Friends to the end

Chapter 6

Let The Vacation Begin


This story is my first work of fiction. The characters mentioned in this story are not real, they came from my imagination. If you not of legal age to read this please go away. This story will contain sexual acts between consenting men, if you are offended why are you here? Please email me at casper717@sbcglobal.net with any ideas or suggestion. Also the names have been changed.

I woke up Thursday morning at 6:00 AM, I was happy to see the sun. I pulled out my notebook, and took a quick look at some stuff I had jotted down.

Explore Key West

Gay Kayaking Tour

Go shopping

Take map

I put the notebook away, and decided to switch to some board shorts today, as I would be in the water later on today. I put on a pair of socks, and my shoes. I decided I wanted to chat with Jeremy so I pulled out my laptop. I cut on AIM, but he was not logged in. I was a little shocked, as he is a morning person, and with all the shift changes he would be online. I decided to write him an email.

Hey guy, I looked for you online, but I guess you are asleep or at work. I am going to the seaport and find me some breakfast, and try to find Slip E-21. I am going to explore Key West today, and I will get some shopping done. Not sure what I am going to buy, maybe some shells and other memorabilia. I will give you a call later on tonight.

I sent the email to Jeremy, and decided to check the weather, since I got soaked yesterday. I turned to the weather channel and was quite pleased as we had a sunny day with a high of 92. I was very anxious to actually do something today as I was really stir crazy yesterday. As it was early, I decided to cut on some music, on the laptop. It was about 7:15 and my stomach was really growling. I grabbed all the stuff I would need for the day, and I left the room. Walking out of the resort toward Margaret Street, I turned left and walked, and walked and walked some more. I just saw lots of houses. I pulled out my map and realized that I should have turned to the right, so I back tracked. It only took about 10 minutes to get back to Fleming. It only took 4 minutes to get to the end of Margaret, and I did see all the boats. I looked around, but my stomach was concentrating on finding food. I wanted to go to Dam Good Food and actually see their place. I started walking to the left and I found a boardwalk. I walked around and found the A&B Marina. As I was walking, I saw the Fast Cat, a tour boat loading for a trip. I continued walking down and saw a lot of different boats that could be rented for charters. I got to the Conch Republic, but I did not see what I was looking for. I asked someone for directions, and I was told to walk back about 20 feet and to look for a small outlet of shops on my left. I started walking, paying close attention to everything I saw. I finally found the place I was looking for and I stepped in. I had eaten there yesterday, so I was already familiar with the menu.

"Good morning. I would like to order a stack of pancakes, bacon, and large milk."

 

"Your total will be 7.50," the nice cashier said.

I pulled out my wallet and handed her my credit card.

"We do not accept credit cards, but you can use the ATM machine over there," she said pointing at the machine to the right of the counter.

I was a little embarrassed, not having any cash to pay for breakfast. I went over and pulled out 20 dollars from the ATM machine and handed it to her.

"Can I ask you a question? I have never been to seaports before and I am looking for Slip E-21." I pulled out my map and put it on the counter.

"What boat are you going out on?"

"The Blue-Q at 11:00AM today."

She took her pen and circled on the map exactly where the slip was. "If you go to the waterfront market and look straight out, you can't miss it."

"Thank you for your help," I picked up my map and put it in my pocket and decided to just hang around until my food was done.

"You are welcome to go outside and we will bring it out to you when it is ready."

I walked out and found a nice table to sit at. I really liked eating here, looking at all of the boats. I saw men and women preparing their boats to go out for the day. Some were loading tackle for fishing excursions; others were cleaning the decks with water. My food was brought out to me. I ate pretty quick and decided to go over and find my slip. I walked back around the boardwalk, and came to the waterfront market. I walked up a few steps, and saw an ad for Blue-Q.

I stepped out onto the slip and started walking down looking at the different boats. I got to the end, and saw the boat. The first thing I noticed as I looked at the boat was the incredibly huge mast. It was white and must have gone up 50 feet from the boat. No sails were out, but it was early in the morning. I looked beside the mast and saw the Pride flag flying. I looked at the boat and began to understand how a catamaran was set up. Toward the front of the boat, kayaks were attached to netting. The cabin was at the back of the boat. I saw benches and the helm. I saw a blue awning covering the cabin. I really liked the overall appearance of this boat; there was no rust on the outside that I could see. I decided to go back to the resort, as it was only 8:15. I actually was impressed as it only took 10 minutes to get back to Island House from Bight. I decided to watch a little TV and find out if there was anything exciting going on.

