8.27.2005

Lessez Le Bon Temps Rouler (Let the Good Times Roll) Gator!!


Does this look like Food to you? Can you imagine gnawing on this stinky ol' guy's hide? Down here in Louisiana, the alligator is a symbol of survival, celebration, music, dance or...most anything Cajun. Anytime we 'road trip', even on a five-minute jaunt, we keep our eyes peeled to see if we can spot one. Cappy says they used to be a rarity, and that he had never, or hardly ever had seen one in his youth, even in the swamps, but since they had posted a no-hunting law, the gator has flourished. We were seeing alligators everywhere, it seems for the last few years. But....since the gators have gotten plentiful again, they lifted the ban on hunting them. So....now once again, they are becoming rare to see on our drives along 'da bayous'. Cappy spies big huge ones (15-20') way out in the swamps on his tugboat, but hunters are mindlessly killing them off because it is profitable to go 'gator huntin'. Once again, he is seeing less and less of them, even out there.
I'll tell you one place you can easily find alligators. New Orleans. Chunks of them are sold everywhere. One gator might be located in several places at the same time! His head might be sold in the French Market. His hide might be worn on tourists' feet anywhere in the city. His innards may be in some tasty sausage or deep-fried. I've even seen him at the Jazz Fests. Yep, the Gator is a real Party Animal.

No comments: