A few Fridays ago at Terlingua.

We got there Thursday afternoon. You've seen the shots. If not, scroll down and check out those older posts.

We woke up Friday morning in the tent, in that plush bed, and looked over to see folks already eating breakfast. Our buddy Mark was on the grill, cookin' eggs over easy, and others had already cooked sausage and bacon.

There's never a time out there that there isn't a ton of food available for folks to graze on. Denise survived her very first night in a tent, and I decided that this was gonna work out OK. She's turned out to be pretty game for just about anything I want to do, and I'm enjoyin' introducin' her to new things. You'd think we were two kids.

After breakfast the cooks started turnin' out the food for the Friday contests. It all had to be turned in by a specific time, so it could all be judged. last year I got involved in the judging, but this year I was distracted. The items being judged on Friday included things like BBQ Brisket, BBQ ribs, BBQ chicken wings, Beans, BBQ sauce, and Margaritas. We sat around and watched the preparations, and then got to sample the goods as they were taken out of the ovens, off the grills, and out of the blenders. There's always extra, and we hover like vultures waiting to try one and then another.

This was a pig the guys roasted Thursday night. Not a Friday contest entry. Just a good feed. Just thought I'd share.

BBQ ribs cookin'...

And bein' basted with the special home made sauce.

Settin' the wings on the cooker in racks.

Here's what the leftovers looked like. A bit charred, but amazingly good.

About half way through the morning some folks started talking about going to see "DOM". My ears perked up at that, understanding the reference immediately. A movie called Fandango", starring Kevin Costner and Jud Nelson, came out in 1985, and it became an instant classic for many folks around Texas who saw it. Here's the trailer.

You see that scene where Costner stands on the precipice overlooking the Rio Grade and gives his great speech about what it all means? Well, twenty-two years later, there I was, standing in the same place.



I wanna tell ya, that's a pretty good drop. Turns out to be just down the road from Terlingua, the other side of Lejitas, just off the river road.

Check that movie out if you haven't seen it. It's a beautiful testament to what it means to be pals, and what things really used to look like around here if you grew up in Texas in the 60s and 70s. It's a great companion piece to the movie "Dazed and Confused", which begins to bring you into my era in the late '70s. The music is beautiful, it's funny as hell, and you'll love the ending. It's almost a perfect movie.



Turns out the story was based on some stuff the writer did in the early 1970s when he was at UT (OK Mushy and Chuck, the other UT), and he and his frat buddies used to go down to the border to get wide. There's a remnant of that earlier time still there on the rock, very faint but visible. You can see the original DOM, carved on a rock just above and behind the one used in the movie.

Yep, DOM is still there. I tell ya, it was like visitin' a holy site, like when I crawled up into the alter at the Church of the Holy Sepulcher in Jerusalem in the summer of '90. I know, you're sayin' "FHBs lost it." You just need to see this movie. You'll want to come and see DOM too.

We stopped in Lejitas on the way, and got to look at a cool resort that's gone bankrupt and sits there idol, lookin' like a movie set. Beautiful views from the garden of the restaurant. They were serving, but we didn't have the time. Had to get back for the judging, and the eating, and the drinking.

Several of our folks won prizes for their wings, and then the festivities began.



One of the campers brought out a bug vat of stew. It was a great mix of things, but I don't really know how to describe it. Here, have a look for yourself.

Those ears of corn were wonderful. The spices were to die for. Nothing but the best from these folks. Fred, Dave's brother, busted out a few bottles of "Hot Damn". This was home made moonshine, flavored ether with mint or cinnamon.



The cinnamon tasted like you were eating a whole mouth full of Red Hots. We did shots for a while, and drank a few beers.



I had a few cigars, and then the dude from the other camp brought over that bottle of German Vodka (see earlier post). I tell ya, it was a good time.

The live band Friday night was the Derailers. They kicked ass.

They played for a few hours, and then it was time for bed. Denise used my floppy hat all day to hide her morning hair, so I picked up a hat that evening. I was feelin' really good, and several of the folks there helped me pick out the right one. I ended up vetoin' everyone else's choice and goin' with this one. I think it looks good on me.

Ok, there's one more Terlingua post comin'. I'll try to post it over the weekend, and have all these pictures and many others uploaded to FlickR by next week. May just upload the pictures and post a short thing tellin' ya about it. gettin' tired of workin' on these pictures, but it was a fun time.

Gettin' a haircut later today, and then takin' dad out to eat. Goin' to a graduation ceremony on base this afternoon, and then to a party tonight, hosted by a buddy who is doing the walk after getting his BA. Proud of him.

You guys take care. Cheers.