BBQ Blues

What a soggy Father’s Day! Luckily for me and my family, we had a get-together on Saturday and grilled up some chicken while the weather was still fairly nice. I would have liked if the sky had been clear on Sunday, too, especially since I have a bunch of grillable meats hanging out in my freezer. I typically don’t have a problem with BBQing in inclement weather, but when the rain falls all day, it’s hard to get excited about grilling.
The success of a BBQ is closely tied to the niceness of the weather. It is nigh impossible to have a BBQ indoors, mostly because of the carbon monoxide danger that it would pose. Sure, you can BBQ outside and eat inside, but that’s like celebrating the 4th of July without any fireworks. The point of grilling is to get people out of their houses and into their backyards where there is hopefully a croquet game waiting to be played. (I played croquet once indoors, but croquet was designed to be enjoyed outside, just like BBQs.)
In May I tried to appeal to the weather gods by BBQing as often as I could despite the cloud cover and strong winds. Sometimes I even left an uneaten sausage or two on the grill as an offering, and still nothing. Perhaps I should have left something more substantial, such as a medium rare T-bone steak, slathered in A1 sauce. I fear I screwed it all up for everyone this year with my substandard sacrifices. Or maybe more people need to leave grilled goods behind so the weather gods know we’re all serious about our desire to enjoy BBQs while the sun shines and a cool breeze blows. If we can prove our devotion to BBQs, the gods of weather just may grant us an extra long summer – one that extends into October or so.
I have tried many things so that I can grill in relative comfort while it’s raining. I have a beach umbrella that I used to set up over the grill in order to shield the grill and me from becoming soaked. Now the umbrella is useless, because it is full of holes that the grill melted into it. Had the umbrella been a few feet higher, it would have worked perfectly. I’ve been seriously considering investing in an awning to cover my patio. An awning would be great, not only because I could grill at anytime, but because I could sit outside and enjoy the food too. Plus, it would provide additional protection against the nasty birds that perch in the trees above my BBQ.
If you’re as ready as I am to BBQ every night of the week, make sure to leave an appropriate offering on your grill to appease the weather gods, much like children leave cookies and milk for Santa. Even after all of our pleading and hoping, though, the fact is that we are still unable to control the rain and wind. But we can take steps to protect ourselves and our grills from the elements. I truly hope against hope that this summer makes up for the wet spring and we can avoid needing to build elaborate shelters in order to grill properly. May nothing stand in our way of enjoying BBQs, backyards and croquet!