During the contest I had earned the opportunity to spin the wheel. The wheel may give the spinner points or drink chips; the spinner may be required to sing, dance, kiss a partner or tell a joke. And then there's Eat It. For the past four years Eat It meant a pickled egg from the jar on display (or sometimes one of the peppers floating in the brine.)In the beginning the eggs were in a clear solution - by the end of its run it was a thick yellow formaldehyde. When I spun the wheel last week I was informed the eggs were no more (which was fine with me as I've refused them and had points docked the last few weeks.) Instead, there were two shot glasses to choose from, one with the good stuff, one with something noxious. I wasn't allowed to sniff before choosing. I ended up downing a shot of Olive Juice and promptly left the premises to spit it out.
If only Olive Juice was the only thing I ever had to worry about - but then last night happened.
When I spun the wheel last night there was no choice of shots. It was a single shot-glass full of a medium brown liquid. I sniffed and thought it might be homemade Jaeger. I took the shot - immediately froze while everyone else hollered for me to swallow - then forced myself to gulp and went into a couple involuntary spasms. It tasted like some kind of benzene with artificial maple flavoring. I sat back down and continued to experience the occasional convulsion.
When break time came the folks that ran the joint came to give me high fives and informed me I had passed initiation into a revered club. I asked what the Hell they had given me - only to first be informed that co-host Elle McFearsome, dangerous adventeress of Olympia, refuses to try the concoction. They took me into a storage room and showed me what I had taken.
It was a large jug smuggled in from Southeast Asia. The name they came up with for it was "Low Tide". It was Vodka, with a thick layer of herbs and other standard flavorings - along with dried seahorses and sea urchins, a dehydrated lizard, an entire coiled snake, and other parts and samples from former living things.
They were so proud of me that after I was done telling Tammy what I drank - and meanly breathing in her face so she could smell the snake - they gave me another shot.
As a joke I asked Tammy if she wanted it - and I was surprised to hear her want to take the challenge. I immediately stopped the show, they made her get up front, and this time they actually told the audience what was in the shot glass.
She braced herself - downed the shot - immediately lost the trepidatious look on her face and said "That wasn't bad, what's everyone making a big deal about?"
