Sushi, Saki and Sex

Sushi, Sake and Sex

By

Nathan Caleb Camerer

I don’t know who first said, “Life is what happens when you’re making other plans,” but I want to shake their hand.  My life has been one long chain of unexpected experiences, when I was planning other things.   Like, August 2003 in Las Vegas.

It was supposed to be an easy, fun little trip for three days. One wedding and two days of boozing and gambling and whatever other trouble I could get into. That was the plan.

I was late getting to The Plaza.  Everybody else had been arriving all day and I was the last.  I got checked in and then headed over to Fremont to find the rest of the gang.  They said they would be at Fitzgerald’s.  As I was walking down Fremont, I noticed a large group headed towards The Plaza and recognized a couple of them as members of the group I was looking for.

I shout, they shout and then we all meet in the middle and do a little dance of hugs and handshakes and “good to see you” and “it’s been a long time” and this is so and so. The minute I saw her, the rest of the world went on mute and what did come thru the mute, was in Russian or some other language I can’t speak or understand.

Her name was “Lauren” and I was deeply in lust for her. Not love, but lust. Love comes later.  That first glimpse was lust.  The feel of her hand in mind when we did the obligatory “nice to meet you” handshake.  I didn’t want to let go of her hand. It was soo smooth and warm.  The way her hair fell down over her forehead just barely obscuring her right eye and her eyes, her brown eyes and reddish, pink lips.  You can tell I was in lust, right?

This was not what I was expecting.  This was not part of the plan.  I had a serious issue now.

Before I even realized what was happening, we were all headed to our rooms to change clothes and go grab a bite to eat.  Surprise, surprise, surprise!  Lauren and I had adjourning rooms.  My mind began to race with all the possibilities of this little lucky break.

Like a stalker twacked out on meth, I went to the doors that connects our rooms and started listening to see what she was talking about with the two girls she was sharing her room with and see if they played any music, anything that I could use as a way to start a conversation later.  I should mention at this time that I was one of the only ones in our group who wasn’t sharing a room, another thing that I took as a lucky break.  I think I spent the entire time that we had to get ready listening at the door, which was almost an hour.

I some how managed to multi-task and change clothes myself while eavesdropping.  I did not get any trinkets of knowledge, despite all the straining I did to try and hear thru the door.

Just as I was about to leave my room and go meet up with the rest of them in the lobby, I realized how I was acting.  I realized what I was doing and put my cigarette out on my arm to snap me out of it.  I’m kidding.  I didn’t do that, but I did think about it and that was enough to bring me a little closer to reality and calm me down a little.

When I stepped out of the elevator in the lobby I was accosted by all manner of cruel jokes and jabbing for once again being the last to arrive and holding things up, which I should point out at this time that I am usually the one waiting on everybody else.  Another sign of just how out of kilter I was because of this girl, and I should not be calling her a girl, she was and is a woman.

Bo and Jamie, the ones getting married, had arranged for a Party Barge to drive us around.  The ride to wherever we went for dinner that night was completely lost and un-remarkable.  I can’t remember a single thing that was said on that ride.  I know I had a conversation with some dude named Jake about solving the world’s problems and how easy it would be if governments did this and if they did that, but I was also trying to pay attention to the conversation going on between Lauren and her room mates and a couple of other people.  They were talking Art and specifically about Sculptures.  Lauren was apparently an artist and a pretty good one from what I could gather from the conversation.

I skipped something in here and I’m sorry.  When I stepped out of the elevator, the first thing I did was look for Lauren and see what she was wearing.  She was surprisingly, at the time, under-dressed compared to some of the people in our group, I also felt under-dressed.  What really struck me were the tattoos.  She had 7 stars tattooed across her collarbones and “Kafkaesque” down her left forearm and it was all bright, color bomb, graffiti style.  It was an “in.”  I have tattoos and that was going to be the icebreaker.

Back to the Party Barge and me still eavesdropping and trying to have one conversation while listening to another one that I would like to be a part of more.  I was just about to make my move when we arrived at our destination for dinner, so I just planned on striking up the conversation at dinner.

Once again, for the fourth time on this little trip, a plan fell apart.  When we were all finally seated I realized that Lauren and I were sitting at completely opposite ends of the table and the only way I was going to be talking to her was if I yelled.  I was able to restrain myself from pursuing this course of action even though I was desperate to talk to her.

