Copious crustaceans

The soccer field has become a location for impromptu family gatherings. This season my son is playing in a different league so that he could spend more time with one of his camp buddies. We will not repeat that mistake (there is no skill- building whatsoever and things are a bit unorganized)...but my nephew and second cousin are also playing in the league so this brings the folks out.

In 2006 National Geographic had an issue totally about soccer and it's place in the world. Recently we discussed soccer's lack of prominence in the US in my Cultural Geography course - the game of soccer is not conducive to ad-based television programming and it is not intertwined with a national identity - the World Cup epitomizes international athletics in a way that the Olympics just can't. Soccer (Football) is very accessible to youth around the world; my son is very passionate about soccer but has not extended his passion beyond himself as a player (he truly epitomizes his name - one who moves with swiftness) - perhaps because as a family we do not get caught up in major league sports or players (what would Bourdieu have to say about that?) - he is interested somewhat in the Kixx because of their summer camps and we'll see what happens when the Unions start playing.

Perhaps I can figure out a soccer related cooking theme.

Anyone that knows me knows that I love to go out for lunch...I don't have as much time as I used to, but I still manage. Our post soccer activity is apparently going out to lunch. The gang likes Red Lobster. When I was growing up my aunt said that Red Lobster was "the KMart of seafood" preferring at that time Seafood Shanty. This is likely an accurate assessment. The majority of chain restaurant food is prepacks - food that simply needs to be heated and plated. No, I am not a chef, but I've always want to pursue formal training in culinary arts.

I can prepare quality seafood at home, but there's Melange - oh so tasty, Devon Grill, we don't mind Legal Seafood, Georgine's used to be good, the kids like Bonefish, and the best ever is Turner Fisheries in Boston. But for crowds, Red Lobster is definitely a winner.

I usually get an ultimate feast and substitute for sea scallops...clearly the sea scallops at RL can not remotely compare to those that I purchase and sear from Whole Foods...and don't even ask me about sustainability. My cousin and I decided to forgo the ultimate feast because we had already planned to get 2 dozen crabs for dinner. My daughter chose not to get a side of crab legs because she thought it would be more cost effective to buy the legs from the supermarket.

I am not a fan of shrimp, this is likely because in high school I ate them almost everyday as an after school snack. But I do like other shellfish (clearly I do not keep kosher). Half of our table ordered endless shrimp, I ordered steak and skewered shrimp (substituted scallops for my daughter), my mom ordered wood-grilled shrimp. As I was placing my order, I knew I was making a mistake - who orders steak from a "seafood restaurant" and then I thought about the quality of the beef and pushed that out of my mind, knowing full well that it was from a cow raised on a densely populated concrete slab on a diet of corn and soy; everybody knows cows should be running about, eating grass and chewing the cud but food production has been totally transformed.

Well, we were in Red Lobster for 3 hours, and the shrimp were literally endless to the point that we had Styrofoam takeout containers filled with pasta, fried shrimp, and skewered shrimp. Someone at our table had amassed a mound of food. It was ridiculous - I had to tell the server to stop bringing refills and just bring the check. Now, let's be clear about these "shrimp" - they were in fact shrimpy shrimps (probably 50/100 count) so they were not giving away the farm. But we had a good time. Getting together with friends and family is always fun.

Somehow we were stuffed. I think it was from the high-fructose corn syrup contained in the raspberry lemonades that we were drinking.

We delayed our 'crab feast' until 7pm. I made the last pack of TJs corn and we sat there eating crabs and talking trash, then looked at the table and burst out laughing thinking about Red Lobster.