Boiled shrimp and friendliness in Texas

As ya’ll know I am in the midst of love affair with Texas. This past weekend I found yet another thing I love about where I live. I attended the annual shrimp boil for “The Rose”. The Rose is the local breast cancer fundraising/treatment organization. A shrimp boil, for my dear ones in the north, is when you boil up a mess of shrimp, potatoes, and corn on the cob in a big ole pot with Old Bay seasoning and some other secret spices to create a potent potion of palatable pleasure. In addition to the shrimp boil there was a bake sale of note with various pies, cakes, cookies and the best damn fudge brownies I have ever had. These pillows of chocolate bliss had cinnamon and chili peppers in them and super dark chocolate chips, oh bliss, oh ecstasy.
There was an auction, a real live “hey give me 75 do I here 75” auction. The auction was presided over by a big ole beard havin’, cowboy hat wearin’, biker belly sportin’, giant belt buckle flashin’ man named Bear. Among other things auctioned was a quilt in the shape of Texas with each panel being something relevant to Texas life and culture that went for $2,000 and a Yorkshire terrier puppy and a year’s worth of vet care for $5,000. All in all the auction and shrimp boil raised $50,000 for The Rose which provides breast cancer screening, diagnosis, and early treatment to women, regardless of their ability to pay. The Rose also helps women diagnosed with breast cancer navigate through the options in the community for assistance. The thing that made me love the whole thing was the absolute kindness and friendliness of everyone attending and involved. While I was perusing the silent auction items and waiting in line I fell into easy conversation with several people and even got invited to lunch because the woman I was speaking with realized I was from somewhere else and “needed to meet some friends”. To add even further delight to the afternoon I won the 50/50 raffle and got a t-shirt and a beer cozy. I love Texas.