Soy Sauce

This is what it looked like around here Sunday.















This is what it looks like today!















That’s what I like about the South. The weather was great for Mardi Gras. The Mystic Fish have been very lucky, it has only rained once on their parade, it wasn’t much and caused no harm. For the party Saturday night we also had great weather. That and good food, we were set. We ate about 10 or 12 dozen oysters, some raw some steamed. Stacey found these beautiful shrimp for the shrimp boil. Folks told her they were the biggest and best they had. Some of these folks were from the Gulf Coast and new of what they spoke. We also ate 4 bacon explosions. Six were cooked, one went home with Stacey’s lil Sis and one went home with us. The other 4 were eaten that night.

We had some new folks join us for the festivities this year. Some rejoined us after a break of a few years. They were busy having kids or something. Some folks we missed for the first time in a long time and hope they are back next year. It’s not the same without ya’ll.

All that being said I have to say it was one of our best years. Everything went very smooth. All the prepration was more like play then work. I think we have finally got the hang of it.

Mystic Fish 2009

Mardi Gras was February 24th this year. The Mystic Fish parade rolled the 22nd. This years theme was “HOLY MACKEREL”. The float for the Mystic Fish parade was a 7′ tall red Octopus with black polka dots. The Fish never try to match their float to their theme, always trying to keep the spectator thinking.

This year was a great success. Other then Nancy and Kim getting in a drinking match and everyone knows Nancy can drink Kim under the table, things went great. Just before the parade stepped off the Chief of Police and his number one man showed up and escorted the Fish parade all the way to Broad and Government St. where we had our finest parade in 17 years.

The Fish also enjoyed the best band they have engaged so far. The Blow House is the best Mardi Gras band, by far, in the whole world. The trombone blower has rubber knees and their groupies are the prettiest girls anywhere. We were proud to have them.

The Fish were without one of their founding members this year, the Big Daddy was truly missed. But, not missing a beat the Fish reached out to the Order Juno and borrowed their newest member who did an excellent job filling in for the Big Daddy. She was a tall drink of water and the Mystic Fish thank her for her spirited participation.

Folks traveled far and wide to be with the Fish this year and one thinks a good time was had by all. Can’t wait til next year!

Same old same old

Mom fell, Kim threw up and I rode a red Octopus.

Stay old tune, more to come.

GONNA SEND 5 COPIES TO MY MOTHER

I had the good luck of having one of my paintings used for the cover of the current Lagniappe newspaper. That’s the local alternative paper down in Mobile, Alabama. It is the second time one of my paintings have graced their cover. That’s the painting above. The first one they used was a Colonial Dixie painting.

It’s Mardi Gras time down there in Mobile and every year I do about 5 or 6 paintings for the season, my favorite season of the year. I think the reason I like it so much is because it is a 3 week holiday. Stacey and I go back and forth for those 3 weeks. We see parades, eat great food and get to see all kinds of folks we don’t see all year long. That’s my favorite part of Mardi Gras, the fellowship. Everyone is in a great mood. Each day I run into someone I haven’t seen since last year and we usually have a beer and catch up a little bit. The parades are great, but they are just a back drop to the social part of it all.

So far this year we have had the good luck of spending time with 2 couples who were in Mobile for other reason. First our friends Gwen and Pepper called to tell us they were in town for a wedding, the next thing I know we are all sitting around Mom and Dads dinning room table eating, laughing and having a great time.

We also had dinner with Kimberly and Youann. They were in town on business so we made plans to see them and had another great time. We took them down to one of the huge float barns for a inside look at how the floats come to be. Their baby Noah was really impressed.


Today I will load the truck and head back to Mobile for about 8 days. I will finish the float Stacey and I build every year for the Mystic Fish Parade. This will be the 17th Mystic Fish Parade. The best parade to ever hit the streets of beautiful downtown Mobile. This year the float is a Octopus. If ya get a chance stop by and see us! And stop by Restaurant 219 to see my other Mardi Gras paintings.

Mardi Gras 2009

It is here, the 2009 season. After being in such a terrible way over the Christmas holidays, with my back hurting like it was, I am ready to celebrate.

Stacey and I went down to Mobile last Thursday and started getting things in order. Mardi Gras is a lot of work, especially the way we do it. We have two parties, back to back. At the first we host about 50 people. We will serve them a shrimp boil, 16 dozen oysters and some kind of meat off the grill. We have built a grill from 40 cement blocks, right in our front yard, and we will cook a pig or some other huge amount of meat for the Saturday night party. Next day we will have a parade and a reception after. At this parade and party we will host up to 70 people. No big deal, this is our 17th year and we could do it in our sleep. Which is good because it may be the only sleep I get that weekend.

