North Dakota Style Of Winter BBQ...

As always, I'm not sure how our conversations at the dinner table ever get started... actually, I guess that's not technically true... most of the time it's because the husband is at the other end of the table.  A long time ago my husband was stationed in Minot, North Dakota.  Despite how darn cold it gets up there he said that, for the most part, he really liked the assignment.  

When asked why, the first thing out of his mouth is always, "All the women are drop-dead gorgeous and of mostly Nordic descent."

I'm often baffled why tall, blond women attract him when he married a short, dark haired brunette?  I think I may have to ask him that question one of these days...

He describes the wide open land, the friendly people and the steak in wonderful and graphic detail.  I think he remembers the steak so fondly because he has high cholesterol and doesn't get to have it in his diet as often as he would like.  AND because his girl friend's father had a garage size walk-in freezer in the barn.  Her father raised beef cattle and had lots to say about the quality of meat at the base commissary (grocery store).  He usually headed home after a visit with what my husband calls "the good stuff".

Me, "If it is that cold, what do the cattlemen do with all the cows?  Wouldn't they all freeze to death?"

Husband, "No, they sell off a good part of the herd before winter and the remaining get moved to more sheltered areas."

Me, "That's still pretty cold.  Don't they do anything else for them?"

Danielle, "What about blankets?"

Rachel, "Electric blankets.  Wait... Wait... Solar-powered electric blankets!"

Husband, looking thoughtful, "Yeah, I can see it now.  When one of the solar powered electric blankets short circuit the cowboys can tell by the big, black poof of smoke in the sky.  'Hey Bob,  do you have any BBQ sauce in your saddle bags?  No?  Well run back to the homestead fast and tell the boys we got us a BBQ tonight and to come quick before it freezes again!'"

QOTD: “I've been told that I have a lot of energy. The secret is that I use renewable resources. Some days I'm solar powered. Some days I'm wind powered. And some people in this room might think I'm hybrid gas-powered. You'll just have to guess which it is today.”  Bill Richardson