November 24, 2010. Jackson, Pa. The Smoker.

I have tasted the smoked meat which is delicious and I had been told the dimensions but it took until I saw it my self that I realized how big it was. It is huge, all made by John and Andrew. I had been given blow by blow descriptions of the progress as they were busily building it but I still was surprised by the size. Andrew mentioned casually that a smoker would be great for the venison. John got interested as did Andrew, so they both read everything in sight about how to build a smoker. John sketched out a plan and they started in to work.

John was brought up on a farm so he is a handy fellow. Actually, he can do everything. Andrew can talk about everything and he is a good helper if you tell him what to do, so with John's ability to figure things out and Andrew's willingness to help, together they built this enormous smoker. Inside the smoker today were three turkeys, one large ham and the meat of two deer. And it was not full.

I have eaten the meat this week but today, with my own eyes, I saw the smoker in action. It is the most impressive piece of equipment especially when you realize they spent not a dime on the equipment. The bricks came from the backyard, the fire box was donated by John's father who is still a farmer, the door and wheel for the door was pulled off an old tractor from the Family farm in Madison. If you look carefully at the bricks, you can see that the quality of the brick laying gets better as you go up to the top. In other words, they got better bit by bit.

It was a good idea and now has become a most valuable adjunct to the kitchen. Greta-Barbour, John's wife, just wishes it had not been built right outside her kitchen window!!