The Unexpected Experience

Cost: free

Remaining Budget: $247.86

I have great news, and then I have even better news. I DID accomplish all 52 activities over the course of the year. Now the better news, I have been so busy (good busy), and have been enjoying my 30’s so much that I haven’t managed to sign on here and tell you all about it. So sorry! I will make up for it now.

I remember a party. It was probably the mid-early 90’s, so it is all getting a bit blurry because it is so far back, but I was probably around 10 or 11 at the time. My parents were part of this dinner club with a bunch of their longtime friends, and there was going to be a surprise birthday party for a woman that was turning 30. Of course I thought that they were all ancient, but there was something cool and sophisticated about the woman turning 30; at least that was my appraisal of her at 11. I haven’t really seen her since then, so I can’t tell you how accurate my judgement was. I do remember she preferred red wine, and there were silver balloons, and a wonderful dinner was prepared. It was a small gathering, probably about 12 adults. Who knows! Like I said, this was a really long time ago. Anyway, that probably was when my fascination with the age 30 began. I wanted to be like the trendy girl with the red wine and silver balloons when I turned 30. Well, here I am 19 years later; clumsy, flexible to a degree but particularly adaptable, and sometimes (usually) awkward.  I do love red wine, but I am far from trendy. I am ok with that. I am really happy with who I am, and what I have accomplished. That’s what it’s about!

So, about the “unexpected experience.” Well, it was about to be my 30th birthday, and I had no plans whatsoever. Pathetic right? I wanted to have plans, but I didn’t know how to go about asking my friends and family, so in the end I just didn’t ask. I mean, my family has been so busy, and all my friends are all far away, pregnant and/or married…I felt uncomfortable asking anyone to join me for anything that day, so I just sucked it up. I wasn’t like that sleek girl in my memory; I wasn’t going to have that trendy 30th bday blowout. Well, I can be pretty resourceful when I want something. I decided that I was going to buy the stuff to make Cosmopolitans, and that I would watch Mama Mia that night with my tiara on. Not a half bad plan right? I was excited about it. Anyway, that was the game plan, and I was looking forward to it for the two weeks leading up to my 30th birthday.

Inspiration hit again about a week before I turned 30 while I was cooking dinner for the family.

I asked my brother, “Hey Mike, do you think you could make me a homemade pizza on my birthday?

“Of course! What do you want on it?”

“Olives, roasted garlic, artichoke hearts, and onions.”

“And pepperoni?”

“No!”

I don’t like pepperoni. I also don’t like bacon. Stop Judging Me Reader!

“Ok, and pepperoni” he decided for me.

This was a fabulous addition to my otherwise dull evening. My own personal party was getting more and more awesome every day! But then my mom chimed in, “Hey Celina, what day of the week is your birthday on?”

“It’s next Friday.”

My moms face went into complete shock.

“Oh Celina, you are not going to believe this. The little girls down the street are having a birthday party that night and they wanted you to come. I said that you would.”

I used to baby sit these little girls when I was in college and I absolutely adore them both.

“Shit mom, that’s my 30th birthday.”

“It’s ok Celina, I am sure that I can explain…Of course they will understand.”

“No mom, don’t worry about it. I want to go. It’s not a big deal, I had no plans.”

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I am sure. But let’s do something after. Maybe we can go to the Willow Tree (best German place outside of Germany) after and try out Das Boot? I can make it a blog experience. I have never drank Das Boot!”

I started to get really excited about this new addition to my plan. I have always wanted to try Das Boot.

“Oh, that sounds great. Let’s do that!”

On the morning of my birthday I drove to work pretty pumped up about my evening plans. Amy was the first to call and wish me a happy birthday, followed closely after by my grandmother, and Tara. My Facebook exploded with amazing friends that I have made over these past 30 years, and I was overwhelmed by the number of people willing to take time out of their day to make me feel special. Work was rough though. I was really slammed that day, and had a hard time catching up. I have to say that I worked pretty relentlessly, even working through the majority of my lunch break just to get through it all. By 5pm I was the last person in the office (everyone had taken a vacation day or left early) and I was pretty exhausted.

My brother called me up:

“Hey, who is buying the stuff for that pizza tonight.”

“I don’t know Mike.”

“Oh, did you want me to go get it?”

“No of course not, I can go now. I pass a Publix on the way.”

“Oh man Celina, I don’t want you to have to buy your own birthday dinner….”

