Catch Us If You Can: FETE LA BARBEQUE

All year we have pondered what we could do for our collection of French friends that have so graciously shared their lives and culture with us this year. It only seemed fitting for us to share a slice of our American culture with them. Now that it is not an easy task to accomplish living here in rural France ... there is nothing American here except the new McDonald's, and that is NOT the slice of Americana we wanted to share.

Knowing that the French eat cochon (pigs) from the end of the snout to the tip of the tail (they waste not!), we concluded that NC barbeque was the very slice of Americana that we needed. Conveniently, Dick was in Winston-Salem when this culinary decision was made, and just as he has done with each of his other trips home this year, he was willing to re-open his sherpa service. Instead of bringing clothing, he was now to tote 20 lbs. of Lexington BBQ, cole slaw, baked beans and a 7 lb. tub of toll house cookie dough back to France. No easy feat for sure, but with a large rolling cooler, dry ice, and a prayer that customs would not arrest him, he was all set. He had a lot of questions from the airline and customs but he arrived safely with his cooler full of the critical goods.

Now, with that the food delivery was a success, our next challenge was how would we get 50 friends into our house on a day of predicted clouds and rain!!! We placed our ever so trusty friend, Carlos, in charge of the weather, but we think he had a bit too much to drink the night before, and forgot to "take charge" of the anticipated gloom. And gloom it was!! But the fete must go on, so scramble we did! We moved all the furniture out of our living room, and transformed the space into Cafe 3 Montee du Calvaire. It was real cozy, but that too is real French, so no prob on that front.

In rolled the flock of 50, the food went onto the tables, and as the French would say, VOILA!!! They ate, and they ate, until there was no more. No matter the age or stage of the consumer, the barbeque, slaw, beans, and chocolate chip cookies were a HIT. That is what is so lovable about the French - they eat, and they LOVE to eat! ... and throw in a bunch of wine, and there you have five hours of BBQ delight. Now that is a day's worth of food and fun with a bunch of friends.