the ’Zine

Clambake Ought Six

April 12, 2007 by Heather Wilson

Filed under: Behind the Scenes / 0 comments

Without the benefit of a Farmer's Almanac we picked the date of last summer's trip. Someone (I think it was Eran) brought up the possibility of rain but since we had so many elements to coordinate (boat, food- well boat and food) we couldn't really set a rain date. That morning as I headed into the office I drove through a few patches of rain but nothing too heavy. We keep a stash of umbrellas in the office and the forecast wasn't dire so there was no need to consider calling off the trip.

Everyone was supposed to get to the boat on their own with strict instructions to be on time because we would totally leave without them. Only one person had to race to get on the boat before they lifted up the ramp and cast off. Through a lot of conniving on my part we got the boat to serve alcohol on the trip out. Our on land parties often feature an open bar and a few people had asked about drinking on the island but since it would require us hiring a detail of state troopers (Massachusetts law) we decided not to go that route.

George's Island has a kick-ass fort for exploring so we purchased a bunch of flashlights along with sunscreen, and bug spray. We also found tiny little kites for drawing on with fabric pens and the caterers set-up a volleyball net and brought a bunch of Frisbees, balls and stuff. When we arrived on the island everything was pretty much ready to go. So we ate a lot of chicken, lobster, corn, watermelon, and marshmallows (raw though because we could not actually have a fire on the island).

After lunch people scattered around the island exploring the fort, flying newly decorated kites, etc. Then it started to rain, nothing too heavy. Until the lightening struck and then it got really wet really fast. The park rangers asked if we wanted to leave but my boss, Mike, thought it might blow over. Then it got even worse. The park rangers came back and told me that we had to leave the island and they had called our boat for us.

So while we are most definitely rock enough to get kicked off an island on our own merits, this time it was because of the weather.

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