Every couple of weeks I take my daughter to Costco. We have a small list and don't do much "shopping."

We know what we want. Get in. Get out.

However, Costco is a great retailer. They hit you with all sorts of strange things as soon as you walk in. In early August she was quite confused as to why there was all sorts of Halloween stuff.

She's only 5, but has a good sense of the calendar and of the seasons.

Imagine her surprise the other day when she saw a giant artificial Christmas tree and a bunch more Christmas decorations. "People like to get ready early," I told her.

Our list this weekend was simple: bread, cookies (maybe?), apples, sausages, popsicles (or whatever the politically correct term for them is), pre-made dinners for one or two nights this week, and some Ziplocs.

We got a few other things, but all within the realm of filling out the menus for the weeks ahead.

Mission accomplished. She didn't mind letting her eyes wander, though.

"Papa, they have a hot tub for sale!"

"Great. But for 17-thousand, I don't think we'll be getting that today."

When we were in the sausage-getting portion of the adventure, we were in the hot dog section because the only sausage my daughter likes are hot dogs.

"Technically," she points out, "a hot dog is a sausage." And from the last trip, we already had in our refrigerator a bunch of the Hebrew National dogs that the kids like. But I got to looking at the other hot dog offerings.

The same dogs they serve at the food court—all-beef—were for sale. Roughly a quarter-pound each.

So I put those in the cart, not knowing when—or if—I'd ever eat them.

I got to thinking yesterday morning, however, about a Tom Woods email from earlier in the week. Tom relayed that he posted the other day on Twitter: "How do you breakfast people do it? It's the same five things every morning."

Well, I used to be a BIG breakfast guy. Eggs a hundred different ways, potatoes, bacon, etc. But I've recently stopped eating all of those things, not that I don't enjoy them—I certainly do—but I have certain health outcomes in mind and eating all of the traditional breakfast items doesn't help in me achieving those goals.

None of this is that important for you other than to say yesterday morning after coffee, I decided I was mildly hungry and wanted breakfast. I didn't want oatmeal. It was the weekend, after all.

But it was still only about 10am.

In a moment of spontaneous genius, I fired up the barbecue, put on two of the Costco 1/4-pound dogs, toasted a couple buns, put a bit of mustard on each side, and had myself a couple of breakfast (sandwiches?) items.

But not before I put two drops of Naturally Ordered Hot Sauce on each side of the bun and mixed it in with my Grey Poupon. These were perhaps the most delicious hot dogs I've ever eaten. No joke.

I liked eating them so much—and I've probably eaten a grand total of six hot dogs in the last 15 years—that I had another one for "brunch" this morning and kicked it up a notch with three drops of Naturally Ordered on each side.

Unbelievable.

I decided that after I finish writing this email, I'm going to have another dog for lunch. I'm running out of mustard, but have plenty of Naturally Ordered left.

We can debate all day and night about proper hot dog condiments, but hot sauce on a hot dog is one of those roads less traveled by with most connoisseurs of the all-beef frank.

And that—in these last couple of days anyway—has made all the difference.

To buy your own 5oz bottle of Naturally Ordered Hot Sauce, go to

As always,

Brian

P.S. – Naturally Ordered is, of course, naturally ordered to one's own palate. It earns a 3 out of 5 on the heat scale.