Fishing for new ideas

Recently I had one of those amazing "ah-hah" moments. You know the kind where you stop what you are doing and let the thoughts ripple through your mind. It's the kind of feeling that is shown in comic strips as a light bulb glowing over someone's head. I love eating fish. I grew up in south Louisiana during a time when seafood was clean, plentiful, and definitely local. We used to buy directly from the men who were responsible for the catch. We didn't have to worry about oil spills in the Gulf. We didn't know about the dangers of overfishing because most of the folks out on the water were from small outfits with men who lived in the area. Often the fish was still thrashing around. Now that's a fresh catch folks. I was absolutely spoiled by what was available in the marketplace that was south Louisiana in the 60's. Not to mention that what we bought was inexpensive.

That was then. Today I live in a landlocked area in the middle of the country. Most of what is available has been frozen. I've been here for 16 years. I left the south on July 4, 1995. I don't remember buying fish to cook at home since then. I remember what I had then and wouldn't be happy with what I found in Topeka, KS. During my "ah-hah" moment that changed. I decided to seek out information on buying the best, most sustainable fish I could find locally. What kick-started my sea change (pardon the pun) was reading this article The Truth About Fish from the June 2011 issue of Self magazine. It got me to thinking. I decided to learn more about sustainable fishing and to start combing the area to make the best choices I could regarding buying seafood. I will begin eating fish again.

More later...