Smug

Three of us were sitting at the camp fire after dinner the other night. It was just getting dark and that is the time when we look for “afters” and I had a surprise. I went to my pack and brought out a package of Jiffy Pop. My other two camp fire mates groaned and started talking about all the times they had been disappointed this product. They said they always marvel at the foil dome and how big it gets only to find an inedible burned mass inside.

I quietly held the wire handle pot over the open flame hoping to prove them wrong. Within moments I could hear the oil inside starting to sizzle and I occasionally shook the contents.

Like a rocket going off, the corn started popping and I shook it some more resting the batch every few seconds and then shaking again while suffering the constant haranguing of my camp mates about the inevitable doom our snack would face.

Eventually the popping was at an end. When there was a four second interval between the pops I removed the container. The dome was full, but I waited for the final insults before I opened it to find I had made an absolute flawless batch. There was not even one burnt piece and nearly all corns had popped; maybe five unpopped cornels in total.

I shared it with the nay-sayers, and they immediately had to admit that I pulled it off. Best yet, it was really-really good. It made the night. Better yet; it allowed me an opportunity to be smug. It is so cool when things work out better than one might expect.