St. Croix Continued... Beer Drinking Pigs and Rum Punch Sail

Beer Drinking Pigs:  Nestled up in the rainforest, on the west side of the island, lies this rustic jungle bar called the Mt. Pellier Domino Club. (Not be confused with Montpelier, the capital of VT.)  One of the most intriguing aspects of this place is they have beer drinking pigs.  And by beer drinking, it’s more like beer guzzling/can crushing.  And by pigs I mean giant, ugly, smelly boars… like the ones that used to chase people through the jungle on LOST.

Now, for all you animal lovers who think this is absolutely horrible, not to worry.  The PETA people had a field day with this place.  You can no longer buy them your beer of choice, and they can’t just chug-a-lug all day, every day.  For the bargain price of $3 you can buy an ice cold O’dules from the bar, and every 20 minutes they will lead you to this locked “barn” where you can have the opportunity to share a pint with a pig.

Oh how the times have changed for these beer swigging swine’s. Do you think they got confused or disappointed when they stopped getting a good day buzz?  Or if they went through detox/withdrawals when they abruptly went dry?  Clearly it’s a much healthier situation for them, but a drastically different lifestyle for sure.… this little piggy went to AA :(

Big Beards Adventure:  What do you get when you pile 2 VT’ers, 8 Bostonians, 5 Minnesota’ers, and couple Canadians on a boat for a day - in the Caribbean, in the dead of winter? A hell of a good time, that’s what!  

I introduce you to Capt’n Big Beards Adventure Tours. The full day tour sail’s you to two different beaches on Buck Island.  Considered a National Monument both above and below the surface, it’s a great place for beach combing and snorkeling.  They even have underwater plaques with pictures and descriptions of various marine life for people to identify the fish as they swim by.

And once everyone’s done snorkeling, and back on the boat, the rum punches start flowing.  And flowing, and flowing. We sail back over to the mainland for a private beach bbq.  Burgers/dogs and freshly grilled Mahi, YUM!  And did I mention rum punch?  

The rest of the afternoon was spend frolicking on the beach with a gallon of rum punch and my 18 new best friends (Capt’-n-crew included).  Do I care that after X amount of rum punches (they were tiny cups) I kept forgetting to reapply sunscreen and got completely fried?  Do I care that I woke up the next day with a giant hangover and “sea lice” from snorkeling through insect laden seaweed?  Hell no!  I’d take a mild case of “mystery bumps” over another day shoveling in a heartbeat.  It was totally worth it!

St. Croix, Pt 1.

The one good thing about moving back to a climate that has boarder line "uninhabitable winters", is it forces me to get away and travel to warmer climates.  This year’s winter hiatus was to the island of St. Croix.  St. Croix, commonly known as STX, is the largest of the US Virgin Islands at 28 miles long and 7 miles wide, with a population of about 50k.

The topography is like the island of Achilles meets the great state of Vermont.  Lush green mountains in the middle, surrounded by sandy white beaches and tropical turquoise waters.  The best of both worlds as far as I’m concerned.  So much in fact, that it’s inspired me to update my resume and start researching jobs and housing.  I’m not saying I’m going to drop everything and buy a one way ticket to the Caribbean, but at this point, I’m pretty damn close.

Highlights of the first part of the trip include:

1.    Scuba Diving:  I chartered 3 days of diving with SCUBA (St. Croix Ultimate Bluewater Adventures).  Molly, Ed and the entire SCUBA staff come highly recommended.  They were super friendly, took me to great dive sights, and the diving conditions were impeccable.  They even provide complementary post dive beers… not a bad way to kick off my traditionally “purchased” post dive beers.

As part of the #3 largest living reef in the world, the marine life was thriving.  On top of all the beautiful fishies you’d expect to see, we saw threshers and black tip reef sharks,  giant moray eels, spotted eagle rays, and an abundance of lion fish (all lion fish we speared and fed back to nature… my dive buddies will appreciate this).  

I got to do a number of dives in Salt River, which is where Christopher Columbus landed on his 2^nd visit to the new world… until he was run off by the natives.  Not only did it feel great to be playing in the underwater tropics, I have officially dove the three largest barrier reef’s in the world.  Bucket list, check!!!