At about 10:30 I decided I needed to pack up a few things that I would need for the excursion. I grabbed my backpack and took everything out. I grabbed two green towels and squeezed them into the backpack. I got my digital camera, and an extra pack of batteries. I reached over and picked up the sun block and put that in to the smaller pocket. I found my snorkeling gear sitting on the floor in front of the bed. I put it all in the backpack. I closed the zippers, and checked my pockets. Wallet, cell phone, room key; I am ready to go. I grabbed the backpack and put it on. I walked out of the resort and back to Bight. Since I knew where I was going, it took me 10 minutes. I walked around the waterfront market and walked out onto the dock. I saw two guys working on the boat. I decided to have a seat on a large rectangular container. I looked at my cell phone and it was only 10:30 and I just decided to relax. I looked over, and another boat had just come in to the slip across from the Blue Q.

An older guy got off the boat. "We won't board for about another 20 minutes or so, you can go sit in the shade, up by the waterfront market."

"I am fine," I said and watched him go over and start visiting with the captain of the boat that had just arrived.

A younger guy was washing the boat down. I was just in my own little world looking at the different boats in the slits.

A few other guys came down and joined me in waiting to board the boat. The younger guy stepped off the deck.

"I need you all to take off your shoes, I have a foot fetish." I nearly fell over laughing. I removed my shoes and handed them to the guy. He looked to be in his mid- 30's. He had the same white shirt on that the older guy did with a "Blue-Q" symbol.

"As you board the boat please step toward the right, it would be bad if you go to your left."

I looked over and sure enough the water was left of the boarding plank.

Some of the guys started boarding the boat. The crewman took out a key and opened up the boxes that we were sitting on and put our shoes and socks inside. He then relocked it.

I picked up my backpack and stepped on board. I walked straight across and stepped down into the cabin. There were 4 padded benches. I sat down and put my backpack on the floor. The older guy came aboard and we started visiting. He got in front of the mast and asked for everyone's attention.

"Good morning gentlemen, my name is Greg, and I would like to welcome you aboard the Blue-Q. This is the other captain, Andrew, who will be serving as 1st mate for today's excursion. This is going to be a combination, snorkeling and kayaking day as we had to cancel because of rain. We will snorkel this morning, and then after lunch we will go out kayaking. I want to go over some safety stuff before we leave.

1.     Please feel free to move along the railing of the boat. We have never had any one fall in, but if you do fall in, please don't panic. The water is very thick and you should be able to float. It will take us a minute to get the boat turned around and pick you up.

2.     This vessel is Coast Guard certified. You will see our certificate on the right side of the helm. Our crew does train with the Coast Guard on how to rescue people in the ocean.

3.     The international sign that you are ok in the water is to bop you head. If you get into distress, or need help, wave your hands and we will have all kinds of help out to you.

4.     If you plan to smoke please feel free to at the back of the boat. There is a tube that you can put your cigarettes in.

I hope each of you have an awesome time. Please don't hesitate to ask us any questions you may have."

This was really cool; you go over the safety stuff before we leave. These guys were really professional.

"I would like for all of you to introduce yourselves, and please feel free to ask any questions. We do have a beverage license and we will be happy to serve you what ever drinks you may want; Andrew or I will get it for you. The bathrooms are below deck either side, just take the ladder down.

Andrew went to the railing and untied the ropes. All of the guys began introducing themselves.

"Hi I am Matt, I am from Dallas Texas. This is my first Pride and I am really excited. I am staying at Island House."

"Matt, we have you scheduled for a sunset cruise on Saturday, is that correct?" Greg asked looking at his book. I thought for a second and remembered that the Pride parade was Saturday at the same time.

"Would it be ok, to switch me over to Sunday evening so I can go and watch the parade on Duval?" I asked Greg

Greg pulled his pencil out and erased something and then wrote something else down. "Not a problem, Matt, we got you scheduled for Sunday."

"Three guys from Island House called in today as they had the Duval street flu," Greg said walking over to the helm. He started the engines.

Andrew was at the back of the boat, "Clear back line."

Greg started pushing buttons and the boat began backing out of the slip. He moved to the rudder and pushed it, and we turned around. This really surprised me as we did not have a wheel. The boat was now moving away from the port at a slow speed. Greg reached for the radio and called the marina.

"Andrew could you call the Marina, I can't get them on the radio. Also can you see if you can get them to have the guy in the next slip pull up a little? He just got in from Mexico and it took him 2 hours to clear customs."