We missed the first parade due to the fact we were attending the Osiris Ball. This is our second time attending the Osiris Ball and it is big fun. It is like no other ball I know of. At the Osiris you don’t have to walk around trying to find someone you know to talk to. At the Osiris Ball one is entertained by a tableaux like no other. At most balls they just call out names and some lady and a drunk masker walk off the stage and let you look at their over priced Mardi Gras gowns.

The theme for Osiris this year was “Out of Africa” and it started with a African dance and drum troupe. They were great and really set the tone for the evening. There was one dancer who was on stilts and dress in a white outfit, kinda like the one Michelle Obama wore to the inauguration balls. It looked great the way it flowed from the ten foot tall dancer. Mrs. Obama should have been on stilts like this guy.

All the beautiful people were there that night and a great time was had by all. This group knows how to have a party. There were so many bars that it didn’t take long to get a drink. There were super sized t.v. screens so you could see the tableaux no matter where you were. The tables were all decorated with a different African theme. At our table there was a gold skeleton, rattles and shakers, glass skulls with candles burning in them and spears. All for us, the guest, to play with and take home. At another table there was a super sized blow up penis. From the size of them I would guess they were African penises. Can’t wait til next year, I just love this ball.

BACON EXPLOSION, I sure you have seen this

Bacon Explosion: The BBQ Sausage Recipe of all Recipes

by Jason on December 23, 2008

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The other day the guys from BaconToday.com contacted me in search for some barbecue bacon recipes. Of course I have plenty of great uses for bacon in a barbecue pit, but the longer I thought about it, the more I wanted to step it up a notch and clog a few arteries for those guys. Behold, BACON EXPLOSION!!! Here’s what you’ll need…

2 pounds thick cut bacon
2 pounds Italian sausage
1 jar of your favorite barbeque sauce
1 jar of your favorite barbeque rub

To kick off the construction of this pork medley you’ll need to create a 5×5 bacon weave. If the strips you’re using aren’t as wide as the ones pictured, then you may need to use a few extra slices to fill out the pattern. Just make sure your weave is tight and that you end up with a nice square shape to work with.














The next step is to add some barbeque seasoning on top of your bacon weave. Being the barbeque addict that I am, I whipped up a batch of Burnt Finger BBQ’s competition pork rub for this special occasion. Seeing as not everyone has the time, or the expertise, to create a tasty rub of their own, I would recommend trying Bad Byron’s Butt Rub, Rendezvous Famous Seasoning, or Steven Raichlen’s All-Purpose Rub.















Now that you’re pork is well seasoned, it’s time to add more pork. Take two pounds of Italian sausage and layer it directly on top of your bacon weave. Be sure to press the sausage to the outer edges of the bacon creating a patty that is the same thickness all the way across. Most grocery stores carry loose sausage, so just pick out one you like. I chose to go with a mild sausage, but spicy would work just the same. If you really want to get crazy, take a stab at making your own homemade sausage.















Next up is bacon layer number two. Take the remaining bacon slices and fry them up the same way you would for breakfast (or lunch, or dinner, or a midnight snack). If you like soft bacon, make it soft. If you like crunchy bacon, make it crunchy. If you like your bacon burnt to hell so the smoke detectors go off, then burn it to hell so the smoke detectors go off. These pieces are going to be a major part of the inner flavor of our sausage fatty, so cook them your favorite way. Personally, I like my bacon right at the point when it starts to get crispy, but hasn’t quite lost all of the softness yet. Regardless of how well done you like yours, you’ll need to crumble or chop the cooked strips into bite size pieces and place on top of the sausage layer. (Note-It’s okay, and encouraged, to snack on these pieces while your chopping/crumbling. But keep in mind that once those bacon morsels touch the raw sausage, you’ll need to resist all temptations to nibble. This can and will be difficult, but hospital trips are no fun, so stay strong.)
















Since this is a barbeque recipe, we need to add another layer of barbeque flavor. Take your favorite sauce and drizzle it all over the top of the bacon pieces. Personally, I prefer to use Burnt Finger BBQ’s homemade competition sauce, but if you’re torn on what brand to use I recommend Cowtown, Blues Hog, and Fiorella’s Jack Stack. Once you’ve sauced the bacon, sprinkle on some more of the barbeque seasoning you used on the bacon weave.
