2.       Jump Up:  Jump Up is a cultural party held 4 times a year.  I was lucky to be in town while Jump Up occurred, and even luckier that it just happened to fall on Friday the 13^th - the night of my 40^th birthday!  Yes, that’s right, the entire island of St. Croix was celebrating this milestone right along with me. :)

They shut down the streets along the boardwalk and waterfront of Christiansted, and from 6pm to
10pm a giant “carnival” like party ensues.  Vendors from all over the island line the streets selling local food, drink and artisans galore.  Steel drum bands set up on street corners boasting traditional sounds of the Caribbean and the Mocko Jumbies are dancing in the streets.

Traditionally from West Africa, Mocko Jumbies are said to be “God like” creatures, protecting villagers and warding off evil.  Now a Caribbean staple, Mocko Jumbies are stilt walkers in colorful costumes, standing up to 20 feet tall, who dance around and make appearances at parties and festivals… they’re great!

I have many more adventures to highlight, but in order to spare you from a long drawn out blog, I will stop right here and break it up a bit.  Up next, details on hermit crab races, catamaran day sail, and beer drinking pigs... stay tuned

Fiesta Sorpresa de cumpleaños

It doesn't take much for anyone to twist my arm and lour me into the Elks.  It's a regular hangout for me, especially during the cold winter months. On any given night, and the occasional day, you can perch yourself at the bar and have a wonderful time. On the rare occasion there isn't anyone there you know, it won't be long before the person sitting next to you becomes your new best friend. So when my sister in law asked me last Saturday to stop by for a drink I was more than eager to oblige. 

But one thing I wasn't suspecting when I walked in was to have a handful of my family and friends waiting to surprise me for a 40th birthday celebration. Yup I said that right... 40 years!  Hard to believe since I don't feel like I'm 40... I don't really think I look like I'm 40, and we all know I certainly don't act it.

For those of you who don't know me all that we'll, I'm pretty fanatical about tacos and margs.  Knowing my love for all things south of the boarder, the party was Mexican themed.  Complete with a taco bar, maracas, sombreros, ponchos y mucho cervesas.  And no fiesta is complete without a piñata, so they had one of those too.  

The fact that they forgot to fill it?? No problem. I went around asking people to contribute a worthless item from their pocket or purse.  When the piñata was at least 1/2 filled I busted that bad boy open.  And what a fun schmorgousboard of surprises. There were tooth picks, band aids, chapsticks, hair ties and a lot of gum and asprin. I even made out with about $3.75 in random coin, some "feminine protection" gear and a condom. Not too shabby.

So a giant thank you to Marissa, my mom and everyone who attended to help make it a success.  It was so nice to have so many of favorite people all in one place.  For those who weren't able to make it, or if your invite may have been overlooked, not to worry.  I'm always looking for a reason to celebrate. We'll just have to tone it down a bit now that I'm officially "middle aged". Ugh, that's sounds aweful.

 

Muchas gracias everyone!! 

 

Blizzard 2015

Wow, October 22, 2014 = last blog. Sorry for the long absence. I really have no excuse other than pure laziness or sheer lack of fun - probably a combination of both. Which brings us to present day, January 27... aka Blizzard 2015.

I'm literally laying in my bed with anticipation.  I have no idea what has transpired between midnight EST and now, or how much physical labor I have to look forward to.  But as sure as Santa makes his mark every 25 of Dec, I'm fairly certain it's a winter wonderland out there. 

Giant snow storms are the best. There's nothing better than gearing up for a few days off of work tending to Ole Man Winter's finest. You stock pile your favorite food and drinks, and you hunker down. You shovel, eat, drink, binge watch you favorite Netflix program - and repeat.

And if that wasn't enough, the calm and serenity of it all is majestic. No cars on the road, no sounds of hustle and bustle, just nature at it's winters finest... leaving a blanket of white- postcard perfect. 

And I must admit, there's nothing better than a New England blizzard to take the heat off the stupid 'deflate hate' conspiracy.  And guess what?? Get Over It!  Hot air expands, cold air compresses      It happens to our door frames, ring fingers and car tires daily.  Basic science my friends, pretty sure we all learned that in grade school.... I digress. (Go Pats).

