Oh, those Thumb Splitters!

   Every summer, we stockpile enough shrimp to last us until the next season.  Off season shrimp are usually not our good, ole Gulf shrimp and I made the mistake of buying those one time.  Never again.  Now, several hundred pounds of shrimp are bought, headed, peeled, washed, bagged and frozen.  These will make fine meals such as gumbo, poboys or shrimp burgers come this winter.  A shrimp poboy, for my non-bayou friends, is a delectable sandwich made with friend shrimp, lettuce, tomatoes and special sauce pile high on french bread and then slightly pressed to sort of mingle all those flavors.  We use only shrimp from the Gulf of Mexico for any and all of our dining pleasures.  Nothing else matches up to the flavor which is why the fully stocked freezers.  That preparing is what took up the morning here in the Little Bayou House.  Shrimp!  Beautiful Gulf shrimp!

  You know you are getting fresh shrimp when you head down to the docks to meet the boats as they are coming in to port.  The shrimp boats work all night and will head in to sell their catch.  If you are there early enough, you pretty much are guaranteed the "pick of the bunch" even though that means you do get a few "extras" with your haul.  At that time, the shrimpers have not had a chance to pick through the shrimp and discard any "undesirables" so you take what you get.  Most shrimpers are kind enough to "through in a couple extra pounds" to cover the little fish that might be dumped into the coolers.  It has never bothered me to sort them.  In fact, it is sort of interesting to see what is lurking out in those Gulf waters.

  This morning's haul had the usual little pufferfish, squid, croakers and tiny flounders among other oddities.  It also held several nice size mantis shrimp.  Mantis shrimp are the "prize fighters" of the small critters under the water.  These things can literally "pack a punch" which is why the shrimpers call them "thumb splitters".  The mantis shrimp have club like appendages that are held like fists and are used much the same except the punch is much stronger than any a human can give (compared to size).  The punch is so powerful that one punch can smash through a oyster shell and it is so fast that it creates cavitation bubbles.  When those bubbles burst it causes a shockwave which gives sort of a double punch which can kill or dismember prey even if the mantis shrimp misses its initial target.  The thumb splitter name comes from injuries shrimpers have received by grabbing a mantis shrimp.  A mantis shrimp can inflict a very painful injury in the form of a gash or even (in some places) a broken finger.  The Mantis Shrimp has the most powerful and fastest "punch" known to mankind!  (Think about that one the next time you are eating shrimp....then thank a shrimper for doing the hard work for you.)

  Thankfully, the critters in our shrimp were already either weakened or dead by the time we were messing with them.  Other than a few pokes from the shrimp spikes (one on the head and one on the tip of the tail), Son and I came through with flying colors.  The shrimp are all stowed away in the freezer and we await the next batch.  

The Troubling Secret

  At daybreak, I eased my way to the pier just to calm the brain after yet another sleep-interrupted night.  Mr. PJ (the old dog) has some serious problems that seem to be worse at night.  I deal with it the best I can but there are times that I have to escape.  The pier is the one place that I can find solace.  This morning, however, that peacefulness was just a facade for what the water truly hides.  Beneath those calm waters, hides a misery for so many folks here on the Coast.  With the recent opening of the Bonnet Carre spillways (second opening this year which is unprecedented), things are bad...really bad for the waters.

  The fresh/flood waters from the north brings a lot of problems for those down south.  It is those chemical laden waters that have created a near death situation for the Gulf of Mexico.  While the spillways are meant to protect, they are, in a sense, the root of the problem.  Farm runoff and lower salinity equals dead marine life, algae blooms and flesh-eating bacteria. The fishermen whose lives depend on a healthy Gulf, have taken a cruel blow.  The waters are unsafe. The seafood is unsafe. The beaches are unsafe. What was meant to protect has done just the opposite.  

  My calm waters of the Bayou hide a troubling secret.  What I intended to refresh the soul has done nothing more than cause a troubled mind.  When will this ever end???

Another Tempest

  With the way things look at the moment, the Gulf of Mexico has received another slap in the face.  Just nine years ago, we had to endure the oil spill that, not only killed off so many marine creatures, it also killed off so many lifelines of the Coastal families.  We are a seafood based industry down here.  Fishing is a way life.  The shrimpers, oystermen, fishermen, crabbers, seafood factories, charterboat captains...you name it...were all out of jobs.  Their boats and gear lay idle while the oil killed most everything within its reach.  Many lost their boats.  Others lost their homes.  All lost their way of life.  It was a hard time for the Coast.  It was years before things began to return to any semblance of normality.  Finally, the seafood returned and was deemed fit to eat.   It took years after that for the industry to return to its profitable self but many folks had already moved on to be able to support their families.

