Feeding the masses

There are sometimes twenty or thirty people working in the campaign office, and we do get hungry. Neighborhood folks are very nice about donating food. In one corner there are two tables overflowing with chips, Halloween candy, bread, coffee, soft drinks, sweet rolls, and occasionally fresh fruit.
I am doing paperwork in the office last evening when Walter, a big guy in his early sixties, brings in food. It’s a turkey-sized foil pan with giant sausage, sauerkraut and a flour-butter bread dish all mixed together.
Walter is an excellent cook. I did not see that many people in the office, but in fifteen minutes the pan is empty. Walter explains that the dish was Hungarian, the sausage is called kolbas (like kielbasa). Walter tells me about a stuffed cabbage dish he makes using whole leaves that have been pickled.
Walter has a band and he plays once a year in Whittier. It’s East European music with a little bit of klezmer and Jewish music mixed in.