Re: STORYTIME: BACHELOR SURVIVOR

by **SmartandTruthful** Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:31 pm

Mackey_34

Mark, Steve, Ross, Jackson, Kathleen, Renee, M, and Marlee were gathered together in the square of the Old Town. It was decided by Brian that he would not participate in the hunt; it would be a disadvantage to the other groups for him to be part of the group. Besides he was there to make sure M was going to be okay. What the others didn't know about Brian was as a young boy, he was put in charge of his younger sister, who was 4 years old at the time. One day, he let her get out of his sight, which ended up 24 hours of misery for him, his family and neighborhood trying to locate this little girl, who it turned out was safely found in nearby woods being protected by the family dog. She was dirty, had insects bites but other than that was okay. Their family pet stuck by her. From that day on, Brian was very protective of her and any little girl he saw alone.

Jackson was the leader, and it was decided that M would keep the time and be in charge of the list. The first thing Jackson and the others decided to do was split up. They had a
brochure of all the old town shops and one by one they went down the list of where they could find the items. First, each person had a copy of the list and when they saw something they had, they checked that off the list. Then Jackson gave each group of three half the money for use. Sitting together they made of list and checked off things they had. M had
a $2 bill that was given to her by her grandmother when she was 1 year old. Her mother had saved it for her and given it to her to keep with her at all times to spend only in case of an emergency. It seems a $2 bills represents good luck, and grandmother, not being rich and with so many grandchildren, gave each of her grandchildren a crispy new $2 on their
birthdays and at Christmas. They had many, the grandchildren, and kept them, all of them. Each grandchild carried one with them. M also was wearing a 14c gold 4 leaf clover on a gold chain around her neck that Jesse had given her on her last birthday, she never took it off. Others had a pencil, black marker, one had a small book of Spanish words, one wore white shorts and a vest, one wore blue and white tennis shoes (they thought that would do), another just happen to have a stamped letter she had written the night before to her mother she had intended to mail. So they were able to check 9 things off the list. Then they went over a list of the shops. Each group had a list and directions, they located the shops close to each other. They felt sure they would find the silver bell at LaSerena Silver, Love my Pet would surely have the bear, dog, (stuffed) and the live goldfish; They were sure they would find lots of items at the Route 66 Collectibles, the General Store, the Covered Wagon, the Old Town Gift shop, and the Endless Summer Shop. The items, Sunshine in a bottle, rainbow, stripped poncho, rosary beads, stop sign, maracas may be difficult to find, so they were last on the list. The cup and saucer, wooden spoon, pizza cutter, green candle, red cloth napkin, something made of lace, they were sure they could find at the Kitchen and Dining Shop.

So, with their list, and ready to go, they all agreed to meet back at the square in 30 minutes. Off they went!

To be continued........

by **SmartandTruthful** Tue Apr 09, 2013 8:37 pm

Mackey_34

S&T, Silver, Travy and Chip...I'll be back to write more
later. Silver, we think alike, I was going to suggest that Mimi room with
Renee and M, now she is! S&T this is so much fun, I feel like I'm on
a sacavenger hunt myself! Now I want to go to see Old Town San Diego
someday! Wow! See you all later! Lub, Mackey

IHL_1 (Izzy) thank you so much for your kind words.
Yes, I do love true love and happy ever after love stories. Your name,
does the IHL stand for what I think it does, In His Love? If so,
beautiful, it is so good to be In His Love.

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:47 am

Mackey_34

The group left it up to M to try to
locate the items they thought they would have problems with. She was able
to find a small cactus at a sidewalk flower shop that also had the
daisies. At the Kitchen & Dinning Shop, they found all the items
they listed plus the owner cut a piece of red ribbon and a piece of rope to go
with the items. M was thinking, "a bottle of sunshine" then it
hit her, how about suntan lotion, so they had seen a Vitamin Shop close by, and
headed there, lo and behold, there was also a bottle of pills with the name
"Bottle of Sunshine", it was supposed to effect mood changes, but it
was very expensive, so they bought a small bottle of suntan lotion
instead. M also thought she had heard of a music group that went by the
name of "Rainbow", they would keep an eye on for that. By the
end of the 30 minutes, they had found all the items except the Rosary Beads,
can of paint, rainbow, baseball card, striped poncho, tennis racket, set of
maracas, pumpkin, rainbow, and a stranger. They had found the gum, deck
of cards, stop sign, marbles at the 66 shop and the General Store. Ross
said he had his tennis racket at the Villa, but they didn't know if that was
permissible, but he went back to get it anyway and while there he would pop a
bag of popcorn. That left the remaining items...they all rushed out to
locate the remaining 9 items; they felt sure they would find a stranger
who would be willing to come with them and he/she would be last on their
list. Kathleen told them she noticed several Mexican-Spanish type shops,
so they headed there.