“No, it’s cool. I pass Publix on the way. Not a big deal.”

So there I was, buying my birthday dinner. New levels of pathetic… Disappointment that I didn’t even realize I had been feeling for weeks built up, and my temper was getting a bit short at this point.

I pulled into my driveway, dropped $35.00 worth of organic pizza ingredients on the kitchen counter, and started getting ready to go to the little girls party.

“Hey Celina…?”

“Yeah Mike, what’s up?”

“You forgot the pepperoni.”

“I don’t like pepperoni! It is MY birthday dinner. Can I please have pizza the way I like it this one damned time?”

“I will make two, but I am not eating this healthy crap you bought. I am going to Winn-Dixie.”

“Do whatever you want Mike. I don’t even have the energy to care anymore.”

And with that, my brother was off to the grocery store to change the ingredients I picked for my birthday dinner. Now, anyone that knows me knows that I am pretty chill. I very seldom flip out, but I was definitely getting to that point, and my brother got a bit of it before he raced out of the house to buy different ingredients.

I started slowly re-applying my makeup; most of it was worn off from my day at work. The little girls party started at 7, and it was already 6:55, but I felt no rush. I had ZERO intention of being on time to a kids party. I thought that I would look awkward if I was one of the first people at an 8 year olds birthday party. Fashionably late is what I was shooting for. My dad had picked up a nail in his front passenger tire that day, so he was in the kitchen waiting for me to drive him. He kept sighing out loud, and trying to hurry me.

“Dad, why are you in a rush? Why are you even going? No one expects you to go to this.”

“Your mother expects me to. Let’s just go. I can’t stand being late.”

“Are you coming to the Willow Tree after?”

“No, why would I go to the Willow Tree?”

“For my birthday beer…”

“Oh, why don’t you ask your brother to go? I am tired Celina, I don’t want to be at a bar all night.”

And with those words, it was officially the worst 30th birthday evening I could have ever imagined for myself.

The birthday party was going to be held at a museum in downtown Sanford. We pulled up, walked in, and the first thing that caught my eye was that there was a huge bar full of alcohol. Why would they have a bar at an 8 year olds birthday party?

And then… SURPRISE!

My family had thrown me the greatest 30th birthday party that has ever taken place in the history of 30th birthday parties.

 

My mom is an artist

Do you recognize friends from previous posts? Amy, all the way on the left, and Christina, all the way on the right, were both in my first post about karaoke singing. Amy was also in the Rocky Horror Experience. Katie and I rode the sling shot and watched soccer together. Mike was in about 99% of my posts.

I didn’t get to drink Das Boot as #51, but instead I had my first ever surprise party! It was the greatest evening of my life. I never expected it; I never had any idea at all. And now I am 30. Life is amazing.

I wanted to be like the trendy girl with the red wine and silver balloons when I turned 30. Well, here I am 19 years later, and surrounded by people that I love. My childhood desire to be that trendy lady is not even pertinent anymore. I am really happy with who I am, and what I have accomplished. That’s what it’s about!

The Phantom Experience

Cost: $32.00

Remaining Budget: $527.31

So, the golf thing was screwed up. I was so bummed about that, and it has really been bugging me all week. Of course, things always seem to work out.

On Tuesday night I got a text from Katie. Remember Katie? She was with me for the Tallest Sling Shot in the World Experience.

This is what absolute terror looks like

 

Yeah, that Katie.

Anyway, Katie shot me a text on Tuesday asking if my brother and I were interested in going with her to see Phantom of the Opera in the NEW Dr. Phillips Performing Arts Center in Orlando. The answer was an immediate YES!

Since college, we have been to countless shows at the Bob Carr Performing Arts Center, but this new venue is a lot nicer. The people at the ticket window actually knew us. We were the three that brought our student IDs a couple hours before each show and bought whatever was left over for as cheap as possible. We have always been very economic theater aficionados.  We normally saw shows in jeans, or in our work clothes because we all raced to the ticket window as soon as we could get away from work. We wanted to be first in line so that we could get the best tickets possible. You see, the trick is, if you get to a ticket window 2 hours before a show with a student ID you can get your choice of whatever seats are left over for about $20. In fact, I am pretty sure that I saw the Wicked tour in my running clothes after a 5k race in Orlando. Don’t judge, I unexpectedly won the Wicked ticket lottery 2 hours before the show and about 30 minutes before the race. Yeah, I shouldn’t have done it…But I did, so deal with it!

