For the last 8 years, it has been a Super Bowl tradition for Chris and I to attend the Super Bowl Chili Cook-Off (SBCC) hosted by Bruce, one of my former Raytheon co-workers, and his wife, Fawn. This is their 18th year of hosting the party, and each year it gets a little grander - both the game watching and the chili cooking-off. Festivities usually begin 2 hours before kickoff. For guests' game watching enjoyment, there are 2 big screens & a theater projector setup. For those of us who are as much about the chili cook-off as the game, 3 years ago Bruce had to run an entire separate 20 amp circuit in his garage to power the up-to-20 Crockpot entries of chili and the big screen that resides there (so you don't miss any important plays or commercials while you're sampling & judging the chili).
Every time I can remember entering "Audrey's Awesome Aggie Chili" into the chili cook-off, I have taken home the 2nd place trophy. (BTW, Bruce's trophies are legendarily unique.) As Chris said - always the chili bridesmaid, never the chili bride. In fact, he even wanted to me to rename my chili this year to "Bridesmaid Chili". Ugh! But, I could at least still claim to have truly award winning chili. However, my luck took a turn last night. When Bruce announced the 2nd place winner and it wasn't me, my heart sank. I couldn't believe I didn't even place this year. Of course, my darling hubby leaned over and proclaimed that I had obviously won this year. I honestly wasn't buying his confidence. But, HE WAS RIGHT! I finally WON! Now, I get to claim not just Award Winning Chili, but Blue Ribbon Chili.
Check out the 1st place trophy (yes, that's toilet paper) and the best prize in the history of the SBCC:
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