eG Foodblog: adoxography - transiting Venus and Taylorville driveby

[ruthcooks]

Nope, no N.E. or N.Y. in my background. Here's my trek:

ILLINOIS (27 years)

Joy

Champaign-Urbana

Chicago

Jacksonville

Taylorville

Champaign-Urbana

IOWA (2 years) (long enough)

Cedar Rapids

KENTUCKY (5-6 years)

Louisville

NORTH CAROLINA (4 years)

Asheville

TENNESSEE ( 23 years)

Nashville-Franklin-Brentwood back and forth for 23 years

PENNSYLVANIA (3 years)

Schwenksville (middle of nowhere between Philly and Pottstown)

Total of 30 different residences. Good and bad--food and otherwise--about almost everywhere I've lived. What's with all the "villes", including the one in my last name? Oh, yeah, and my ex was from Braceville, near Dwight.

I'll bet the Country Kitchen has gone through umpteen changes of hand and menus since I lived there in the early sixties.

[Mayhaw Man]

And yeah, though theoretically we're all divided by one language, we've got enough diverse regional identities and cultures to sink a fleet of battleships. How much sense does it really make to lump Mayhaw Man's distinctively Southern and distinctively Louisianian blog in the same category as my Lawn-Guylandy one, DoverCanyon's California Wine Country one, Nessa's Habanero-Chipotle Texan one, GG Mora's New England Thanksgiving one, Hathor's New York New York one, adoxograph's Astronomical one? And if anyone ever decides to tag Mongo and beguiles him into accepting, what will we get? India? Colorado? Both?

I put it to you that all these are as regionally diverse, and damn near as culturally diverse, as if they were all from different countries. As of course the forebears of their authors are. Size does matter, if only because there's so damn much space here that there's room for a whole cross-section of climates and traditions.

OK, so we have certain cultural stuff in common - increasingly so as McDonaldsism creeps over us all. All I'm saying is, having 10 US bloggers in a row does not necessarily make for the same degree of homogeneity as, say, having 10 Catalan bloggers in a row.

That's damn well put.

Have you ever considered writing? I think you might develop the knack with a little practice.

Incidentally, I agree with you-although it is always fun to see it jump the ocean instead of the Mississippi River (or the Hudson, or whatever ).

[balmagowry]

That's damn well put.

Have you ever considered writing? I think you might develop the knack with a little practice.  

You think? Wow, thank you. Maybe I'll give it a try.

Incidentally, I agree with you-although it is always fun to see it jump the ocean instead of the Mississippi River (or the Hudson, or whatever ).

Very true.

And maybe from t'other side of the ocean we really do look like one big amorphous population of The Great Unwashed (though most of us dutifully take that bath once a year whether we need it or not). I remember when Ma and I were in London for the English publication of L&SD we were staying with friends of friends, very charming and kind people, and were much amused to overhear snatches of conversation like "We've got these two Americans staying with us - no, no, they're not at all what you'd expect, really they're not, they're quite intelligent and funny, you'll like them" - and so on. We were relieved by that verdict, and pleased to feel we'd done our patriotic duty merely by being relatively conversable; but I shudder to think what it is they did expect. Whatever it is, you can be sure it could have hailed from any part of this demi-continent, this blessed plot, this earth, this America, and they wouldn't have known the difference - unless, perhaps, they heard our accents side by side.

(They were so nice to us, though! Now there's someone who could do a foodblog worth reading, bless her - so much at home in her kitchen and so unfazed by our invasion of it. So unselfconscious - I'm remembering one day when we were at a loose end between interviews, just sort of hanging about the kitchen and lazily enjoying the respite, and there's Brigid casually tossing a chicken into a pan with a few onions and probably some potatoes, and then she turns to us and grins and says, "there, I'll just bung that in the oven and then there'll be time to pop round to the pub for a pint - come with me, why don't you, and when we get back it'll be done, you WILL stay and eat it with us, won't you?" - which of course we did, and it was excellent, especially on top of the pint. They lived in a tall narrow house, in a comfortably unfashionable part of London, whose walls and surfaces were ENTIRELY covered with books - I couldn't possibly have dreamed up a more perfect place to roost.)

Edited June 13, 2004 by balmagowry (log)

[bleudauvergne]

We've already had a lemon cone at the Tastee Treet but I just found out that we'll have what I believe to be a foodblog first - tonight we're going to the Demolition Derby!

Rock!

I cannot wait to see what people eat at the DEMOLITION DERBY!

