This weekend I finally bought a grill for my house. I don’t know what it is about a man and his grill, but there is some kind of bond there. I don’t know if it’s the feeling of cooking something, the fire-conquering skill it takes to get it just right, the atmosphere of being outside, or all of the above. I literally haven’t grilled in years being that I lived in apartments for the last 9 years before buying my house. But once I brought the grill home, started up the fire, and opened a beer there was just something amazing about it.
We decided to get a charcoal grill due to the fact that my wife and I just love the taste of food cooked on a charcoal grill. I like gas grills as well (even though my wife shuns me for it), but the smoky flavor you get from some mesquite briskets just puts it over the top for me. Anyway, we had some great beef tenderloin steaks wrapped in bacon that a friend gave us for Christmas, plus the usual sausage and hamburgers. My wife made her killer potato salad and the barbecue was on. The great part about it is that it’s something that our whole family can share. My son loves to play outside (like just about every kid) and watching him run around and (try) to catch the football while I watched the grill was great. It’s those moments that seem so simple and plain that sometimes end up being the most memorable.
I was a little worried that my lack of practice would ruin our barbecue fun, but everything really turned out great. The beef tenderloin steaks were really good, so much so that I’ll definitely be ordering some more in the future. We all ate well, and had a fun time together, as a family. Since it was a spur of the moment thing, we didn’t really get a chance to invite anybody except my brother-in-law who came over a little later. But the great thing about barbecuing is that it’s easy to feed a lot of people, so it promotes togetherness. It’s funny how that works sometimes.
Two of my resolutions for this year were to spend more time with friends and family and have more fun. Buying a grill seems like it will help contribute to the cause, not to mention how good I’ll be eating! Chances are, the reason that a man and his grill have that special bond has more to do with the pride in providing for his family and friends in a way that hits us in one of our basic human needs. We all need to eat, and everyone loves to eat good. When you can be the one to make it happen, and watch your son run around with a smile on his face at the same time, it’s a special feeling.