Aside from us dressing like crap because we were in a heated competition with the rest of the cheap theater fans in Orlando, our city has just never been a place where people dress up for the theater. I have always wanted to get really dressed up and have that New York City fancy pants Broadway experience, but it never worked out. Also, it just didn’t seem appropriate. I guess we could have done it, but no one else really did….so we might have looked a bit out of place.

THIS was the opportunity. New fancy theater; new fancy clothes!

The dilemma here was that I had to work all day, and I would be getting out of work with just enough time to get to the theater before the show. Can you guess what I did? Yup, I wore my fancy dress to work all day. Not even joking. I wore the dress I was planning to wear to the theater to work. I put on a sweatshirt over it so that as people looked into my office they would see a top half very casual. As long as they didn’t step into my office they would never know!  I had a clutch in my car with jewelry, and I reapplied heavier evening makeup in the parking lot. Hey, you gotta do what you gotta do! I think that my brother did the same thing (not the makeup and the clutch obviously). It was easier for him though. He just had to leave his jacket in the car to keep his outfit more casual.

Ok, so do you ever have that feeling when you KNOW that you are about to make a lifetime memory? Like, you are about to do something that you are pretty sure you will always look back on and smile about? That was me driving to the theater after work.

The parking situation at the new theater SUCKS so we all decided to meet off in an old abandoned parking lot in Paramore. Honestly, we just wanted to only have to pay to put one car in the garage (saving money!). I stopped by Publix on my way to the parking lot so that I could buy some premade hors d’oevres for us to all enjoy during our Phantom of the Opera tailgate party. Yup, I said tailgate party. Keeping it classy! We sat there for a while, enjoying light finger foods in our formal wear before heading on down to the theater. I know that in the future, when I look back on these years, I will always remember eating hors d’oevres in a Paramore parking lot with my friends before seeing Phantom. I can already see my future self laughing at my 29 year old cheap self.

We eventually make it to the parking lot and walked a couple blocks to the new theater! This is the sight that greeted us.

Beautiful right? Sorry it is blurry, I took it while running across the street. In 3 inch heels BTW.

We made our grand entrance, a story that I will save for a later time when I have a lot of room to write, and found our seats.

The cheap seats never had such a great view! Man, they designed this theater so that you had a great view regardless of where you were sitting. We ordered our drinks, which cost more than the tickets themselves, and sat back to enjoy a great show that we all love.

If I could go back in time, I would have got a better picture of us all dressed. Oh well, I was caught up in the experience. Actually taking pictures is one of the hardest aspects of this project for me.

—SPOILER ALERT—

Man, when those lights went down and the show started I think my heart stopped. It was just overwhelming. During the actual song Phantom of the Opera the stagecraft was unlike anything I have ever seen. They made some changes to the show, so it was a completely different experience. You could see that they modernized a lot of the technology. Oh, and the chandelier crashing. I knew it was going to happen and I knew exactly when it would happen, but I was still terrified. I was 100% sure that thing was about to fly into the audience and kill everyone in the orchestra seats (one of many perks to sitting in the mezzanine is that death by chandelier is highly unlikely). We were just blown away by it all.

—SPOILERS OVER—-

One more in the books. All in all, this was an Amazing night with Amazing friends. The show was fantastic. The new theater was fantastic. The drinks were (overpriced) fantastic.

 

 

 

The (Wo)Man vs Food Experience

Cost: 13.59

Remaining Budget: $924.96

Once again, this week I have chosen to experience a Siesta Key icon that I have been missing out on for years and years. It is so frustrating to finally realize how blind I have been to my surroundings my entire life. I was just so complacent. Do you ever feel like you are just walking around in a daze? Maybe not. I didn’t feel that way at the time. Only now that I look back am I able to see that fog; you know, the one that was blocking out all my good potential. I mean seriously, in just the past 2 months alone I have experienced so many new things. Things that I would have just been too scared of to actually try before now. It is  a shame it took so long for me to get here.

