Fry the bacon in a large pot and remove. Add the carrot and celery and cook over medium heat for 2 minutes. Add the onion, bay leaf and whole cloves of garlic. Stir and add the pepper. "All you really need is a big pot and some bacon bits. After that, you improvise.... (Otherwise) we are stuck with the tyranny of the formal recipe which defines The Only Way To Do It in a form as exact, and frequently as exciting, as a prescription from the doctor."