From the Barnyard | Mike Graves
My wife and I just returned from a conference for dieticians in Arlington, Texas. We heard some interesting lectures, including one on GMOs by the senior dietician from Monsanto. Other topics were food waste, micro organisms in the gut, and the Texas Beef Council’s “Farm to Plate”. There was a trade show at the conference where I hung out when the topics got too deep, or my wife needed a break from me (imagine that!). I got pretty friendly with some of the food vendors, and especially Superior Food of Sudan, TX (www.superiorbean.com), purveyors of black eyed peas. The owners were very much our kind of folk, who raised and marketed their delicious product (I had 4 samples to make sure they were delicious, and would have gladly tasted more, had my wife not stopped me).
I learned from the good folk at Superior Bean and Seed, that consumption of black eyed peas was down. And, I was surprised to hear there was no Texas Black Eyed Pea Council. My new friends informed me that black beans and pinto beans were the hot commodity due to the increased consumption of Mexican food. (A side bar: salsa has now outpaced catsup as the reigning table tomato condiment.)
I believe that, along with most things I hold dear, the black eyed pea is out of style.
Yes, black eyed peas should be consumed with cornbread and iced tea under a tin roof as the rain falls on North Bingen- then we’ll all take a nap and when we wake up, we’ll go down to the barn and work on the tractor.
God bless each of you, and most especially the true friends of my family who’ve come by to check on us.
• • •
“In the stillness of the midnite, precious sacred scenes unfold.” Precious Memories
“Your religious rivalries are driving me nuts!” A Letter From God by Paul Harvey
“He talked about the whippoorwills in the Alabama night, honeysuckle vine and sugar cain, swimming holes, fishing poles and early morning frost. And sleeping under a tin roof when it rains.” Charlie Daniels
