19 May 2016 – Sunny – Finally! – 72°F
Thursday was a beautiful day in Custer, finally, the weather we have been waiting for! It looks like it will be good for the next 10 days too so we are pretty happy about that.
We recruited the help of our fellow work campers, Bill and Bill, and drove to our storage unit in Rapid City to retrieve Dave’s smoker, the Kamado Joe, a.k.a. “Dragon.” Dave has been wanting to grill something since we arrived 6 weeks ago, and has been denied the opportunity due to lack of equipment. Cooking in this small kitchen has become torture to him and he wanted his smoker, so we went and got it! Thanks to the kind Bills, the four of us were able to load it up into the back of the Tundra and drive it back up the hill to the campground. We unloaded it into our camp yard and Dave proceeded to grill some hotdogs for lunch.
After a lazy afternoon sitting in the sun, Dave cranked up the dragon to about 450° and baked a sweet potato for an hour. He then cranked it up even hotter and threw on a ribeye steak. We had what we call “Death Row Dinner” which is what we would order if it were our last meal. Salad, sweet potato, ribeye and wine.
This morning, he is at it again. He is making artisan bread in a dutch oven….if you’re worried about us up here, I promise we are not starving!
May 20, 2016 at 4:10 PM
Hey, how about faxing a couple of those ” Death row dinners” my way. Sounds pretty good. Also a loaf of the artisan bread would be nice. Anyway, glad you guys are finally getting some nice weather. Hope you are able to make lots of progress. As they say “make hay while the sun shines”. Oh, by the way. I will take sweet tea with mine.
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May 20, 2016 at 7:49 PM
Joel, dinners on the way! We also have a big pitcher of sweet tea waiting for you here. Nice hearing from you!
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May 21, 2016 at 1:55 PM
OK, love the pics. It appears from looking at “Pilot Dave” next to the “Dragon” we might have to rename him, or at least some substitutes to be used when adequate: “Pilot Dave” ” Pioneer Dave” ” Jeremiah Dave” ” Grizzly Dave” So glad you guys are doing well. Informed the PMO that I am done end of June. Month of July will be paid vacation. Flaps down heading home…after 53 years.
You all take care, keep the powder dry 😎🇺🇸
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May 21, 2016 at 6:48 PM
Boss, so glad to hear you’re going to retire and enjoy life! 53 years! Wow! You’ve stood the watch, it’s time let someone else take over. I have to say though, it will never be the same without you there. The Navy and the T-6 program owe you more than they can ever repay. Please come visit this summer or fall my friend!
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May 22, 2016 at 4:42 PM
Well, my fax machine must be broke. The dinners never arrived. Thanks anyway. Glad to hear Rich is retiring but you are very right. It will never be the same without him at the Helm. I think I will not last long after he is gone. Hope to be able to share a glass of tea with you in the future. Take care. Good to hear from you guys.
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May 29, 2016 at 8:05 AM
Pilot Dave;
Where did you buy the “Dragon”? Believe it or not, when I was on the Midway they use to sell the Kamados at the Yokuska exchange for like $45. Now they renamed them the Big Green Egg with costs of the charts. Regardless they are cool. Is yours part of the Vision Grills Series? I am now into my last month. Farewell luncheon on 1 July, not Sure where, they are staying pretty secretive about it. Take care guys, enjoy the Wild, Wild, West. 😱🇺🇸 Happy Memorial Day Vet
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May 29, 2016 at 8:17 AM
We got the dragon at Tops Appliances in Milton. I researched the Big Green Egg, the Primo and the Kamado Joe and the best deal to me was the Kamado Joe. All the ceramic grills/smokers are pretty much the same but the Kamado Joe offered the most accessories included in the price. BGE will nickel and dime you for everything.
Congrats on retirement, you’ll gonna love it! We hope you’ll visit this summer or fall. September is incredible here!
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