Sunday, October 02, 2005
The 1st Annual Patel-Kyung Spelling Bee
Am way too exhausted to keep my eyes open, much less think. Still need a bit of recovering from my party. Which, if I may say so myself, was a rousing success. If by "success" you mean the consumption of much food and alcohol, a competitive spelling bee, readings from the literati and...did I already mention alcohol?
Each contestant was given three chances until they were booted out of competition and, after each misspell, they were forced to do a shot of something very harsh and very strong, the likes of which would further inhibit their already shaky spelling abilities. And, yes, there were some contestants who even purposefully sabotaged themselves for a taste of such forbidden elixirs. Shocking.
After a brisk practice round, the good judges (Kyu, Jason & Michelle) immersed us all into play. While there were a few bawdy contestants who, instead of spelling their given words blurted out terms of salacious natures, they were immediately put back into line. As one participant noted, "You know, for a drunken spelling bee, this whole thing is pretty damn ethical!" Yes, the rules were strictly enforced.
The first few rounds went well, but soon the shots began and so did the faltering.
At halftime, we all stumbled back inside into "the salon" where participants and judges alike were regaled with readings from Sonya, Chaim and myself. I dare say my friends may never look at me the same again. Gay porn does that to you.
Nonetheless, it was nice to show our friends that we aren't just twiddling our thumbs but are actually writing. And, in my case, that I actually had something to show for the last four and a half years.
After the brief yet illuminating interlude, we eagerly resumed play. It was a tight race and the three finalists (Jessica, Sarita & Kurt) fought right down to the bitter end. However, it was Jessica who won out. And even though there were accusations and rumors abound regarding her so-called "relationship" with one of the judges, she earned her first prize win upon the merit of her spelling alone.
The winning word: ecclesiastically.
To celebrate: another (few, okay several) round of shots.
The judges' table
Before the Bee...
Contestants had to take a shot after every missed word (you had three tries). We went through a lot of liquor.
Oliver trying to figure out how to spell his word and me trying to psych him out. If only I were taller.
Sonya reading from her novel...
Me reading from my novel (shock & awe)...
Chaim reading from his piece in Other Magazine: The Taxonomy of Vipers.
Jessica wins!
The winners. We hate them.
Each contestant was given three chances until they were booted out of competition and, after each misspell, they were forced to do a shot of something very harsh and very strong, the likes of which would further inhibit their already shaky spelling abilities. And, yes, there were some contestants who even purposefully sabotaged themselves for a taste of such forbidden elixirs. Shocking.
After a brisk practice round, the good judges (Kyu, Jason & Michelle) immersed us all into play. While there were a few bawdy contestants who, instead of spelling their given words blurted out terms of salacious natures, they were immediately put back into line. As one participant noted, "You know, for a drunken spelling bee, this whole thing is pretty damn ethical!" Yes, the rules were strictly enforced.
The first few rounds went well, but soon the shots began and so did the faltering.
At halftime, we all stumbled back inside into "the salon" where participants and judges alike were regaled with readings from Sonya, Chaim and myself. I dare say my friends may never look at me the same again. Gay porn does that to you.
Nonetheless, it was nice to show our friends that we aren't just twiddling our thumbs but are actually writing. And, in my case, that I actually had something to show for the last four and a half years.
After the brief yet illuminating interlude, we eagerly resumed play. It was a tight race and the three finalists (Jessica, Sarita & Kurt) fought right down to the bitter end. However, it was Jessica who won out. And even though there were accusations and rumors abound regarding her so-called "relationship" with one of the judges, she earned her first prize win upon the merit of her spelling alone.
The winning word: ecclesiastically.
To celebrate: another (few, okay several) round of shots.
The judges' table
Before the Bee...
Contestants had to take a shot after every missed word (you had three tries). We went through a lot of liquor.
Oliver trying to figure out how to spell his word and me trying to psych him out. If only I were taller.
Sonya reading from her novel...
Me reading from my novel (shock & awe)...
Chaim reading from his piece in Other Magazine: The Taxonomy of Vipers.
Jessica wins!
The winners. We hate them.
# posted by Anhoni Patel @ 1:42 AM 