On her way with her group, Kathleen
ran smack dab into Brad, almost running him over! "Hey, hey, slow
down pretty girl," Brad said as he held her in his arms. She looked
into his handsome face and couldn't say a word, his smile made her pulse
race. They stared at one another, just inches apart. They stayed
like that for about a minute, Kathleen unable to say a word. He released
her and turned to go, thinking she was too embarrassed. "Thank you,
ah thank you so much," said Kathleen. Brad turned and smiled,
"My pleasure!” and he walked away to catch up with his group. Oh, my gosh, Kathleen was thinking, He is so handsome, could he be interested in
me, I hope so. Then she remembered she had to get with it. On
she ran to get back with her group.

By the end of the hunt, they were
able to find a pumpkin, a set of maracas, rosary beads, and a can of paint, and
they found a picture of a rainbow, they also found a stranger who was
willing to go with them. Ross had returned with the popcorn and tennis
racket. By the end of the hunt they were pleased that he had found all
their items except a baseball card and the striped poncho, which they found,
but didn't have enough money to buy. They wondered if the tennis racket
and popcorn would not be accepted. But, they were happy, but tired.
Each got an ice cream cone and waited on Chris Harrison and the others.

........To be continued

That ends my scavenger hunt,
S&T! Lub, Mackey

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:48 am

SilverLin2

Mimi noticed that Jackson was the
leader of his team, and as soon as Chris asked for the Timekeepers, without
even discussing it with her Team #3 members, she ran over to him and got the
timer, running back to her group exclaiming, “I think I should be the
Timekeeper because I have a good Rolex watch, and I’m taller than most
everyone, so I can keep better track of where everyone is!” And she began to
walk out of the saloon with the bags and the maps and lists.

Everyone knew that height had
nothing to do with it, of course, but at the same time, at this early point in
the Bachelor Survivor experience, no one wanted to argue about small matters
with Mimi, or with anyone else. But, hey, …. She DID have the Rolex, after
all!!! Shoulder-shrugs, eye-rolling from all! Roman whispered to
the others, “just let her have her moment ~ what goes around, comes around.”

And then he stopped Mimi and looked
her square in the eyes ~~ they were the same height and he could do that ~~ and
said firmly, “Mimi, let’s organize before we just tear out into Old Town.
Gather up, everyone!”

Mimi sighed and returned to the
group. She didn’t want to admit it, but she knew Roman was right ~~ at the very
least, they needed some kind of plan. They discussed the list, how to divvy up
the team and the items, and gathered the things they already had. Each sub-team
had a walky-talky and it was agreed Mimi would give a time check every 10
minutes so they could all be on the same page.

Among the 9 of them, they had come
up with 9 things they could check off: Pamela had a removable red ribbon
threaded through the lace camisole she was wearing that day; Martin had worn a
thin leather vest over his t-shirt; Rayne was wearing earrings that had a tiny
bell on them; Bryanne had a pack of whitening Dentyne in her bag (and it was
working ~ she really DID have a nice white smile!); Will had a Catholic prayer
card in his wallet that had a rainbow graphic at the top; Toni of course (being
a reporter) had a wooden pencil, and today was wearing a pair of blue sandals;
“I’ll hand over my white boxer shorts when I need to, but not before!” Leo
admitted, which made Rayne laugh and blush. Mimi couldn’t offer anything,
“except maybe these maracas,” she said as she pointed to her bosom, but the
rest of the group said they really didn’t think that’s what Chris had meant!

Mimi, Martin, Will, Leo and Rayne
stayed outside the saloon ~~ they were going to talk to Mandy Garcia first.

Pamela, Bryanne, Toni and Roman
headed over to Toby’s Candle Shop to start their part of the search.

~ to be continued ~

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:50 am

SilverLin2

While Mimi’s bunch headed back into
Barro Barro to talk to Senorita Garcia, Roman and his lady team members headed
to Toby’s, where Pamela’s friend and co-worker Marina held a part-time job.
Pamela, daughter of a military dad, had in fact grown up in San Diego, still
made her home here, and taught Kindergarten with Marina. So, while Troy and
Corey thought they had the home-town advantage, they weren’t the only ones!!

The rest of Pam’s group went to the
Tin Smith shop while she talked to Marina, who handed her a green taper from
the shelf, then took her half-hour break from work to gather things for Pam. At
the Tin Smith Shop, the owner helped them find a tin-stamped letter “B” for
Bachelor, a black tin silhouette of a bear, and an actual Stop sign in the midst
of repair (which they promised to return at the end of the day).

