1958 F.W.D.
12-10-2006, 01:24 AM
Well, seems an olde fahrt is finally hanging his helmet up for the last time. I want to take this opportunity to say congratulations and farewell to Battalion Chief Fred Cullum who is Retiring. The Slumlord is finally signing over the deed to the Edgewood Area Fire Station!!!!!!
Firefighters everywhere know that the evening meal is something that is not taken lightly in most firehouses. When BC Cullum was on duty, that was no exception. You cooked for Fred, and he was happy. Have it on the table at 1630, dammit, or else by 1631 he was pacing the hallway like a nervous dog about to shit a razor blade. And have the coffee ready, for christs sakes!! God Forbid you forget the coffee!!!!!
Fred managed to scare off quite a few cooks in his time. Many thought him to be a grand pain in the ass for his "on the table at 1630 dammit!" demands.... After a while, I became his unoffical Staff Chef. Many, many times I would bring in the meal, or when no one else did, Fred would approach me and whisper into my ear "Hey....No one brought in chow....Wanna slip out and get it?" And I would. Sometimes grudgingly, as I got annoyed at being the "gofer" and then the "cooker." But apparently Fred thought a lot of my cooking, and for this I am touched. When I cooked, I took my time- I wanted things done right. As a result, more often than not, Fred would be in the kitchen at 1635 bleating like a little lamb "How come dinner aint on the table, dammit?"
In all seriousness......All Fred wanted was everyone at the tables for the traditional firehouse dinner (and a good roast beef, too!). He wanted the comraderie of his "Family" Him being the Dad, the Captains being the "Mom." The senior FF's the older kids, and the younger FF's the younger kids (Paramedics and Details from Aberdeen were bastard stepchildren JUST KIDDING! :D ) He wanted to be able to hear everyone talk about the day's happenings, current events on the news, the rumor mill. He wanted to hear everyone make fun of my cooking, launching any of a number of insults at me (yet everyone managed to make room for seconds on most meals!) He wanted to watch the water fights break out at the sink at clean up time.....He wanted (and probably still wants) to educate Raymond on the error of his ways of proper dishwasher loading procedures......He wanted to hear Livezey cry like a little girl about the price of the meal.......
Fred knew what he wanted, when he wanted it. You did it, and did it well, and he was happy. He knew Edgewood like his own backyard. Want to know where something is? Ask Fred, Dave Lowe or Timmy Brady. I think Fred's (And Vern's) most important thing in life was to protect their men from the dangers of Edgewood....(GB, VX, blah blah.)
Rumor has it that I am the only Firefighter in the history of APG to ever have served a chicken meal that Fred actually admitted to liking! In Fact, he even requested it once or twice when we were trying to think of something to make. This chicken dish, called "NAWCADWAR Engine 69 Chicken", was originally named for my first federal fire station at a Navy Base which is now long since closed and gone- the Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division, Warminster Pa.
Because of Fred's extreme dislike of Chicken dishes, but his fondness of this particular dish, I have re-named it to "BC Fred Cullum's Chicken" Here is the recipe:
You can make this with chicken halves or quarters, but I prefer boneless, skinless breasts. Costs more in the end, but easier to cook in my opinion. If using halves, allow one per man.
4-5 pounds of boneless/skinless breasts will feed 8-10 guys
2 large bottles of italian salad dressing
3-4 large garlic cloves
2 TBS ground basil
4 TBS montreal chicken seasoning
3-4 pounds of pasta (can use ziti, linguini or spagetti.)
3/4 cup of grated parmesean cheese
1/2 cup hormel bacon pieces
1 stick of butter
3/4 cup of the broth from cooking the chicken
Place chicken in large baking pans. soak with the salad dressing, just until the sides of the chicken pieces are covered. Sprinkle the seasonings over the tops. Cover with foil & marinate minimum of 4 hours. Preferably 8.
Leaving foil on, bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 45 mins. (Time varies if you use halves compared to breasts)
Towards the end of the cook time for the chicken, prepare the pasta and drain it off. In a large pot, melt the butter into the pasta, mixing well. Toss in the bacon pieces, the broth and the grated cheese. Serve the chicken over the pasta.
Goes well with garlic bread or plain italian bread, and a nice salad.
I am sad to report that I will not be able to make your retirement party on the 14th. This is the first time in over a year at the new job that a leave request was denied. (Pretty Good, huh????!!!!!) I shall close now by saying Farewell to you Fred. It was a pleasure to have been your Staff Chef, and a firefighter serving under you. I have missed you over the past year since I have been gone- but now I will miss you even more, because you arent in the kitchen pacing, being a pain in someone else's ass! Good Luck to you my friend, enjoy your retirement, it is well deserved.