You are so wonderful, adoxograph, to take me there. I've never been.

Hurry, I'm waiting with baited breath!

I bet it's a little bit slower with dial-up... Thank you so much for doing this, you're blog is fantastic and I am loving every word and image that comes from you.

[Pan]

All I'm saying is, having 10 US bloggers in a row does not necessarily make for the same degree of homogeneity as, say, having 10 Catalan bloggers in a row.

That's certainly true.

I'm not certain that no European country has as much or more regional diversity than the US, however. After all, I can understand any US dialect of English but, for example, speaking Toscana, I cannot understand Napolitani.

[adoxograph]

Yes, someone has been tagged, and I'll let it go at that. I know who it is and you don't, nyah, nyah.

First, the Demolition Derby.

Let me say that I have never before been to one, and afterwards sounded like I had been screaming for four hours. I hadn't been. At one point I suggested that this might well be the most damaging thing I've ever done to my lungs. With the stars of Leo and Bootes above us, my companions stated that Yes, it was the worst thing I had ever done to my lungs. We got right up to the fence, near the ditch that separated us from large, bashed up hunks o' metal. It was loud, smelly, loud, bright with the arena lights, loud, and a great deal of fun. The recent rain provided a nice layer of mud so that the announcers in the judges podium couldn't see the numbers of the people left when it got down to 8 cars. (Derbys have judges?)

We missed the compact car division, but I'd rather see old wood panelled station wagons like the ones I grew up with bash each other into oblivion. The old hats I saw the derby with remarked cynically that compacts were better. Party poopers.

Now, what cuisine do the have at the Derby? Is there escargot, well aged cheese, perhaps a nice Cab?

Um, no.

You got your BBQ (of an indeterminate type, on a roll) or your hot dog. You got your beer - MGD, thank you very much - and your soda. None of that citified salad on your hot dog either. It was a hot dog, on a roll. Plain. When we got there it was later in the event, (we waited until it was free to get in, rather than $10 a head) and they were doing the BBQ for a buck, while it lasted. Not long enough for us to get to it. Most maddening for me was the occasional wafting scent of funnel cakes, somewhere.

Look for funnel cakes, watch the derby, look for funnel cakes, watch the derby? I admit it, sparking, flaming hulks of metal won out over food. See, they have these exhaust pipes coming out of the hood that belch out fire. Fire, man! How could I ignore that?

This was the first derby of the season (Derbys have a season?) and apparently, like the farmers' markets the food selection gets bigger as the season progresses. I have been promised another Derby over Labor Day weekend, which happens to be my birthday. Maybe they'll have some nice caviar tastings by then.

(Can you just see that? The Taylorville Demoltion Derby and Caviar Tasting. Someone has to market that.)

As for today, we'll be heading over to that one place for a catfish dinner, and then I'll be saying goodbye to you all from Taylorville Illinois.

But before that happens, there will be green popcorn, Bill's Toasty and hopefully, I'll figure out a way to get some of the 85 derby pictures up. :)

[Mayhaw Man]

Awesome!

No photos of fire breathing junkers running into each other?

If you liked the Derby you should try to catch a figure 8 race when you are in California. They are amazing. It's like Nascar without the racing and with extra crashes.

What is green popcorn? Is it a delicious taste treat or some strange local custom enjoyed by Demolition Derby fans?

[adoxograph]

I AM THE MASTER OF TECHNOLOGY!

And now, pictures...

Where are we? Is not Chicago...

And what did we do when we got there? We went to the Tastee Treet, of course. They have a drive-up window, around the back of the building, where 8 and a half million laminated pieces of paper display your ice cream options...

But you're only there for one thing.

This stuff is the absolute best lemon soft serve ice cream anywhere. It is a perfect balance of lemon flavor and creaminess - this is ice cream after all - and if you are feeling truly decadent you can have a raspberry swirl added in. Maybe I'll do that tomorrow.

And what about that Demolition Derby? Just a sample here..

The car on the left won, if you can believe it.

And now that I have pictures, only now can I begin to describe.....

Bill's Toasty.

[balmagowry]

I'm not certain that no European country has as much or more regional diversity than the US, however. After all, I can understand any US dialect of English but, for example, speaking Toscana, I cannot understand Napolitani.