He offered to look at the list and
they took him up on it ~~ he snapped his fingers five times as he read through
the list, then ran toward the back of the shop while he also told Roman to
untie the rope from a decorative lantern hanging in the window. When he
reappeared ten seconds later, he gave them a tiny can of Rustoleum paint,
a poncho he said he kept in back for Siesta, and ~~~ and this he
hesitated to give them, and made them swear to return it ~~~ a
baseball card of a minor leaguer named Roberto Martinez!! “He’s a smokin’
baseball player,” the owner said, “played out of San Francisco. Ever heard of
him?” All the girls shook their heads no, but said “He’s smokin’ alright!!!” He
charged them $8 for the tin letter “B” and bear, and when he made change, gave
them a $2 bill out of the register.

They headed back into the street
just as Mimi called, telling them they had just a half-hour left before needing
to get back. Roman asked how they did ~ Mimi said Mandy had been able to give
them several things from the Barro Barro ~~ they had in their possession a cup
& saucer, a wooden spoon, a bag of popcorn (one of the freebies on the
tables and bar at Barro Barro), a red cloth towel ~not napkin~ but
they hoped it might count!! Mandy had also given them the black marker and the
pizza cutter. By Mimi’s and Roman’s count, Team 3 now had 24 of the 40 items.

The two groups plotted some more,
gathered around the two walkie-talkies, and Mimi’s group headed down the street
while Roman et al lingered by a fountain waiting for Pam’s friend Marina.
Bryanne and Toni were making a wish with a coin in the fountain, when Bryanne
squealed, “goldfish, goldfish, there’s goldfish in here!!!” Much
debate occurred over how to capture a fish, but they had no container for one,
and it would surely kill it if they just stuck it in a pocket.

“If only WE were the ones with the
cup!” Pam cried.

They were all looking around, when
finally Roman manned up and opened a city garbage can, and gingerly removed a
discarded water bottle.

“Eeeww….” one of the girls moaned,
but the other two were already helping Roman rinse it off, and then all 4
climbed into the fountain to catch a fish with their hands. Toni was the one
who triumphantly held up the little guy then firmly but gently inserted him
into the water bottle filled with water. All agreed that Toni should be able to
hold onto THAT treasure!

~ to be continued ~

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:50 am

SilverLin2

Mimi, Martin, Will, Leo and Rayne were in charge now of trying to locate the nice stranger, as they were the ones who were closest to Barro Barro, and to try to figure out where in the world to get a tennis racket, a four-leaf clover, rosary beads, and a dog. Pamela and group thought they could get everything else.

Since Leo and Rayne were basically just talking amongst themselves, but also sticking with the group and carrying things, the others had early realized the two of them were not going to be a great amount of help in the brainstorming department. Suddenly, Will’s eyes lit up and he gave Martin and Mimi a hand gesture and shot over to the Variations Imports Shop. Mimi pointed to her Rolex watch! “I know, I know!” Will shouted.

10 minutes passed, and Will, smiling, jogged back to the group with black pearlized rosary beads! “Just 10 dollars,” Will said. “So we’re doing fine on money.”

“Nice work, man!” Martin exclaimed, admiring them, and then giving Will a high-five. “And we’ve got ourselves a new friend who will hang ut with us until the hunt is over!” He introduced the lovely dark-haired, dark-eyed Senorita Lacy to Will, and oh …. her purse chihuahua Lolita, too!! Martin and Will both just smiled and stared admiringly at the Chihuahua for several seconds, then their eyes moved back to the senorita’s welcoming eyes! Will had a little flush in his cheeks, and Martin had to stifle a chuckle.

Mimi called Roman just as Marina returned with a WalMart bag full of goodies ~ she had just pulled up in her car, left it running, and breathlessly handed it over to Pam. Mimi said to hurry ~ they now just had 20 minutes, and they still needed to get back to
Barro Barro several blocks away.

Marina said, “You tell her not to worry ~~ I’ll drive you all over there!!!” She waved her hand toward the walkie-talkie, smiling at Roman, and he at her. For a moment, the music swelled and birdies sang as the two of them caught each other’s eyes.

“Oh brother, come on! Show us what you’ve got, chica!” Pamela urged, smiling knowingly!

Marina had: 6 marbles in a little net bag, a set of maracas, a deck of cards, a Spanish translation of A Moveable Feast by Hemingway, a pocket map of SanDiego, a CD for children by the group Milkshake called “A Bottle of Sunshine,” and an old Polaroid camera. Everyone was oohing and aahing over the CD, but Marina was hurrying them along, looking at her watch.

“OK quick! Bunch up for a picture!” Marina ordered. She snapped it, the photo popped out, and she handed it to Pam, who waved it about, while Marina lamented that she was unable to find the other things for them ~ no cactus plant ~ no daisies ~ no pumpkin.

