above: a couple of much-needed candles, some delicious juice, and the liquor i lost later that night.
monday started well enough. i grabbed lunch with sivan which gave us a chance to catch up. she went to spain for two weeks and apparently a lot had happened when she was gone. we went to eatons and had coffee while reading the latest issue of cosmo before i had to go to work.
my sister came and dropped of my white barcardi during my shift and that made me ready for the party that night.
after work, i headed over to annika’s apartment, and shannon – being the wonderful friend she most definitely is – picked me up from the station with a few of her pals.
we got to the apartment, i whipped out my rum and immediately poured myself a drink.
i met a few people, saw a few old friends, and i was just getting into the swing of things when the lights suddenly went out. and so did the electric fan.
the power was out in the entire building and in neighbouring ones as well. it was dark and candles were lit and part of the party went downstairs to cool off in the night air while the rest of us remained.
the humidity got the better of us and soon we were all in our underwear and nobody seemed to mind too much.
during our stay at the apartment, a mirror was broken, a group shower was taken, i made out with one of my friends (did not see that one coming) and i lost my rum. and then we all left to go pool-hopping.
we went over to rosedale first because a couple of the members of the group wanted to pee on the school. someone stole a watermelon from rabba along the way (i didn’t even notice this happen) and it became the communal fruit of the night.
and then we went to riverdale pool where we hopped a fence – will stayed and kept watch – got butt naked and dived in.
i think it might have been in part due to the intoxication, but it was one of the best, most liberating experiences of my life. i just felt so absolutely free and refreshed and wonderful. the water on my skin, and the friends all around, and the laughter in the air and just everything was good.
another party of people came and soon the pool was pretty full for about 3 am in the morning and everyone was having a good time.
and then the cops came and we bolted in the blink of an eye. i grabbed my underwear and everything else i could grab and went over the fence. i don’t really know where shannon and the rest of them went. i later learned they’d hidden in a bush of some sort.
i put my underwear on and met up with will atop a flight of stairs and he let me wear his shirt again to cover all my shame.
then we went back to check on the others but a man with a flashlight approached so i bolted again. i found taylor and we went and hid in a staircase for a while because neither of us wanted to get arrested.
eventually, after a bit of a wait, we figured the coast was clear and we headed back.
we found the gang and our gang met up with the other party and we exchanged all of the items that we’d accidentally stolen from each other. they had my phone and my wallet and i was entirely thankful that they decided against stealing them.
but there were a few casualties.
we couldn’t find celeste’s camera and my favourite pair of shorts were nowhere in sight, leaving me no choice but to wear my abercrombie jeans. it was just lucky that i’d come to the party directly from work i had extra clothes on hand.
we looked for the missing things for a while and decided to part ways after it started seeming futile. it was late and people were tired.
well, i know this seems stupid, but shannon, taylor and i decided to go back to the pool and swim some more. the cops were gone and there were already people in it so we stripped again and dived in.
thankfully, the cops didn’t show up a second time.
it was about 5 am when we decided to leave and we headed over to a streetcar stop by shannon’s house so taylor could get home. he decided to take a cab and shannon and i went over to tim hortons for some breakfast – chili and a blt.
by the time i got home it was 7 am and daylight was in full force.
when i woke up, i was covered in scars and mosquito bites.
and i’m still kind of pissed about the rum and my shorts.
but i skinny dipped for the first time that night, and it was in the company of good friends, and the party itself was enjoyable, so all in all, it was a pretty fantastic time.