Attention Paid

For a little more than a week, I have intended to write about the relationship between employer and employee in terms of a job being paid attention. Simply, that the employer wants an employee’s full attention in exchange for the wage. Some of the motivation for this reflection was thinking about working as a busboy for a family-owned restaurant in Duluth.

When the restaurant was busy—crazy busy at times—all of us were in constant motion. Waitresses, bartenders, cooks, dishwashers, and busboys. We busboys were attentive to cleaning off tables and replacing tablecloths, moving collection tubs to the scullery, running errands for more butter, more ice, more dishes for the kitchen, and more and even more.

I remember tapping beer kegs down in the cooler as a mixed blessing. On the downside, if your area of concern was hopping, you would fall behind in the rush of work to be done. Of course, when hot and sweaty, going to the cooler provided relief for a few moments. The next trick was to slip through the kitchen without being tagged for a chore and get back to the work you were expected to stay on top of for a buck-thirty-five an hour (We did get a share of tips).

Inevitably, as the evening wore on, the stream of customers would slow, and on weekends the busboys might take a moment to stand and chat or even horse around some—okay, more than some sometimes. Now when one of the managers saw 2 or 3 of us idling for a bit, we could count on a scowl at least, at worst one of us was punching out and heading home.

Either we were getting paid, or the business was. Got it, the bottom line.

But, as so often the case, this mulling over one thing stumbles into another.

The past few weeks folks I know as friends or former colleagues and students or family have exchanged their time—money, too—for my first published book. They have chosen to pay attention to my effort. Of course, spending their money is part of the exchange, but time is the commodity expended that I find most generous in this case.  

Given all the options that define our culture, all the forms of entertainment, the varied media—well, of course I’m humbled by their choice.

And yet, another rerouting—how the mind works—and so I offer up this observation from Parker J. Palmer: The human soul doesn’t want to be fixed, it simply wants to be seen and heard.

Thus, a bottom line of a different sort, attention paid.

An Index (3)

Hey, Publius! Something doesn’t add up. Go figure.

59,094               Delaware, 1790 (smallest state by population, 1 congressional representative)

249,073             South Carolina, 1790 (5 representatives)

573,720             Wyoming, 2018 (smallest state by population, 1 representative)

622,781             Montenegro, 2016 (81 members of parliament)

623,960             Vermont, 2018

738,068             Alaska, 2018

747,610             Virginia, 1790 (largest state by population, 10 representatives)

755,238             North Dakota, 2018

877,790             South Dakota, 2018

971,180             Delaware, 2018 (1 representative)

3,929,214          US, 1790 (65 representatives)

3,940,521          Oklahoma, 2018 (5 representatives)

5,088,916          South Carolina, 2018 (7 representatives)

8,525,660          Virginia, 2018 (11 representatives)

39,776,830         California, 2018 (largest state by population, 53 representatives)

Shrimp Lyman

About the time you share a recipe for a specific dish, like a cassoulet or your Aunt Betty’s buckle, some folks are apt to respond with “That’s not how I fix it”. Well then, cook some up and have me over.

Shrimp Creole is a spicy dish traditionally—spicy, but not sear your lips off spicy to my way of thinking.

But, these days I rarely season much for other folks, choosing rather to let individuals do so to their tastes. And so here is a Shrimp Lyman, this time around.

Now if you want to use Cajun or Greek seasoning or a curry, or just salt and pepper, works just fine with this recipe. Call it Shrimp Brizo or Shrimp Goa, or Shrimp Fill-in-your-name. No harm, no foul.

In a 12” frying pan,

on medium high brown diced kielbasa, spicy or otherwise, about a 6”—section;

add one hand-sized, skinless chicken breast, cubed, and turn heat down to medium low;

when chicken is brown on the outside, add ¼ cup olive oil and diced vegetables—celery, onion, bell pepper, and tomatoes…1 cup of each, a pinch or two of salt, and gently sauté for a few minutes;

then add ½ cup of marinara and ½ cup of chicken broth; add spices and cover with heat to as low as you can go simmer for 10 minutes.

Bring to boil and add peeled medium shrimp (any amount up to a pound). Turn heat back down to low and cover. Give your guest(s) a five minute warning.

When the shrimp are pink and orange and cooked, but still have a pop when you bite them—hey, you’re the cook, you can sample—the dish is ready for eating.

Serve with warm rice. Yes, warm. We’re not barbarians here.

Go for Broke

"They were superb! That word correctly describes it. Superb! They took terrific casualties. They showed rare courage and tremendous fighting spirit. Not too much can be said of the performance of those battalions in Europe and everybody wanted them...." General George C. Marshall

Cited as one of the most decorated military units in US history, the 442^nd Infantry Regiment formed in 1943 earned 21 Medals of Honor, 8 Presidential Unit Citations, 560 Silver Stars, 4,000 Bronze Stars, and 9,486 Purple Hearts. This unit that began with 4,000 men saw such fierce fighting and terrible casualty rates that with replacements nearly 14,000 served in the regiment.

However, by governmental decree this exalted fighting force was only allowed to fight in the European Theatre. Why? Because the soldiers in the unit were Nisei, born here in the US to immigrant parents, Japanese parents, and so their loyalty to the US was suspect according to some military and political leaders.

Their motto: Go for Broke.

In July of ’44, the 442^nd fighting in Italy during the Rome-Arno campaign suffered 1272 casualties, battling the Germans during a 40-mile advance.

On October 13^th of the same year, the regiment began its assignment to the 36^th Infantry Division with 2943 men. Fewer than 800 remained in combat a month later after action that included the rescue of a surrounded American unit. For this performance at Biffontaine and fighting for the liberation of France, the Legion d'Honneur was awarded the 442nd.

In 1945, General Mark W. Clark wrangled with General Eisenhower over command of the 442^nd as he prepared to assault the Gothic Line, Germany’s last line of defense in the Apennines. Clark prevailed and the 442^nd spearheaded much of the assault while fighting alongside other units, including the 92^nd Infantry Division, the only segregated African-American combat unit in Europe.

After Allied troops pushed into Germany, elements of the 442^nd would be among the first of the Allies involved in the liberation of satellite prison camps around Dachau.

With the end of fighting, in May of 1945, the celebrated 442^nd returned home to the US.