Date Night

Nothing is quite as important as spending time with those you love.  In order to satisfy that agenda, my husband and I have designated Fridays as date night.  That means no writing for me and no sports of any kind for him. 

Finding a new place to eat that we both agree on can be tedious.  He eats anything  under the sun.  I watch my carb intake and frown on fried foods.  Sometimes we get creative and venture far away from  home.  One day, we  happened upon a place called Shucks.

They serve seafood.  Now, I spent most of my life in Florida.  I had my pick of restaurants by the ocean, juicy oysters brought out in buckets, jumbo shrimp.  Cool, I thought.  Bring it on.

We entered the super-busy establishment.  It took us about 45 mins to be seated.  That was just enough time to debate over the items on the menu.  There was an appetiser titled "roundabout".  It contained samples of oysters from 3 coasts.  Hmm, okay, variety. 

They brought us  a tray that resembled a garbage can lid.  On it were 12 perfectly arranged oysters.  My hubby and I exchanged a glance.  We waited for the waitress to leave.

He leaned forward and said,"I thought you said they were going to be cooked."

I peered into those hazel eyes and scrunched up nose and said, "How was I suppose to know you midwesterners serve raw oysters?"

He snorted.  "It's a delicacy."

I frowned.  "So is escargo.  You don't see me sucking on any snails."

"Should we send them back?" he asked.

I shook my head, disgusted.  "Oh no.  We're eating these babies."

I took in the complete view of 12 raw, watery oysters, with a hardy accompaniment of horse radish.  1/2 for him, 1/2 for me.

I opened a napkin. slipped an oyster on it, smashed the water out of it, stuck in onto the back of my tongue, and quickly swallowed.  It helped not to breathe.  While the others followed, I watched my hubby devour his oysters like a pro, commenting how the horse radish enhanced their flavor.  This from the man who won't eat green beans.

Note to self:  When in Nebraska, eat beef.

I joke about the midwest, but I've lived in Nebraska for 10 years now and would not trade any of these precious moments.

We spent about $100.00 that night.  We laughed hard and even cried a little.  Horseradish will do that to you, or it could just be the gagging reflex.

Time for a quote.

                                                                     
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Chains do not hold a marriage together.  It is threads, hundreds of tiny threads which sew people together through the years.  ~Simone Signoret