Compiled By Lauren Rink | Echo
Spring break can be a time of good memories with friends or family. However, every so often, something out of the ordinary happens. Check out these stories from a few of your fellow Taylor students:
Brooke Harrison | Freshman
It was spring break of my junior year of high school when my family and I embarked on our cruise to some islands in the eastern Caribbean. Spring break trips have the reputation of causing people to make some very dumb decisions; I regretfully had become one of those people three years ago.
Over the span of this seven day cruise, there had been one guy that kept catching my eye. I had seen him all over the boat during the days by the pool, dinner in the evenings and wandering the ship at night. It wasn't until half way through our trip on day number hen he introduced himself to me. I was absolutely smitten that an older guy with a cute southern accent started hitting on me.
Over the next few days, I hung out with him and his friends playing card games, swimming and discovering the night life of the boat. It was very obvious that this guy liked me, and I have to admit I was loving the attention. On the last night of the cruise, he walked me to my room and kissed me. I felt so excited but so terrible all at the same time - I had just let a guy that I had known for only three days kiss me.
After the boat docked the next morning, my family and I loaded into the car to head back to Chicago. I finally had service for my phone after a week of not being able to use it, so of course I had to look up this mystery guy on social media. To my surprise, this guy had many photos on his Instagram feed with this one specific girl. I didn't have to stalk too hard to figure out that it was his GIRLFRIEND (someone he never informed me of). I was appalled to figure out that I had been played by a guy who was in a relationship. As if that wasn't bad enough, it came to my attention that his girlfriend and I have the SAME NAME. Maybe this sleazy spring break guy has a thing for girls named Brooke?
Tori MacDonald | Freshman
Growing up, my family would go camping at a state park in Destin, Florida, with a bunch of friends for spring break every year. One of the annual traditions was something we liked to call "crabs on the belly."
The name is pretty self explanatory, but long story short the whole group of us (around 25 people) would go looking for ghost crabs on the beach late at night and round them up in a bucket. We would then proceed to lay down one at a time and someone would place a crab of your choosing on your bare belly. Not being one to miss out on the action, I decided to partake in the festivities. I picked the biggest crab in the bucket (I must have been thinking along the lines of "go big or go home") and laid down for them to put in on my stomach. Now, normally the crab will just scuttle off and run away into the dark, but this one had other plans. In what I see as seeking revenge, it stuck its claw out and pinched my (very sunburnt) stomach, which resulted in a lot of pain and embarrassment as everyone in the group was circled around with flashlights pointed at me, watching. So, moral of the story: you probably shouldn't put a crab on your belly, and if you do, don't pick the biggest one. There's a reason it's survived to be as big as it is.
(No crabs we harmed in the making of this story... but a human was!)
Thom Parrish | Junior
Last spring break I was trying to go visit my friend in Florida, and had a layover in LaGuardia Airport in Queens, New York. I left my terminal to go to the food court, and when I went back through security they stopped me because of my bag. After claiming it, they told me about my real metal ninja stars that I had left in my bag that were a groomsman's gift for my brother's wedding the week before. I ended up missing my flight, getting arrested and having to go through the entire criminal process not only in port security, but later being transported to Queens Detention Facility in New York. After 16 hours, I finally got released with no phone or wallet, but only a one swipe bus and metro pass, and had to find my way back to the airport at 3 a.m. After finally making it back, I had to sleep in the airport until 6 a.m. to find another flight to Florida. Spirit Airlines also made me pay for another ticket, stating "It wasn't their fault I got arrested." After that, I finally made it safe and sound to Florida.
Camden Johnson | Junior
Myself and three wingmates decided to take a week-long camping trip to the southwest U.S. for spring break. We spent the duration of the week hiking and camping in Guadalupe Mountain National Park and Big Bend National Park in Texas. Boy, is that state dusty!
Since we were camping, we had no access to showers. And since we were in the hot and dry southwestern U.S., we had no access to any body of water for bathing. Drinking water was much too precious to clean our bodies with, leaving us with no choice but to be smelly and dirty for a week.
Unlike most spring breakers, I was not left with any tan lines. Instead, I had what I like to call "dirt lines" due to my socks. Don't shower while hiking in Texas for a week, and you get all of the benefits of a sun tan without any of the negative skin damage!
