Taken with a grain of salt and a dash of butter

 A saying

    My uncle started an inside joke that runs through the whole family. Anyone who has ever been to the parties we served shrimp at, learned of the "3 Shrimp" rule. 

    A silly rule to make sure that everyone at the party got shrimp because there was always "never enough." However, even then, not everyone ate shrimp so some people got seconds- or even thirds. Then came the follow-up line of "at a time."

    Someone would give the reminder at the table, "Only 3 shrimps," and the rest of us who knew the joke would laugh and go "at a time." This happens without fail and subconsciously I find myself always grabbing 3 shrimps at a time, even without the party and without my uncle.  

    

Watch your plate

    As funny as it may be- I started to think about this a little more literally. I'm not sure when, perhaps it had been on his deathaversary or when I saw that shrimp patterned oven-mit at a craft fair. But I thought about it again. 

    There's a saying revolving around the idea of not piling your plate to high. Not to bite more than you can chew- to not overwork or overwhelm yourself. So instead of shrimp, we think of it has tasks. Things you want to get done in the day, or the week. Prioritize 3 and get through those first before you try to tackle another one.

    Have you ever peeled a shrimp before? First the head- the tail, it's legs and then the shell... At least 4 steps. So break down your main 3 tasks if that's something you prefer. Need to clean the kitchen? no- you have the counter, the stove, the fridge, and the sink to clean.  

    Best part? 

    You get the satisfaction of ticking off more boxes- but even getting one box ticked meant progress towards your initial goal.  

    Sometimes, if you're lucky, you'll have someone to help you peel the shrimp. Its okay to ask for help! Your tasks can still get done even if 2 or more people are working on it!!

Dash of butter

    The idea of taking his inside joke and turning it into advice to simply not overwhelm/overwork myself makes me feel like he's still here telling me to only take 3 shrimp at the table when everyone (who doesn't like shrimp) already agreed to give me their 3. Maybe even that was symbolism on how I grew up to be a people pleaser... But that's a different dive into waters I shouldn't yet touch. 

Until then, take your 3 and eat it too. (Like the- have your cake and eat it too... get it?)