Dinner was some bland fish dish that I paid way too much for, but it was quick and soon we were all shuffled back on board the Party Barge and taking to one of the casinos and dumped off for some more gambling.

Finally, my chance arrived and I was not going to miss it.

When we got to the casino, we split up into groups.  Some people wanted to play poker, some Blackjack, some just wanted to hit the slots.  Lauren just wanted to hit the slots, so I joined that group.  I should tell you that I hate casinos and gambling in general, unless it’s on football, I had agreed to this trip more for the booze and food than the gambling.

Our little group headed for the some slot machines and I took one next to Lauren.  The first words out of her mouth were “I wondered how long it would take you to talk to me.”  I had a whole list of things that I had planned on saying and what her responses would be.  The fifth time a plan went haywire and I’m speechless for about 2.3 seconds.  Then I tell her that I’ve been trying to, but it just hasn’t worked out.  She says, “I saw you on the bus trying to cut into our conversation and get out of the one you were having with that Douchebag.”  I say I was trying to cut in and I wanted to ask her about her tattoos.  She looks at me and asks, “Is that really what you want to ask me about?”  I tell her that it really is and that a conversation about tattoos could lead to anything.  She says “Okay,” and proceeds to tell me about her tattoos.

I don’t know how long we were talking, we were in a casino and there aren’t any clocks on the walls and there aren’t any windows, but it was dark when we walked in and it was day when we walked out.  Apparently the others had come by at different times to say “Goodnight,” and head back to The Plaza to sleep.

When we got to The Plaza, I some how managed to talk her into sleeping in my room so we could sleep in when everybody else started getting up.  This was not the first time and won’t be the last time that I shared or share my bed with a woman I want to see naked, but that is exactly what happened.

Waking up next to her was a three fold Utopian dream.  I woke up and just watched her sleep and as I did this, I realized that in about a 24-hour period, my lust had changed.  I no longer just lusted for her body, but I also lusted for her mind and her soul and every little breath and gesture.  I was falling in love.  Could this be true?  Had I been completely hi-jacked and sideswiped by this beauty?

You don’t need to be a Rocket Scientist to figure out how quickly word spread that Lauren and I had spent the night together.  The next day was almost unbearable with all the questions and poking and prodding.

Trying to play golf while being asked about every 3.4 seconds if you got some last night makes for a bad game of golf.  I don’t think it makes it very hard to try on clothes, but I don’t know.  It could make it hard to zip something up if people keep asking you how big it was.

After the days adventures in male and female bonding, we were all supposed to go out for dinner again and then separate again for a sort of Bachelor and Bachelorette party.

That night we had Sushi and Lauren and I managed to sit close enough that we could be involved in each other’s conversations with others.   Unfortunately, about half way thru the dinner things start to get fuzzy.  There were copious amounts of Sake being poured.

After dinner we separated into “Guys” and “Girls” and went our separate ways.  I don’t really remember going to a strip club, but I have receipt that says I was there.

I do remember texting Lauren and I do remember cutting out on the Bachelor Party early to go meet up with her.  I also remember doing things I didn’t even know there were names for and if there are names for it then they are bad names and shouldn’t be printed.

Waking up on the wedding day, alone, was a shock.  From half way thru the dinner to walking into the hotel room was a blur.  Everything that happened after I got to the hotel room was a bright, vivid memory.  I remember falling asleep next to her.  I don’t remember her leaving though.

I got up and started getting ready for the wedding and met up with the rest of the group, minus the Groom and Groomsmen and the Bride and Bridesmaids.  Since Lauren was a Bridesmaid, I just figured I would see her at the wedding.

The wedding was beautiful, I guess, and short, thank God.

At the reception, I walked up to Lauren and was greeted almost the same way as the first night I met her, with a handshake and a hug and then a quick pose for a picture.  It wasn’t until the reception was almost over that I finally got her alone to say anything.

This will be the sixth time that I had a plan and it fell apart.  Once again, she beat me to the punch by saying that she had fun and hoped we would keep in touch and that she would never forget the Sushi, Sake and Sex.

I was pretty well dumbfounded by that and didn’t really say much and then we parted ways.  I went back to my job in LA and she went back to her life in Oklahoma City.

We still talk to each other to this day and have helped each other thru some tough times, even though there is 1500 miles between us.  I have not had another experience like that and I hope I don’t, but maybe you will and it will work out a little better for you.  You’ll get to keep the one who you find.