Again, a good point (though you'd probably be safer saying "almost any dialect of US English" - there are some pretty wild ones out there! ). BUT... isn't that an even better argument against classifying blogs by country of origin? Not just in the US, then, but anywhere. A London blog would be very different from a Leeds one or a Yorkshire one; a blog done in Normandy would be poles apart from one done in Nice; and so on. And as for the provinces of India and China! It would be way cool if we could recruit bloggers from every imaginable gastronomic sphere, though that might rob the process of some of its spontaneity. Then again, maybe we don't do so badly, since as it is every blog is distinguished by the highly individual personality of its author.

Mind you, I'm really playing devil's advocate here, since I do also agree with Brooks that it's fun seeing it jump the ocean, in any direction. I only raised (and belabored) the point because I didn't think it was fair to suggest that the US somehow hogged the blog scene and that that made for too much sameness. Sure, the bloggers are predominantly American or living in America - same is probably true of the membership. But I do think the blogs end up being satisfyingly diverse!

Hey, I know who I'd like to see blog (I've just about given up Mongo as a hopeless case) - Marco Polo, that's who. An intriguing mix of England and Korea. Somebody should tag him, heh heh.

[balmagowry]

I AM THE MASTER OF TECHNOLOGY! 

HAIL TO THE MASTER!

Those pictures are awesome - the colors of that first one! (Toto, I don't think we're in Chicago any more, though we might be in Kansas....) And the lemon soft serve has me drooling again, of course. I have to see the raspberry swirl. Can't wait for the rest.

Why do people drive cars into each other? Because they can. :shrug: Weird. We are a weird race.

[mongo_jones]

(I've just about given up Mongo as a hopeless case)

have you been speaking to my mother? or mrs. jones?

adoxograph and other americans: is a demolition derby the same as a monster truck rally? once went to the latter at a fairgrounds outside los angeles. i believe we ate corn-dogs. the deep-fried snickers bars may have been consumed at the county fair at the same location at a different time--it was all so long ago and after the deep-fried snickers bars my relationship with the space-time continuum has been a little strained.

[adoxograph]

It's 1:30 in the morning. You're Hungry. You're in Taylorville, or it's surrounding environs. You have two choices. The 24 hour Super Walmart, or Bill's Toasty.

And you may not actually have Bill's Toasty because even though the sign on the door says 24 hours, if one of the 5 employees (It says in the phone book they have 5 employees. Why it says that in the phone book, I don't know.) gets tired, they just might close up shop. So if you have the option, you should probably get in there.

This is not the kind of place I would picture myself in during daytime hours. For me and my east coast Diner Daydreams, this is where I would be having breakfast anytime at 3 in the morning. There are a couple of two person tables, but mostly you just plonk down on a tattered stool. Three signs in front of you explain that you can't have it your way, that mean people are charged $10 and you'd better like it. The most expensive thing on the menu is the triple cheeseburger with bacon, at $7. The cheapest is toast, for 55 cents. A burger is 1.70. Cheeseburger, $2.20. Fountain drinks, shakes, and you can have it all carry out, or have a seat. If you like, get a green camo t-shirt or cap printed with "Bill's Toasty, Better Burgers, Taylorville, IL." No other color for the shirts, just green camouflage.

We opted for carryout while still at home, and I admit that I regretted it when we got there. I saw the grease-stained paneling, the grilltop covered with a couple dozen burgers, the remains of someone's sandwich in front of me, the bug sitting on the counter in front of Sarcasmo.

I loved it instantly.

We had a bit to wait while our food was finished, the place was pretty well packed with half a dozen tickets above the grill including ours. It was about 1 am. A couple regulars were finishing doubles and triples, a couple kids waiting like we were for cheese balls and fries. One gentleman, obviously not from around these parts, drifted in for a couple shakes, called one of the two women working "young lady" when she was obviously 20 years his senior. She completely blew him off. I loved her. The only truly weird thing about the place is that I couldn't smell food at all, just cigarettes - no namby-pamby non-smoking here. They must have a hell of a ventilation system because I was maybe 15 feet from the grill. Then, before I could watch longer, our food was ready - a cheeseburger, two fries, and an order of cheese balls. $7.28. We left, but not before I decided that one of the sexiest things on the planet would have to be a woman in chef's whites with a Bill's Toasty shirt underneath. How could it not be?

And the food? You have to get to it first.

It's wrapped in foil, and put in a bag, which is put in a bag. This is a newer innovation, apparently. Sarcasmo regaled me with fond stories of food breaking through grease-smeared double bags of the past. I think he missed that.

Our food? How could it not be great. The cheese balls will bring me back. I wondered aloud what sort of cheese they were.

"Cheddarish."

