CATCH IT AND FRY IT!

"CATCH IT AND FRY IT! Quick thing, don't waste time, keep it fresh!", my friend Beach boy says to me last week, referring to a conversation we were having on how best to eat fish. I looked at my other single friend Maya who was leaning on the bar at the Split to hear and said ...as a joke peeps....." let this be our motto for 2008" and we burst out laughing. "Catch it & Fry it" we said every time we saw a handsome guy go past.

Next day, Thursday before last, Island girl called me at 4:45 p.m. and said she was on the next door island of San Pedro, Ambergris with Mandingo and that I should take the last boat at 5:15 and come over. I wasn't in the mood to hang with Islandgirl & Mandingo so I was on the verge of saying no if it hadn't been that I was so utterly bored on Caye Caulker & craving an evening out dancing. So on short notice, I showered & jumped without thought into way too casual attire for a nite on the town.

At the ferry dock waiting when I arrived was Island Girl, Sunshine, Desert Dawg & Island Meow. After climbing the few steps leading from the sandy beach to the side street up above at the corner of Cholo's Bar, we jumped into the golf cart and took of to my friend British hotel where I would be staying. British has some apartments, a hostel & a pub theme bar under Pedro’s and we stopped in for me to settle in the unit, a chat and a cocktail.

Desert Dawg & Island Meow, I had met many years earlier when they were scouting property on Caye Caulker & recently purchased a nice apartment complex just up the street from British’ place. Even though they are neighbors, this was the first time they were meeting so I was satisfied that I had already served my purpose for the day introducing them.

Sunshine, a friend of Island Girl I just met at the dock and we became fast friends. We hung out the rest of the evening after Islandgirl left. Island Girl who had deserted Mandingo all afternoon in a hotel room fast asleep, "he got drunk & peaked early" she said, got the call that he had come alive and she bolted out leaving the four of us with plans to further the revelry down to BC's

While we were sitting at the bar looking at all the grey patrons, Sunshine & I struck up a conversation about how she ended up moving from the city to live on the island of San Pedro a few months go. When I asked her why, she said she was just in a phase of her life which she called “Part Time” and said that the islands were the best place to play this personality out.

I was giggling at the bar when Hercules & Chicken Hawk Came over, introduced themselves & wondered what I was writing down.

SUNSHINE was telling me the PHASES of her life:

THE GAME- “That's what I was brought up in”.

FIRST LOVE – “Innocence, holding hands & thinking you could get pregnant”

NO FEELINGS RELATIONSHIP – “He’s there just because you need attention”

REGULAR LOVE – “Not to be mistaken by In-Love but this could take up a few years”

ONE NIGHT STAND – “Research to find what you like”

SMITTEN: "When you really like him but he doesn't like you"

PLAYERS WORLD – “join the player's club”

FLINGS - “Short term romances”

SWEETHEART – “ the shortest & best part of your romantic life”

COMMON-LAW-HOUSEWIFE – “Move in & turn into housemaid”

WIFE – “Pressured by Society ”

SETTLE DOWN – “feel locked up in prison”

DIVORCED - “Bubble burst”

VULNERABLE – “Cautious about the heart”

IN-LOVE - "The one you really want but who will break your heart"

START OVER – “Picking up the pieces”

SEXUAL NEEDS – “Deprived”

PART-TIME LOVER – “Foreigner on vacation, non-committed fun”

which brings you right BACK TO THE GAME.

After that laugh, we all headed down the moon-lit beach to Fido’s Courtyard to listen to the live hip hop band play. We closed down Fido’s Midnight, Desert Dawg & Island Meow decided to head home and the rest of us made our way across the street to Jaguars nightclub to continue the night. The lights came on around 2:00pm and we jumped over to Big Daddies, the last bar open on the beach until 4:00. After being kicked out of the third bar closing down for the night, something marvelous & exciting which hasn't happened to me in far too long, I felt exhilarated that I had danced almost till the break of dawn.

I invited Hercules, Chicken Hawk & Sunshine to come spend some time on Caye Caulker and they weren't afraid to mingle with our colorful local characters.

We spent what was to me a magical week of tantalizing purple & pink sunsets with an assorted motley crew like Diego & Silver Fox who are regulars on the island for the past 10 years and had just come in from First World; the beautiful young peace-corps type girls who were teaching in Belize City but got to know the characters here pretty well from coming out every weekend to party; Miss Star, Reds, Biggie a.k.a Big Daddy who operates the Split Bar & Wish Willy and his half-naked crew.

Ras Creek cooked up some fish on the Bar-B-Que one night which Hercules & I missed for staying behind at the house to drink a bottle of wine.

I danced at the full moon party across the Split at Driftwood; we swam, fished, drank, biked trails & took the dinghy out to crash the very private & exclusive next door island of Caye Chapel with the fabulous Club House and the only 18 hole golf course in the Country of Belize.

This week reminded me why I stay in the Caribbean.

But I sit here on the veranda in slight jubilant angst, thinking about the last few days & especially Hercules who is back in First World and left a lasting impression on me.

Salt brushed breeze snatches the smoke from the lit philly and I must confess that I have let my guard down. The defence mechanism in my brain responded immediately but inadequately.

Islandgirl taps me back to reality and says:

"When you're back to your old self, I hope this fish can withstand the force of nature which is Tina Auxillou "

Maya would say: "Catch it & Fry it"

I tell Islandgirl " this fish feels like a huge Marlin, I'd like to tango with it, so I'm going to turn the reel on this rod real slow"

What phase do you think Sunshine would say I'm in?