Andrew took out his cell phone and made a call. Greg started taking orders for drinks.

"I will take a Coke please."

Greg went over to the back left and opened up a cooler. He handed me a Coke, with a cup of ice. I looked over to the right and saw a Coast Guard cutter. It was the first time I had seen a cutter and it was huge.

We had just passed a set of buoys and Greg increased our speed.

"Greg we are not deploying the main sail today are we?"

Everyone laughed at that and Andrew moved right in front of the mast. Greg stood up and together they deployed the sail. Andrew was working really hard pulling and tying off.

It took about 5 minutes before the sail was fully deployed and tied off on the mast. The wind was blowing the sail, but I could feel the engines moving.

Andrew reached into an ice chest and pulled out a platter of fruit.

"This fruit comes from the waterfront market. They send trucks to Miami every other day, and get fresh fruit, straight from the dock."

I took a little of everything, and it was so good. I loved the grapes.

Andrew asked everyone who was going to go snorkeling to go over to the left bench. I stood up and walked over to the left side of the boat, and sat down at the bench. Andrew went below and came back with some snorkeling fins, all different sizes. Greg was still at the helm steering the boat.

"I brought my own snorkeling gear, but I have never used it before," I said and Andrew looked at me.

"Well it is your choice, but if you use new gear it may be rougher for you, we can clean it."

I decided that I would play it safe and just use their equipment as it was broken in and the fins I had in my backpack were not a good fit for me. Andrew came up to me and looked at my feet. He then set a pair of fins at my feet, and did the same for all the guys going snorkeling.

"Don't put your fins on until you are ready to go into the water, as it is very hard to walk in them." Andrew went back down, and came up carrying goggle/ snorkels for everyone. He set a yellow pair in front of me. He did this for the 8 other guys going snorkeling. He brought up these tan vests, and set one in front of everyone. Greg turned off the engines and I had no idea what was going on.

Andrew walked out to the front of the boat. Greg began to steer the boat based on what Andrew was telling him. Apparently we had to maneuver over some difficult waters. I was really impressed at how well they worked together, Andrew calling out clock numbers, and Greg turning the rudder to adjust the boat. I had taken off my shirt and put sun block on my face and chest. I put it back in my backpack. I took off my glasses.

"Guys, we have arrived at our snorkeling spot, the reef is about 100 yards west of the boat. Andrew, can you raise the dive flag please."

Andrew went out on the netting, and reached a small pole, he raised a red flag. It had a white line going across it. I decided to ask a question.

"What is that flag for?" I asked looking at Greg.

Andrew went to the left front side of the boat, and dropped the anchor.

"Well when a boat displays that flag, it is a signal to all other boats in the area that we have people in the water, and they are not to come within 100 feet. It's very unfortunate, but there have been times when wave runners and speed boats, will just run flank speed and actually hit swimmer even though a red flag was up."

Andrew stood up and asked all of the guys going snorkeling to bring their gear up to the front of the boat.

"A couple of last minute pointers about snorkeling I need to say

1        Look down, so that your snorkel stays up

2        Don't get behind the boat

3        When you breathe through the snorkel, breathe in slowly and out fast

4        When you are swimming around the reef, please remember that this is actually alive, so be aware of your feet.

5        We will do a final equipment check when you all step over here

6        Also occasionally turn and find the boat, just so you know where you are

I am now lowering the ladder, go off of it butt first and just take each step one at a time, as you will have your fins on, and we would like the people who have never been in the ocean to go first."

I put on my vest, unsure of how to attach it correctly. I put on my goggles, and I stepped up onto the platform, and slowly scooted forward. Greg was on the left side, and he fastened the vest onto me tighter. I put on my fins. I made sure they were tight, and went forward on my butt. I got to the ladder, and looked down. I stepped off the first step. "Well here goes nothing," I thought and continued down the ladder until my waist was in water. I let go of the ladder and started swimming away from the boat. I put my snorkel in my mouth swam about 10 feet away from the boat and waited for everyone else to get in the water. Andrew was the last one to get in the water. All the guys started swimming west, toward the reef. I decided to swim really close to Andrew. I started looking down, but we had not gotten to the reef yet. I was kicking really hard.

Andrew looked at me, "Soft kicks honey; you are going to tire yourself out."

