When I was a kid in the sixties and seventies dad had one of those electric branding iron kind of thingies, worked slick. Haven’t seen one in years.
I used to have a stash of these little white cubes about the size of an ice cube, I think they were mil surp fire starters but I could be wrong. They also worked slick.
Now, I hate to say it, with wife and I both working crazy hours in the summer I have to use a propane bar b que. In the winter when I actually have time it’s too cold to cook outside.
Although there is this guy in Mazatlan that does ribs... He works on them for two days. Best ribs on the planet. With a frosty Pacifico or five it makes for a great evening. That’s how I bar b que in the winter now.