the philosophy of
Alfonso don Juan's crab-eating

Juan likes his crab to taste tender. He has also a common habit of dipping fried 'pao' into the chilli gravy. You see, back in his native hometown, crabs are served differently. The exquisite pleasure of savouring the gravy is not practised back home. It is an acquired taste. To each its own flavour. However, the chilli sauce was the reason for him to abandon his home and he decided then, to move to Singapore to experience the particular way of eating crabs. And he only had his friend to thank for introducing him to this divine Singaporean dish, during his first visit to Asia.

while it may seem absurd to some to abandon his family and loved ones for some oriental crabs, the frequent visits to the various famous crab stalls are always instant remedy to his home-sickness. Crabs remind him of his Mediterranean roots but they also restore his faith in his choice to move closer to these crabs. You see, it is not everywhere that crabs are cooked in this exotic way. Besides, if he decides to have his crabs differently, he can choose from a variety of cooking styles. It is such freedom of will that persuaded him to migrate.

To overcome his cultural disability, i.e. his chilli threshold level, he went through a long and zealous training that consists of a diet made up of green and red chillis. That was indeed a living hell but it was all worth the tenacious effort. Every bite thereafter is worth effort sweat and tears he shed.

With all due respect to this particular global citizen, it is worthy to remind us that the crabs are not at all local, especially those with the most tender and largest portion of meat. So perhaps, he is misinformed to believe that these crabs are particular to the tiny island. However, surely it is not the crab that matters but how it is cooked right? Besides, the origins of crabs are hard to determine. They may have ancient ancestry, some choose to travel from place to place (e.g. Indonesian waters to Singaporean waters), and some find themselves swept from the open sea into canals and drains, but wherever crabs come from, it is the gravy that obscures the true lineage of the crab. The true essence of crabs is not in their origin, but the eventual taste. He has no need to have knowledge of the crab's identity. At least, that is what he thinks. And you have every right to disagree.

Crab-eating requires hard teeth or a hard metal pincher. As you break the shell, what welcomes you is the tender meat. Do not hesitate to dip it back into the gravy. As you suck out the meat, you throw the shell (or spit) away. But such behaviour is subjective. We all have particular ways to eat our crabs. And the satisfaction we gain from crab-eating is also subjective. It can be routine but that does not steal the satisfaction away. He bites the legs of the crab, sucks out the meat and proceeds to the next body. He, however, ignores the eggs, which is really a waste. But egg-eating is also an acquired taste.

While he licks his fingers clean of the delicious gravy, I am sure he is already looking forward to his next crab meal. He burps and pats his stomach from his routine satisfaction. Another meal eaten. Another to anticipate.

He leaves his seat and the next customer quickly takes his seat. As he foots his bill, the cashier completes her umpteen transaction. Another good service. Another job done. Another bill paid. Life is good. And as he leaves the place, watches the moon and does not doubt that the same moon is shining in his hometown, watching over his family, separated only because of his obsession with the divine crab.

His life can be summarised by his love relationship with the crab. He reaches home. His stomach calls. And he goes to the toilet.

End.

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happy birthday dad.