4/24/2003: Grits rolling contest
 

http://cellar.org/2003/rollinggrits.jpg

Ladies and Gentlemen, welcome to the World Grits Festival in St. George, S.C. and the "Rolling in the Grits" contest. The official caption sez the festival also includes "the grits eating contest, grits grinding, grits quilt drawing and the gala Grits Parade. Plus hours of religious music."

How would starving African children react to this? "In America, we play with our food.* We have so much of it we just roll around in it for fun."

Note that this is a subtle trend in IotD: the contest of regional interest. Previously we've seen Delaware's "punkin chunkin", a mud race in Britain, and there have been a few others as well if I recall. This is the first one that makes me want to actively avoid the region of the contest.

Coincidentally, we celebrate the creation of the Cellar Food and Drink section, huzzah!

*I think this line comes from a distant memory of a pre-Tonight Show Leno routine where he wonders what African children would think of Mr. Potato Head.

That's what happens when tell the waitress at a Waffle House that you're starving.

So in addition to smothered and covered Waffle house grits, you now have smothering.

If the Slashdot crowd got ahold of this...

So, that woman is Natalie Portman?

Probably more like "Mary-Sue Portman", but...

In re: Grits
 

first thought ... "Better to roll in them than to have to eat them."


First memory ...

"What are grits, anyways?"
"Grits 'r fifty."
"But what are they?"
"They're extra."

(of course the memory isn't good enough right now to recall WHICH Laurie Anderson piece this is from, but I'm pretty sure it's on United States Live.)

Hooboy... Welcome to the South.
 

Everyone has their own kink, I guess...

Why do I have this sudden urge for a big bowl of tapioca pudding topped with Cool Whip?

Grits ain't food!

What are grits? Porridge(oatmeal)?

What are grits? Porridge(oatmeal)?

Grits are boiled, coarsly ground, corn. The kernels are first stripped of their skins with lye.

See, novice day off, you should have stuck with "grits 'r fifty."

     Grits are only good with a proper amount of butter. You can tell by the color these don't have it. Some people add sugar too, but that's just sick.
     For the record, grits are one of those things that shouldn't be good but are. It can't be explained.

'stripped with lye'.....Wolf, grits sure r fifty, sorry i doubted you man

Ha ha, he called you a man.

Naw, he just mispelled mam.

Uh, you mean ma'am?

Is that short for madam? I met one of those in Nevada.

grits, dey is whats for dinner
 

First let me say the grits festival has been going for quite awhile. Around these parts it is a very popular event. Grits are also an important part of Southern cooking and Gullah cookin.
shrimp and grits are as close to ambrosia as some people get.

I should say for clarification that I live 30 minutes from St. George. It is the county seat of the place I live.

When it comes to eating grits all I can say is it beats the hell outta oatmeal.

It's the hours of religious music that get me. What (I was about to write "pray tell") does religious music have to do with grits? Are grits credited with saving souls somewhere?

I'm pretty sure that the Bible mentions nothing about grits. So this must be a Sacraligous Grits Ritual.

or a Baptism In Grits neither seem right.... Man talk about one messy spiritual rebirth.

Oops, sorry maam. Hey JuJu who you callin' "he"

Re: grits, dey is whats for dinner
 

You're only saying that because you've probably only ever had instant quaker oats!

McCann's Irish Steel Cut Oatmeal.

Takes forever to cook, guaranteed to boil over several times causing a horrid mess upon the stove no matter how carefully you watch over them, but they are a totally different taste experience. Make a big batch, refrigerate, and microwave as necessary. (McCann's also makes an instant version, which is still better than Quaker instant, captures most of the flavor-quality of the long-cook type, but is a little mushier than I like). Wee bit o' cream and honey ... mmmmmm.

Ground corn....ground oats...that's not food. That's what food eats.

Perhaps it would qualify as spiritual afterbirth, then?

I'm a rotten SOB for saying so, but man that looks like Rachel Corrie! :D

As for nightsong and his grit thingy I think it is an accquired taste. You either like it or you do not. I am not fond of what tastes like dirt with a bit of butter or cheese! As for all the music we are the belt buckle of the bible belt annoying as it is. music is better played then have the amataur holy singer that is tone deaf sing(we will not even start that one):D

     Ever notice that everyone that lives in the bible belt say they live in the buckle? I've lived in Louisianna, Mississippi, Arkansas and Texas and the only time I didn't live within a mile of a church was when I was ten miles outside of town. Even then I think there was a church within three miles...

Eeeww...