another from Kansas City, a third from central texas and a fourth from Laredo. Each had their own rub, sauce and swagger: and each believed they were better than the other ( i preferred my Kansas City uncle's BBQ spot which was most like LC's of ann place i ever had to pay). Those epic battles from the grill and the smoker helped place me, mentally, in a world where at the foot of some of the best pitmasters i've ever been around, but also take me to a place, mentally, where i could just let my mind engage and not think about the 3/5 compromise or my unfulfilled 40 acres and a mule.

So today, and every 4th of July, i find myself awash in nostalgia, thinking back fondly of BBQ experiences from back in the day, and all I can think about is: man, I wish i had a way to makes some charred meat. The desire to make BBQ, to put some ribs on the grill (or in the smoker, after appropriate preparation, obviously), grill some burgers and dogs or prepare myself a steak or a corn on the cob, grab a cold frosty one and enjoy the day. But i have no BBQ, and it's the fourth, and i don't have access to a grill. My initial fear was that there would be no restaurant open to satisfy my needs. but because this is 2016, and not 1864, many places were available, so with a simple message via Door Dash, I'll be feasting on ribs: Texas, St Louis and baby backribs, sliced brisket and smoked sausage. Even the sides looked on point. 

I'll post a pic and review up later.