The Greenhorn's Hot Sauce Collection

This story is about a man who was our neighbor when I was a boy. His son introduced me to eating peppers. They have hot stuff in Korea, Thailand and the Caribbean that is hotter than that in Mexico, but at the time, Mexico was the place. Fire Eater.

I know that collecting hot sauce sounds a bit looney, especially to those who don't like hot stuff, but it's probably not much loonier than most collectibles are. It's quite interesting, and many cultures have their own version of fiery food, such as curry and mustard. I find that as I eat hotter stuff, I'm able to tolerate still hotter stuff, although there's a limit. Yes, you can get a little endorphin high from peppers. Watch out for the little jellybeans called "Jelly Belly's" Jalapeño flavor. They sneak up and bite you back.

I tend to class mine as Cajun, Southwestern, Caribbean, "Nuw Yark City??" and Middle/Far Eastern. Peppers grow best where there's lots of sun, but I'll bet if you dig deep in a Swede's pantry, you'll find a bottle of horseradish that will pop the top off your skull. I wouldn't be surprised to find that they import a few peppers as well.

My collection: I currently have over 90 different kinds. I've had to stop collecting, I've run out of space.

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