I decided to go to the Salty Dog on week 8 after seeing it on the Travel Channel a few months ago. I thought it would be so cool try my very own “Man vs. Food” experience/meal. I really just wanted to step out and try something that I would normally NEVER do. After all, that is what this project is all about! It seemed perfect. I mean, the Salty Dog was conveniently local, and it seemed to embody everything that I love about Siesta Key Florida. The place looked rustic, fresh, fun, and like it was absolutely buzzing with life. Yeah, it is kinda touristy, but we live in Florida so deal with it people. Anyway, I knew that if I ever wanted to do a “Man vs Food” experience, this was going to be the best place to do it. The actual TV show stars host Adam Richman as he travels the country eating, what he likes to call, “big food.” Sometimes there is a challenge involved, and other times he is just eating something big. The Salty Dog is an example of him just eating something BIG. It wasn’t overly spicy; there was no time limit involved; it was simply just HUGE! It may not have been a challenge for Adam Richman, but it sure was going to be a challenge for me.

I talked my cousin Alex into driving out to Siesta Key Beach from Orlando just to try this challenge with me. My brother was already at the beach, and he was all over this challenge.

This was kinda a weird choice for me on my week 8. Those of you who know me will know that I have a pretty strict/healthy diet. You see, my obsession with health began around 22, and it seems to get more and more intense with time. With that being said, I knew getting into this that the Man vs Food experience would be pretty uncomfortable for me. It was definitely way outside my norm. I am not trying to change my personality here, I am just trying to experience new things. If I wanted to eat this then I had to earn it. I absolutely refused to even attempt any kind of food challenge until I got a decent workout in. I didn’t know, didn’t want to know to be honest, how many calories might be in the damn hot dog. All I knew at the time was that I was going to attempt to eat a foot long hot dog, breaded, deep fried, and fully loaded with all their toppings. Oh, I forgot, plus bacon and cheese. I dislike bacon. I don’t care how “un-American” that makes me. I don’t like bacon; I have never liked bacon; I will never like bacon. Yes, I realize that I am a huge minority. I also realize that 99% of you are now saying, “how can you not like bacon?” I get that exact reaction ALL THE TIME. Anyway, I went on a 3 mile run the morning of the “challenge.” As soon as my run was over I decided to add on another 20 minutes of jumping rope just to be sure I was burning enough.

Calories burned = 1 Salty Dog (I hope…)

The “Salty Dog”

In hindsight, I HIGHLY doubt that I exercised enough for this…. Yeah, believe it or not there is actually a hot dog under all that cheese.

After my obsessive exercise session, we used my GPS to get out to our late lunch date. We only got lost 2-3 times which is a personal record for me. My navigational success could be a blog post of it’s own! I swear my GPS hates me; she never gives me good directions on the first try. Bitch. Only getting lost a couple times on our way there was definitely a good sign! When we pulled up to the restaurant we saw that there was literally NO parking. None. We ended up having to park a few blocks away and walk there. That was cool with me since I probably burned an extra 20-30 calories. Win!

I ordered Guiness to start, and when she brought it to the table it had had a clover drawn in the foam. The only other place that I have ever seen that done is Disney, and this place is much cheaper than a Disney trip. My cousin ordered a beer too which was weird for me since, in my mind, I see him as a 10 year old boy rather than the 21 year old young man he actually is now. Ugh, they grow up so fast! The restaurant had a really chill atmosphere. It was pretty easy for the three of us to get lost in conversation and completely forget what we were even there for. We were having so much fun that the server actually caught us by surprise when she brought the Salty Dog to the table. We were all absolutely floored. I knew immediately that  there was just NO WAY I was going to be able to eat this entire thing. Oh, and I ordered it with bacon for the sake of my 52 Things Project experience. Alright, the bacon was a little bit better than I remembered it being…Still don’t like bacon though.

The “Salty Dog”

That hot dog was disgustingly HUGE. Just the cheese alone was enough to make up an entire meal. <— Gross. The table got silent for the first time as our minds tried to process the mountain of fried food that had been placed before. Ugh, it makes my stomach turn a bit to remember. It would make yours turn too if you had been there with us. When it sat on the table the air around us became thick with the grease from the dog. If this experience only did one thing for me, then it made me consider trying to have The Vegetarian Experience at some point during this year. That actually sounds pretty appealing after all this actually. I took a reluctant bite and I guess it was kinda “good” in a greasy, sinful bar food way. The heavy Guiness combined with the grease of the dog was a lot to handle. Tacking on that beer was pretty poor planning on my part I guess. My body was in complete shock; but, while my body was in shock, my mind was actually going a million miles an hour trying to plan an ATHLETIC activity for week 9 to make up for all this (I decided on parkour). I don’t think that I have ever forced anything so blatantly unhealthy down my throat before. It was really really good, and it was really really bad all at the same time. I could never put myself through that again, but I am glad that I got to taste it at least once.

