And When I'm Sad, You're a Clown

Herby Shrimp and Avocado Taco Salad

For the amount of money you pay for a bag of 19-count shrimp, you can get way more chicken, pork or turkey. But we're Americans and we need our variety.  In that respect, it becomes a good idea to throw shrimp into the mix for your weeknight meals.  In the heat of September, a spicy, wilted, herby Mexican taco salad worked quite nicely.  The avocado chunks made it more filling and Cotija cheese, chips, cilantro, red onion, tomatoes along with romaine lettuce were all mixed with a tangy lime dressing. 

Variety is the spice of life they say.  So you can imagine my shocked to hear that my twenty-something coworker had never even heard of variety shows, the iconic staple of our nightly diets in the 60's and 70's. He never heard the name Carol Burnett or Flip Wilson.  For that matter, he didn't know of Gilligan's Island and all the famous after school TV shows from that era.  Imagine never knowing the Brady Bunch references.  Of course, why would a young man from an immigrant family know these things but it explains why half of my jokes are lost on him and why he often stares at me as if trying to decipher meaning from my television culture rants.  I Loved the Variety shows of the 60's and 70's, so much that you could say they raised me. A latch key kid calmed by Cher eating ice cream out of her freezer in one of her more personal sketches and later appearing in full Indian feather attire belting out some cover song.  These moments pulled me out of my fear of being alone in the dark and into their world of vivid color.   There was comedy, skits and musical guests! Not just any guests either, these were top of the line artists like The Jackson Five, Tina Turner, David Bowie.  Medley's became famous, when you could hear snippets of the hits in one awkward, rushed number. The country shows had players like Waylon Jennings, Linda Ronstadt and Bob Dylan.  Yes, I would very much love to see Janis Joplin do a duet with Tom Jones, thank you very much!  All of these delicious memories and this poor kid carries not one of them inside of him.