Halloween Fest
It's been suggested in the past that some members might benefit from attending an AA meeting. I don't think this was quite what they meant.
Despite the weather predictions from the BBC (15 degrees and sunny), Saturday 30th October kicked off feeling decidedly chilly, with a nice steady drizzle to really get everybody into the mood for a day out. Nevertheless, 27 of us converged on the entrance to the American Adventure, by which time the rain had fortunately stopped. After arranging a meeting point for later on, it was time to hit the rides.
Throughout the day a number of us dared to ride the Skycoaster, which is best described as a cross between a bungee jump and a giant swing. After being strapped into a harness in between Iain and Maxine, we were all hoisted up to the top. Iain then had to tug on the release lever at which point we entered a brief freefall before being swung outwards in a "flying" motion. This was an amazing experience, although my hearing was slightly impaired by a long, high-pitched scream emanating from the person next to me (I'll let you draw your own conclusions as to which one). Ann, Helen, Adrian, Sarah and Jodie also braved the ride, with Natalie and Adam opting to go on in the evening after it had got dark!
Some idiots thrill-seekers decided to go on the wet rides, ignoring (a) the cold and (b) the fact that we would be hanging around in the dark until 7 o'clock for the fireworks. Some even complained that they didn't get wet enough! No such problem for Carol - having purchased a poncho especially for the ride, her hood flew back on the log flume descent, causing much hilarity amongst the spectators as she desperately tried to replace it after getting soaked.
By 7 o'clock, most of the rides had stopped running and everyone gathered to watch the fireworks spectacular, "accompanied by music from Harry Potter and the Lord of the Rings". So that's what the sixth book's going to be called.ok, maybe not. The display itself was very long, very loud and very impressive, and also managed to trigger a number of alarms in the car park. After the display had ended, most of us made the short journey to Maxine's house, ensuring an instant party crowd. Drinks were provided in the form of Witches Brew (a scary-looking greenish-blue bubbling concoction, made much scarier by the fact that Andy kept topping it up with whatever came to hand) and the non-alcoholic Vampire Blood. Keeping to the Halloween theme, there was also scary jelly (complete with snakes) and sandwiches including terrible tuna and chilling cheese.
There were some very impressive costumes, including special mentions for Geoff & Lesley as Dracula + Bride, Mark Sloan as another Dracula (camper than Geoff's, but at least it wasn't a dress this time!) a coven of witches and even a black cat. Some of us had a go at bobbing for apples, with varying degrees of success. Andy also insisted on importing the 'cardboard box game', which we had played at Sue Lord's party earlier in the month - this involves picking a box up with your teeth and falling down a lot!
The die-hards apparently ended up with a 3 am session in the hot tub; although it's not quite clear whether this was before or after the clocks went back (an extra hour of partying or an extra hour in bed, depending upon which way you want to look at it). Once everyone had finally gone to bed, somebody's snoring resulted in Iain moving into the hallway and Mark sleeping in his Smart car. Iain returned the favour the following morning by waking everyone up when he accidentally set off the smoke alarm while making some toast.
Sunday itself followed a more relaxed pace, with a trip to the D H Lawrence Birthplace Museum in Eastwood, followed by lunch at a Chinese restaurant where we coincidentally bumped into another group of Mensans. Afterwards, we visited the Durban House Heritage Museum. Here we dressed up in period costumes for a quick photo opportunity, and Iain couldn't resist leaving his mark by scrawling graffiti on the blackboard and adding an M-blem!
By this time, everyone was well and truly exhausted, and went their respective ways. Although a small number of us did meet up again in the evening when Andy decided to launch an impromptu get-together in Derby.
Many thanks to all involved, particularly Maxine for organising the weekend, and to all those who attended, including a number of newbies - hope we didn't scare them away!
Paul Henchliffe