After the initial confusion (where do we get tickets, again?) we made the rounds of the nearby museum as we waited for our numbers to be called. I spotted this interesting 'specimen', wonder if there's anything inside? Adrenalin inhalant, it's good for what ails you!
After a nice
"you been here before?"
"yup" "know how it works?" "yup" "eat until you're full"
We approached the food table, our stomachs growling in anticipation. We need a 'wanted word' for the type of hunger you get before a supper like this. A word that describes the hunger you get, when you haven't eaten much all day, leaving lots of room for the community supper. Help me out, wordsmiths!
Sauerkraut salad in foreground
Plates full, bellies empty, we tucked in to our meals. What a spread! Lemme recap: hodge podge (not 'orthodox', basically peas, beans, onions and blend mixed in with mashed potatoes), smeltz potatoes (pork scraps, onions, blend and apples mixed with mashed potatoes...it was AMAZING), sauerkraut, lunenburg sausage and pudding, sauerkraut salad and solomon gundy. Not for the faint of heart, or vegetarians for that matter....I look forward to the sauerkraut salad every year, though this year the smeltz potatoes gave it a run for its money. Here's a glimpse:
front--left=>right: sauerkraut salad, lun. sausage, sauerkraut. back--left=>right: homemade brown bread, hodge podge, lun. pudding, smeltz potatoes
By this point, I had a sweaty upper lip, the air was 'right close', as the locals would say...Dessert was a choice of blueberry grunt or blueberry pie. I chose the grunt, of course! Blueberries were supplied by my old employer, Randy Naugler and his Nogwild brand blueberries. The grunt was excellent, I even used some of the vanilla ice cream to sweeten my tea. Grunt is basically stewed (and usually sweetened) blueberries, served on top of a dumpling and in this case, with ice cream as well.
What a meal! Needless to say, belly was full....spent the remainder of my time there snapping some candids:
Warden Jack Wentzell serving up tea.
One of Ginny Wentzell's many products...I'm so glad this shot turned out!
Stay tuned for some killer burnout pics tomorrow!