Now comes the fun part. Very carefully separate the front edge of the sausage layer from the bacon weave and begin rolling backwards. You want to include all layers EXCEPT the bacon weave in your roll. Try and keep the sausage as tight as possible and be sure to release any air pockets that may have formed. Once the sausage is fully rolled up, pinch together the seams and ends to seal all of the bacon goodness inside.














At this point we can start to see the final shape of our Bacon Explosion, but we’re missing one key item. To complte the constuction process, roll the sausage forward completely wrapping it in the bacon weave. Make sure it sits with the seam facing downward to help keep it all sealed up.















Sprinkle some barbeque seasoning on the outside of the bacon weave, and now this bad boy is ready for the smoker. Cook your Bacon Explosion at 225 degrees in a constant cloud of hickory smoke until your Thermapen gives an internal temperature reading of 165 degrees. Normally this will take about 1 hour for each inch of thickness, but that could vary depending on how well you maintain your fire and also how many times you open the smoker to take a peek. Mine took about 2.5 hours, which was right on target with its 2.5 inch diameter.































Now that our Bacon Explosion is fully cooked, we need to add some finishing flavors. Remember that barbecue sauce we used for inner flavor? We’ll be using that same sauce to glaze the cooked bacon weave. Using a basting brush, coat the entire surface with a thin layer of sauce. Sweet sauces are loaded with sugars, so they’ll give your fatty a nice glossy finish. Spicy and vinegar based sauces don’t contain as much, so they won’t set up as well. If you’re dead set on using those sauces, just cut them with a bit of honey and you’ll get the same effect.
















Slice the Bacon Explosion into quarter to half inch rounds to serve. If your roll was good and tight, you should now see a nice bacon pinwheel pattern throughout the sausage. Obviously pork is best served by itself, but if you feel the need to make this meat monster into a sandwich, try placing a couple Bacon Explosion slices on a warm Pillsbury’s Grands Biscuit. You’ll reach pork Nirvana is no time flat!















Be sure to send us stories and photos of your Bacon Explosion experience. Who knows, you may see your ugly mug on BBQ Addicts!!!

For My Viewing Pleasure

We recently joined Netflix. Had to, all the Blockbusters seem to have shut their doors. I’m not surprised, Netflix is so easy and not a bad deal. $15 a month and they will mail you a new video every time you mail one back to them. If you can watch one video a week that beats Blockbuster every time.

The way it works is when you join you make a list of the videos you would like to see, they mail the two at the top of your list and you watch and mail them back, one at a time and they send the next one on the top of your list. You can keep them as long as you want at no extra charge. They also provide the postage and package. It’s really cool.

Much to Stacey’s chagrin I picked a lot of documentaries at the top of our list. It’s my favorite format, not so much for her. Good thing is you can change you list or the order of it any time you wish. You can do this all from your computer. It’s great. Here are a few of the videos I have viewed while resting my aching back.

The Devil in Daniel Johnston. This is about a guy who at a early age started making home films. That led to making music. Later in life he is diagnosed with depression, schizophrenia, or something that makes him crazy. Of course he won’t stay on his meds, but he keeps making music, writing songs. He ends up in Austin Tx. and of course becomes a cult hero. His songs are great, but he’s not a great performer, other artist do his song better then he can. I liked it.

Party Monster. This is about a guy that moves to NYC and is a party planner for the hottest bars in town. At the time the Limelight is one of the hottest clubs and he works a lot with them. Of course there are lot’s of drugs, sex and rock and roll. Then someone is murdered. This one was okay. kinda depressing

Be here to Love Me. This is Margaret Browns first film. She just make a big noise with her film ” Order Of Myths”. It was about Mardi Gras in Mobile, Alabama. This is a documentary about Towns Van Zant. He was also a song writer, a great song writer. But he was very self destructive. A lot of famous country stars have made hits of his songs and are interviewed in the film. This is one of the best films I have seen lately.

Another film I thought was really good was A Guide to Recognizing Your Saints. This is a film about a kid growing up in Astoria, NY. One of my favs Robert Downey Jr. stared in this one. I really enjoyed this story, a real to life film, I guess that’s why I like doc’s so much. Downey Jr. is good and anything he is in is good in my opinion.

I also watched A History of Violence. Not bad, good actors and a good story. I would recommend it.

I also watched Super High, it was stupid. It was a take off on Super Size Me, except this guy smoked as much dope as he could instead of eating every meal at McDonald’s. Don’t waste your time or your mind. Go to McDonald’s instead.