This old pot

This old pot
Originally uploaded by SeabeeCook

I love these old stockpots. Unlike a new out-of-the-box pot, this one at last week's 1st Annual Hangtown Winter Fest '10 matches the character of many of the competitors.

Rough and unkept on the outside, many are sweet people who have hearts full of kindness on the inside.

The pot's rough exterior -- tarnished from boiling over on top of an untamed propane flame -- shed light on its contents.

Full of simmering water when I shot the picture, I suspect the pot has been used to dissolve salt and sugar for a brine in the past. Or it may be from a lively pot of chili, one that boiled over when the cook's attention turned toward something else.

I didn't get a chance to talk to the owner of the stockpot. I suspect that the team was presenting its entry for beef brisket to the judges when I took the picture.

My only advise to the pot's owner: Please don't clean it exterior. It has too much character to srub it away!