I will tell you straight up that I kinda failed, but not really. I only made it through about half of the Fully Loaded Salty Dog before my cousin had to take over and eat the rest for me. I went into this knowing that the likelihood of me eating the entire thing was pretty slim. I already knew all that from seeing it on TV. I mean, it was ginormous. The food was so good though. I didn’t want to stop, but I had to.

Believe it or not, I actually recommend this. The service was fantastic, and the place was really fun. Cool vibes all around. I will absolutely be making the Salty Dog a yearly tradition. I just won’t be eating that fully loaded dog again because that was a bit much….

 

The Drum Circle Experience

My family has travelled to the Gulf of Mexico for 4th of July fireworks at Siesta Key Beach for as long as I can remember. The picture-perfect combination of pure white sands and calm water has not only made this MY favourite beach, but it has landed Siesta Key on America’s top ten beach list almost every single year. Heck, it was even voted #1 beach in the United States in 2011. Over time it has turned into my second home. You would think someone would know their second home a little bit better…Turns out there is this extremely popular drum circle that takes place every Sunday at sunset, and I have never been! I should have figured that there was some kind of hippy-fest in Siesta Key. It actually suits their culture perfectly. The little beach town definitely has the artsy/funky vibe that would embrace a weekly drum and dance circle with wide open arms.

Wide Open Arms Exhibit A:

Week 7: The Drum Circle Experience

 

The circle is located at the public beach between lifeguard stands 3 and 4. It is an astounding collaboration of dancers, drummers, tourists and locals. The beauty of sunset on the Gulf of Mexico, and the pulsing tribal beats of the performers, makes this one of the most interesting jam sessions that I have ever been a part of. That’s right ladies and gents, I said A PART OF! The chances of me dancing in public would have probably been pretty slim if I wasn’t holding a solo cup of red wine at the time. My Mom looked at me and said, “If you are going to blog about this then you had better get out there and dance.” She was right. I felt like if I was going to really experience this thing then I had to participate. I have been a drummer most of my life, would have definitely been more comfortable playing a bongo, but I didn’t have space in my beach bikini to bring a drum set believe it or not. I was stuck with the dancing. Not half as bad as I thought it would be. Laughing loudly and dancing poorly, my mom and I darted to the center of the circle and started our best disco routine. We had a ball!

Week 7: The Hippies and Drum Circle Experience

We walked there in a pretty large group. Honestly, if I had to guess I would probably say about 9 or 10 people. Of everyone that I went with, no one had ever tried dancing in the circle. This was shocking considering that I was the ONLY person in this group that had never been to the drum circle. Obviously, we had to change that, and almost everyone took a turn dancing in the circle. It was an experience that I a sure none of us will ever forget.

The only words that can describe what I felt like dancing on those sugar sand beaches are an intoxicating freedom. Let’s be real, I am a kinda stiff and awkward person when I attempt to dance. This was different. This is the first time I have ever felt liberated dancing. I felt connected to those around me, but still disengaged from any reality outside the beach. My eagerness to participate began to match the fervor of those around me. Before long,  my spirits were flying so high. Too high. For the first time since I began the 52 Things Project I felt at complete war with myself. Part of me struggled to remain cool; to calm myself down and maintain that hardened military like persona I have worked so hard my entire life to preserve.  Another part of me felt…exuberant. The more time that we spent at the drum circle, the more gleeful abandon I experienced. It was exhilarating.

 

The drummers rockin out! Coming from a family drummers, and being a drummer myself, I really appreciated the show that they put on for everyone.

 

 

 

 

 

The Tallest Sling Shot in the World Experience

Cost: $25.00

Remaining Budget: $958.55

3…..2….1…..LAUNCH!

This is what absolute terror looks like

Magical Midway is pretty infamous with the Orlando local crowd. The best way for me to describe it is as a rundown carnival that was stood up exclusively for any Dare Devil tourists that got sick of the Princesses and parades down the street. Magical Midway is a “thrill park” seated in the heart of Orlando’s tourist (trap) district, International Drive. This is where you will find one of Orlando’s most ominous attractions, the Sling Shot. This high flying ride comes highly recommended to the clinically insane, and those with a death wish. To put it into perspective, it is a 390 foot sling shot that shoots the rider off at a speed of 3-5 Gs (that is enough acceleration to give you the sensation of being weightless).

