Confessions of an Event Planner: Case Studies From the Real World of Events--How to Handle the Unexpected and How to Be a Master of Discretion (5 page)

After dessert it was time to hit the bars, including Sloppy Joe’s, which has long been associated with Ernest Hemingway, and the Green Parrot, an internationally known bar and a local landmark since 1890. We used this opportunity to introduce the group to a couple of bars they would enjoy if they returned to town on their own or again as a group of 50 guys. We are in a very liberal destination with a live-and-let-live social society and you’ll find a mixture of gay and non-gay bars, so we’d researched the best of both during our advance preparations. We’d prepared a list with recommendations for distribution among the guys. Of course, the places where women have been known to leave their inhibitions behind along with their bras and where regulars dance with abandon on tabletops may have been “accidentally” left off the list. We hadn’t lost sight of the temptation to smuggle some newfound friends back to the hotel to enjoy the in-room Jacuzzis!

Suddenly—oh my—Mr. Instigator picked up Dee Dee from behind and spun her around over his head, just narrowly missing the ceiling fan. The corporate execs standing nearby laughed at his antics but quickly ordered him to put her down before we moved in.

A conch train stood by to head back to the hotel with anyone wanting to return early. Not surprisingly the conch train sat empty; no one was ready to call it a night or no one wanted to be seen as the first one to head back to the hotel. The private conch shuttles were scheduled to operate until the bars closed. The group was now on their own with the exception of the local staff, two members of our team and Dee Dee, who would stay till the end. After this point there was no way of really keeping track of who was coming and going. Some will catch a cab on their own and head back when they are ready or take off for parts unknown, returning to the hotel just in time for breakfast. Hopefully, they won’t do too much damage to themselves or the town. The rest of the team and I headed back in case anything at the hotel required our attention. For us the night was still very young as much as we might long for bed. The evening so far had been a success. Both the corporate execs and guys were pleased. They got to drink in the sights while drinking in public, take part in a famous sunset ritual and sample local cuisine and the bars. Good times.

It’s 1:00 a.m. Some of the group are starting to roll in. A few are not too steady on their feet but they seem to be taking care of one another. One was very embarrassed and belligerent but his buddies were calming him down. Apparently, Mr. Instigator thought it would be fun not to let him into the men’s room at the bar and he had an accident times two. Dee Dee had let us know what had taken place so we knew what to expect. He had been threatening bodily harm to all that took part in the “prank.” One of the men on our staff discreetly offered to have his pants taken away and cleaned with no one the wiser. In expressing his gratitude he burst into tears. He didn’t want to bring them home in that condition and have to explain what happened to his family, he said as he flipped open his wallet to show us pictures of his wife and kids. He had been feeling diminished in front of his colleagues and worried that he would become the joke of the office. Thankfully, the friends he had made on the trip had not abandoned him and were not making him feel worse than he already did. Chances are by the end of this week this particular incident will be long forgotten.

It’s 2:00 a.m. now. Dee Dee and the rest of the team are back but not all of the guys have returned. Dee Dee caught me up on the goings-on after I left and we discussed the number of women that had ended up hanging around and physically off the men. They had to stop more than a few of them from climbing aboard the conch train and returning back to the hotel with the guys who wanted to party, roommate or not, married or not. Then I updated her on Mr. Pranked. We decided that there was not much more we could do right now with regard to those who hadn’t come back yet, so it was time for us to head to our beds to catch some sleep if we could.

3:05 a.m. Rinngggggggggg. It was the night manager suggesting I come down to handle some situations. I asked if I needed reinforcements and he suggested that it would be a good thing. I called Dee Dee’s room and then quickly dressed to scope out what had taken place.

