Days of the Dead

It's a Tuesday. Blah. It's been cold. Brian and I both had a crummy day. I've been holding on to a bunch of Hacienda gift cards from a youth group fundraiser we had in May. I decided we should have a random Tuesday evening date at Hacienda. It was great. We both had a lot to vent so over dinner we just talked it out...and it was delightful.

But it gets so much better.

Turns out we're there during the "Days of the Dead" week at Hacienda so they have special events going all week. First of all there was a fun cover band playing. That's always a good time. (So, thank you Trick Monkey for the great music.)

But then the manager comes around trying to drum up participants in a "fun" game - bobbing for skulls. He shows us all the free stuff we can win. And I love free stuff. I mean, I really love it. Have you ever been to a convention or exhibit of any kind where you can walk around the vendor booths and collect free pens and pads of sticky notes? It feels like Christmas to me. I always walk away feeling like a million bucks with my free plastic bag full of free plastic junk.

I digress.

I take a look at that bucket of goodies and I want it. Bad. I look at Brian and say, "You've got a huge mouth. You can totally win this." So I push and prod and hum the music from the Rocky movies. I tell him he has the eye of the tiger. I can feel the victory now. I make him enter the contest. (Dan and Felicia, I wish you were there to help me with this.) He's reluctant but I don't care. It is a little lame and embarrassing to enter a contest dunking for skulls at a Hacienda on a Tuesday evening. I see his point. But I smell victory none the less.

He goes to the bucket. And he is good. Just like I knew he would be. 14 in one minute, 5 seconds. A couple of other jokers enter the contest. One is quite intoxicated. Brian ends up tying with a guy who got 14 in 1 minute, 35 seconds. It goes to the tie breaker round.

One minute of guts and glory dunking. I've got a good feeling. After the coin toss the other guy goes first. (Always the best position to be in so you know what you have to beat.) He gets 10.

Controversy erupts. Turns out two of the skulls had not been placed back in the bucket after a female contestant spit them on the floor. (Also, this was not the most hygienic of games. But when one wants to win, one does what one must.) The skulls are discovered before Brian makes his attempt, and they are placed back in the bucket. The other guy claims he would have gotten more if the two wayward skulls had been in the bucket. I insist that two be taken out because I do not want Joe whining and crying that Brian's victory isn't fair when he kicks this guy's booty. Two skulls are removed.

The timer begins. And I wish you could have seen it. Brian was a mean-skull-diving-machine. Systematically grabbing those skulls and throwing them in the bin on the floor. It was a thing of beauty. He pulls out 13 in no time, clinching his victory. He even sacrifices by diving deep and getting completely wet.

My heart swells with pride. He is made to stand on a chair and a sombrero is placed on his head as he is declared the victor and is handed his bucket of booty. (All while the manager is yelling, "yeah, he's bringing it home for Momma!!!" which I find somewhat strange and disconcerting but, whatever.)

Never mind that the bucket of booty is full of promotional items from beer companies. It's our free booty. And in the bucket is $25 of Hacienda money. Not only that, but they took down Brian's name, number, and address so that he can be invited back next year to defend his title. We'll be ready.

Sweet, sweet victory. All on a random Tuesday evening in Warsaw, IN.