Cabin Fever in the Ou Transvaal - Cowboys Cooking with Acacia BBQ

Cabin Fever Remedies

January and February are cold months in Canada. By the time late-February rolls around, Canadians are grumpy. Cabin fever sets. Children and old people go missing. Ice Hockey referees resign, and parents get violent. Strange things that happen in the winter lands of ice and snow.

We've been living in Canada for 12 winters now. Every year we are still astounded to see just how much of an influence the winter blues have on people around us. Many lucky ones escape to warmer climates. Popular destinations include Mexico, the Southern United States, and a few lucky ones make it Downunder or to our homelands - Southern Africa.

This year we stayed home under our blanket of white. To counter cabin fever, we relied on our diligent preparation and applied remedies that didn't involve children, violence, sticks, or rock hard rubber disks. We saved items and happy thoughts for the occasion. Some things we used as crutch included a little Mieliepap, Old Brown Sherry, a few vintage Peppermint Crisps, Dry Wors, Jelly Tots, and some frozen slivers of Biltong.

Then we remembered our African lump charcoal from Acacia BBQ. Willie, one of the owners, left us a stash in the Fall with a mini-braai before he himself escaped to warmer climates. What a happy discovery!

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The Bushveld Smell

Why bring Charcoal from the other side of the world to Canada?

Honestly, unless your first breath in this life was that of a Bushveld Braavleis fire, you will be hard-pressed to follow the logic. In reality, charcoal is a lightweight black carbon residue produced by removing water and other volatile constituents from plant materials (Wikipedia).

Charcoal is usually produced by slow pyrolysis - the heating of wood or other organic materials in the absence of oxygen. The advantage of burning charcoal, compared to burning wood, is the absence of water and other components. This allows charcoal to burn at higher temperatures, and give off very little smoke ("...regular wood can release a significant amount of steam, organic volatiles, and unburnt carbon particles - soot - in its smoke when it is not burned completely."). The end result is the solid-state of the one thing that drives the hysteria and New-World religion - carbon. Burn it, and you have pure carbon monoxide - plant food!

The charcoal you buy for your local BBQ or Braai at your supply store is close to, but not pure lumps of carbon. Where the mass and weight of the material is concerned, one chunk of plant material-derived carbon is much like the next. However, not all plant material is destroyed in the manufacturing process. There remains a faint memory of the origins of the wood due to some unburned content and volatiles. These are the remnants that impart the particular characteristics that differentiate Oak derived charcoal from Muskeet, Applewood, or in the case of Acacia BBQ, African hardwoods.

That is why a bag of Royal Oak differs from Kingfords, Canadian Maple, and the rest. The mass and density set the temperature, and the time it burns (hence briquettes are very similar in performance). The unburned material and volatiles impart the flavour. It is this flavour of the Bushveld smoke that took us home when we lit our first box of Acacia BBQ charcoal on a little Easy Grill.

Acacia BBQ charcoal is a product of HB’s Premium Char Imports Ltd. It is available in Canada and the USA. The charcoal they import is the result of 10 years of trials and tribulations to realize the dream of a family business.  Acacia BBQ searched all over Southern Africa to find producers that would bring the “braai” (BBQ) experience of Africa to North America.  They are conservation-minded and source the materials sustainably while remaining sensitive to the socio-economic issues and opportunities of Africa.

Observations

If you haven't breathed the Bushveld, then you will be forgiven for considering the Acacia BBQ product, just another premium lump charcoal. Burn-time and temperature don't set it apart, and you will be forgiven for thinking it is expensive. Remember, it did come from halfway around the world.

It is the flavour that sets it apart! We consider the profile baby perfume-like. Yes, we are biased because our memory receptors are triggered to take us to our happy place - a bushveld fire, the sun setting, jackals howling in the background, and a "tjoppie" sizzling on the braai (grill), fueled by African hardwoods.

We thank Willie and Acacia BBQ for this huge present at a time we needed it most. He gave us another glimpse of heaven and reminded us of where we came from. This is our Valhalla!

It made -25C a little bearable this time around. We escaped Cabin Fever for another year. If you want the smell of Africa for your meat, then cook with Acacia BBQ. That is why we do it.

Hendrik

Cooking Cowboy

Photos

Christmas Box!

Little Fire!

Eazy Grill

Wors!

Cooking with Fire

The New Old-World of Greenwood City in Boundary Country, British Columbia

Old Stuff

When one visits old-world destinations like Venice, Paris or Amsterdam, you become aware of the stark contrasts between the day-to-day hustle and the much, much longer and older timelines that birthed their character, their people’s cultures and unique personalities. 

