I was preparing some shrimp for dinner and I began to think about their anatomy. A soft crunchy shell encloses a succulent meaty interior: shrimp are the, "Taco of The Sea". It's no wonder they come to me in a curled up, fetal position. I only hope the poor things don't know how tasty they are. Do you think they swim around in utter terror and paranoia?

In little bubbly undersea voices they must say things like, "We are a concentrated protein source that tastes great in stir fry or gumbo?" or maybe, "Did that coral look like cocktail sauce to you?"

I am de-veining them. They are piling up on my cutting board. I wonder if there are any family units in the pile. A mama shrimp and a baby shrimp got separated from papa shrimp but are still here together in the end. Thinking about it like that the scene is a little bit too much. Bits of meat that once anchored little legs, present themselves like the same stumpy limbs one finds on a teddy bear. Some appear to embrace each other with these appendages. Some find only the empty air and are alone in their agony. Now I'm freaked out. I avoid touching the legs of the remaining shrimp.

This word de-veining also turns out to be more sinister with further thought. I slice a seam down the length of each shrimp. I pull away the dark strand that runs the length of the thing and soon enough it's obvious this bit isn't a vein at all. This is their intestine. It is their digestive tract. De-veining sounds so good and surgical, "Honey can you de-vein the shrimp for me?" Sure that doesn't sound so bad. But let's try this, "Honey, there are some shrimp in the fridge, I need you to rip out their shitter." That's not so good. I'll try to take it down a notch. How about, "We need to cut them open and pull out their poop track." It still doesn't neuter things like de-veining does. Imagine that papa shrimp admonishing his children to stay away from nets, "If they catch you they'll pull off your shell and rip out your shitter!" I don't have a shell and that scares me.

Shrimp: You had better watch out, you are a tasty, concentrated protein source, I love you in nets, I love you in cocktail sauce.