That said, I should amble out of bed and see what Mother Nature has bestowed on us this fine morning.  Here goes, wish me luck (pics to follow).

1/30/2015
I lied... no pics to follow.  We only got about a 1/2 ft and it only took 1 round of shoveling for about 45 min to clean up.  Lucky me :)  Although my counterparts in NH, MA and ME got walloped... not so lucky for them.  But not to worry, it's not even Feb yet.  There will be plenty of more snowfalls before the season is over.  Heck, if it's gonna be cold it might as well snow.  And by snow I mean SNOW, enough of this half-pint, icy/wintery mix garbage.... that stuff's just down right dangerous. 

Pumpkin Fest 2014

 Disclaimer:  As you may have heard, riots broke out in the surrounding neighborhoods of Pumpkin Fest. Yes, destruction, multiple arrests and minor injuries occurred. No, I was not involved or affected (I didn't even know they were happening).

This past weekend was Pumpkin Fest, a local tradition for over a decade.  Located in Keene, NH and established in 1991, it was originally called the "Harvest Festival"; showcasing baked goods, fall arts and crafts, and debuted a whopping 600 pumpkins.

The following year they more than doubled that amount with 1,628 and won the 1st Guinness Book of World Record for most jack-o-lanterns. Since then the festival has continued to grow. And boy do I mean grow!  Last year marked their 9th World Record topping out at massive 30,128 pumpkins!  Yup, that's right, 30,128 pumpkins!

This was my fist time attending Pumpkin Fest so I really didn't know what to expect.  But one thing I did know was you don't go empty handed.  Everyone is expected to bring a pumpkin, at least one. (Some even bring them by the truck load). So I spent the night before carving away and my friend Mandy and I donated 4 beautiful masterpieces.

We dropped our pumpkins off at one of the loading stations earlier in the day.  Excellent idea so we wouldn't have to carry our pumpkins from wherever we ended up parking. The problem is that we had no idea where their final resting place lay. The fate of our pumpkins was entirely in the hands of someone else... a stanger! I saw other people scoping out the perfect spot for their pumpkins.  Delicately positioning their pumpkins just so and making sure they were lit properly before bidding them farewell.  I began to feel neglectful and a little unsettled because  I had no clue what had become of our pumpkins. Where the heck are my pumpkins?  Are they even lit?  My obsessiveness reared it's determined head and it soon became my quest to find my intricately carved creations.

LOST:  Has anyone seen these pumpkins???

Despite what people kept telling me, I was surprised to see it was a full on festival.  The city center was completely shut down and inundated w/people and pumpkins.  There was a Haunted Church, a Ferris Wheel, carving stations, and even Pumpkin Bowling.  There was a food court, a craft court and all the downtown shops, restaurants and bars were open for business.

As the sky drew darker and the crowd got thicker, those pumpkins began to shine.  There was a shimmering orange glow as far as the eye could see.  It was truly spectacular.  Thousands upon thousands of jack-o-lanterns; all shapes, colors, and sizes.  Kiddie carvings, weird carvings, great carvings and some that made you stop dead in your tracks and go "WOW!".  I had no idea you could do so much with a pumpkin.  I'm definitely upping my game with my carvings next year.

We left just after the great pumpkin count, which, truth be told, was extremely disappointing.  Pumpkin Fest 2014 came in at a measly 21,912 jack-o-lanterns.  That's 8,216 less pumpkins than last year... 8,216 LESS!!!  What the hell happened???  Why did people not bring more pumpkins???  It's no wonder everyone started rioting (kidding of course).  But seriously, what a bummer.

...or maybe 21,000?

And even though the final count was significantly less than the year before, the entire experience was beyond impressive. Riots or no riots I'd do it again. In the end I never did find my pumpkins... so sad. But as I was strolling along the streets, admiring the creativity and detail of everyone else, I couldn't help but think that someone, at this very moment, is gazing upon my pumpkin and smiling.  

Happy Halloween!!    

