Don’t complain, volunteer

Yes, residents of Chatham, the Canada Day festivities this year were a long way from what we’ve seen in the past, but let’s now look ahead to the future.

We can’t let that happen again, not with Canada 150 looming.

So, what can we do? For one, get involved. Don’t just wait for someone else to serve it up on a platter. If you want to see a return to the fun day in Tecumseh Park, a parade and fireworks, get on the volunteer bandwagon.

It’s obvious changes need to be made for the future for July 1 celebrations in Chatham.

Perhaps next year’s event will incorporate Kingston Park and its splash pad. Maybe the event could be run there. Or maybe it could be split between the two parks, with free transit between the two.

There is plenty to think about.

Maybe some of the community funding from all the energy companies that went to a boat party in the middle of Lake St. Clair could be better utilized next year helping ensure the largest community in the municipality hosts a better Canada Day bash.

This is not meant to take anything away from the folks who stepped in at the last minute this year to provide some excellent historical drama for the nearly 400 folks who attended the Cultural Centre events. Kudos to MPP Dave VanKesteren and everyone who helped out for making that happen.

But these elements can be part of next year’s festivities. We have such a rich history right in our own backyard, that we should celebrate these as well as the nation’s birthday. After all, this area’s importance in the War of 1812 and being the terminus for the Underground Railroad helped shape this municipality, and our country.

Pork on the fork

Last week, I had the “tough” task of working from home one morning to stay close to a 6.5-pound hunk of pork loin cooking on the Big Green Egg.

We had a potluck lunch for our co-op student, Raquel Sa, and, naturally, I offered to bring the meat.

So, I prepped the meat the night before, giving it a light rub of mustard to hold the Dizzy Dust rub I spread all over it. That gave the rub a chance to penetrate the meat.

The next morning, I prepped my cooking and work area, pulling out the pork from the fridge as I fired up the Egg.

I cheat a bit for longer cooks, using a DigiQ temperature control. It measures the temperature in the Egg, as well as the meat. It also has a fan and controls all the inbound air to the enclosed Egg.

In short, it’s a great control system, as you just have to play with the top vent to control cooking temperature. Once it’s set up properly, you can essentially forget about it until the meat’s done cooking.

As the meat began to roast, I fired up the laptop.

Sitting in the shade of the backyard is a great way to work, I must say. In the morning, because of a large maple right beside our patio, I can sit in heavy shade – minimal glare on the computer screen. And considering it was not a sweltering summer day when I cooked, the conditions were near perfect.

I had the classic rock playing – of course. A solitary frog croaked away in the background over the sound of the stream running into our pond.

I must do this more often. E-mail and a cell phone can keep me plugged in pretty nicely.

You do, however, get distracted. Several times I thought of doing one thing or another in the yard, such as water the plants, add a little more water to the pond, put on the sprinkler or yank a few weeds. But, no, I stayed with the laptop, sifting through e-mails and typing away.