Mi Cumpleaños

JoeW — Fri, 20 Mar 2009 18:46:00 GMT

I had the privilege of going to Cabo San Lucas, Mexico for my Spring Break. I was extremely excited to go because I had yet to have the typical college student MTv generation Spring Break.

My Break, however, was far from typical. I was going to Cabo with 21 of my fellow Phi Psis. That’s right 22 Fraternity men, talk about a motley crew. We were going for the American Leadership Academy, a leadership conference that is for Phi Kappa Psi, by Phi Kappa Psi. Our hotel was paid for and we got three free meals a day. It was fantastic. The speeches ranged from leadership to goal setting to etiquette to self actualization and much more. I really took a lot away from this conference. Seriously.

But of course, the purpose of Spring Break is nopt to become a better person. So please, do not be mislead into thinking we misspent my mexican minutes growing, chaning or learning. In fact, we were of the opinion not learning anything was an indication of a successful Spring Break. Not to mention, I had a Birthday to worry about.

You read me. I turned the big 2 - 0 while we were in Cabo. Meaning, I was taught the only spanish I know- "Mi Cumpleanos! Mi Cupleanos! fiesta! fiesta!" Which means (roughly) - "I am an american on Spring Break, please ignore me"

And, boy, was it a time! Sun, surf, and relaxation. Being an unnecessarily involved student means that I was long over do for some chill time. I didn’t have to plan a single thing for an entire week and it was fantastic, my brothers took care of everything.

Getting to Mexico wasn’t easy. We had three connecting flights to get there and every time someone found out we were going to Mexico they adapted a very solemn look and said, “Be careful boys, please, be careful.” I appreciated that strangers seemed so concerned, but luckily Cabo is roughly 700 miles from the Mexican Border wars and is as American as Miami.

I had two bags- a carry-on and a checked bag. My check bag was actually smaller than my carry-on. When we were going through customs and had to un and re check our bags I realized that because of their size I could just keep both bags with me, so I did- or tried to. I was only thinking of the size of my bag and not it’s contents. Because of the razor, finger nail clippers, numerous liquids, etc.that I unknowingly tried to smuggle onto a plane I am now labeled as a security threat at the Denver Airport. My bad.

Cabo was great. It is a very watered down Mexico, in that USD are accepted everywhere and all the cab drivers speak English. You can get better deals on everything if you only use Spanish, but then you don’t have the thrill of being looked at like they want you out of their country. It was warm and bright and perfect. It was the break I needed.

TANtalizing

JoeW — Thu, 05 Mar 2009 06:35:00 GMT

I am going to Cabo, Mexico for Spring Break. I am Scotch-English. Together these two things could make a very red, itchy, rashy, sunburned vacation. So about a week ago I sought preventative. That’s right I went the same route many male models, guidos, and bodybuilders have gone before. No, I didn’t go to Jersey. I went tanning.

I had never been to a tanning bed before or really anything that could be called a ‘saloon’. Naturally, I was faced with a lot of hesitation and uncertainty. I knew that a select few of my fraternity brothers went pre-break tanning so they too wouldn’t beach burn. But I wanted to do this on my own, so I got directions to the nearest Tan Lines and struck out into the world wide-eyed and naïve.

After 25 minutes of driving I never found Tan Lines. I struck through it’s hypothetical intersection an unnecessary amount of times, constantly getting misled by La Bamba, Caribbean Rhythms and other businesses with palm trees on their signs. I never found Tan Lines. But my Tan-bition was die hard. “I’m already jacked, why can’t I be tan too?” I kept asking myself- and I can be.

A few days later I tried Classic Cleaners Tan and Laundry. They are in Broadripple which is close and much more familiar than the urban wiles of 38^th street. I arrived last Thursday with an open mind and a kind woman the color of a Metallic Cinnamon Dolce Latte checked me in. By ‘checked me in’ I mean that ‘Dolce’ took me for all I was worth. “Oh, this is your first time? I will give you the complete run down.” She said with a smile. Not only was Dolce kind and attentive she could make strategically burning your skin sound like the most pleasant experience in the world- she could sell a Mac to Bill Gates. Before I knew it I was a member, new owner of a bottle of KISS KISS tanning lotion, and on my way to bronze god status. “With this new membership you can tan everyday for the next week all for 20 dollars.” “Is it even safe to tan more than one day in a row?” I asked stupidly. “It’s safe in our magic bed.” Yes, I said Magic Bed. The magic bed experience is pretty much where Dolce herself points tanning oil at you and says ‘lumos’. But the kicker is that you will not burn- that’s right. The Magic Bed does not burn. Suddenly tanning sounding like the healthiest thing in the world.

I tanned. I did. I did it that day and then (losing all my tan-ibitions) I tanned the day after. Did I burn? No. But after day two I turned the color ideal for a Ham. It didn’t hurt like sun burn does, but the next day the itching started. The itching didn’t stop. I looked it up and it turns out that (paired with dry skin) someone who is new to bed tanning can become itchy on the areas that get a little less sun exposure (sides, lower back, etc.) because of a melanin imbalance.

That was it. I knew I wasn’t born to be brown. The Magic Bed had forsaken me. I felt like a squib. What did I do in reaction to this? - I waited two days and tanned more. That’s right I will get copper if it cancers me!

I’m just kidding. I did tan again but only because it was suggested to even my skin/melanin out more. Now, however, I am looking to the future. Tanning was an interesting experience, both empowered and emasculated me and now I ‘m good to go with a faint ‘British Isles Brown’ skin tone. I’m excited for Cabo and even more excited that the itching stopped. Oh, and a big Shot Out to all the Bros that put lotion on my back during this tough time. I hope you all have a relaxing break in your future and I hope you get the skin tone you are hoping for- no matter how porcelain or umber it may be.

Joe's Blog : Cabo

Mi Cumpleaños

TANtalizing