“Sorry, Pammy,” she said to her best friend, shrugging her shoulders. Pam pshawed her, giving her a quick hug, then pushing everyone into Marina’s car. They sped to the Barro Barro, calling Mimi on the way, and arriving with 7 minutes to spare, met the rest of their team.
The other teams were approaching the Saloon, too.

Team 3 had collected 35 of the 40 items on the Scavenger Hunt list.

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:51 am

SmartandTruthful

Team 1 was halfway through their list and had about 25 minutes left before they had to be back at the Barra Barra Saloon. Emily saw a girl wearing blue flipflops. Emily had on her new black flipflops with the lovely flower detail on the thong part. She loved them, but she was willing to “take one for the team.” “Hi, I now this will sound crazy, but . . .” A few minutes later, Emily was wearing a air of blue shoes. While Emily made her trade, Amelia bought a bag of opcorn from the vendor cart. Brad was t the bank, exchanging money for $2 bill. Mehreen, Sam, and Cliff were searching for a actus plant, a striped poncho, and a tennis racket, and Spin and Marty were alking to a couple who had a golden retriever, onvincing them to come along wth their dog.

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:51 am

SmartandTruthful

The walky-talky buzzed and a fuzzy voice could be heard, “Calling Michelle, Calling Michelle.” Michelle took the walky-talky off the waist of her jeans and pressed the button. "Amy?” “Michelle, this is what we have . . . a bouquet of daisies, a cup and saucer, a lace doily, a tennis racket, and a stop sign . . . static .. . They’re all small . . . doll house accessories, but they should count.” Michelle pulled out the list and checked things off while she repeated them to Amy. “OK, that’s daisies, cup and saucer, lace, tennis racket, and stop sign. Is that right?” . . . static . . .”Yes! We also have a deck of cards, a jumprope, marbles, a pumpkin, a rainbow, a pencil and a marker. Faith found those in the party area.” . . . static . . . “Rodger . . card, rope, marbles, pumpkin, rainbow, pencil, marker. Hey, you guys did great!” . . . static . . . “I’m not done. Johnny got a can of paint, a pair of blue crocks, a baseball card, and a set of maracas.” . . . static . . . “Wow! OK, paint, shoes, baseball card, and maracas. Is that right?” . . . static . . . “Yes, we’re coming back. We have $8 left. What should we look for? Where will we meet?” . . . static . . . “We have 15 more minutes. Head for the Barra Barra and look for a red ribbon, a black bear, and a bottle of sunshine.” “Rodger” said Amy. “Over and Out!”

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:52 am

Mackey_34

Team two was standing around the fountain waiting for the other teams to arrive knowing time was running out! Jackson looked at the instructions once again and yelled, "Team, we gotta go, we're supposed to be at the Barra Barra, let's go. Off they run. Kathleen being the fastest of the group surges ahead and comes around the corner to run right into the groups standing around, stumbling into none other than Brad! Once again he catches her in a bear hug and looks into her eyes, smiling, "I got-cha! He lifts her up and slowly lets her down still looking into each other's eyes! They made it with only seconds to spare!

.......To be continued

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:53 am

SmartandTruthful

Team 5 had all 40 items, now they were under a time crunch. They had four minutes to get back to Barra Barra with everything they were carrying, plus their nice stranger. They were running toward the Bar as fast as they could go, dodging other people in the way on their path and saying “Excuse me.” “Beg your pardon.” “Sorry, but we have to get there.” Their stranger was a nice old lady with lace trim around the collar of her shirt and a red ribbon in her hair. They couldn’t have the 80 year old woman run, so Tory and Corey made a “fireman’s chair” with their arms and the old lady sat down and held on tight as they tried to hurry and duck through the crowd. Jennarose and Pinina reached Barra Barra first. The team had one minute left. In came Lindsey, followed by Greg carrying the cactus plant, and Carrie and Charlie with their shopping bags loaded down. All of the other teams were ready and waiting. Realizing that Team 5 was in trouble, they began a countdown . . . “10 . . . 9 . . . 8 . ..7 . . 6 . . . 5 . . . 4 . . . 3 . . . (a large shadow filled the doorway) . . . 2 . . . (in rushed Troy and Corey, out of breath but hanging onto Granny) . . . 1” Everyone broke into applause, some whistled, and shouts of “Whoo hoo!” rang through Barra Barra.

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:54 am

IHL_1

Once again...great job ladies!
Mackey...no IHL doesn't stand for In his love...although I get asked that a lot...they really
are my initials...I added the 1 when the IHL was already selected....you
can called me Izzy if you like...

