Then I told her about the enclosed pavilion where I can cook in winter. Well, I told her almost everyday but only smoke once or twice a week. then I think she asked about how often I cook outside. She was asking easy questions anyone would answer. WHY a photographer? I asked Bob, 'is it too late to chicken out of this?'Д«acktracking a bit, when I was talking with Anne Marie on the phone the Monday before Smoke Day, everything was mellow. I guess my biggest fear was turning out bad ribs.Д¬hris, I love the part: 'I hate to ask this.but.'ДЄnyway, I remember sending Bob Correll an email telling him what was happening and saying they're thinking of sending a photographer. I was very nervous yet everyone that knew about it told me to relax & flow with it. It was fun, but leading up to Smoke Day 10 was not my idea of a good time. Thank you again everyone i'm glad this thing is over! When he gets in front of an *actual* keyboard maybe he'll share some details of how his Smoke Day went, to the extent he wishes to share.ДЄs I've already said, great exposure for a great guy! And great exposure for Weber and the WSM! Jim sent me a note saying a bit about his experience that day. I only learned about the publication date from Jim, who heard it from Anne Marie and told me on May 30 that June 4 would be the publication date. I never heard from Anne Marie after that. Just do your thing and have a good time and I'm sure that will come through in the photographs, and I think it did! Jim expressed some concern about being a good representative of TVWBB, and I said not to worry about that. He needed to gather some family members, and fast, because they wanted photos with people enjoying the barbecue process and the food. I guess that photo of Jim didn't hurt matters, because shortly thereafter, Jim contacted me saying that they were sending out a photographer on May 24. I followed up by sending links to this photo of Jim and this photo and this photo of his Pigvilion. As they say on House Hunters, Jim Lampe 'ticks all the boxes' of what you're looking for. I said that he's quite a character, a tremendous Weber enthusiast, a tremendous grilling and barbecuing enthusiast, that he's built a pavilion in which he does all his cooking, he has an arsenal of grills and smokers, and he's located in Wisconsin, in the Heartland of America. Here's the part Jim doesn't know.she asked me very sheepishly, 'I hate to ask this.but what does he look like?' Ha! And fair enough, right? You're shooting a story for the WSJ and you want someone who's at least somewhat photogenic! I told her that Jim looks like Mr. I said that I thought he was a great candidate. She wasn't so much asking for my approval as I think she was asking for confirmation that Jim would be a good subject. She was thinking about sending a photographer out to his house on WSM Smoke Day.

Anne Marie said she'd talked to several of the folks I'd referred and all were great, but one stood out-Jim Lampe. On May 20, we had a much shorter phone call. In fact, it was that conversation that spurred my musing about the popularity of barbecue and is a 'barbecue bubble' developing.ДЄt the end of our conversation, she asked if I could recommend anyone for interviews, and I gave her the names and emails of those who had responded in the affirmative.

She had lots of questions about barbecue trends and popularity and techniques and equipment.

Anne Marie wanted to know about my background and how I'd come to develop TVWB and TVWBB. On May 17, I had a 30 minute phone interview. Some said yes, some said no, some didn't respond. She had already interviewed Jamie Purviance and when asked for such referrals, he suggested that she contact The Virtual Weber Bullet.Д«efore my phone call with Anne Marie, I put together a short list of people and contacted each one, asking if I could pass along their name and email address. She was also looking for referrals to people who were really into barbecuing that she could interview. She was working on an article about low & slow barbecue and wanted to ask me some questions. I got an email from the writer Anne Marie Chaker. Here's how it happened from my perspective.

Fotogenic taklampe