My father was a butcher by trade and super cook. He taught me to cut meat and distinguish the best cuts for the dish he wished to prepare. I was a firefighter for 25 years and shift cook for a good deal of that time. We have five children so I never learned to cook small amounts. Cooking with one of my two smokers is my favorite way to prepare meals. On the rare occasion that it rains here in the Willamette Valley I prefer to cook indoors. I am well known with my family for the Holladay meals I prepare and the disastrous mess I make of the kitchen.