A couple of weeks ago, we were having one of our bigger get-togethers with our dearest friends, Lynn and Doug.  Doug is a physician and likes to gather his residents and interns for a year-end bash along with an assortment of friends and neighbors.  We had plenty of food but Lynn and I were particularly keen about cooking a hefty pot of New Zealand mussels on the big grill.  We poured them in, added water and white wine,

lemon, and fresh herbs.  Asked Doug to stoke up the fire and placed the pot on the grill.  Guess what?  Three hours later, only one mussel had opened.  Even with all those docs around, no one dared to eat that one lonely mussel.  Lena, our favorite, adventurous yellow lab, even turned her nose up.  Think maybe those mussels either drank too much of the wine we added, fell into a deep sleep on their trip from New Zealand (or whatever parts they were transported from), or were just plain too far gone to begin with. Whichever, I thought you might enjoy the photo of that one opened mussel gaping at the top of the pot.