Can opener 2009

[SwampBillies]

We made it back yesterday afternoon. We always have such a great time at the can opener and it did not dissappoint this year. The weather was great right up until time to start the open house. We still managed to see several way cool trailers. Potluck was fantastic as always. Sugarfoot, I would love to have the recipe for that pudding. MMMMMMMM
Looking forward to next year already!

[Minnie's Mate]

Ahhhh, Fort Wilderness, time to relax and see Mickey.

Glad to see that you and Tina made it to the Fort safely. Hated it that you had to go back home nearly as soon as you arrived. But I understand. Sorry we didn't have a chance to spend some time together. Maybe at the Springstream or other rally. If not, there is always next January.

Have a great time at Disney. You deserve a break. Enjoy.

[Happycampers]

We got some pictures Friday before the rain.

Swampbillies and Stratman

Howie's Kayak (HowieE)

Annie, Kate and Don (KMTYME)

Costalotta

[Happycampers]

And this one of some trailers in the park

[Sugarfoot]

with a thud, especially when I watched Topsail's balmly 57 degrees Sunday drop to 24 in Chattanooga yesterday morning.

We had a great time meeting new folks and catching up with others we know. Here's a few pics.


Geven and Dennis relax in front of Sweet Pea


"We're not afraid of any stinkin' rain!"


JP, we know one of those plates is for Julie, isn't it?.


And my favorite ~ Clancy Boy circling the park looking for a site free of pygmy rattlesnakes.

There's a few more photos here. Many of the potluck photos were either with mouths full or open so I left those out. Brad knows exactly what I'm talkin about. OK, one exception, Dale posed for that one.

[Sugarfoot]

Originally Posted by clancy_boy

. . . Oh yes, S'foot - I have a long memory, we shall meet again, and this time you will pay dearly......
. . . GERRRrrrrrrrrrrr
Pay Backs are

I feel that maybe I should be on the lookout for weapons of mass destruction next time around.

This is the second time I got him. I'll bet Clancy Boy has never told anyone about his raffle prize at the first Can Opener.

Mike, I'm glad you and Tina are getting a well-deserved break at Fort Wilderness. Be safe and y'all have fun.

[Sugarfoot]

Originally Posted by SwampBillies

. . . Sugarfoot, I would love to have the recipe for that pudding. . . .

Warning: There is nothing "heart healthy" about this recipe. And BTW, the meausrements are guidelines. I rarely measure anything when I cook.


Pudding
2 pounds bread, torn or cubed into pieces
1/2 cup heavy cream
10 eggs
24 ounces evaporated milk (two cans)
1 1/2 cups water
1 stick butter, melted
2 1/2 cups sugar
2 tablespoons vanilla
1 teaspoon nutmeg
2 teaspoons cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon salt
12 ounces white chocolate, chunked or chips
2 cups raisins soaked in boiling water to plump then drained
2 cups pecans, toasted and coarsely chopped
1 stick butter, cut in pieces

For Sauce
2 cups sugar
1/2 cup water
1 stick butter
3/4 teaspoon ground cinnamon
The juice of one lemon
The zest of one lemon
1 teaspoon vanilla
2 ounces Jack Danels, Black Label ( or more )

To make pudding

1. Butter a deep 9x13 baking pan or large disposable lasagna pan. Alternate three layers of the bread, chocolate, raisins, and nuts in the pan.
2. Use a large bowl. Beat the eggs. Wisk in the sugar, spices and remaining wet ingredients except for the butter. Vigorously wisk while streaming in the melted butter last. It won't blend in, but will float to the top of the custard in bits.
3. Pour the custard over the bread in the pan. With a large spoon carefully mix in the pan to distribute all ingredients well and moisten all the bread. You want a wet mixture rather than a dry one.
4. Dot the pudding with a stick of butter cut in pieces. Bake at 325 degrees for 60 to 90 minutes, or until bread pudding has browned and risen about 1-inch. Serve warm with the sauce over bread pudding.

