Ugly Sure Taste Good

They are one of the ugliest things you'll ever see, yet their very common and will make their self at home anywhere there is a little fresh water. They are slimy opportunist who will eat just about anything that is placed before them and if you are a Texan it is rare that you have not shared a dinner table with them. No I am not talking about a group of Aggies at a Texas vs Texas A&M football game. I am talking about those bottom feeders that most so called "Polite Folks" would never invite to dinner. Catfish is as common as the barbecue, pinto beans and blue bell ice cream and one of the things that make up the staple of a Texans diet. I'll eat fried catfish every chance I get, preferring a community fund raiser "all you can eat" fish fry where in a matter of a couple of hours hundreds of people enjoy a meal of the ugly creature. Rolled in corn meal and served on Styrofoam plates along with hush puppies, cole slaw and pinto beans a fish fry is one of the best ways for an organization to raise money for their cause. I never care what the cause is, if they are serving fried catfish I consider the cause justified. My favorite fried catfish dinner fund raiser is held once a month at the Fraternal Order of Eagles in Granite Shoals TX. I get so full of the fried fish I could almost swim home or surely swim back to Granite Shoals in thirty days.
The world and everything around it is changing but I hope the community fish fry never changes. The smell of hot oil, frying corn meal, men standing around giant deep fryers and stacks of Styrofoam plates will make most Texans dream they are in heaven even if he or she has to share the dream with Mr. Ugly.