Works for me. Better than simply describing it as orange.The fries were hot, crispy, the oil just old enough to be perfect.

The cheeseburger was was the perfect level of grease, juice meat and salt (I had a nibble. Don't tell Sarcasmo.). He took these pictures and wanted me to point out that these are 10 inch plates. T'aint no small burger, that.

After eating, I slipped into a happy, greasy slumber on the couch. Beavis and Butthead reruns on satellite TV. I'd seen my first Demolition Derby. Nice day in Taylorville.

[Behemoth]

If you like, get a green camo t-shirt or cap printed with "Bill's Toasty, Better Burgers, Taylorville, IL." No other color for the shirts, just green camouflage..

I need this. Where exactly is Taylorville?

[adoxograph]

TO explain what a Demolition Derby is - take a whole bunch of junk cars, remove their windows, add a roll bar. Put them in a space where they can deliberately run into each other repeatedly. Do so. Do so again. And Again, and again. Keep bashing until only one car still runs. that last car is the winner.

There are apparently other rules like, you have to bash a car within a certain time limit, so you can't just drive around until everyone's done. I just don't know all those rules.

[whippy]

i wish i could respond to all the ideas discussed here since i asked about (and feel somewhat responsible for) the blogs' various loci. but i'm not smart enough to do that.

i can say this, i marvel at egullet's international reach. it strikes me as a new thing in our world. i think it's both tremendous and important to talk about food on this sort of scale. though perhaps this is just new to me, i'm not sure.

i've enjoyed all the blogs i've had time to retrospectively read. (soba's fantastic index doesn't readily identify all the locations or origins though, just some.) from those i've gotten through, most are totally rad. however, in my neighborhood at least, hyderabad gets less media coverage than new orleans (for instance) and i remain equally interested in both. that's where egullet comes in, an opportunity to throw the spotlight on areas unexplored by the powers. the local media don't seem to care about hyderabad as much as new orleans.

while i agree the unit of nationhood is indeed very arbitrary (it lumps), i think it's at least functional when talking about areas of the globe on an international scale. asking us to be region-fluent on a global scale will eliminate a great many of us; well, maybe just me there are so many intelligent people posting all the time.

keep the blogs coming, from wherever!

[ronnie_suburban]

After eating, I slipped into a happy, greasy slumber on the couch.  Beavis and Butthead reruns on satellite TV.  I'd seen my first Demolition Derby.  Nice day in Taylorville.

...and all was right with the world.

Thanks adoxograph for a wonderfully enjoyable and unique week.

=R=

[adoxograph]

Behemoth -

Taylorville is about 25 miles southeast of Springfield, IL - Slightly below middle of Illinois.

I'll stop by there today and see if its something you can order and get shipped. I'll PM you with details. :)

[colestove]

All I can say about your blog and the contents thereof is incredible. All of the blogs have been great and I think they reinforce each other in some magical way. Thank you (all of you) for another great eGullet experience.

colestove

[balmagowry]

(I've just about given up Mongo as a hopeless case)

have you been speaking to my mother? or mrs. jones?

Er, no - I didn't realize that was necessary, so I just went ahead and figured it out all by my ownself. My apologies to both Mrs. Joneses for failing to keep up with them.

adoxograph and other americans: is a demolition derby the same as a monster truck rally? once went to the latter at a fairgrounds outside los angeles. i believe we ate corn-dogs. the deep-fried snickers bars may have been consumed at the county fair at the same location at a different time--it was all so long ago

and after the deep-fried snickers bars my relationship with the space-time continuum has been a little strained.

I'll say! Last I heard, I thought deep-fried Snickers bars were the exclusive purview of Scotland. Or was that deep-fried Mars bars? Dammit, Mongo, now you've put a strain on MY relationship with the space-time continuum just by mentioning the things! What ever happened to putting warning labels on dangerous posts?

I've never had a corn-dog (though fifi's Incredibly Strange Cravings thread has certainly piqued my curiosity), but I may just have to go out and seek one now. I have a feeling that may be the only remedy for this degree of cosmic dimensional disorientation.

[balmagowry]

i wish i could respond to all the ideas discussed here since i asked about (and feel somewhat responsible for) the blogs' various loci.  but i'm not smart enough to do that.

Harumph. I doubt that, somehow. You look pretty smart to me.

i can say this, i marvel at egullet's international reach.  it strikes me as a new thing in our world.  i think it's both tremendous and important to talk about food on this sort of scale.  though perhaps this is just new to me, i'm not sure.