This is one of those experiences that NO ONE thought I could actually accomplish. I have a tremendous fear of heights. I remember almost crying on the obstacle course at boot camp. That’s right, not even the terrifying shrieks of a little dude wearing a “Smokey the Bear hat” could stop me from going into hysterics as I navigated those obstacle course heights. Anyway, I decided, for reasons that I will never understand, that the 390 foot tall sling shot ride was a good idea for my week 4.

This entire experience was a spontaneous decision around lunch time on Friday. I called up my brother Mike to invite him to come.

Me – “Hey Mike, will you come watch me ride the slingshot tomorrow? I need someone to hold my wallet and keys.”

Mike – “………….I don’t think you’re going to actually do that. You can’t even ride an escalator.”

I am one of those people that have small panic attacks on escalators whenever I find myself stuck on the second floor of a mall. As a kid I used to take the ride sitting on the steps, but I would look ridiculous doing that at 29.

Me – “I am GOING to do it. Please come.”

Mike – “I really don’t think that you are going to be able to do this. Do you have a back up plan?”

Me – “Don’t need one. I am GOING to do this.”

Mike – “……<uncomfortably long pause>…….ok”

Next step was contacting Katie, my AMAZING friend from college. I shot her a text saying that I wanted to ride the sling shot and see if she wanted to join me.

Here is what you have to understand, I have NEVER known ANYONE more terrified of heights than Katie. We could barely get her to ride the Tower of Terror ride at Disney, let alone a 390 foot sling shot made of bungee cords. Needless to say, I was pretty shocked to get a text back that said, “Ummmm, I am completely terrified, but I want to support you during this awesome blogging experience so I think that I am in.” Ladies and Gentlemen, this is a DIRECT quote from her text. She is an incredible friend.

Mike pointing out the absolute terror on the face of the guy in the advertisement. Katie freaking out.

We did start to freak out a bit as the time got closer. Katie was saying prayers and trying to call her mom. Katie event went so far as to “reconcile her sins.” I had a bad case of the shakes and my knees were getting pretty wobbly. Thank God that Katie drove because I am not sure that I would have been able to get us there. As we pulled up to the Magical Midway and saw exactly how high that thing was I almost decided to throw in the towel. I am convinced that the only thing that kept me going was the fact that Katie was there, and that we were going to totally conquer this mountain together. The other thing that kept me going is that my jerk of a little brother was there watching, and he was convinced we wouldn’t follow through!

The hardest part was actually sitting in the chair. Once we were strapped in it was impossible to escape it anymore. The guy looked at us and asked if we wanted a countdown. I could feel my heart in my throat and the harder I tried to answer him the more impossible it became. He was a kind guy, he really did try to calm us down as much as he could. He was probably terrified that we were going to have heart attacks on his ride. He said that, because we looked SO scared, he would go ahead and give us a countdown. When that thing shot off the first thing I felt was absolute bliss. Absolute bliss turned into absolute terror really quickly. We shot up to the top in a complete panic.  My reaction was bizarre; I could not stop talking! I think it was because I was so so soooooo scared. I probably didn’t shut up once the entire ride. I just couldn’t control it!

Once we were at the full height it was a beautiful sight. I looked over at Katie and said, “I can see our college from here! I can even see the Orange County Convention Center.” Katie didn’t care about the sights so much….she just kept her eyes closed and started a hard patterned breathing that you would expect to hear coming from a woman in labor.

The video of us is so ridiculous that the employees asked if they could keep a copy…

 

The Rocky Horror Experience

Cost of Event:  $14.00 ($10 for a military discount ticket to the theater, and $4 for an official RHPS prop bag)

Remaining Budget: $983.55

 LET THERE BE LIPS!

LET THERE BE LIPS!

Just when I thought that it couldn’t possibly get better than an hour and a half of the fabulous Tim Curry strutting his stuff in a corset and heals…bring on audience interaction!