In our migratory New World, like Canada or New Zealand, we don’t have a similar appreciation for omnipresent antiquity and the uniquely localized identities of the people. Sometimes, it is even hard to distinguish Calgary from Denver or Regina from Edmonton. If we did, we would discover and appreciate that here too is an “old world” charm, woven into the fabric of what, and who we are. Examples like Montreal and Quebec City come to mind. 

However, further West, we easily forget. Too quickly we lose the charm of our heritage as we hastily pave over it, strip mall, tear down, franchise, and progress it to oblivion. If we look around, we will realize that there are gems to be discovered. Dare I say it, places to be protected and cultures to be preserved and celebrated.

This is part of the TWO COWBOYS' EPIC GLOBAL TRAVEL & CULINARY EXPERIENCE - 2019! 

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New World Gems

Talk about the City of Greenwood with any modern-day Canadian, and most will shrug with just one comment, “Where is that?”. When you visit Greenwood, something grabs your attention about British Columbia’s smallest city, a one-time candidate for the Provincial Capital, and the previous seat of the Provincial High Court. Everyone in the West knew about Greenwood in 1897.

Walk the streets (yes, not speed through it on Highway 3, at 100km/hour) and you become acutely aware of its rich history, thanks to the ongoing efforts of the few remaining residents. They are desperately trying to preserve the crumbling buildings, hold on to the rich can-do mining character, and tell the boom-and-bust stories of days long gone.

There is a character to Greenwood and a hardy identity to its people. It needs to be rediscovered and celebrated. In Greenwood, the old-world charm of the Canadian West and the pioneering spirit of Canada is particularly strong. Even its time-worn accelerated degradation and central location in the Boundary Country offers an eerie charm or omen to the still remaining places around it. It reminds one of that powerful and always-present inescapable universal flow.

Flow of Time

Humanity is insignificant within its force. Regardless of who we are, where we are, what we had for breakfast, or how we drink our coffee, our world will keep on spinning at a speed of 1,800 km/hour. We will continue to be screeching around the sun at 108,000 km/hour, as our solar system spirals at 750,000 km/hour through this galaxy. Our planets will continue to exist for another 4 billion years, our Universe expanding for another 13.5 billion more.

Within this mind-numbing magnitude, we are part of the flow, and we are because of the flow.

All we can do is hang on to a minuscule significance, oblivious of the speed at which we hurtle through time and pace. For us, the sun came up in the morning and will go under this evening. The seasons will pass. Life will begin, friendships made, and partners lost. Civilizations will rise. Some will fall. Industries will blossom and die, presidents elected, killers executed, trees grow, suns collapse, species disappear, climates change and Black Holes born. Gold will be discovered. Fortunes made, and many will be lost.

We will grow old. Our lives will end. Soon, someone will forget.

We stand alone against the massive freight train of life. In the blistering madness of its momentum, we can only try to find a place - our place, a sense of purpose, some significance. A point to it all. The best we can hope for is conscious glimpses grasping at fleeting, subjective moments of awe, splendour, beauty, love, acceptance, and pleasure in the places and with the people we love.

There is no Heaven, no Valhalla, karma, or fortunate re-dos waiting on the other side.

This is it, a sliver of existence in time, a minuscule place in the Universe. Living is all we get. Holding on is what we have. The big question then is, “What to do with it?”

The answer, “Be”. The world forgets easily but definitely.

Greenwood, BC

Greenwood is all about history, it goes back to 1891 with the discovery of gold, silver and copper in this once thriving mining camp. Incorporated as a city on July 12, 1897, the BC Copper Company smelter was built in 1901 and brought prosperity to the city, becoming known as the “hub” of the Boundary. The surrounding mines brought fortune seekers from many parts of the world, but the boom was short-lived. After the first World War, copper prices plummeted and Greenwood’s success soon diminished. People left in droves and by 1940 the population had dwindled to a few hundred.

The forced internment of Japanese Canadians off the west coast of British Columbia in 1942 changed the course of Greenwood’s history. A ghost town from its former glory days, Greenwood became BC’s first internment camp. 1,200 people were crammed into the many empty buildings, hotels and houses; remnants from days long ago. The little city once again began to thrive.

The city has proven its resiliency over the years and now demonstrates an excellent destination for history buffs. Many adventures await you in this historic little city.

Observations

Enjoy the little feature we’ve put together about the museum of Greenwood. Yes, it is a museum, but we know it is also the memories, character and the personality of its people. We have already invested in Greenwood and is soon becoming residents of this charming little gem.

We invite the world to come and visit, stay and build a life with us.