Pool party!!! Ah yes. And with a number of the girls that the guys had picked up at the bars. The guys had broken into the corporate hospitality suite and grabbed some drinks. Bottles were everywhere, as were articles of clothing. Naked pool party!!! Dee Dee happened upon Mr. Instigator about to pour bubble bath into the pool and quickly confiscated it. Hotel security had been summoned as well and were successfully getting both guests and non-guests out of the pool and into their clothes. The visitors had been “smuggled” onto the property with the hotel staff none the wiser—or looking the other way (in the manner of “what happens in Vegas, stays in Vegas”)—until the impromptu pool party broke out and something had to be done as other hotel guests were getting annoyed. Chastened and expressing fake remorse, the guys took off to their rooms and cabs were called for the rest, but not before telephone numbers and the like were exchanged.

With the hotel staff capably dealing with the pool cleanup, restoring order to the corporate hospitality suite—it would be restocked tomorrow—and calculating the extra charges to be added to the master account, Dee Dee and I said our thank-yous and headed for bed again to grab another hour or so of sleep. For the moment, all seems quiet but we aren’t about to let down our guard. I am sure we both fell asleep with one ear open, waiting for the telephone to summon us again.

DECEMBER 15

This morning, the corporate execs laughed at the antics of “their boys.” We didn’t discuss the specifics of what took place with Mr. Pranked. He didn’t want to be shamed in front of his company heads and had asked us not to make his name known and tell them exactly what transpired unless it was absolutely necessary. If we did, we assured him, it would be done with the utmost of discretion and he was not to worry.

The company heads knew there were other incidents that had transpired but at the moment all was under control and they said they preferred to be on a “need to know” basis. If they did not have to bail someone out of jail or take someone to the hospital, they really wanted the guys to have a good time without being reported on or knowing exactly what took place. We did need to make them aware of the happenings at the pool and the hospitality suite break-in—without naming names, as per their request—because extra charges were going to be showing up on the final reconciliation. How, or if, they choose to address this with their staff is entirely up to them. But what they did want was everyone present and accounted for at their meeting, regardless of how rough they felt or how late they got in last night. Dee Dee said it would be her pleasure to personally call those who were missing and make sure they were on time, with a sweet “don’t ask me how but I can assure you they will be there.” Of that I had no doubt. I felt that she would have a special wake-up call—with my blessing—arranged for Mr. Instigator, who had still not shown up.

By 9:00 a.m., everyone was present and thankfully accounted for. Missing luggage you can deal with; missing people is an entirely different matter. There was one guy who made it just in the nick of time, his ride pulling up in front at 8:55. He had no choice but to go into the morning meeting wearing the same clothes he had on last night and smelling pretty raunchy. He got a much-deserved ribbing from his peers. It doesn’t hurt for them to get a reminder from their colleagues that this is a business event and not a pleasure trip, even if their own behavior has not been exemplary.

Today is basically a repeat of yesterday: a full day of meetings, coffee breaks, lunch and then off to the hospitality suite for a few drinks before heading out for the night. Dinner tonight will be their awards presentation, which is being held off-property in an upscale setting. Traditionally, their awards dinner has been held on the last night but they have something special planned for tomorrow as a surprise, and the corporate execs wanted to have their stay end with fun not formality this time around.

Tonight’s restaurant had been chosen before the corporate execs knew that it would be an all-male group that would qualify. The company heads loved the setting and didn’t want to change it when the group demographics were known. Their private room was in a courtyard built around a gorgeous swimming pool and everything was pink on pink. The entire area was filled with tropical plants and flowers, with a white baby grand off in one corner. The atmosphere was pretty, pink and feminine enough to extinguish a cigar. After the first night, with the guys wanting to reunite the mermaid with the ocean, and last night’s swimming pool escapades, the thought of this group around more water was not calming. Visions of waiters or participants themselves taking a dip in the pool are running through our heads.

After cocktails, dinner, drinks, dessert and awards the guys will be free to return to the resort or stay in town and catch one of the private shuttles and return at their leisure. It’s a safe good bet that after a day of sitting in meetings and through dinner and speeches, these guys will be staying to play.