“Next to music there is nothing that lifts the spirits and strengthens the soul more than a good bowl of chili.”
When I was growing up, my parents’ church had this picnic and chili cookoff . . . I don’t know if they did it every year, but they did it fairly regularly for a while, in the fall, I think, because it was cold a couple of times. And we would go, and my dad would say to my mom, “Why don’t you enter your chili? I like it better than any of these.” And every year my mom declined to enter hers.
My workplace sponsors a chili cookoff every year as a fundraiser. They sell the chili and the money goes to charity and the winner gets a cash prize. I use the same recipe my mom does, and I thought about entering last year, but I was still kind of dragging from having my wisdom teeth out, so I decided against it. This year, though, I thought about my dad, and I decided to enter, hopefully to prove him right. He encouraged the taking of risks, and cooking for a competition is definitely a risk for me. Heck, I can’t even beat Mike in a cookie bakeoff. But I wanted to be brave and to try something new, and so yesterday I spent the afternoon in the kitchen, perfecting the spices, tasting and retasting and making Mike do the same. This morning I got up early so I could heat the pot and transfer it to my crockpot. I carefully transported it over to the place where the cookoff was being held. I nervously waited all morning for lunchtime, when I’d find out the results. Two of my coworkers and I drove over there together, and I entered the room to find . . . (insert dramatic pause here) . . .
Now, in a perfect world, the chili that my dad loved would win, just because that’s a heartwarming story. But this isn’t a perfect world. I didn’t win. I didn’t really expect to, since my chili’s not anything fancy, but I had to try. It’s what my dad would have wanted me to do.
This one’s for you, Daddy. I hope that even just entering made you proud. I know you liked it the best, and that’s what really matters. (I miss you.)
November 13th, 2006 at
awwww - so sweet! it looks yummy!
(sorry you didn’t win though)
November 13th, 2006 at
it was rigged! RIGGED I TELL YOU!
you giving it the thumbs up is great though. you look like a winner anyway. what’d that winning lady have on today, paisley or something?
November 13th, 2006 at
Seriously, what was in the winning chili becasue I have never tasted anything you’ve cook that wasnt outstanding. So boo the judges becasue I like perfect stories.
November 14th, 2006 at
do i need to visit the winner’s house?
she is so clearly sleeping with the judge.
tramp.
November 14th, 2006 at
Glad you entered. [It's dusty in here.]
November 14th, 2006 at
I didn’t have any of the winning chili; it was all gone before I got there. So I don’t know what they were looking for.
(Probably a HUSSY WHO WOULD SLEEP WITH THE JUDGE.)
November 14th, 2006 at
Make me cry, why dontcha?
(You totally should have won. Also, cute sweater.)
November 14th, 2006 at
I think we have enough people to thoroughly pester the winner with snide comments.
*hugs* I pray for your family every time I see your blog in my feed reader.
November 15th, 2006 at
FREAKING HUSSY.
do you have her name…or email, perhaps?
this may just call for divine intervention.
November 15th, 2006 at
I loved this post.
November 15th, 2006 at
Boooo! You should have won! Everyone knows Southern Elections (and cookoffs) are rigged. Seriously! Need I mention Flordia.
I would totally vote for you. Maybe next year that can have a call in vote, like American Idol and we will all call in and you will be the Chili Idol.
Or maybe instead of that totally adorable sweater you should have gone with hooker boots. What man can resist chili and hooker boots?
(I miss you babe. and I love you. And I cried. And I know your dad would be so so proud)
~james
November 16th, 2006 at
Any chance you’d share the recipe?
Love the picture with the thumbs up…So cute.
November 23rd, 2006 at
Just send me some chilli. Your Dad was right about it being great.