Jack Daniels Sauce

1. Place water and sugar in saucepan. Mix until sugar dissolves. Set over medium heat and cook until mixture comes to boil. Immediately reduce to low simmer and cook until mixture is clear.
2. At this point I add about 2 ounces of JD and reduce the sauce further. I'll also add some cornstarch in a bit of cool water to thicken the sauce. When I'm happy with it I turn off heat.
3. Stir in butter until completely melted. Add cinnamon, lemon juice, lemon zest, vanilla and more JD to taste the kick. Serve immediately or reheat when ready to serve.

[Chief]

I suppose that I should have posted that Jennifer and I arrived home safely, but considering our journey was only 15 miles....everyone probably figured we were home already!

What a great rally.....I'm really getting too old for that much Jack (Roadtoaster and AFWPC). We had so much fun that I completely forgot to take any pictures, so I really appreciate those that are being posted.

Spent most of yesterday winterizing the rig.....it's supposed to be down in the 20's this week.......thank you to all the northerners for bringing that cold weather to the South.

Hope everyone has as much fun as we did......next Canopener is just 11.5 months away......see ya then!

Ron

[Minnie's Mate]

Originally Posted by Chief

......next Canopener is just 11.5 months away......see ya then!

Ron

That means we need to pick a date so I can make my reservation! I'm that ready for the next one.

So when will it be Devoman?

[wheel interested]

Sugarfoot is that Brianna under the rain gear? She sure has grown, who is the other sweetie?

The food looks great and so do the Airstreams. Thanks for posting pictures. Sure missed being there. Any Red Bar pictures???

[Sugarfoot]

Originally Posted by wheel interested

Sugarfoot is that Brianna under the rain gear? She sure has grown, who is the other sweetie?

The food looks great and so do the Airstreams. Thanks for posting pictures. Sure missed being there. Any Red Bar pictures???

Carol, we missed you! We hope to see you next year.

That's SafariSS, Rade and Liz's youngest girl. I hate to say but her name escapes me right now. They were just too cute together. Brianna is a young lady now, 5 years old. They grow so fast.

I'm not sure if anyone got Red Bar pics. There may have been a good reason for that.

[wheel interested]

I hope we can make it next year too, thanks. I'm having some elective surgery Friday though just as well, it's a good time of year to hibernate here in Michigan. They are pushing my stuffing back in. Maybe I should have had a HAHA, I wouldn't have given myself a hernia!

Pretty girls. It's nice to see the kids at the rallies. I bet there were alot of fur babies too.

I guess what happens at the Red Bar stays at the Red Bar.

[Minnie's Mate]

Sorry to hear about the hernia...ouch. You really should use that bar thingy to lift your load equalizer bars into their brackets or were you out there trying to prove something?

Hope things go well and the recovery is quick and comfortable. Keep the laptop close by so you can update us when you get home. Just remember, walk on the same day as the surgery and you will recover faster. At least that is what they tell you at the hospital so they can usher you out the door in time to charge you for the second day's use of the room but still get someone else in there before it's too late to charge them for the same day, too!

[wheel interested]

No it wasn't the bars, with the trick hiking up the truck I can do that without any pressure. It was carrying the hitch receiver out of the back of the burb and trying to put it out of the way under the Airstream, weighs a ton...to me anyway. Or maybe wrestling the full propane bottle out of the space between the seats and it was put in sideways by the refiller. I had to rioll it up onto my lap then scoot across the seat, make a slide to let the tank follow my legs down to the ground from up there, then put it back in place. No worries I asked them to build me better, I am going bionic! Maybe we CAN tow it, but it sure is nice to have a big strong he-man around. 1st on my list after recooperation...strength training!!!!!

[Luckyducks]

Just to add a little more feedback - we had a great time this past weekend. Skies were clear with temps about 70 on Thursday/Friday and cooler with light rain on Saturday afternoon. The common thread was seeing old friends and meeting new friends. The food at the Red Bar Friday night was outstanding (as usual). The food was also great at the Saturday night potluck - compliments to all the chefs. Late night fires and storytelling most evenings were entertaining (and for some a cause of headaches the next day but I can't give names because what happens at the CanOpener stays at the CanOpener). And finally, Topsail State Park is as nice a campground (I guess a resort is more accurate) as you could ask for. I didn't take many photos but here are a few of the beautiful beach. The sand is white as snow and the water is clear.

