From the Vault

Written on this day in 2013 prior to the Caveman Good days. Fun memory!

Feeling thirsty? Have a sandwich!

I was driving eastbound on Interstate 80 with no particular destination in mind, which was perfect cuz I’m pretty sure I-80 stretches from Cali all the way to Great Britain (or until you run out of gas, whichever comes first). I was rocking out to Joe Satriani with the windows down and sunroof closed (only cuz I don’t currently have a sunroof but if I did you can bet it woulda been open! Miss my sunroof and how at night, it magically turned into a moonroof, a star-roof, a birdwatching roof, once a birdpoop recepticle-roof…..ok I don’t miss that but I digress).

According to my calculations, I was pretty close to the Equator when I started getting thirsty.  I pulled off to grab a drink at a gas station, and lo and behold, there it was: THE TRUCK. It wasn’t just any truck, mind you. It was an oasis in the desert…a cousin to the Taco Truck – a Pulled Pork Sammiches kinda thing. One bite and suddenly all of life’s mysteries were clear. My destiny, my reason for existence, was so that I’d be here, across from this random Shell station somewhere in North America, to experience this life-sustaining yummy scrumptiousness.

Ever have one of those random moments, one of those seemingly accidental finds, that has a way of restoring balance to the world? 

Ok me neither but this came pretty damn close.

The meat was tender goodness….the melt-on-your-tongue variety that instantly made my taste buds explode and made me feel like I never even had pulled pork before (which wouldn’t be much of a story if I hadn’t had it before, butchyaknow….I had so yeah!). And the sauce….ohhhh, the sauce. A tangy, spicy-sweet, supernova-sensation in your mouth, that’s what it was. If they sold the sauce alone, I’d pull over just for that. 

When traveling life’s highway, I highly recommend a good pulled pork sammich. Not only do they make for good eats, but you’ll look so much cooler when driving next to people who don’t have one….which means you’ll look cooler than pretty much everyone else on the road. Let’s face it – life isn’t a race – it’s about looking cooler than the people next to you. Sure, the argument could be made that there’s nothing really cool about having sauce dripping from your chin and bits of pork meat stuck in your teeth as you’re doing 95 while zooming towards your non-destination, but the naysayers will have something to say every time. I’m told it’s rude to point and laugh at other drivers who aren’t stuffing their faces full of pork. Then again…..the people who say such things never tasted this.

A couple of things struck me after getting back home. First, I never would’ve experienced Pulled Pork Bliss had I not decided to hit the Random Road. It’s OK to not have a plan all the time – the journey is what makes it! Secondly….being different, being unique, standing out…is GOOD. My new friends in that truck knew they had a great sandwich to offer humanity. The fact they had a quality product sure didn’t hurt, but really, just the fact they offered something other than the norm – that was enough for me. 

Be different today! Life’s highway is calling….