Tuesday, February 28, 2006
Drink Up Me 'Earties, Yo Ho!
This time, I have a somewhat good excuse for having not posted anything for eighteen days (apparently there have been complaints, which is actually rather flattering). Aside from my usual griping about exams that "come out of nowhere" (there were two) and my utter lack of social life (for once, completely fallacious), I just happened to be on my reading week break for the last ten days on a tiny island in the Bahamas called Abaco. The thing about Abaco is they have, ah, limited technology there. Here's an example: The first time my parents asked for directions on the island, they were told to turn at the traffic light. At first, they were slightly confused because they didn't know exactly which traffic light was being spoken of. That is, until they found out there's only one on the entire island, and all directions given are based on where you are relative to it. My point is that Abaco is, in a word, rather isolated from the rest of the rushing world, and an internet connection was pretty hard to come by.
It was nice to be able to get away from the rush of the rest of the world though. That's exactly why my parents and siblings and I went to Abaco for reading week - so that we could spend a week sitting on the beach, drinking colourful, umbrella-garnished cocktails, and enjoying the silence of our signal-less cell phones. And that's pretty much all we did. A whole lot of nothing. It was extremely relaxing.
Well, there was one very amusing incident on Dan's and my birthday in which - after I got drunk in the hottub - I pushed Dan into the pool, to his enormous displeasure. He swore vengeance of course, and when I got out of the hottub to go back to our condo at the end of the night, he chased after me, determined to drag me back and throw me bodily into the freezing cold water. My only defense was to throw the rest of my drink at him, ice included. So I did. And I must say, I sure caught him by surprise with that move, heh heh heh. He eventually managed to head me off and drag me across the lawn a little, but I struggled my way out of trouble, nipped back into the condo, and locked my bedroom door before he could catch me again. If you're feeling any pity for his sake, note that he gave me a helluva bruise on my arm, a couple more on my legs, and a grass stain on one knee, so I think we're even. Best birthday ever. :)
Another birthday bonus was that I remained at a pleasant level of drunkeness throughout the entire day - not too sober, not too sick - and I'd like to commend the Bahamian people for their bartending skills which allowed it. We in North America could learn a few things from that noble land of the Bahamas, where a can of Coke is ever-so-slightly less expensive than a straight glass of rum. This allows Bahamian bartenders to learn a rare skill that North American bartenders lack: the unmeasured pour. I watched nearly all of my drinks be prepared in front of me, so I'd like to pass along this hallowed process of Bahamian cocktail creation. 1) Put ice in the cup, enough to keep it cold until you're finished drinking it, but not so much that there's no room for liquid. 2) Fill the cup AT LEAST two-thirds of the way up with two or more brands of rum, not the really cheap, gross stuff, and not watered down. 3) Top off with some pink or yellow (or both) fruity punch stuff which contains some amount of orange juice, sans pulp. Seriously, I never had a single drink the entire holiday that contained even as much mixer as rum. It was glorious beyond my wildest dreams.
Now that I'm back though, it's nice to be doing things again and joining the rush of the rest of the world. I do seem to be experiencing slight rum withdrawal symptoms right now, but I've got a swack of Malibu in the cupboard, a full bottle of strawberry daiquiri mix in the fridge, and as much ice as I could want in the freezer. I'll just bring my Magic Bullet blender to class and explain to my profs that in Abaco, happy hour really starts at 11:00 AM rather than this early evening nonsense we put up with here.
It was nice to be able to get away from the rush of the rest of the world though. That's exactly why my parents and siblings and I went to Abaco for reading week - so that we could spend a week sitting on the beach, drinking colourful, umbrella-garnished cocktails, and enjoying the silence of our signal-less cell phones. And that's pretty much all we did. A whole lot of nothing. It was extremely relaxing.
Well, there was one very amusing incident on Dan's and my birthday in which - after I got drunk in the hottub - I pushed Dan into the pool, to his enormous displeasure. He swore vengeance of course, and when I got out of the hottub to go back to our condo at the end of the night, he chased after me, determined to drag me back and throw me bodily into the freezing cold water. My only defense was to throw the rest of my drink at him, ice included. So I did. And I must say, I sure caught him by surprise with that move, heh heh heh. He eventually managed to head me off and drag me across the lawn a little, but I struggled my way out of trouble, nipped back into the condo, and locked my bedroom door before he could catch me again. If you're feeling any pity for his sake, note that he gave me a helluva bruise on my arm, a couple more on my legs, and a grass stain on one knee, so I think we're even. Best birthday ever. :)
Another birthday bonus was that I remained at a pleasant level of drunkeness throughout the entire day - not too sober, not too sick - and I'd like to commend the Bahamian people for their bartending skills which allowed it. We in North America could learn a few things from that noble land of the Bahamas, where a can of Coke is ever-so-slightly less expensive than a straight glass of rum. This allows Bahamian bartenders to learn a rare skill that North American bartenders lack: the unmeasured pour. I watched nearly all of my drinks be prepared in front of me, so I'd like to pass along this hallowed process of Bahamian cocktail creation. 1) Put ice in the cup, enough to keep it cold until you're finished drinking it, but not so much that there's no room for liquid. 2) Fill the cup AT LEAST two-thirds of the way up with two or more brands of rum, not the really cheap, gross stuff, and not watered down. 3) Top off with some pink or yellow (or both) fruity punch stuff which contains some amount of orange juice, sans pulp. Seriously, I never had a single drink the entire holiday that contained even as much mixer as rum. It was glorious beyond my wildest dreams.
Now that I'm back though, it's nice to be doing things again and joining the rush of the rest of the world. I do seem to be experiencing slight rum withdrawal symptoms right now, but I've got a swack of Malibu in the cupboard, a full bottle of strawberry daiquiri mix in the fridge, and as much ice as I could want in the freezer. I'll just bring my Magic Bullet blender to class and explain to my profs that in Abaco, happy hour really starts at 11:00 AM rather than this early evening nonsense we put up with here.
