Summer took the girls home this morning so she could get her nails done. I made plans to pick up some Ridgewood Brothers BBQ for lunch with my parents, then made it across town early enough to be the first person in line. They hooked me up with some incredible banana pudding, but I forgot to tell them what sides I wanted with my Hog Trough, and ended up having to go back for them later in the afternoon.
Uncle Giao came down with Erica to help move Nova into a dorm at Tech, so my parents ended up bailing on lunch with us and went to Linh instead. Summer brought the girls back and we ate a super late lunch at my house.
I knew Robert had quite a bit of trouble with green wood yesterday, but I didn’t expect to taste the difference in the meat. The smokiness just wasn’t there the way it usually is, and all the meats seemed a bit drier and less flavorful than we’d ever had before. We did finally get some burnt ends though, and they were super rich, fatty, and juicy. Honestly, I think I would actually prefer them left on the brisket, but that may not make sense when you’re serving by the slice. Overall, I hate to say it was SubparBQ, but the expectations at this point are so impossibly high, and everyone deserves an off-day. They’re still my number one pick hands-down, and I’m not even playing favorites.
After we ate, Summer left for her hair appointment. Eventually I got the girls loaded up and we went to my parents’ house to swim for a while. Summer took forever to meet us there, but her highlights looked great. We sat around for a while talking to Mom about cars, then eventually made it back to my house for the evening.
Eaddie and I stopped along the way to get some Dairy Queen for everyone, then they watched some TV for a bit before getting up and exploring the house a bit to make plans for The Great Cleanout. There’s a lot to do, but everyone seemed genuinely excited about it, which felt pretty good. I dug out my box of greenman suits, and Eaddie danced around the living room for a bit. I got some intense stomach cramps from all the laughing.
Autumn was the first to crash as usual. Then Summer went to bed while Eaddie watched some TV and I poked around the internet until the yawning took control.
Nothing can stop it cause you’ve just gotta ride ride ride ride ride!