rub a dub dub....lobsters in the tub

Today I helped distribute over 1,000 lobsters

     A long time ago, before color TV, man on the moon, home computers and cell phones, Jackie and I were married in St. Paul's Episcopal Church in DeKalb.
     While we were dating, and both still in school, I took pictures at the church's lobster boil.  I think it was 1969, but I could be off a little.
     Since then, the good people of St. Paul's have sold lobsters every May.....and this year was no exception.
     We sold about 1,000 of the lively crustaceans, which is down from the boil's heyday..before grocery stores started selling lobsters in the DeKalb Sycamore area....when they were quite the novelty.
     I have not been at all the boils...we were away from that church for several years.
     In my younger days, I would unload lobsters and haul them in my pick up truck from the refer semi to the boil area.
     As I get older, the heavy lifting tasks get a little harder.
     We have had boils in sweltering weather, freezing weather, rainy weather, windy weather...... in just about any kind of weather you can imagine.
     Lots of times former parishioners come back to help.  Or to visit, as the day is a family friendly event with food, pop, kids...and lobsters.
     The lobsters leave Maine on a Thursday, get here late Friday, and are ready to boil on Saturday.   They spend their time in a refrigerated truck and today they were a lively bunch!
     It's also a day of remembering our friends who have moved away.  David and Ellen, and  Craig and Jo for me especially, because  I liked them and they put up with me.
     Jackie does not go to the boil anymore.  The smell of lobsters gives her a headache and makes her want to heave.  I brought one home to eat and immediately had to spray air freshener.
In the past, Jackie and I hosted lobster parties, with me bringing 20 or so lobsters home and friends gathering in the basement on Skare Court and having a potluck with lobster the main dish.  We'd set up a grill for those who preferred land based meat.   Those were fun times.
     Memories from the past:  Picking up the lobsters at O'Hare because we used to have them flown in; Fitz commanding the troops; Craig's whistle; David burning his foot; dancing with a little Suzanne in the rectory's driveway; standing near the tanks to keep warm; the folks from Lee picking up a couple of hundred lobsters for a community boil.
     It's a lot of work, and a lot of fun.  A portion of the profits go to various groups in DeKalb/Sycamore, groups that work with the needy, abused, homeless.
     I keep looking for those pictures.  I know I have the negatives somewhere,  but I can't find them.
 You'd think after three moves I would run across them, but I haven't.
     My guess is I'd see some familiar faces in those early days photos.
     Now I'm tired, full of lobster and wine, and ready for bed.
     Peace and love to all.