I slowed my feet down, and then I saw the reef below me. It was incredible; I was swimming right above this colorful water plant. Everyone had spread out and began going in different directions. I decided to stick close to Andrew for a while. I looked down and wanted to reach out and touch the reef. I made the mistake of looking forward and before I new it I had swallowed water. I quickly blew it back out my snorkel, and then looked back down. I just slowly swam around the different formations, noticing different types of fish. I decided to go toward the left, and started swimming on my own. I noticed that the reef was actually taller, in certain spots. I did a little boo-boo, as I felt something touch my leg. I looked down and sure enough, I accidentally made contact with the reef with my feet. I backed off that particular reef and decided to swim around it and look at it from the sides. I started swimming toward a few of the guys, and I actually had to stop so I would not hit them. I did not swim in any particular pattern. I was just more concentrating on seeing everything the reef had.

As I moved into the reef more, Andrew took his head out of the water and said, "If you look down, you will see the parrot fish."

I looked down and sure enough there were some really cool fish, although I could not tell one from another. Andrew continued pointing out different types of fish. I tried looking at them, but I didn't know anything about different types of fish. I turned around and started heading toward the far side of the reef.

I had been swimming for about 45 minutes and my legs were getting tired. I looked out and could not believe I was so far from the boat. It was so easy to see the boat, with the mast being tall and white. I swam over to Andrew and tapped him.

"I am going back to the boat, my legs are tired." He nodded and gave me a thumbs-up. I looked again at where the boat was, and I started swimming toward the boat. I got closer to the boat and I actually was coming on the left side. I slowed my swim, and started turning so that I could position myself to the ladder. I reached the ladder, and sat down on the step. I took my fins off, and climbed up carrying them. Greg met me on the platform and he took my fins. I took my vest off, and the snorkel/goggle. Greg put the best in the blue bucket and all of snorkeling gear in the red bucket. He went over and pulled out a hose.

"This is fresh water; you can shower off, if you want." I walked over and grabbed the hose and ran the water over me, especially my hair. I looked over and all I could see was snorkels in the water. I guess that is how Greg saw us from the boat. I went over to my backpack and took out a towel and dried off. I put my shirt back on. I sat down on the center bench and I decided to relax.

"Greg, that was amazing for my first time in the ocean. I tapped the reef a few times with my legs but I really enjoyed myself."

"I am glad you popped your cherry here Matt."

"Could I have a Coke, I am kind of thirsty." Greg walked over and brought me a Coke. I opened it and the other guys started to return to the boat. Greg went back out to the platform and helped each guy, as he helped me. Andrew was the last one to come aboard.

Everyone had gone over and showered, just as I had. Andrew looked at all of the guys.

"Greg I have a count of 11 guys."

"Andrew I have a count of 11 guys."

Andrew went to the front of the boat and started pulling the anchor up. He then raised the ladder up and secured it. I was really surprised as I did not think it took that much effort to throw it out. I felt sorry for him, as he had just come in from snorkeling. The anchor finally came up and he put it in a little hatch. Greg went to the front of the boat and lowered the red dive flag.

"We are going to head over to a small island. We are going to serve you lunch and then we will break out the kayaks, and water toys.

Greg turned on the engine and started to take the boat away from the reef. We were moving slowly, as he and Andrew had to communicate like before. After about 5 minutes, Andrew moved up from the front platform. We turned around and headed west over toward a small island. Andrew opened a hatch and dropped anchor.

"I am going to go down and prepare lunch for you all, we are having chicken Caesar salad." Greg said going down below on the left side. Andrew started taking orders for drinks, and I just asked for a Sprite. Greg came up carrying packets of plastic utensils. He set them down, and Andrew handed them out them out.

Andrew went down, to help Greg finish preparing lunch for everyone. They started bringing lunch. Greg handed my plate to me and I thanked him. I had a really large salad, grilled chicken, and garlic toast. I started my salad, but I forgot to tell Greg I don't like dressing on mine, oh well the chicken made up for it. I ate, while happy that I had actually gotten into the ocean.

I finished up, and handed my plate to Greg. All the guys finished up, and I was ready for a nap. Greg went to the front of the boat and untied the kayaks. Andrew lowered the ladder, again.

"I am going to put the kayaks in the water, and attach them to the boat. These are two man kayaks." Greg had actually climbed down the ladder and Andrew had started putting the kayaks down the ladder. Andrew went over to the left side of the boat and untied a huge floating raft and tied a rope to it. He lowered the raft out to Greg and it was flung into the water. It slowly drifted out. Greg came back up and got the oars out. He put them on the platform.