Can't wait to read more... you
are wonderful writers!!!! Izzy

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:54 am

SmartandTruthful

Izzy, thanks again for your encouragement. It means a lot to us! Mackey and Silver, love the clever things you came up with for your Scavenger Hunt items! Love you guys, S&T

After a long break in real time, where ABC employees, checked out each team’s loot from the Scavenger Hunt, inquired about the source of each item and ruled if it was valid, and added the cash register receipts verifying that no more than that the allotted $50 had been spent, per team, the show was ready to continue. Of course, to the viewing audience, this was a simple, but long, commercial break. Chris Harrison reported the outcome. ”I’m sure you are all eager to find out which two teams will be moving on to the final round of our first ever Scavenger Hunt. Team 3, sorry, but with only 28 legitimate items, you are in fifth place. Your trip to Wal-Mart, while clever and resourceful, did not meet the rules that the Scavenger Hunt was to take place in Old Town. Team 1, you played by the rules and all of your items were acceptable, but since you only had 33 of the 40 items, you are in fourth place. That leaves Teams 2, 4, and 5. Team 2, the items that Ross returned to the Villa for cannot be counted, however, with those deleted, you still have 36 items. Team 4, all of your items counted and you did a great job, but with 35 items, you are one short of the Final Round. That means that Team 5, with all 40 items caceptable, is the winner of the first round of our Scavenger Hunt and will be competing against Team 2 for the Grand Prize of those Friday night one-one-one dates!” Throughout Chris’s speech, comments were heard: “Oh, no!” “I told you we couldn’t do that!” “Yay!” “Aww, darn!” “Shucks, I thought we were going to win!” “I knew those keychains would come in handy!” “Hooray for Granny!”

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:55 am

SilverLin2

Members of Team #3 were feeling rather dejected.

Should they speak up and protest that the items in the WalMart bag weren't purchased at WalMart, that the bag was simply used to transport the items?

As they huddled after hearing Chris' announcement, Mimi was all for proclaiming their innocence!

Roman was a calmer voice in the group, saying, "It doesn't matter, guys ~~ we were beat out by the numbers anyway ~~ we only had 35 things."

Pamela wanted to defend Marina, who was only trying to help them: "But Marina didn't GO to WalMart, she just grabbed the bag from her pantry!! Chris needs to hear that again, more emphatically!"

Toni quieted the others by saying in a totally logical tone, "The fact of the matter is, that Chris gave us the cloth bags to carry our things back so we shouldn't have delivered some in a WalMart bag, and none of us was actually WITH Marina when she went to her apartment to get the things for us; Pam probably should have gone with her. Either of those things could have been a technicality that knocked us out of the running anyway. Chris has to make decisions based on what the evidence shows, not on what story someone can tell that bears no proof. Let's just accept the defeat gracefully and carry on."

Roman, Will and Bryanne were all 3 nodding their heads in agreement.

"BUT.... " Martin added, making an excellent point, "lesson learned!! We've got to pay better attention and play by the rules if we're going to win at Bachelor Survivor!!

He put his fisted hand in the midst of the group, with his eyes and a tilt of his head, inviting all to join him, and one by one they all did, with Mimi consenting at the last to give up this win.

It was Rayne, who then said, looking at each of her teammates one at a time in the eyes, "I am sorry to have been so unhelpful today, friends. It won't happen again, with me OR Leo. TEAM 3, ALL FOR THEE!"

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:56 am

SmartandTruthful

The Final Round was short and sweet. Chris laid out the rules. “Ok Team 5 and Team 2, to determine the winner of our Scavenger Hunt, this is what you must do. Go to the fountain in the center of Old Town. Mandy Garcia will be there to hand you your list of four things to hunt for. These four things must be found here in Old Town after you get the list. You are not allowed to use anything from the Round 1. You also cannot use anything you are wearing or have with you. Finally, for this round, you cannot buy anything, but you may borrow items. The first team back here at Barra Barra, with all four items, will win. Does everyone understand?” Everyone nodded. “OK, Teams 1, 3, and 4, you are now officially spectators and cannot participate in any way. Teams 2 and 5, On your mark . . . get set . . . go!”

