I’ve Realized So Much of Life Happens Around Food…

Switching gears now. Other prisoners always ask me why I spend so much time focusing on food I can’t get? They say it drives them crazy. They want me to leave them alone to sulk in the reality of our “menu” at the chow hall. They say its cruel and unusual punishment for me to subject them to such great visions of culinary excellence. I love it! 

Now that My Goals are out there for the world to see. I want to share how they were born. They have been inspired by the lack of good food in prison. I am not complaining because my heartfelt attitude is “if you don’t like something about prison, don’t come here”! That still doesn’t change the fact that the food sucks. 95% of the food served is low quality, poorly cooked servings of bread, beans, rice, canned vegetables, and paste (sorry, I mean pasta). They try to pass off a weird combination of water & flour for a sauce or gravy. Not sure which. The other 5% is multiple versions of meat you will never find in your local grocery store (I’m positive you wouldn’t want to either). This is “The Joint”.

I never expected quality food, and I am fortunate to eat better than a lot of other people in this country. It’s the lack of meat all these years that has ignited the carnivore in me. It drives a constant craving for meat. That primal instinct along with all the commercials, cooking shows, and cooking segments on TV has motivated me to study the art of barbeque—or BBQ. I never knew BBQ was defined by meat smoked (not cooked) a certain way, at a certain temperature, and over a certain period of time.

6 years ago, I started telling everyone I knew, or better put, anyone who would listen, that my hobby would be smoking meats and cooking with BBQ recipes when I got out of prison. The more I study and educate myself about barbeque, the deeper the passion becomes embedded in me. From the thought process involving what meat to BBQ, what type of wood to use, how long to smoke it for, to imaging what the different smells would be like, who I would share the meal with, textures, sauces, sides, and the most exciting thought of all…TASTE!

This passion is on fire and I’m burning inside for my future. Some of my favorite materials I’ve studied have been by Steven Raichlen. He has a TV show on PBS where he’s always grilling and barbecuing outside. Two of his many books, Project Smoke and The BBQ Bible, have been the most informative for me.

I absolutely love watching The Pizza Show on the Vice channel. It features many different styles of pizza throughout New York City and Chicago. It also gives you an inside look into historic family owned and operated pizzerias. I love the vibe I get from seeing those pizza shops and barbeque joints. Every owner is happy doing what they love. Makes me laugh because at age 15 I tried to convince my mom to let me drop out of high school, have her quit her job and cash out her 401K–all to open up a pizza shop together in Clintonville Ohio.  My mother has always worked hard to get to where she is in life. I don’t blame her for not taking the risk to bank roll my idea at that point in life. That doesn’t mean 34 years later I forgot the feeling I had inside to make that dream a reality.

My first real job was at LaScala Italian Restaurant in Dublin Ohio at age 14. I was a dishwasher. I worked my way up to a line cook at age 15. I ran the fryer, cooked pasta, and did all the appetizers. By age 16 I was working on the sauté pans cooking seafood, chicken, and meat dishes from scampi to marsala.

I left Dublin Ohio at 16. I headed to Orlando Florida with my father and older brother to pursue barefoot water-skiing. I always had a job in the food industry to make ends meet. I loved the work! I worked at numerous places like Hard Rock Cafe, TGIF Fridays, and Julie’s Waterfront. At one point I literally had 3 jobs at the same time while going to high school. Orlando is where I landed my first job at a pizza joint. I’m just saying, the food service industry has been ingrained into me from a young age. I’ve never lost that passion for food and the atmosphere it creates.

Adam Eats The 80’s and The Food That Built America on the History channel definitely will inspire you to follow your dreams. Those shows highlight the individual people who worked hard to create some of the most amazing foods and powerhouse companies in America. One thing the “greats” have in common is they all faced rejection everywhere! They always found a way to overcome those rejections and make their dreams a reality. America would not be America without stories like those.

The conversions I have with my kids about food are hands down the most meaningful to me. We talk about the foods they eat, places we will go, and what meals we will cook together when I’m out of prison. I’ve realized so much of life happens around food.

This realization has me planning an integration of another passion of mine. I’ll have to visit this topic in the future because its count time in the joint and the lights are going out, so am I.

Please Post your comments. They mean more than you can imagine.

Thanks for reading,

Mike

(3/19/22)