Firefighters everywhere know that the evening meal is something that is not taken lightly in most firehouses. When BC Cullum was on duty, that was no exception. You cooked for Fred, and he was happy. Have it on the table at 1630, dammit, or else by 1631 he was pacing the hallway like a nervous dog about to shit a razor blade. And have the coffee ready, for christs sakes!! God Forbid you forget the coffee!!!!!
Fred managed to scare off quite a few cooks in his time. Many thought him to be a grand pain in the ass for his "on the table at 1630 dammit!" demands.... After a while, I became his unoffical Staff Chef. Many, many times I would bring in the meal, or when no one else did, Fred would approach me and whisper into my ear "Hey....No one brought in chow....Wanna slip out and get it?" And I would. Sometimes grudgingly, as I got annoyed at being the "gofer" and then the "cooker." But apparently Fred thought a lot of my cooking, and for this I am touched. When I cooked, I took my time- I wanted things done right. As a result, more often than not, Fred would be in the kitchen at 1635 bleating like a little lamb "How come dinner aint on the table, dammit?"
In all seriousness......All Fred wanted was everyone at the tables for the traditional firehouse dinner (and a good roast beef, too!). He wanted the comraderie of his "Family" Him being the Dad, the Captains being the "Mom." The senior FF's the older kids, and the younger FF's the younger kids (Paramedics and Details from Aberdeen were bastard stepchildren JUST KIDDING! :D ) He wanted to be able to hear everyone talk about the day's happenings, current events on the news, the rumor mill. He wanted to hear everyone make fun of my cooking, launching any of a number of insults at me (yet everyone managed to make room for seconds on most meals!) He wanted to watch the water fights break out at the sink at clean up time.....He wanted (and probably still wants) to educate Raymond on the error of his ways of proper dishwasher loading procedures......He wanted to hear Livezey cry like a little girl about the price of the meal.......
Fred knew what he wanted, when he wanted it. You did it, and did it well, and he was happy. He knew Edgewood like his own backyard. Want to know where something is? Ask Fred, Dave Lowe or Timmy Brady. I think Fred's (And Vern's) most important thing in life was to protect their men from the dangers of Edgewood....(GB, VX, blah blah.)
Rumor has it that I am the only Firefighter in the history of APG to ever have served a chicken meal that Fred actually admitted to liking! In Fact, he even requested it once or twice when we were trying to think of something to make. This chicken dish, called "NAWCADWAR Engine 69 Chicken", was originally named for my first federal fire station at a Navy Base which is now long since closed and gone- the Naval Air Warfare Center, Aircraft Division, Warminster Pa.
Because of Fred's extreme dislike of Chicken dishes, but his fondness of this particular dish, I have re-named it to "BC Fred Cullum's Chicken" Here is the recipe:
You can make this with chicken halves or quarters, but I prefer boneless, skinless breasts. Costs more in the end, but easier to cook in my opinion. If using halves, allow one per man.
4-5 pounds of boneless/skinless breasts will feed 8-10 guys
2 large bottles of italian salad dressing
3-4 large garlic cloves
2 TBS ground basil
4 TBS montreal chicken seasoning
3-4 pounds of pasta (can use ziti, linguini or spagetti.)
3/4 cup of grated parmesean cheese
1/2 cup hormel bacon pieces
1 stick of butter
3/4 cup of the broth from cooking the chicken
Place chicken in large baking pans. soak with the salad dressing, just until the sides of the chicken pieces are covered. Sprinkle the seasonings over the tops. Cover with foil & marinate minimum of 4 hours. Preferably 8.
Leaving foil on, bake in a preheated oven at 350 degrees for about 45 mins. (Time varies if you use halves compared to breasts)
Towards the end of the cook time for the chicken, prepare the pasta and drain it off. In a large pot, melt the butter into the pasta, mixing well. Toss in the bacon pieces, the broth and the grated cheese. Serve the chicken over the pasta.
Goes well with garlic bread or plain italian bread, and a nice salad.
I am sad to report that I will not be able to make your retirement party on the 14th. This is the first time in over a year at the new job that a leave request was denied. (Pretty Good, huh????!!!!!) I shall close now by saying Farewell to you Fred. It was a pleasure to have been your Staff Chef, and a firefighter serving under you. I have missed you over the past year since I have been gone- but now I will miss you even more, because you arent in the kitchen pacing, being a pain in someone else's ass! Good Luck to you my friend, enjoy your retirement, it is well deserved.