  Now, the Gulf of Mexico faces another tempest.  While all Coastians are ready and eager to help those in the flooded zones of the country, opening the spillways has, once again, created a mess for the fishermen. The marine creatures are dying at a great rate.  Countless dead dolphins, sea turtles and fish are washing ashore.  Entire oyster reefs have died.  Crabs have literally suffocated.  Shorebirds are not to be found. Schools of fish and shrimp have moved further out in an attempt to escape the water pouring into the Gulf. Many folks do not seem to see the harm in what has been done.  "It is just fresh river water so it cannot be doing any harm." is said over and over again.  Sorry, that fresh river water wreaks havoc on saltwater marine life.  They do not have time to acclimate before it kills them.  That "fresh" river water is also polluted from runoff.  Whatever has been flooded up north of us has now spilled into the Gulf.  Fertilizer, sewage, any number of chemicals and...yes...oil is making a mess down here.  

  Don't get me wrong.  We are not blaming anyone.  We are not pointing fingers.  We are not begrudging those who are trying to save their places and livelihoods that are flooded.  We understand THAT whole scenario as we are subjected to hurricanes that flood our area and we are sympathetic to those that are suffering.  We understand that something had to be done to provide some relief.  However, there has to be another answer.  Opening the spillways has done nothing but spread the devastation to another area.  

  All of that said, the fishermen down here are working frenetically to catch what they can before the waters get any worse.  The boats are going out further to make catches of "clean" shrimp and fish.  (The crabbers and oystermen do not have that option.)  This plan is working as far as catches but puts a new strain on the fishermen.  Fuel prices, boat upkeep and extra time spent are making it a struggle to "stay afloat".  The fact stands that the wages they earn has not kept up with the current state of affairs.   Many cannot afford to keep running as their expense outweigh their profits.  It is a sad situation.  

  Mark and I were able to get shrimp today from one of our longtime suppliers.  This shrimper had to go outside of the "dirty" zone to get a good catch.  The shrimp are beautiful and we are thankful he made the decision to keep trying.  It is our plan to buy as many pounds of shrimp as we can to help those struggling.  We have been there and done that ourselves.  It is also our plan to stock up on the seafood so that, if worse comes to worse, we will have a good supply on hand to ride us over until the Gulf cleanses itself.  Our freezers will be filled to capacity within the next few weeks.  To those in the flooded zones and to those struggling with the situation in the Gulf, we hope and pray that this is soon over for all of us.  To those with the ability to help any in need, please do.  There are so many out there that have been affected that need help.  We are all in this together.

 

Support your local shrimpers!

  Mark brought home forty pounds of beautiful, white shrimp early this morning.  For the next hour or so, he headed the critters while Son and I peeled each one.  These were all weighed and bagged for the freezer. Each bag now holds two pounds of the peeled shrimp.  All in all, the bundle made quite a few meal-sized packets.  Yes, I realize that two pounds of peeled shrimp is a lot of shrimp for three people but we do enjoy our seafood!  

These ten shrimp weigh in at a hefty one pound!  They are Biloxi Beauties!

  While we picked the shrimp, we discussed the plight of the Coastal shrimpers.  These men and women work hard to make their catch, have expensive upkeep on their boats and equipment, pay workers to help with the trawls and pay for licenses to go out onto the waters.  All of this and they do, indeed, literally put their lives on the line so we can enjoy our meals.  What with a terrible "flesh-eating bacteria" called Vibrio vulnificus being found in most coastal waters, just being on the boat puts these folks in danger. Add in rough seas, sudden storms and dangerous work and you will see that they are amazing folks...these shrimpers.  

  What makes this a sad story is the mere pittance that they are paid for their catch.  Whereas folks pay atrocious amounts for shrimp (and other seafood) in restaurants, grocery stores and fish markets, the factories that supply these places literally pay the shrimpers a meager sum.  The owners of the boats barely make ends meet.  Most have to hold other jobs to support their families.  This is a sad plight.  What used to be a booming business for the locals, now has become nothing more than big money for a few.  A few that does not include the shrimpers at all.

  What can be done to remedy this situation is up in the air.  If the shrimpers do not band together and demand more for their catch, soon they will be giving up the trade.  The livelihoods of so many locals along the Coast could come to a screeching halt.  No one thinks of this, though, as they complain of the high costs of seafood.  The shrimpers need to unite and have a voice.  Not the factories, not the restaurants, not the markets...the shrimpers.  They cannot depend on anyone else.  

  While you may think that Mark and I added to the problems of the shrimpers by buying the seafood, we did not.  What seafood we do not catch, we always buy directly from the shrimpers themselves. We do pay more than what the factories pay for the shrimp but we still get a great deal.  If we did make our purchase through a third party, our cost would be staggering.  

  So...all of this said, Folks, if you want to buy shrimp (or other seafood), why not visit the harbor and buy directly from the boats.  The seafood is as fresh as you can ever get, you will be guaranteed a great bargain and you will help the fishermen support their families!  This, my friends, is a win/win situation for sure!