6 guys got up and wanted to kayak. I decided I was kind of tired, from swimming too hard in the reef. The guys climbed down the ladder and got into a kayak, they were handed oars, and they started rowing out. I counted three kayaks, in use. Greg came over to me, and asked me, "Are you going to go kayaking Matt?"

"I am kind of tired from the reef this morning, I think I am going to relax." Andrew climbed down and I assumed he was going swimming. I picked up my towel and decided to lay down on the bench. Greg came back aboard and asked if I needed anything?

"Not that I can think of right now." Greg looked at me for a second, and then went down and came back with a nice cushion seat. I went to the back of the boat and put the cushion down, and it was a lot more comfortable. I really liked relaxing.

"I am going to go take a spin in one of the kayaks, Matt." I nodded and Greg went down the ladder. I looked out and he was really rowing the oars. I looked for Andrew and then I spotted him in the water swimming over to the big water flotation device. I am not sure if I had fallen a sleep or not, but Andrew had come back aboard.

"Matt, are you ok?" I looked up and Andrew was looking at me. I nodded. He then did something really awesome. He got out a sarong, and pinned it to the awning, so that I would be in the shade. I walked over to my backpack and got my digital camera out. I moved over to the front platform of the boat and started snapping pictures. I snapped a few pictures of everyone kayaking and playing in the water. I turned the camera around and made sure that I got pictures of the boat.

The guys started coming back in within a 20 minute span. Andrew got into position and he received the oars as each of the guys came back in. I saw Greg coming back toward the boat. He stayed down below, and he started handing the kayaks to Andrew. The kayaks were placed back on the netting and tied up. Andrew then pulled the floating rig back in. He got it over the side of the boat, pulled the plug, and it quickly deflated. The guys had been drying off. Andrew once again pulled the anchor back up and put it up. As we were talking, Greg saw something in the ocean.

"Guys we have a dolphin over there," he said pointing to the left side of the water. I saw a splash and the fluke go under water.

I jumped up and grabbed my camera. Sure enough I saw the dolphin playing in the water. I snapped a few pictures. Greg started the engine and we started backing up slowly. The dolphin got really close to the boat, which surprised me quite a bit. Greg turned the boat around and we started faster. I sat down and relaxed. My back started hurting, but I did not care that much; I was having too much fun. Key West came back into view about 45 minutes later. I saw the buoys, and Greg cut our speed down. I saw the A& B marina that I was at earlier this morning. Andrew went to the left side of the boat and Greg pulled the boat into the back of the slip. Greg cut the engines completely as Andrew tied us to the dock.

"Back line secure." Andrew walked to the front of the boat and tied another rope around the boat. "Front line secure." Greg walked up to the front of the mast.

"Guys I am going to need some money from some of you. But I do want you to remember that Andrew as your 1st mate depends on your generous tips. While his first duty is to your safety, please show him your gratitude."

Everyone started getting out there wallets, some paid with cash, and others got their credit cards out. Andrew went downstairs to run the credit cards of some of the guys.

"Greg, you have my payment already, right?" I asked looking at Greg.

Greg looked through his book and said yes.

"I sure hope you all have enjoyed yourself, the only thing I ask is that you tell your friends about us." Greg said.

Andrew stepped off the boat and opened the dock box. Well mother nature was calling so I slid down to the bathroom. It felt like I peed for hours as the 4 sodas I drank all came out at the same time. I finished my business, and saw a plunger. I pulled and pushed it out about 5 times until I heard a flush noise. I climbed up and grabbed my backpack. I took my wallet out and got a 10 dollar bill out for Andrew. I walked off the boat, and Andrew was looking at me funny.

"We have a stow-away. I was wandering why we had an extra pair of shoes here?"

"I had to use the facility." I handed the 10 dollar bill to Andrew and then walked over to Greg.

"This was an amazing excursion for me Greg, I could not have asked for anything better." I hugged him and told him I would see him on Sunday. I put my shoes on but my back was really starting to ache. I put my backpack on and decided to go back to the resort. It was a really fast walk back to Island house.

I got back to the resort and went straight to the room. I do believe I got sunburn on my back. I really don't know how, since I was in some very cool water. I took off my shirt and it felt like my back was on fire. I was in real pain. I could not think of anything else to do, so I grabbed a towel from my backpack and decided to go take a shower. I grabbed my keys and put them around my neck. I walked into the shower room and put the towel and key on the holder. I put my glasses on the counter. I removed my board shorts, and stepped into the shower. I cut on the cold water, and my back felt a little better. I washed my hair really good, and stepped out. I began drying off, and every time the towel touched my back it felt like a knife went into my back. I wrapped the towel around my waist and walked back to my room.

