My voice is returning, though I haven't washed the smoke smell out of my clothes yet ... I can't tell if I got a sunburn or a smoke ring. Last weekend I attended the third annual Spicefest in Ft Wayne, Indiana. Ft. Wayne is named for General "Mad" Anthony Wayne, famous Indian fighter. In the bloody Indian wars of the Northwest Territory, the practice of burning someone at the stake did not involve making a fire at their feet, but placing fire all around the captive at a distance of several feet, so the victim would agonize for hours in the heat and smoke. Today, this practice is known as a BBQ cook-off. I helped Paul Everman run a booth; this was my first time at such an event. We placed third for pulled pork shoulder on Sunday. I learned a lot about Q techniques, and playing to the rules (more or less) at an organized event. The heat kept many people away (we had a thermometer reading 104F on the counter) but we still sold out of some items. I brought several hot sauces for people to try, but not many people did. Paul had some home-made Q sauce that people liked, but many of them hesitated and asked if it was hot first. When I mentioned the hot sauces for tasting, many people said something like "you won't catch me near that" but the ones who _did_ try them didn't make any big fuss about how brave they were. One guy flashed a tattoo of a red pepper lashing a tongue with a length of barbed wire - my kind of guy! There was supposed to be a hot-wings eating contest, but not enough people entered. Unfortunately Jim had already mixed up a Devil's concoction of his hottest sauces and pepper flakes - which was never used for anything, so I have it! I brought it home in the same blue bean pot I used to make tear gas - err, cook the pods that Ian had seeded at OF 04. I might just build a sauce on it and take that to OF, but I need to ask Jim about interstate permits for hazmat transport first. Jim was surprised to see me there, and I was glad to meet up with him again before OF. He spent most of the time in full firefighter gear, working his booth. He had trouble making sales, partly because the music in that tent was so dang loud that he couldn't talk to potential customers. *G* there was another firefighter there as a firedog mascot, with a suit like Jim's and a big dog head. I teased Jim, asking him why the other guy's suit looked newer and brighter. Jim shot back, that guy's assigned to educational outreach, and he doesn't have to work fires anymore. The event was held on the grounds of the Great American Spice Company, run by list member Dan Turkette. I introduced myself, and he said he had a dog from Ohio. It was fun to browse the store aisles and see how many products he had. When I use the term "spice" I mean more than just peppers, I also include herbs and aromatics, and all of these were available in the store. I was getting some nice flashbacks from Jungle Jim's. The store is well worth a visit but be ready for a pretty intense political environment; apparently they have stuffed and mounted the last Democrat who dared enter the premises. The proceeds from the event went to a childrens' burn camp. On this trip I carried a bottle of Adelita's habanero sauce, which is quite nice. Every waitress who saw it asked about it, sometimes even before taking my order. At Hall's Coluseum Cafe the waitress took the bottle back into the kitchen to show to the Mexican chef - I said, she'll probably recognize the brand name. Well, it was a fun outing in the summer heat, worth the trouble for all the things I learned. Besides, it was fun to check out the Indianapolis Colts cheerleaders, and the belly dancers balancing swords on their heads. Paul thinks he will probably go back next year, so I will probably tag along again. Thanks to Paul for inviting me, and thanks to Dan for hosting the event. - A