September 30, 2000
The S.S. Car Bomb

The S.S. Car Bomb

Sorry it’s taken me so long to get this story out, but it’s taken me a while to recover from the Annual Labor Day Week Caribbean Extravaganza. I’m getting too old for this!

First off, I did things right by making sure I’d be arriving first to plan my revenge from last year’s trip. Unfortunately, my luggage was lost, so there was no chance for an attack. Y’all lucked out. But at least they gave me $100 for clothing. Nothing like spending the first day as a walking billboard for Club Med! As I settled in, I managed to run into Lisa and Melanie for dinner, and three GOs who actually remembered me from Club Med Sonora Bay back in 1995! Small world!

Well, the first day wasn’t too bad. No injuries anyway. Well, I did almost kill myself trying to get into the shallow end of the pool. Not quite like water-skiing on sand, but still worth a laugh, right Perry? And Chris and Brenda made the mistake of arriving late, and got nailed in a water attack. Welcome! But we did stake claim to the shallow end of the pool pretty quickly with the S.S. Car Bomb and a floating palm tree. But eventually, Mr. Smiley took over when he unknowingly became a volleyball, followed by a four-limbed tug-of-war rope, amazingly, smiling the whole time. (Who would’ve thought that a $1 toy could be the source of sooooo much fun!)

As we tired out, dinner called. We sure didn’t show a lack enthusiasm, as we polished off 62 beers, 2 bottles of wine playing Viking, (Erika’s favorite game). And what a better way to burn it off then dancing in the disco until 2am. It was a fun time for all, even Val, who may not remember dancing on stage and running up a stairway that lead into a wall! And this, was of course, the very reason Val missed her first morning dive in 10 years…

On Labor Day, after diving, the guns came out. The beach war (Jan and Mike vs Perry and Scott) eventually lead to savage street fighting, resulting in flooded rooms. Okay, from now on, that’s out of bounds, especially after having to deal with Laura's wrath! Exhausted, the troops headed for, what else? The Alcohol!!! And there I was, getting my first car bomb. Tasty! That evening was somewhat quiet. Pigs came out at dinner and then we retired to a lame show on stage.

Tuesday was diving at West Caicos Island. Scott did an amazing job spotting all types of eels, but it was the under water game of paper, rock, scissors that ended up getting the most attention. Hey Laura, boys will be boys! Upon returning, we spotted Brenda, trying to hide in a cubby whole, covertly barking signals through her talk-a-bout. It wasn’t long before the ambush was foiled, Brenda taken prisoner and Jan labeled a traitor. But what a better way to end a battle than slammers and margaritas at the pool. Par-tay!

For a change of pace, we did dinner at the club. For the most part, we were well behaved, that is until we decided to steal all the soft drinks! It’s amazing how valuable soft drinks can be on a remote island. That night, things did pick up as we entered the Group of 8 contest as Mango’s team. He really lucked out as EVERY GO wanted us as their team, and come to think of it, Mango gave us the least attention. Well, in any case, we had a blast. The women got into the bribing of the judges, Dave was too drunk to score a hockey goal, but Laura made up for it kicking soccer balls with fins, Scott impressed the crowds by naming all the mystery alcohol samples, and Mike and Val managed to beat at least one couple in the dance contest (It was a moral victory at least!). But you know, in my opinion, I thought we were zee best ones!

With no diving scheduled for Wednesday, a competitive tennis math took place with Mike, Erika, Dave and Brenda. Well, it was pretty hot, so we didn't really last that long. But now we were all ready for the famous (but toned-down) beach picnic! Well, at least it was fine for killing the afternoon, but THEY RAN OUT OF BEER!!! (So, this portion of the story now ends…) And back at the pool, the S.S. Car Bomb kicked up a notch, with slammers and AfterShock. Woo hoo! By the time the foam party started up, we were all well in the mood! And the guns came out blazing! Hopefully, we'll all be in the next Club Med brochure. Can't wait!

Thursday was a great "play-day" for everyone. Erika, Dave and Chris went fishing, Val and Mike went windsurfing, Jan snorkeled (but was attacked by Perry, Scott and Chris), Scott and Laura waterskiied, Perry, Val, Laura, Scott, Brenda and Chris went sailing, Mike played volleyball. Oh, and Dave and Erika slept (How could I forget that?) So, by late afternoon, we were ready for happy hour (as always). And tonight's specialty was the "Dorkel". Sure got us all in the mood for a ton of dancing to salsa music. Go Val!

Nice and early Friday morning, Scott, Laura, Perry, Val and Mike were off for our final dive. Lots of crabs, a puffer fish, you name it, Scott spotted it. Our paranoia about being super soaked on our return got the best of us and we covertly sneaked up to the third floor to get back to our rooms. No probs, man. Erika and Dave were probably sleeping anyway…

That afternoon, the activities flared up again. More beach time, hanging out by the pool (Hey! That's an activity, right?), and an intense game of hockey. And what a better way to cool off than playing "Pigs" in the pool. After dinner, the activities continued into the wee hours of the night. It was, after all, our last night. Sure there were side events, like Erika throwing me (fully clothed) into the pool, target practice with Perry and glow in the dark football, but Scott takes the prize for making sure someone got injured on this trip. It's just that no one expected this to happen by simply going to the bathroom. (I'll let Scott get himself out of this himself)

So, Saturday came around and it was time to pack up and leave. Like Cozumel, I spent my last few hours trying to dry out my clothes with a hair dryer (Thanks, Erika). I jumped on the bus to the airport, thinking about the tennis instructor, Ross, getting ready to hit you all with my Super Soaker later that day. And wondering why I keep setting myself up for revenge!

Well, it was a fun week. Now I’m going to need the next 51 weeks to recover and get ready to the next one. Do you think I’ll ever learn???

September 2000

Posted by mbang at 01:10 PM