[Phil and/or Sue]

If this message seems "complicated", please forgive me: I am still in recovery from Fatigue.

The Gregory E. Moore Campground at the Topsail Preserve State Park is really nice. Sue and I really enjoyed getting there Friday.

Unfortunately, I got a call from my invited friend late Saturday morning that he had broken down (car overheated, now it won't start). He was on I-10, and just got off at US 231 (just West of Marianna FL.).

We left before Noon Saturday and finally returned about 8:30 with him and his girlfriend (car was FUBAR - engine apparently seized - and we had a reservation at U-Haul for Sunday morning for an Auto Transport trailer). Towing would have cost him $3-5/mile! but the one-way rental was to be $138

Sunday, we all left at 8:00am (Central time): all four of us plus three dogs. At 9:00am, we picked up the Auto transport trailer in Panama City, drove to and then pushed his car on, then left for Winter Park (by Orlando).

Sue and I returned the Auto Transport to Panama City U-Haul about 3:00am. Only cost $61 for "local use".

Sue, the dogs and I got back to our trailer Sunday morning about 4:15am after putting on about 850 miles (750 towing). 20 hours on the road was just about killing me (although Sue drove about 30 minutes).

Sunday was recovery time, and shopping in the afternoon.

Doggone it, we missed almost everything in the Rally. I am glad I at least talked with some of the rally-goers.

We never even made it down to the beach.

The dogs traveled great! We owe them for their patience and perseverance and great temperment in spite of cramped and long travels!

Please post more pics when possible.

I was looking forward to the Potluck and the JT and Swampbillies music (although I was scared of having to listen to Kareoke and probably would have left). They were great to listen to last year (and I wouldn't have made the mistake of trying to add anything to his already complete backing tracks).

Well, left Topsail this morning about 7:45 (Eastern time) and got home about 7:00pm after a leisurely drive up all backroads (except for a short stint on I-185 from Columbus north to US 27 just south of I-85).

Thanks Steve for all your efforts and time to organize and accessorize the Rally. We look forward to next year!

Phil

[Minnie's Mate]

Phil, I wondered what happened to you. I saw you walk by with your dogs and Sulley was having a conniption fit to meet them so I had to try to pacify him and didn't get a chance to talk to you and Sue. I was going to talk to you that evening and didn't see you...by the way, you missed your raffle prize.

Hopefully, we'll get to see you at the Springstream in May. Rest up and take care.

[Ike T]

Phil,

Sounds like you had an adventure within an adventure. We were wondering what cool place you had left Topsail for on Sunday.

Glad you all made it back safely.

Tim

[StreamNTyme]

We had a great time for our first Can Opener rally...even with the rain...
Beautiful park, a great bunch of people and good food too..
Devoman did a very nice job on the name tags and the rally...
Open house signs are great..
Have a great year ...

[Devoman]

Thanks Everyone for coming out to the rally.I have a date for the next one and it will be :
January 8th - 10th 2010
Here is the schedule so far.
Friday night load up for the Red Bar.
Saturday at 1:00 P.M. Meet at the fountain for the Open House.
Saturday early evening meet at Minnies Mates site for the Cocktail Hour and raffle.
Saturday Evening after the happy hour we have the potluck.Maybe some entertainment during the potluck or whatever else pops up.
If we end up using the club house again for the potluck we will need to bring extra plugs for the crockpots to keep the food warm.
Sunday morning is breakfast either at the potluck site or at someone's camp site.
Artstream will be designing the new 2010 t-shirts for us.
I will need help again for next year.
Thanks everyone for helping out this year.It was a big help.
Who plans to tackle these things again?
Open house signs
Raffle
Campground map
Sunday breakfast unless you all want to use the potluck site.
I know there is more but I will think of it later or someone will chime in.
Thanks everyone.

I have 1LG Can Opener T-Shirt here with me.Any takers.E-mail if you would like to have it.Thanks