Fredericksburg, Texas - A Gathering of Old Eggheads

Don't let the title fool you.  There were also some youngsters (mostly over 40) there and some almost twice that age with the energy and enthusiasm of the youngsters.  But some alternate names for it are: "Rest Fest"  "Elder Fest"  "Ol' Timers Fest"  "Geriatric Fest"  "Old Geezers Fest"  and probably one or two other aptly called monikers.

Here's the group photo:

First row left to right:
Pete Benac, Celtic Wolf; Evan's Tabor, Chubby; Ann Tabor, Chubby's Chick; Johanna Sanchez, William's SIL; Colleen Cremer, Mrs Lake Conroe Egger; Charlotte Harris, Mrs. Kolbdriver; Richard Harris, Kolbdriver; Frank Cremer, Lake Conroe Egger; Kim Price, Dessert Filly; Randy Price, AZRP; John Hall, Egret; Joan Hall, Lady Egret; Karen Chamberlain; Bill Wise, Wise One (above Karen); Sharon Schweitzer, Mrs Lawn Ranger; Mike Schweitzer. Lawn Ranger; Kelley Underwood, Egg Obsessed; Jay Taylor, SSN686; Bruce Underwood, No Joke Smoke; Kathy Taylor, Mad Hatter; Judy McMillin, Spring Hen; Monica O'Deskey, Molly Shark; Iris Broyles;
Leroy McMillin, Spring Chicken

Top Row:
Ella Sanchez, Egger Too; Lei Sanchez, William's brother; William Sanchez. Sancho65; Hotch Van Blarcum, Hotch; Clay Roberts, ClayQ; Diane Robert's; Ann Pospicil, Mrs. Popsicle; Zefrin Pospicil, Popsicle; Tom Chamberlain, Rusty Rooster; Lora Hofer, Crafty Pez Head; Darian Hofer, Photo Egg

Not Shown:
Shelly Van Blarcum; Rita Benac

The gathering was something Mike "Lawn Ranger" Schweitzer, a long-time Egghead and friend to all, dreamed up to re-group some of the Eggheads of Old.  Yes, the ones who set the tone and tempo for promoting and sharing their Big Green Egg EGGsperiences.

There's really no way to tell how many Big Green Eggs were sold around the world as a direct result of Early Egghead's enthusiasm.  But with very little spent on advertising, the Big Green Egg company kept growing by the tens of thousands of new customers year after year, even during times of an economic downturn in the economy.  Even they admit that 'word of mouth' was (and probably still is) their best advertising tool.

The important point is that most Eggeads first knew of each other only by way of an online forum.  Thanks to that forum we could share our EGGsperiances and recipes, ask questions, and learn from others.  Although we were hundreds of miles apart it didn't take long before true friendships started to develop between folks who may never meet in person.

Then "Eggfests" started popping up all over the country.  By definition, an Eggfest is a gathering of volunteer Eggheads who were willing to pay our own way just to cook and serve every imaginable type of food to total strangers who want to see what the Big Green Egg was all about.  It was literally a 'demonstration' of the Big Green Egg's versatility and usefulness presented by devoted Eggheads who just wanted to help people understand not only how it cooks food but how much better the food tastes when cooked on the Egg. 

With so many eggfests it became easier for us to meet Eggheads and potential Eggheads.  More important, it gave us Eggheads a chance to meet the very people we had only known through the online forum chat room.  In every instance, each introduction was a magic moment where lifetime friendships grew even stronger, no matter our lot in life.

Fredericksburg was a 'gathering' instead of a 'ceramic smoker/grill cooking demonstration.'  We spent our time with each other instead of with curious strangers.  It could not have been a better idea.  The time was right for it.

Literally, millions of Eggheads around the world owe a lot to the early pioneers of ceramic cooking.  But there are so many Big Green Egg owners these days, the close relationships we developed when we were few in number simply isn't possible.  Most Big Green Egg owners will never know the friendships and kinships we had in the early days.

After the event was over, Judy and I spent two wonderful days with Egghead Friends, Kelley, and Bruce Underwood, at their home on Lake Buchannan, a few Texas Miles east of Fredericksburg.

Then we drove home to Covington.  It was almost 600 miles.  We made it home in just under 12 hours in spite of the rain and heavy traffic.  And as tired as we were (and still are) we believe it was one of the best adventures of our 21 year EGGsperience as Eggheads.

A video/slide show is in the works and will be posted here.  I'm editing photos and video segments now so I can include them in the video.  Stay tuned.

My Elevator Just Got An Up-Lifting Workover

As some of you know, I have an elevator in my garage.  I designed it myself and purchased all the components.  My nephew and brother-in-law put it in for me.  Took 'em just two days.

It has been a life-saver.  I can't imagine being without it when I need to store something in the attic or retrieve it whenever I need it.

But even well-designed elevators are subject to wear and tear.  After only a few months I had to replace the electric hoist for some reason.  I think it was a cable problem.  But Harbor Freight gave me another one because I had purchased a 2-year extended warranty. 

I installed the new hoist and all was well again.  Until we noticed a popping sound coming from the hoist.  I took it down over the weekend and returned it to Harbor Freight.  They gave me a new one.  And this one was a later model with increased lift capacity (1,320 pounds).  I didn't need the extra power but I'm happy to have it.

I installed it and hit the up button.  The motor maid a very high pitched grinding-like sound.  I knew that wasn't right so I took it down and called Harbor Freight.  They didn't have another one at the Covington store.  So I called the Hammond store.  They didn't have one either.  So I called the Slidell store and they had two and both were the new models with increased lift capacity.

And off to Slidell where we got stuck in two Marci Gras parades.  So it took a while to get back home.  After a few struggles, a couple of which resulted in some minor blood-letting, I got it installed.  But I didn't have the energy or patience to splice in the remote control extender.

But as of this afternoon, I'm happy to report that it is back in operation and has already come in handy three times. 

I may make a new video of it in operation one of these days but if you're curious to see what I'm talking about, here's the construction video from two years.ago. 

https://youtu.be/au2-9RkvC7I