Okay, truthfully on my brisket, I usually start about 9 or 10 pm. I sit around and for some reason always find myself drinking beer untill 2 am. Until this year, I would then stabelize the temp at around 250-275 and go to bed. When I got up the next morning, the brisket would come off the pit (no foil). Sometimes they would be real tender, sometimes a little tough once it was under cooked. Very often, they would be over smoked and would give me heartburn and a sour stomach. I foiled my first brisket Memorial Day weekend. It was the best I have ever cooked. Made me a believer out of foil - along with some kick ass ribs I've cooked lately. Up until this year, I would have been right along side you Chris. No foil - but still NO MOP!
I will always make time to make a fire for some really good angus ribeyes.
Twice a year, my buddies and I have a big deer hunt. Usually no deer is shot. We usually end up sitting around a camp fire drinking and eating all day and sometimes all night. Here is a typical day:
Wake up and go hunting. Come back and cook deer tenderloin, bacon, jalepenos, onions, and potatoes on what we call a disquetta (sp). It is a disk off a disk plow welded to some legs. We cook that on an open bed of mesquite coals. All on tortillas
Lunch
Whatever sounds good. 7 bone steak, chicken, mojejas (sweetbreads),
Hunt the afternoon. Come back, and cook - always ribeyes on Saturday night, pork ribs or side of pork from a wild hog, more chicken, dove for appetizers (deboned breast with jalepeno wrapped in backon) cabbage. A huge sirloin.
Around 10:30 start cooking again, whatever is left over. Fajitas, more ribs, etc.
If a deer is shot, more tenderloin, ham steaks and backstrap
100% is cooked on mesquite coals. We build a huge fire and shovel coals into pits, holes, etc.
I gain at least five pounds those two weekends.
Electric smoker. You are a funny man.
Ever watch Bar-B-Q U? That man doesn't look like it, but he has some great ideas. I have yet to try a recipe I didn't enjoy.
coming from South Texas. 
