More than listening

“If satan owned a pizza place the flame thrower would be the only thing he served.” ~Brent

I have to confess there have been some really dumb choices in my life. I can’t think of a time when these dumb choices did not include a group of college age guys, peer pressure and some form of pride on the line. Last night was no different as 9 guys and one gal decided to throw down $4 to have a shot at the stevi b’s flame thrower. This little slice of heaven was unlike any experience I had ever had. The process of the flame thrower challenge began with signing a waiver stating that I understood the health risks and pain involved and would not sue in the case of any short term or long term harm to my body.  I have to be honest, this waiver seemed a little over the top and a bit of a hype in my opinion.  After throwing down the $4 (a discount since there were 10 of us foolish enough to try it) we were escorted back to our specially reserved seating for the biggest spectacle that was about to ensue. After taking a seat we were each giving our personal puke bucket. I must admit never had I been given a puke bucket. Once again I wasn’t too sure if I was gonna need this bucket or if it was more hype. About five minutes later the rules were laid down for us. First off we had to eat the pizza with a knife and fork to protect us from rubbing our eyes out and going blind. Next up was the napkin rule. Use the napkin only once to avoid rubbing the sauce back on our face with a dirty napkin. There were also time constraints in this challenge. There were 20 minutes to down the slice and 15 minutes to keep it down. As the clock began one man was down in the first bite. I began to scarf down the pizza at lightning quick speed. I was moving so quickly that I didn’t even have time to think about the burning that was happening in my mouth. As I continued to fly through this flame in the form of pizza I began to slowly hit a wall as the burning in my mouth would not go away. Any time my mouth was not full of water it felt full of fire. I finally hit the crust and knew I was on the home stretch with over 10 minutes still left. Before I knew what hit me I could not go any further. My forehead was dripping sweat, my nose was running, my lips were swollen and eyes were burning. I looked down the table as my boy Hunter jumped up and headed for the door with his barf bucket. About 30 seconds later I was up and out the door. The nastiness and pain that went on inside that restaurant pales in comparison to the scene outside as more and more guys began to come out the door with bucket in hand. The next 15 minutes or so was a disaster area outside as all of us were hunched over in pain as our stomachs began to reject what we had put into our bodies. Never in my life had I wanted to puke so badly. The pain was so intense that I could not even stand. There we were 5 guys laying on the ground behind the Stevi B’s hugging buckets screaming for more water and bread. The final list of fatalities was 8 out of the original 10. Only two survived the entire challenge while the rest of us puked our guts out and then continue a night full of pain as many of us sat on the toilet until the wee hours of the night. With $10 gone and a night of pain  and tears I must confess that it was all worth it. I firmly believe that deep down inside of me will always be that stupid college guy who thrives in the moments of stupid, pain and dares. Put last night in the books for unforgettable, great and the best dumb decision I have ever made… so far.