A Smokie and a Story

As summer finally seems to have arrived, one activity that I hope will become a regular is the bonfire. We have had a few so far, and I have enjoyed every one. Honestly I could do it every night this summer. It relaxes the mind and soothes the body. Not to mention the delicious 'dogs, smokies and s'mores.

What's most important is that it's almost everything that I want. I've come to learn that you can't have everything that you want, but good friends, some smoky fresh air, tasty treats and a laugh or two...I really can't ask for more.

Tonight's festivities started at 5 and just ended 15 minutes ago. 15 minutes ago being 1:15 in the morning. MB and I went and picked up Dave just before 5 and then hit the grocery store to grab some smokies, buns and beverage and then got to the backyard where we found Hersch lying in the hammock, enjoying the beautiful afternoon. T then dropped me line looking for some eats, well timed on her part, as the fire just started roaring and was ready for some cooking. We enjoyed some delectable three cheese jalapeno and honey garlic smokies...so good, perhaps the greatest smokie flavors ever. Often jalapeno can overpower the flavor of food, but not these, they were the perfect balance of cheese, jalapeno and meat. Hersch stepped out for a bit, but returned with some chocolate ice cream to top off the meal. Taren also joined us to enjoy the evening.
I picked up this hammock last time I was in Mexico which was a year and a half ago and haven't had a place to set it up until now...man am I loving this backyard!!


Conversation was and is always interesting. Covering such topics as what super powers we would want, what our super raft should be made, what we would do for each other if we won the lottery and just how great it is to be outside and be content.
One of the other favorite fire time activities is heating up the roasting sticks until they are red hot and then branding the wood with them. Tonight I decided to take it to the next level and make myself a little name plate. It's hard to do O's but I think it worked out alright.

I also realized that I don't use my camera enough. If I had to put together a slide show of my life it would be some pictures from when I was a cute kid, some sports pics, some mission pics and maybe some of the work we do at our company...pretty lame, I'm going to try to have some more visual evidence that I exist.Dave always enjoys a good story and often has one to tell. Tonight he had a beauty that someone should really write into a screen play...now if I told you that I had a project that would be more compelling than Blood Diamond and more stunning than No Country for Old Men and would win more Oscars...now is that something you might be interested in?

Honestly, I just like this picture. If you look carefully you can see Taren through the flames. I thought that it was cool that the second I took the picture the fire flared up like that.

Anyways, it was a great night, one of the many this summer. When the world isn't perfect, there is always the backyard, our own little piece of paradise. And since the world is never perfect expect to see me in the backyard more often than not this summer. Feel free to come by, bring a smokie and a story, but leave your problems at the door. The backyard is all about the here and now, so enjoy yourself, take a load off and just think about how good it is to have the simple things in life.