My friend Amy and I have been wanting to attend a showing of the Rocky Horror Picture Show since High School. I understand that this is not everyone’s cup of tea. Frankly, I can’t blame you.  If you have ever seen even five minutes of Rocky Horror then you know that it is pretty much just a gender-bending mess of all things weird and offensive. I have probably seen it a dozen times and I still don’t understand what the hell is going on half of the time. It’s bizarre; It’s grotesque; It’s just plain strange. So how has this film become the longest running theatrical release in history? Why is there a cult following of Rocky “veterans” that have displayed a nothing less than religious like devotion to midnight showings of this film since 1975? Why was I waiting in a long line of fellow costumed “freaks” to buy a ticket, and shivering with antici…………pation?

It all started a couple months ago when I first called Amy to tell her about my 52 things project. I said that I was thinking about trying out a Rocky Horror midnight showing and wanted to invite her along. She agreed without any hesitation what so ever. I was so excited because it looked like she was as enthusiastic about Rocky Horror as I was! I have no idea what it is specifically about Rocky Horror that I am so attracted to. I guess I just have an appreciation for…unusual things. I really don’t want to delve into why that is….my brother would probably say something like, “weird things attract weirdos!” Anyway, THIS experience was quickly becoming one of the events that I was MOST excited about trying this year. Somehow, Amy convinced her poor husband Marc to come with us, and we immediately started planning our costumes.

 

 

We decided to dress as attendees of the“Annual Transylvanian Convention” aka. the background people that dance the Time Warp with funky outfits and sunglasses.

 

 

I parked the car and we all stared at each other for a few seconds before any of us got up the courage to get out. It actually takes balls of steel to walk into a packed parking lot when you are dressed like a Transylvanian. Who knew? I was hiding my panic pretty well. From the moment that we stepped out of the car we were getting crazy looks from EVERYONE. I was definitely starting to get uncomfortable with the situation. Looking at Amy, I could tell that she was feeling the same. We were a bit stiff in our awkwardly fitting costumes, and Amy kinda chuckled to herself as she asked me, “It is tonight right…?” I am still not sure if she was serious or not, but I started to feel the panic bubbling up as I realized that I didn’t see anyone else around us dressed as if they were going to the Rocky Horror Picture Show. This is when my strength broke a bit. A cowardly question slipped out before I could stop it, “What if we are the ONLY people in costumes?”

Thankfully we didn’t have to stay scared for too long. Though the anxiety made it feel like hours, we probably hadn’t had been outside of my Jeep for five minutes before someone walked up to us and said, “nice costumes!” Amy looked at me and asked if I thought he was actually complimenting us, or if he was being condescending. Mr. Compliment was walking a bit faster than us, so as he passed us we were able to see that he had a Magenta wig sticking out of the butt pocket of his jeans. WIN! He was one of us, and he had a costume too! We were feeling a bit more confident now, we totally were going to fit right in with this bizarre crowd.

We got up to the theater window and the guy behind the glass goes, “Let me guess, Rocky Horror?” Amy looked him square in the eye and said, “No, tickets for The Fault in Our Stars please.” We all got a good laugh and picked up those prized Rocky Horror tickets. By the time we made our way to that ticket counter we were surrounded by french maid costumes, fish net stockings, and dangerously high heals. It was getting pretty easy to make ourselves comfortable. It was especially easy to start joking around again. While our costumes may have been extremely modest compared to most, but we were still fitting right in with the crowd. By the way, I was super excited to find out that there is a military discount. Woo Hoo! I ❤ Military Discounts!

I bought a prop bag for $4. Inside there were all the props that I would need to get through the event. The theater door was closed and all the Rocky fans were eagerly waiting out in the hallway together. I can’t remember the last time that I was this hyped up. The excitement was flooding through my body so that I couldn’t even stand still. I was kinda bopping up and down anxiously waiting for the door to open. The doors finally did open. The theater was lit by disco balls, and music was blaring. Every seat was filled. It was packed full of people that were almost as excited as I was; I was euphoric.

The “Rich Weirdoes” run the Orlando Rocky Horror midnight showing group. The atmosphere is electric. On their website the cast boasts that, “If you’re not offended, we didn’t do our job.” I assure you, they do their job. Every person in that cast lives up to the films mantra, “don’t dream it, be it.” They tell you to, “let your freak flag fly,” and they do the same. Together, the cast and audience engage in a fully interactive show, and every single person has an opportunity to participate.  The audience is filled with people dressed up in their favorite Rocky Horror attire. People were dancing in the aisles and having an absolute ball. Ugh, I got such a rush from it all.