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:57 am

SmartandTruthful

Both teams charged out of Barra Barra heading for the Town Center. Lindsey tripped in her blue flipflops, fell and skinned her knee. Greg offered her an arm and once she was back on her feet, she was on the run again, not worried about the small trickle of blood running down her shin. “Are you OK?” asked Carrie. “Fine,” said Lindsey, “Just a little scrape.” Team 2, powered by Jackon’s long legs, reached Mandy first, with Team 5 right behind them. Jackson grabbed the new list for his team, while Charlie got the list for team 5. Charlie signaled for Team 5 to follow him and turned to head back toward Barra Barra. Around the bend from the fountain, the team paused to read their list. “OK, here it is: Something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue.” Charlie chuckled, as did the others. “That shouldn’t be hard,” said Jennarosa. “Here’s something old,” called Penny. She had reached down and scooped up a rock. “Perfect!” said Corey, giving her a hug. “You’re so smart.” “Let’s head back for Barra Barra and see if we can get the rest of the items on the way,” Charlie suggested. A family was approaching them. They had a son, holding a blue pinwheel, and a daughter carrying a doll. The dad was carrying a bag of new purchases. Carrie stepped up to them, “Would you please help us? It will only take a few minutes. We are on a Scavenger Hunt and you have the things we need to win! “The parents looked at each other, not sure they wanted to get involved.” Jennarosa added, “We’re actually in the middle of a new season of The Bachelor . . .” “The Bachelor!” cried the wife. The husband laughed. “You just said the magic words. The Bachelor is my wife’s favorite show!”

Within minutes, of their departure, Team 5 had returned to Barra Barra and was declared the winners the Scavenger Hunt. The rock, of course, was something old. The pinwheel was blue. The doll was something borrowed. And the vase pulled out of the family’s shopping bag was something new! Team 5 had won those coveted Friday night one-on-one dates! Team 2 was called in on their walky-talky. They arrived disappointed and disgruntled about the loss, but they perked up when they learned that the second place team had also won a prize that would be announced later.

With the Scavenger Hunt completed, Chris told them that dinner would be served at 7:00 at Jack and Giulio’s Italian Restaurant in Old Town. Suites at the adjacent hotel were available to freshen up and change for the evening.

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:59 am

Mackey_34

Hi S&T, Silver, Travy and Chip,
I'm going to make it an early night. I'll be back tomorrow. Lots to
do in the next few days to get the children ready for school coming up in two
weeks! Lub, Mackey

by **SmartandTruthful** Wed Apr 10, 2013 7:59 am

SilverLin2

Hiya Mackey!

Have a good night and have fun in
this upcoming week. My girls and I always loved going shopping for new school
supplies!!! Like a fresh start, can't you all just close your eyes and remember
the smell of those new crayon and those plastic binders? ! Newness!

by **SmartandTruthful** Thu Apr 11, 2013 11:45 am

SmartandTruthful

The San Diego sky was setting with
pale yellows, soft pinks, and deep purples. The guests, arriving at 7:00,
gathered in the main lobby of Jack & Giulio’s. The men were ushered
into the dining room and the women waited with Chris, who was accompanied by
his wife, Gwen. When everyone was accounted for, Chris said, “Ladies, you
don’t know this, but earlier today, the Bachelors filled out a ballot
form. They indicated the four Bachelorettes they would most like to
know.” Chris left out the part about the Bachelorette they’d least like
to know, but that was part of ABCs plan. “Tonight, you will be having a
four course dinner. Ladies, you will be moving to a different table for
each course. We have done our best to schedule tonight as fairly as
possible. Consider each course a “speed date.” Each mini-date is a
chance for you to know a Bachelor better. I hope you enjoy your
evening.” He indicated a nearby table where each Bachelorette would find
her name on a card along with the Bachelor she would dine with for the first
course. “When it is time to change tables, your waiter will give you a
card with the name of the Bachelor who’s table you will be moving to.
Enjoy your evening!”

When the Bachelorettes walked into
the main dining room, they were stunned to see 20 candlelit tables for
two. A Bachelor was sitting at each table, eagerly waiting for his first
“date” of the evening. Chris and Gwen would be eating with Brian who was
the “extra man out” tonight, since there were only 20 Bachelorettes. To make
things fairer for him, it was decided that Brian would also have a one-on-one
date on Friday night with the Bachelorette of his choice.

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Thu Apr 11, 2013 11:47 am

SilverLin2

You rock, S&T!

As surprised and heart-beating
excited as the girls were feeling to be welcomed into the dining room by 20
handsome bachelors and surrounded by beautiful, romantic candlelight, the
bachelors were equally happy and, frankly, nervous to be dining with 4
women tonight, some of whom they knew pretty well, some of whom they hadn't had
a chance to get to know at all.

The men from Team 3, Roman, Martin,
Leo and Will, each stood as the ladies picked up their cards and approached
their 1st-course dates. Each watched as several bachelorettes would head his
way, then veer off to another gent.

Finally, with a beaming smile,
Pamela made her way to Roman's table, where he held the chair for her, and
guided her elbow as she sat down.

Martin had selected Jennarosa as his
first choice on his ballot, and he was amazed and nervous when it was she who
first joined him at his table.

