December 2005

So, apparently I've been a naughty Tortuga - or as my friend Slash Montant (of Hack and Slash fame) likes to say, "Naughty, naughty, bad, bad, bad." My November journal got out on time, my journal was posted in a timely fashion and with fun pictures and tidings for all the good - relatively speaking - Tortugaholics. Of course, my November journal did not mention word one about my time spent in scenic Charlotte, North Carolina. And then I got the call... from Sharyn Watson... the Tortuga Twins Fan Club President. And, boy did she rip me a new one! "Were you even inCarolina?!" she said. "Well I... well I... well I...," I said. "Shame on you," she said. Okay, not really on that last part, but it sounds good. And, yes, I did deserve it. I happened to be writing my journal in Florida, surrounded by a pirate festival, and I was overcome by the scenery. Besides, I knew the other guys were gonna write stuff anyway, and I didn't wanna get redundant. Yeah, that sounds good... and I knew I was gonna write stuff about North Carolina later on... Yeah, yeah.... By the way, don't give Sharyn a hard time. I told her I was going to write a little something about her tirade, and I'm sure she's already mortified enough that I did. Besides, she was in the right after all.

So... Charlotte, North Carolina... . Yeah, I was there.

First off there was the 2^nd Boo & Brew. It's a lovely nighttime soiree that the Carolina Renaissance Festival puts on every last Friday before Halloween. (And by 'every' I mean this year and the last.) They open about half the festival site and all the rennies (that's people who travel and work the ren. faires) dress up in costumes other than their faire duds. This year we Tortugas wore tuxes, and ooh did we look spiffy!

 

Boo&Brew with Fan Club Prez Sharyn, Momma Watson, and Minion Brian

Local Lake Norman Bar Costume Party

New Tortuga Cart and Minion Brian Holloway

There were a couple other costume parties leading up to Halloween, but I didn't partake in any, really. I did go see Jef all decked out in his Jack Sparrow outfit at one of the local bars. He looked good, too. Hell, I even heard tell that he took first place at not one, but two different costume contests in the Queen City area. Not bad for a "gay pirate." (How I Met Your Mother Halloween show anyone?)

We had a new Tortuga Twins merchandise cart built for us at the Charlotte show this year. And with it came our newest minion, Brian Holloway. Brian brought an exuberance to the retail side of our business, and he has thus set the bar on the level of excitement we like our minions to bring to the table. Thanx, Brian!

For Halloween I took a trip with my friend Sarina up to Pennsylvania to see two of our good friends get married. That's right, long-time bachelor, former jouster Eric Michael tied the knot with girlfriend Janene. It was a lovely ceremony, near a waterfall with friends and nature all around. We got to spend a little time with our favorite clowns Mark & Tara Reed of Foolhearty. My second of three weddings this year, and I'm sure they will have a young'n on the way in no time. Yee-haw, baby jousters!

 

Newlyweds Eric & Janene Michael, with FoolHearty, Sarina, and Raphael Tortuga as the Rikker

Yum, yum - wedding cake

The Italian Coalition

We got to hang out with some interesting people this year in the Charlotte area. We now have a group of people that we call our "favorite Italians." And it's not that they're the only Italians out there. Sure, there are a lot of quote-unquote Italians to be found everywhere. But this group epitomizeseverything you think of when that word comes to mind. Fun-loving, family-oriented, loud-partying, Soprano-looking people that are just sooo I-talian. Kapeesh? We really started getting to know them at the Charlotte-area Tortuga meet-n-greet. (See... those things are a lot of fun, and you're really missing out if you haven't come out to enjoy one yet.) It was there that we saw how much we all clicked, and so we decided to spend some quality time together. Frank & Kelly DeFeo and company invited us into their homes, fed us, wined us, and made us laugh out loud. They took care of us in every way and we all gelled so well that they are now among that group of people that I happily call friends. Fug-get-about-it!

And then there's that whole Charlotte Palooza thingy... .

 

The Boyz are Boack - FL Minions on the Carolina Tour!

Our name in lights!

Scaramouche and Johnny Pheonix rehearse their Big Scene

A sold-out audience, at least a hundred more who were still trying to find tickets up until only a couple hours before opening, our name in lights - love that! What more could a Tortuga ask for? Not a whole helluva lot. This last show was brought to us by the letter "G." Good friends - our Florida boyz: Kevin McDermott, Jimmy Reid, and Mark Bell came up to help us out again, and this time they brought a luxury motor home to stay in - good times, and a great show. Everyone did phenomenally well, and we ended Tortugapalooza 2: Spies on a very happy note. We gifted all our cast members with Tortuga Star t-shirts, while each of our crew had already received one labeled Tortuga Minion. There were plenty of oohs and aahs... and then there was the afterparty. We spent what was left of the evening at the Fox & Hound Tavern. We had a room to ourselves where we and our Tortugaholics took advantage of the festive atmosphere. Shaking hands, signing autographs, clowning around with fans and friends - damn, we had a good time!

Now, this doesn't begin to cover the good time that we Tortugas had this year in Charlotte, North Carolina. And I humbly apologize for not mentioning last month anything about all the fun that I had there. Truth be told, I look forward each year to spending quality time in the Queen City (no comments, please). I have too many friends and wonderful memories not to want to live at least part of the year in that red-neck of the woods. No, really!

 

Oh my stars and garters - Dancing Minions of Doom!

Mr. McDermott and the Naughty Minions of Doom

At the Afterparty with Robbie & April Metzer

Well, that about covers it. Have a very merry Christmas and a Happy Holiday season (I wish both Bill O'Reilly and Jon Stewart luck in their War on Christmas). May we all get what we want and not necessarily what we deserve.

Adios, Tortugaholics! See you when I get back from Spain! (Did I mention I was goin'? Next time, next time.) Ciao!