The only thing that I really regret is that when the audience throws their rice during the wedding scene, they all throw it backwards. I was not prepared for this and ended up with a mouth full of dry rice. Just some friendly advice, if you go to Rocky Horror make sure to shut your mouth whenever there is confetti or rice being thrown…

“Give yourself over to absolute pleasure,” and go see a midnight showing of this AMAZING show. It can be intimidating, but I promise you that it is more fun than you could ever even begin to imagine. Just remember, if you have never thrown the rice, worn the party hat, danced the Time Warp and participated in the general shenanigans of a live Rocky Horror midnight showing then you are a VIRGIN! You are going to have to prove your loyalty by standing up in front of the audience and giving the “Rocky Horror Virgin Pledge.”

Ok Virgins, take your right hand and place it over your most red, delicate throbbing organ; your heart. Repeat after me.

We Swear, often and loudly

To strike a blow for glamour and frivolity

For 6 inch heals, for rock and roll

For interplanetary intercourse

And for the Transylvanian Way

 In all seriousness, I am having a hard time seeing how any evening out could possibly be more fun than the night I had last night. I spent the entire night dreaming of Rocky Horror music and all day today dancing the Time Warp. So far, this is the greatest experience I have had since I started the 52 Things Project. Who wants to come next time? I just CAN’T wait to go again!

The Karaoke Experience

Cost: Would have cost the price of a Guinness but my parents picked up my tab as a b-day gift. Thanks mom and dad!

Remaining budget: $1000.00

With a world of 1^st time opportunities at my feet, you may be wondering why I chose to hit up the local dive bar for Karaoke as my Week 1 experience. At the same time, you have probably never seen me try to perform in front of a large audience, and that’s because I have absolutely crippling stage fright. I think it is pretty natural for people to have a pang of anxiety when they are standing in front of a large audience, but I have a nervous breakdown that is usually accompanied by spasms. I shake; I sweat; I all but fall apart when I am on stage. I decided that if I was strong enough to jump in the spotlight on my week 1 than I can absolutely accomplish anything for the 51 weeks that will follow it. Unfortunately, that meant that I had to (wo)man up and hit the stage. Hey, after all, I was buying food and beer in their super sketchy karaoke establishment. I might not be one of those GLEE kids, or Celine Dion, but it’s not like they were paying ME to be some karaoke superstar. I had to find that fearless, strong chick that I knew was somewhere in there; probably deep down beneath my shaking knees and sweating palms. I scanned the audience to make sure that Simon Cowell wasn’t sitting at the bar and then I hit that stage like I was born to Karaoke. I was swaying along to a popular Norah Jones hit, completely out of key I may add, and it was absolutely embarrassing. I loved every moment of it!

We all spent about an hour with the book of songs trying to figure out what to sing. I had wanted to go for Blink 182 or something else that I could just rhythmically talk along to, but I decided that would kinda be cheating. I didn’t want to get off to a bad start like that. We all started joking around about hitting the stage with some classic “Hello Dolly,” or belting our hearts out to “Let it Go” from Frozen. In the end I decided to just stick with the silky smooth jazz tones of Norah Jones. I was so caught up in my absolute terror of the stage that I didn’t even hear my own name get called, and then to make it worse, I couldn’t hear myself on the mic! That probably had a lot to do with me holding it about 3 feet away from my face. The DJ told me to put the mic closer, but even after I practically swallowed the thing I could still barely hear myself. Karaoke is not for the faint of heart, consult your physician to determine if engaging in Karaoke activities is right for you.

My friend Amy hit the stage after me with a lovely rendition of The Rainbow Connection, and then Christina tore it up with some Dixie Chicks.

One of the bartenders was casually walking around barefoot on the sticky floors. The bathroom was…what you would expect at a local dive. Upon requesting a “wine list” my parents, who had come for moral support, were shocked to find out that there was only one bottle of wine in the entire bar, and it was a Moscato. The bar was a bit terrifying, but I never realized how accepting the karaoke community can be. It is amazing how everyone encourages everyone no matter their singing abilities.

What an amazing night. Thanks to my fellow karaoke singers and our groupies that were involved with this project. This was so much fun and I absolutely loved it. I mean, I probably don’t love it enough to EVER do it again, but I am so very glad that I have accomplished this first goal.

Stay tuned for some more absolute madness as I get closer to that 52!