Leo had, of course, named Rayne as
his #1 choice, and she virtually skipped to his table and hopped into his arms.

Will hoped so much that it would be
Bryanne walking toward him, and so he watched her and her alone, as she entered
the dining room, picked up her card, let out a little laugh, then looked up
from the card, and met his eyes, still laughing with happiness.

Roman was dressed casually tonight,
in a pale blue shirt and decent jeans, and so he was pleased to see that Pamela
had chosen something a little casual, too. White flowy pants and a shimmery
salmon-colored one-shouldered sweater top brought out Pam's warm bronze skin
tone, and her hair fell past her shoulders, straight and black and appealing to
Roman. They talked of the day, and of the faux-pas with the WalMart bag. Pam
explained more about Marina's place in her life and job, and about the school
where they both taught kindergarten. They were very good friends. Roman
was very straightforward and asked Pam if she minded if he asked more about
Marina. Pamela laughed right out loud, and in a relaxed and confident tone,
said she thought she noticed sparks there today. A little blush came to Roman's
face, and he admitted he had liked Marina's surety and frankness today.

Martin was kind of cute in his
shyness with Jennarosa. He asked her to join him in a toast to new
friends, and they each raised their glasses of iced tea, his with lemon, hers
with a spritz of raspberry syrup. She looked adorable in a short, strapless
empire waist cream-colored dress with a black, loose-knit short sweater, 3/4
length sleeves, over it. Martin noticed how she dressed, and let her know he
thought she was an absolute doll. Jenny suggested that Martin might call her
that, but he said he loved her longer name, Jennarosa, as it reminded him of
several important women in his life, all with "Rosa" somewhere in
their names. She had more than a few questions for Martin and his life, which
centered around his close-knit family and job at Notre Dame University in South
Bend, Indiana.

Leo and Rayne simply picked up where
they left off earlier in the day, chatting about everything and nothing. Both
were talkative singles, and good storytellers. So, they were learning a lot
about events that happened in each other’s lives. Tonight they talked about
this process, and how surprised they were that their connection already seemed
so strong and good, after just 2 days. Leo knew that at some point in this
first-course "date," they'd be separated, and out of concern, he just
blurted out after only a few moments, "Rayne, when you have your other
dates with these guys tonight, just remember me, will you? And watch out for
Cliff and Joe ... I don't think they're here to find love; I think they're here
because it might be kind of "fun."

Bryanne just laughed all the way to
Will's table, and as she arrived to him, she gave him a warm hug, which he
returned. "Did I not answer your questions well enough Monday night, you
wanted to grill me some more?" she asked teasingly. Will, in a flirting
sort of way that was not typical of him, said, "More like I couldn't get
enough of you, and needed another fix, Bryanne! And you must have read my mind
with this.." and he turned her around as he admired her outfit. She was
wearing a denim strapless top with fold-over lapels at the top of the bodice,
and a black pencil skirt that just skimmed the top of her knees, with black
ballet flats. She was just such a mix of sexiness / tomboy / and pageant queen
to him. "Oh knock it off, Mr. Wide-Eyed and Innocent. At least I know that
come-on guy is not you!" Will laughed, and said, "But you DO look
amazing!" and they began their first course of the speed-date.

~~ to be continued ~~

by **SmartandTruthful** Thu Apr 11, 2013 11:47 am

Mackey_34

FLASHBACK- Team two got the
second Scavenger Hunt list and immediately saw a very beautiful bride and groom
who had just gotten married at a nearby pavilion. They rushed back to the
fountain but saw they were a little late. Jackson proudly introduced
everyone to Ali and Chris who had just said their vows among family and
friends. Ali's grown was something new, the blue garter was something
blue, the Bible she carried was her ggrandfather's WWI Bible of the gospel of
St John he had with him while in war at the Argon Forest. This was something
old. The borrowed item was Chris' mother wedding band he worn around his
neck on a 24c gold chain. Everybody could tell that these two were truly,
truly in love.

......To be Continued

S&T....I just had to put this
in! Couldn't resist what I'm hoping and dreaming will happen with
Ali! Ha! Just couldn't resist! The house is quiet for a
change. Of course it's 6am; I'm going back to bed! I'll be
writing later today! Lub, Mackey

by **SmartandTruthful** Thu Apr 11, 2013 11:48 am

SmartandTruthful

Mackey, you are the bestest! Love it! So perfect a solution to “something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue!” And so romantic, as well. Too bad Team 2 didn’t get back before the walky-talky called them in! LOL!