Come to see Greenwood.

Our New Home

Hendrik

Boundary Cowboy

We earn our livelihood by producing great content and supporting inspiring people, businesses, and communities. Please book us here so we can tell your story too.

Photos

Firehall

Supreme Court

Coffee 

Erection

History

Dogs are Getting Groomed - Not Cowboys - at Country Suds in Greenwood, BC

Lifestyle Change

What if the end is only the beginning?

People are often confronted with significant changes and choices in life. We've all been through it. The start of a new job, the loss of a friend, sickness. Moving away from home or moving in with someone you love. Buying a car or choosing a house. Starting of a new business. Some changes are forced upon us due to circumstances. Others, we do to ourselves. 

Whenever a significant change occurs, we are confronted with at least two perspectives. The one view is a feeling of loss, decline, powerlessness, and the lack of control. The other a sense of gain, re-birth, strength, and a new beginning. 

It doesn't matter how small or large the change is. The key to success in life is how well we deal with changes. How good are we at moving away from what we had, towards something new? 

This is part of the TWO COWBOYS' EPIC GLOBAL TRAVEL & CULINARY EXPERIENCE - 2019! 

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Nature is in a constant cycle of decline and renewal. It should be natural to us as humans too to easily let go of the old and to welcome the new. Why is it so hard then for people to embrace the same fluidity of life?

It is because we trap ourselves in temporal illusions. Our imagination creates time, circumstances and places in distorted realities. In our silliness, we fear losing things long gone, while holding on to things that may never be. Our perspectives define our reality. The hardest task then is to tie our reality down to the truth of where we are now and what we need to give up to move forward.

When we are honest with ourselves, we will realize that every change is a goodbye to get a hello, an end for a beginning, letting go for something new. Without this realization, we risk being trapped in an illusory twilight of despair. It will destroy our spirit if we cannot say goodbye. We won't have a future if we do not say hello.

Greenwood

Greenwood City in British Columbia has been saying goodbye since 1918 when the copper mine and smelter closed. It's been saying goodbye for such a very long time that it became trapped in a very real twilight of despair and decay. Old buildings crumbled, people moved away, and businesses left town despite the city seeing an average daily traffic pattern over 3,000 vehicles during the summer months (Traffic Patterns, 2011). It may well be on the road to oblivion like its predecessors Phoenix, Bridesville, Sidley, and others if it doesn't embrace a future.

Because of the city's rich history and its record resistance to change, Greenwood also attracted people fearful of letting go. You can see it in the junk of the yard collections. The failed upkeep of its small houses, and the prevailing rust of the old clunkers in the driveways.

We think that Greenwood and the area are poised for change and on the verge of a millennial renaissance. It is the right time now for the City to move towards its tomorrow as more and more people drop out of big-city life, avoid daily commuting, expensive mortgages, and having too much meaningless stuff.

Greenwood could and should say hello to young families, college graduates, entrepreneurs, crafters, makers, small houses, new buildings and people that embrace lifestyle, simplicity and old-school authentic values. The mine won't give it a future. Instead, it should court producers, makers, and telecommuters - the foundation of a new economy.

The last thing Greenwood needs is a Mickey D's on the corner, Starbucks or a Safeway parking lot. Instead, it requires a butcher, doctor, grocer, candymaker, woodworker, cabinet maker, knifemaker, weaver, and it needs more people that realize that it is an affordable place to work and live - really live. It has the required vehicle traffic. Greenwood just needs to give people more reasons to stop, and some will even choose to bring their dreams, hobbies, businesses and jobs to stay.

Observations

Tammy Bowering moved to Greenwood and established her Country Suds Dog Grooming in 2018. She just realized that Greenwood has dogs that need grooming. Her love for dogs compelled her to say hello to her future, and she started her small grooming business. It's been growing steadily, and we are proud to feature her as part of our portfolio of Boundary Country stories.

Tammy is so passionate about the future of the City that she is now heading the Greenwood Board of Trade. It is an organization that was incorporated in 1899, just two years after the city itself was incorporated. The chief goal of the Greenwood Board of Trade is to promote economic and community development, networks with local and regional businesses, and to provide small business support.

The Cowboys are glad that we can throw in our support too for the future prosperity of Greenwood. It gives another opportunity for people to find a better way to work and live in the Boundary Country of British Columbia. It is a chance for us to have our chosen lifestyle.

Hendrik

Boundary Cowboy

We earn our livelihood by producing great content and supporting inspiring people, businesses, and communities. Please book us here so we can tell your story too.

Photos

City Hall

Powder Room

Grooming

Doggy Love!

Doggy Wash!