I unlocked the door, and walked over to the AC unit and turned it on full power. I put the towel on the floor and put on some clean boxers. Opening up the dresser, I chose to wear a white cotton shirt. I grabbed a pair of shorts. I decided to pull out my laptop and ask Jeremy what I should do. I looked for him on AIM but I did not see him. I opened up Yahoo and typed him a message:

"HELPPPPPPPPP

I had a terrific time today on the ocean, but I forgot to put sun block on my back, and now I am in pain. I took a cold shower, and that helped a little bit.

Hurry up and reply to this email, Matt"

I sent the email and started thinking about what to do; it was only 5:45. I decided to go and visit with some of the guys since Happy Hour was starting. I saw Paul and David sitting down, and I decided to join them.

"Hey Paul, how are things going?"

"Good, we have been exploring Key West today. How was your first time on the ocean?"

"It was awesome; Blue-Q is an outstanding crew. I had a great time in the reef today, but I made the mistake of not putting sun block on my back."

The waiter came over, and I ordered me a Power-Aid, as I was not that hungry. I asked Paul if he would look at my back and he said sure. I took off my shirt, and turned around.

"Dang Matt, you are pink all down your back."

Dave looked at it, "You may want to get you some aloe cream, from somewhere like Walgreen's. I think I saw one on Duval when we were out this morning."

"I will try anything, to take some of the pain away." The waiter brought my Power Aid, and I put my shirt back on. I drank my Power-Aid, and continued talking to Paul and Dave about my first time on the ocean.

It was about 6:15 and I got up. "Well I need to go check my email and then I am going to go and find me some lotion for my back. I went back to my room and decided to check my email. Sure enough there was an email from Jeremy with the subject of, "Poor Matt" I clicked on it to open it up.

I am not going to laugh at you, because I don't like it when my buddy is in pain. The best thing I can tell you is to go get you some burn cream some where, and keep your shirt on in the sun.

I decided I would call him later, but I wanted some lotion first. I put my keys, cell phone, and wallet in my pocket. I left my room and left Island House. I walked down Fleming for a while, and got to Duval. I did not know which direction to go, so I went to the right. My stomach was growling, but I did not know what I wanted to eat. I spotted a Wendy's and went inside. I went up to the counter and ordered me a chicken nugget meal.

"Excuse me; is there a Walgreen's close by?" I asked handing her my Visa.

She swiped my credit card and handed me a cup. "There is a Walgreen's 6 blocks on the left of Fleming."

I went over and filled up my cup with Hi-C and sat down. The cashier brought my food out and I thanked her. I ate my food quietly. I finished up, and threw my trash away. I left Wendy's and started walking back toward Fleming. I proceeded down another 4 blocks and finally saw the Walgreen's. I stepped inside and I grabbed a little hand basket. I saw a display for suntan lotion, and noticed some green aloe. I grabbed a bottle and put it in the basket. I decided to look around the store and see if there is anything else that I needed. I got to the candy aisle, and put a pack of Gummy Bears in the basket. I walked up and down the store, trying to see if there was anything else that I would need. I got me a pack of peanuts also. I went up to the cashier and paid for my purchases.

I walked back to Island House. The sun was going down, and it was getting kind of dark. I got the Island House and pulled my key out and unlocked the front door as no one was at the desk. I walked to my room and unlocked my door. I set the bag on my bed and took off my shoes and socks. I took my snacks out of my bag and decided to put them in the fridge. I was so stunned, as there were 4 bottles of water sitting in the fridge. I was shocked as this was the first time I had opened the little fridge sitting below the TV. I put my snacks in and turned my attention to my back. I got the aloe and pondered how to take care of my back. I went over and got a wash cloth and squirted a glob of it on there. I took my shirt off and decided to lay down on the bed and just sit on top the wash cloth. When the lotion hit my back on the bed it felt like ice was touching me. It felt like my back was not on fire.

I cut the TV on and relaxed as the aloe was actually doing some good on my back. It was about 8:45 and I decided I was going to read and to go to bed. I got up and took the wash cloth off the bed and put it on the night stand. I am sure I would need it in the AM. I got undressed, and turned on my CPAP. I had walked over and taken off my glasses. I turned on my CPAP and put the harness on. Note to self, get distilled water tomorrow.