Breaking the Rules

by Mark R. Vogel

Born out of necessity ages ago, this cultural culinary edict is unnecessary in the modern world, and only serves to impose one more constraint on our dietary pleasures. I mean, is there any REAL reason why a person can't have a bowl of beef stew in their air-conditioned August living room as they watch the Yankees?

Conversely, what about grilling in the winter? Sound crazy? Friends of mine kept their gas grill on their patio just outside the sliding doors that led to their kitchen. Even in winter they'd slap their chow on the grill, go back inside, and return when it was time to flip. And why not?

The only connection between grilling and summer is that grills are typically kept outdoors where many summer parties occur. But there's no inherent reason for reserving this cooking method for when the earth's axis is tilted toward the sun.

Human behavior is replete with capricious rules and customs based on ritual traditions. Our dietary realm is certainly no exception. You may recall the movie "Starman," where Jeff Bridges plays an intellectually superior alien, completely new to Earth, and on the run from the government with Karen Allen.

At a roadside diner having his first earthly meal, the waitress brings the entrée and the dessert together. Bridges goes for the desert but is rebuked by Allen who informs him that dessert is eaten last.

When he asks why, she can offer nothing more than "that's the way we do it." Unconvinced by her flimsy reasoning, he proceeds to consume his dessert first with delight.

Sociologists would probably argue that human customs, whether they are rational or not, serve to weave the fabric of society. That even senseless conventions facilitate group cohesiveness, social interaction, and provide a framework for societal order.

I suppose that's true but I would argue that arbitrary dictates also inhibit our pleasures and our freedom. We already impose enough guilt, restrictions, and limitations on our diets in this nation. I say our palates should not be chained by ancient necessities, whimsical traditions, or social pressures.

We don't have to worry about whether the rotting elk corpse we found will sustain our family till the snow melts. We can eat what we want, whenever we want it. Eat, drink and be merry. Break the rules.