Been awhile folks, but with a big "F you" to Covid-19 and '19 and '20 in general, I'm coming to you today as I smoke the last of the 1/8 of a cow I received last winter. Let's hope that this will end the madness. I'm not terribly optimistic, as it looks like the Covid has some more ruckus to impart this winter. Please do your part by staying home, wearing a mask when it is necessary to go out, and getting the vaccine when available!

Now, on to the smokin'. A couple months ago I smoked a 13-lb brisket with a very cold start to the day at 6:30, much like today. Since you can't properly split the brisket of a quarter, our good friends, Doug and Michelle Roediger (and raisers of the cow), agreed to let me take the brisket while promising a dinner invite when I got up the nerve to give it a smoke.

My first attempt at smoking meat was to be the most imposing, intimidating piece of meat. I had heard horror stories, but was definitely up for the challenge, but only after watching some videos from The Dawgfatha on YouTube. I must say that they were very helpful and his delivery in these videos is very straight-forward and informative.

I was able to get through the stall and then wrapped in butcher paper to speed up the process. I ended up with about a 2-hour rest and we paired with some wonderful beans that my wife, Tonya, whipped up and a salad the Roedigers brought. I was pretty happy with the way it turned out and everyone agreed that it was pretty damn tasty.

I was happy that I didn't screw it up, but mostly just felt a sense of relief and accomplishment, knowing that MY DAD WOULD HAVE BEEN PROUD!

It has been a tough month, all the way around for us, as we lost our 20-year-old nephew to a motor vehicle accident, our friend's Mesothelioma diagnosis took a negative turn, and my Mom celebrated her 78th birthday with a heart empty from Covid-19 isolation and the continued absence of her long-loved partner.

On a positive note, our son finished off a successful soccer season, turned 16, and started his job at LaGrande Pizza. Additionally, my wife celebrated another birthday and has managed to stay healthy, despite increased exposure to coronavirus at the hospital where she works. Most importantly, she managed to survive another year with this guy... She's pretty low-maintenance and I can keep her pretty content with the occasional thoughtful gift and some periodic above-average meals.

On Thursday morning, I took my mom donuts for her birthday and then crockpotted some homemade chili (don't tell him, but it's better than my Dad's!) and took that to my mom and my friend that is battling cancer. Today, I'm smoking short ribs and my wife is preparing potato soup to go with it. I'm starting to realize the same passion my dad had for comforting people with food. While I will likely never get to his level, I'm going to continue to give it a good try.

PEACE AND LOVE EVERYONE AND THANK YOU FOR READING!

-Smokin' J