THE SHOCKING ORIGIN OF FRONTIERADO!

 With Frontierado rapidly approaching this August 3rd you’re running out of shopping days!

What is Frontierado?  Frontierado is a holiday my family and I celebrate  each year. It’s a holiday I simply made up to fill the down time between The 4th of July and Labor Day. Frontierado celebrates the romantic myth of the Old West, as opposed to the gritty reality.

What does Frontierado mean? I named the Holiday this because I think it sounds cool and the “frontier” part of the name captures the old west feel I’m going for. 

 How do you pronounce Frontierado?  I pronounce it frawn-teer-AW-do and since I invented the Holiday I can pronounce it however I like. 

 When is Frontierado?  Frontierado is the First Friday of August every year. Isn’t it a nice change of pace to have a three-day weekend that doesn’t have the holiday on a Monday?

How is Frontierado celebrated? Frontierado is celebrated with a get-together with family and friends involving a meal (cooked outdoors or indoors, whatever you prefer) , Sagas, Frontierado Poker, Cactus Jacks and a viewing of the official Frontierado western, Silverado.  

 What are “Sagas” in the context of Frontierado? Christmas has Christmas Carol singing, Frontierado has Sagas. Sagas are fictional biographies of a Western character I invent for somebody after I familiarize myself with their personality and favorite subjects. You could do one yourself of course, or if you like I could make a custom Saga for you. Contact me at Thtcom15@aol.com if interested. Throughout the Frontierado Holiday Season you and your friends and family address each other by your Saga names. 

What is the traditional Frontierado garb? On Halloween you dress up in costumes, ditto for Frontierado. Western garb is worn, either full costume or just an item or two like a cowboy hat and a bandana.

How do you play Frontierado Poker? I will post complete rules in a day or so.   

Why is Silverado the official Frontierado Western? Partly because like Frontierado it ends in -erado but mostly because it’s a fun, action-packed western that exemplifies everything Frontierado is about – escapism, not grinding reality. You can watch other westerns in addition to Silverado (I myself also watch Posse every Frontierado) but Silverado MUST be one of the ones you watch. Silverado is to this Holiday what the song the Whos in Whoville sing is to Christmas…It can come without Sagas…It can come without Frontierado Poker….It can come without cowboy hats, bandanas and Cactus Jacks, etc but without Silverado it CANNOT come at all.

What is an example of a Frontierado menu? Buffalo steaks, corn on the cob, cactus salad (Nopolito Cactus, cherry tomatoes, lettuce, cucumbers and onions), cornbread, New Mexico Territory Fried Rice (my own recipe which is Spanish Fried Rice with rabbit meat, rattlesnake or venison and red peppers) and mashed potatoes. Dessert is all the watermelon the human body can withstand. One of the official drinks of Frontierado is a Cactus Jack (again, my own recipe- two parts Jack Daniels, three parts Mountain Dew and one part lime-flavored sparkling water served with a long stem of Nopolito Cactus in the glass for that essential cactus taste. Just like eating the worm at the bottom of a bottle of Tequila when you’re done drinking your Cactus Jack you can eat the stem of cactus which is even more delicious than usual since it’s been soaking in the drink the whole time.  

More details to come. Like Santa at Christmastime I am busy, busy, busy this time of year. Unlike Santa, however I have never been known to utter “We’ll have to cancel Frontierado!”  Next year I’ll give more notice.