Gulp and Gallop

The Gulp and Gallop is the kick-off to the annual Oktoberfest held at Mt. Snow, VT.  It’s literally what it sounds like… drink and run.  My dream 5k!  I had planned to run this event last year, but I was laid up with a torn hip-flexor (silly kickball tourney).  But this year, nothing was gonna hold me back.

 

 I had heard that the 1st fifty people registered would receive a free T-shirt.  Even better!  My girlfriends and I were up and attem at the crack of dawn, cuz there was no chance in hell we were going to miss out on a Gulp and Gallop shirt.  We were so overzealous and so early, that not only did we arrived before it opened, the workers hadn’t even showed up yet and there wasn’t a single car in the parking lot :(

The idea is you drink a beer and run a mile x 3.1   And I’m not talking a little dixiecup of beer, I’m talking legit 12oz’ers.  So there we were on a crisp fall morning, drinking our 1st beer (or maybe 2), taking in the foliage, and gearing up to go running around mountain. 

Now I’m not sure if it was because I was already tired from the night before, or if it was those shots of Fireball we took prior to our start, but I’d be doing you all a disservice if I didn’t warn you to “be careful what you wish for”.  Drinking after running is a great idea, as it should be.  But drinking while running is NOT FUN!  General consensus; it should be outlawed.

1.

1.  Drinking impairs your judgment:  We flew out the gate like Olympic contenders.  Sprinting up the mountain cheering and high-five’ing every passerby.

2.

2.  Drinking causes loss of coordination: Hello?? Running on rocky mountainous terrain with a solid buzz?? NOT SAFE!

3.

3. Drinking enhances acid reflex:  Belching while running is no fun.   Beer belches while running... WAY WORSE!

Needless to say I couldn’t finish.  Ultimately it was #3 that got the best of me.  My stomach became increasingly unsettled and I needed to stop before something drastic happened.  So disappointed.  I had such high hopes.

Lessons learned for next year?    Get a good night sleep the night before.  No need to show up 2 hours before start time. Pre-gaming is NOT allowed.  And maybe wait until the race is over to drink your free beer. But hey, at least we got the first 3 shirts out of the box… mission accomplished there :)

Rugged Maniac

Obstacle course racing (OCR) is a fairly new and emerging sport. Of course races like Mudder, Spartan and Warrier Dash have been around for years, but now they are finally coming out with OCR's for us laymen. Courses that aren't 10+ miles long, and obstacles that can only be concord by the fittest of the fit. 

Recently I, along with my friend Robyn, participated in the 4th annual Rugged Maniac.  A 5k and 28 obstacle fun run.  Just so we're clear, I run, but I don't like to run.  Running is my LEAST favorite form of exercise... I pretty much despise it. The running portion was a wooded uphill terrain... but when u insert 28 obstacles into 3.1 miles, the running isn't grueling at all.

The obstacles varied in technique and difficulty.  There was a lot of climbing, crawling and leaping. Climbing up and over cargo nets, inverted walls, and mounds of mud.  Crawling through dark tunnels, under barb wire, and pits of mud.  Leaping over deep trenches, from log to log, and rows of fire.  And then they threw in some fun ones just to keep it friendly.  There was the leap of faith where you jump into a pool of muddy water with spectators cheering you on and rating your technique.... the belly-floppers got the most praise. There was this colossal waterside where you pretty much went for it, hoping it would all end okay as you reach speeds greater than 35mph and end up in another muddy pool of water. 

There were 2 that I couldn't finish.  An inverted wall where my lack of wingspan got the best of me (these types of races are even extra challenging for us short people). And then the monkey bars... those dreaded monkey bars. I got 2 rings in and opted to let go and drop into, you guessed it, another pool of muddy water. (I know that upper body strength isn't my forte, but it also didn't help that this particular obstacle was placed 2nd to last). 

By the end my elbows and knees were pretty banged up, and my shoulders and quads were spent.  But I sprinted across that finish line with a giant smile on my face proud of what I had accomplished. 

I have already signed up for next years race with plans to have my p.i.c. Courtney join in the muddy mayhem.  If anyone else cares to join us you are more than welcome.  Can't wait :))