Since several of the readers of my silliness have asked about the auction, I thought this would be an ideal time to devote a little space to our Thursdays.  I usually arrive at 6:45 am and start the setting up process.  The first picture shows hundreds of cars, trucks and SUVs waiting to go under the gun.  The first lane starts at 9:00am and over the next 45 minutes or so, all fourteen lanes get started.  That is fourteen auctions going on at the same time.  Can you imagine the noise?  Each of the auctioneers are on a microphone and believe me, you can hear each one of them.  A bottle of aspirin is a necessity. As soon as the first bid is made, I start sauteeing green peppers and onions, and throw on the first round of steaks.  I don't stop until they are all gone--4 whole ribeyes--or the auction ends about 2:30 pm.  Every week but one, we've sold out.

Today was a little unusual.  A different butcher must  have cut my steaks because they were a little thicker than I'm used to, plus a couple of the loins were a little smaller.  As a result, we didn't have quite as many steaks as I'd have preferred, which caused my sales to be off about $150.  But we still sold out. 

My ribeye sandwiches get compliments all of the time.  One of the dealers today stopped by after the auction and said, "I didn't need any cars today.  The only reason I came to Fredericksburg was to get another one of your sandwiches."

I also often get asked what I do to make them taste so good.  Actually it isn't rocket science.  A little Kosher Salt, a little Garlic Salt, and a little Fresh Ground Black Pepper.  That's it.  And it does give them a great flavor. 

Keep in mind, while all of this is going on, we still might get a customer wanting a corn dog or a funnel cake so I have to jump over to the fryer and cook it while watching the steaks.  Peggy stays constantly busy getting the buns ready, adding lettuce and tomato if needed, and collecting the money.  She also gets the drinks, water or gatorade unless one of our regulars just helps themselves and leaves the money on the table near our cash box.  This happens quite often and to my knowledge, we've never had anyone beat us out of a drink.

The next shot is a view to the west from our tent.  The blue canopy is one of those misting tents which help keep everyone cool.  It does get hot out there, and is really hot under our tent with the fryer and grill going.

The dealers mill around, kicking tires, checking out the cars before they go into the

auctioneer, and sniffing the tail pipes.  Most of them grab a sandwich or a drink, which leads me to keeping the steaks ready at all times.  After a busy day, it was a long drive back to the farm.  After a good nights well deserved sleep, tomorrow is a day to get ready for FOOTBALL.

A report from Liberty to follow.

Last weekend, we had about a dozen or so steaks left and Peggy took them home and made probably the most delicious bar-b-que I've ever tasted.  Might be a new item for us to try in the future.  Maybe I should buy five ribeyes each week, send the leftovers home with her. . . . . . Oh, well.  I'm dreaming.