Readers, please forgive our occasional typos! With the aqua board no longer in commission, we’ve lost our ability to correct errors. Troy is Troy, but sometimes if I’m rushing, he comes out as Tory, which rhymes with Corey, and is just a little too cutsey! Ha! Etc., Etc. Love you, S&T

NEW NOTE TO READERS: As you can see this part of the story was written before we knew that Ali ended up choosing Roberto. I could have edited it, but am choosing to leave it the way Mackey wrote it!

All of the Bachelors were anxious as they saw the Bachelorettes enter the room. Each man knew who he hoped would be his dates for the evening, but realized the odds were against getting all of his top 3 or 4 picks. Jesse pushed his long Beatle’s bangs to the side. He wasn’t a picky guy, but being on the shy side himself, he was hoping for Bachelorettes he felt he knew at least a little. He saw Amy coming his way. “Yes!” he thought, but then she sat down with Bill. The next thing he knew a green dress was standing by his side. He looked up and it was Emily. He felt relief wash over him. Emily was cool. He rose and pulled out the chair across from him. “Thank you,” Emily said, as she sat down. Around the room the same scene was being reenacted 20 times.

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Thu Apr 11, 2013 11:49 am

SmartandTruthful

Charlie couldn’t wait to talk with Carrie and hoped against hope that he’d have some private time with her tonight. He was surprised to see Marty approach him. Marty? He had put her down as the girl he least wanted to get to know. It wasn’t that he didn’t like Marty. He liked her fine, but he had seen the instant connection she had had with his buddy Spin and knew there was no sense in pursuing her. Plus he didn’t go after girls his friends liked. Hmmm! He pondered. So this is part of this “game.” To give the guys girls they don’t want to date! What’s up with that? “Marty,” he smiled, rising and pulling out her chair. “You look lovely tonight. “ Charlie was telling the truth. Marty was wearing a wrap dress made of a soft light blue jersey with a ruffle edging the v-shaped neckline. Her eyes sparkled and her brown hair looked freshly washed and shining. “Hi, Charlie! I never expected we’d be peed dating tonight.” Charlie laughed. “Never say never!” he said charmingly, raising his glass in a toast.

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Thu Apr 11, 2013 11:49 am

SmartandTruthful

Brad was delighted to have Kathleen sitting across from him. Her face was aglow with the excitement of the evening. They definitely had some chemistry going. “It’s too bad one of our teams didn’t win,” he said. “Oh, I know! My team made it into the finals and we were so close. We actually had found a wedding party – you’ve probably heard – it was Chris and Ali – newly married – that was so exciting – to see them like that. We had all the items to win when we were called in. How in the world did that other team finish so quickly?” “I think it was pure luck,” Brad replied. They had ordered an appetizer of fresh fruit over a green salad sprinkled with slivered almonds and cranberries and laced with some raspberry vinaigrette. “This is good,” said Kathleen, wiping some excess dressing from her mouth. “Yes, and very refreshing.”

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Thu Apr 11, 2013 11:49 am

SmartandTruthful

Greg, who was a lawyer from Ann Arbor, Michigan, was enjoying a bowl of acorn soup with Mehreen. He liked her beautiful face with features that reminded him of a young Natalie Wood. He also appreciated her calm demeanor. They were trading stories about their siblings. Mehreen had three brothers. She had been the princess of the family, the only girl. Greg had grown up with two sisters and a younger brother. “I loved school as a girl. My teachers were wonderful. They gave me confidence that I sometimes lacked, coming from a culture some Americans distrusted. I guess that’s why I became a teacher. My parents are wonderful, loving people. They came here from Pakistan to give us a better life. My dad has had a great career in pharmaceutical research. My mom has always been a stay-at-home mom, taking care of us.” “That sounds like a great childhood.” Greg commented. “I guess I had a slice of the new American apple pie. My parents got married young and grew apart over the course of their marriage. They divorced when I was 10. It was OK. I’m lucky that dad and his new wife lived nearby and we always spent a lot of time with them and had our own rooms at their house, with my sisters sharing and me and my brother sharing. I really can’t complain, though.”

To Be Continued . . .

by **SmartandTruthful** Thu Apr 11, 2013 11:50 am

SmartandTruthful

Sam had thought Michelle was “hot,” but now that he had a chance to talk with her, the conversation wasn’t flowing. Michelle seemed more interest in her Pasta e fagioli than conversation with him. She sensed he was watching her. “Sam, I’m so sorry. I don’t mean to be rude, but I’m absolutely starved! It’s my own fault. I slept in late today and missed having anything but a cup of coffee before we got to Old Town. Those chips and salsa were good, but a girl’s got to eat!” Sam laughed and relaxed. “Well, go ahead and eat. I’m not going anywhere. Would you like another roll?” “Sure, now tell me about your job, while I finish this soup.”

To Be Continued . . .

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