You're right, of course. It is a new thing in our world - as new as the widespread use of the internet. eGullet is not the first place I've encountered it, though it's distinctly among the most enjoyable and interesting. There's a certain logic to on-line romance, a sort of corollary to its more prosaic (but more successful) counterpart, the formation of communities. Global village and all that. For the first time in history communities are being formed absolutely without reference to geography. Which means that people from anywhere, and from all walks of life and damn near all economic brackets, can find each other and can connect and engage in good conversation purely on the basis of mutual interests. Think about it! Where alliances used to be formed almost exclusively because of need and propinquity, now you can find kindred spirits, real friends or colleagues or mentors or students or pals, anywhere in the world - with a couple of mouse clicks. Talk about messing with your relationship to the space-time continuum!

And that's just the infrastructure which makes something like eG possible - one hell of an infrastructure it is, though. Add to that the fact that the food theme is infinitely diverse on the one hand but absolutely universal on the other; throw in some damn good design, generally sane management principles, and a truly dedicated volunteer staff; and you get a huge community, a community every bit as real as it is virtual.

No wonder the foodblogs are so extraordinary. And no wonder foodblogging is such an extraordinary experience.

So what if we take pictures of our food? If that's weird and cultish, then label me weird and cultish. I could do worse.

Edited June 13, 2004 by balmagowry (log)

[mongo_jones]

You're right, of course. It is a new thing in our world - as new as the widespread use of the internet. eGullet is not the first place I've encountered it, though it's distinctly among the most enjoyable and interesting. There's a certain logic to on-line romance, a sort of corollary to its more prosaic (but more successful) counterpart, the formation of communities. Global village and all that. For the first time in history communities are being formed absolutely without reference to geography. Which means that people from anywhere, and from all walks of life and damn near all economic brackets, can find each other and can connect and engage in good conversation purely on the basis of mutual interests. Think about it! Where alliances used to be formed almost exclusively because of need and propinquity, now you can find kindred spirits, real friends or colleagues or mentors or students or pals, anywhere in the world - with a couple of mouse clicks. Talk about messing with your relationship to the space-time continuum!

And that's just the infrastructure which makes something like eG possible - one hell of an infrastructure it is, though. Add to that the fact that the food theme is infinitely diverse on the one hand but absolutely universal on the other; throw in some damn good design, generally sane management principles, and a truly dedicated volunteer staff; and you get a huge community, a community every bit as real as it is virtual.

while i agree with, and celebrate, all of this in principle i think it is worth pointing out that egullet's reach isn't as international as we might think. while some of the european fora have members actually located in those places, the fora for the rest of the world are populated largely by people originally from there and now residing in the u.s. some seem to exist more as resources for american tourists.

(offhand i can think of only three active members of the india forum who reside full-time in india--vikram, episure and rushina. this is not because india doesn't have a huge internet culture--it does.)

in many ways this site remains american-euro-centric. i don't think this is anyone's intention and i'm not sure how it could be remedied.

i'm sure people will disagree with this description and i'll be interested in reading other takes on it.

(edit to fix spelling and clean up paragraphing)

Edited June 13, 2004 by mongo_jones (log)

[Mayhaw Man]

I've never had a corn-dog

No way! Get with the program! Corn Dogs are one of Texas greatest gifts to the culinary world.

They're kinda fun to make, especially if you used decent stuff like good quality weenies, or better yet sausage. It would make a fine project for you to use as writing practice.

Have you ever thought about finding an old corn dog recipe, cooking it as close as possible to the original method, and then writing about it? There might be a market for that stuff. People love old recipes and food lore. You might want to give it some thought.

[Behemoth]

in many ways this site remains american-euro-centric. i don't think this is anyone's intention and i'm not sure how it could be remedied.

Part of it is a language issue, I think. I know plenty of people in other countries who would love this but would have trouble with the english. On the other hand, there are a lot of elsewhere-born-but-US-living types on here.

[bleudauvergne]

After eating, I slipped into a happy, greasy slumber on the couch. Beavis and Butthead reruns on satellite TV. I'd seen my first Demolition Derby. Nice day in Taylorville.

That just made me feel suddenly homesick. Thanks adoxograph, for that, and for taking me to the demolition derby. It was great.

[jgarner53]

The wonders of the heartland. Bill's Toasty and demolition derbies (derbys?), and tastee freeze type joints that are only open for the season.

Living on the coast, one tends to forget (and usually not care) what the rest of the country is doing and eating.

Thanks for a great blog, adoxograph!