This past weekend, Eric and I drove to San Francisco to meet up with some of his best friends, Erik Darby (and his wife Sara), and Jon Hulse (and his wife Beth). Eric met Darby and Jon during his freshman year of college. During that first year in the dorms, those three were notorious pranksters and nearly got themselves kicked out of school for their riotous behavior. Although the three of them have matured greatly over the years, some boys never completely grow up.
Eric and Jon thought it would be funny to play a prank on Darby, who now lives in San Francisco. They contacted his wife, Sara, and coordinated a time that we could all come stay with the Darby's for the weekend. After settling on Labor Day weekend, the prank planning began in earnest.
First, Eric and Jon had Sara concot a story in order to catch Darby off guard. Sara told Darby that over Labor Day weeekend the two of them would be driving to Reno to meet up with some of her friends.
On Friday afternoon, we all arrived in San Francisco while Darby was still at work. After meeting up with Sara and going to lunch, we went to the BART (metro) station where Darby's car was parked. They then had Sara text Darby and tell him to come home. After some prodding, Darby texted Sara to let her know that he had left work and was on the metro en route to the parking lot.
As soon as Darby was on the metro, Jon and Eric had Jon's brother send a series of disturbing text messages (anonymously) to Darby. Here is the transcript of the texts (yes, there's a transcript):
"Hello Mr. Darby, this is going to be a BART ride you won’t soon forget…."
"YOU’RE BEING ROBBED!"
"Don’t panic and don’t do anything stupid…."
"Don’t put too much faith in those Nike shoes and be aware that your blue shirt makes you easy to follow in a crowd…."
"Here’s how it’s going to work…."
"Parked next to your 4-Runner is a beige mini-van, you’re going to set your wallet on the hood of that vehicle and drive away…."
"If you can follow this one simple instruction then we should have no problems and you’ll never have to meet us…."
"However, if you make a single outbound call from your phone BEFORE you arrive at your car, you’ll find your tires slashed and we’ll all look forward to meeting you at some future date at your home in Walnut Creek…."
"We’ll have eyes on you all the way to your car, please make no detours…. bathroom breaks will need to wait…."
"Do as your asked and this is just a crazy story to tell your friends,…. try anything funny and…. Well,… let’s not try anything funny…."
"If all goes well you’ll never hear from us again…."
"Be smart!"
While sending the texts, Eric and Jon opened Darby's 4-Runner and inserted a CD with the Jaws music into the CD player. Once Darby's metro arrived, Jon put on a Scream mask and crawled into the back of Darby's SUV while Eric put on a Scream mask and hid behind a nearby tree. The idea was that Darby would be completely freaked out when he arrived at his vehicle. He would then turn on his car and the Jaws music would immediately begin to play. Eric would then run out from behind the tree with his mask on and run towards the front of Darby's car. Eric would bang on the hood and then run to the back of the 4-Runner. As Eric ran to the back of the 4-Runner, Jon was planning to pop up from inside Darby's vehicle and give him a scare of a lifetime.
The plan started to take shape when Darby got off the metro and approached his car. However, he was a little suspicous due to all the disturbing text messages. When he arrived at his vehicle, instead of getting in and starting the car, Darby instead checked around and noticed something in the back. He opened the back hatch and saw a man curled up in a ball with a mask on. He quickly and aggressively grabbed Jon's head while Eric darted out from his hiding space. By the time Eric arrived, Darby had ripped off Jon's mask and was staring at him with amazement and bewilderment. When Eric took his mask off, Darby's mouth hung open. It was as if he couldn't decide whether he was confused, elated, or shocked.
After a couple of moments of explanation, Eric, Jon, and Darby were all laughing hysterically.
And we didn't stop laughing the entire trip.
Creepy Eric hiding not-so-impressively with his Scream mask on. It's a wonder nobody tried to jump him.
Night 1: A's v. the LAA with lots of fun snacks, and of course nachos (they won 8-0)
Golden Gate Bridge
Slightly windy, but it made for a fun candid shot.
Bloody knuckles...
Muir Woods - We spent a lot of time here just sitting on a cute bridge, enjoying good conversation and gorgeous surroundings.
Power kicks! Because that's what you do in a Parking Garage.
Golden Gate Fields (Horse Races)
Oakland temple
Sock wrestling
It got a little ugly...
It may have been an 11-hr drive, but it was completely worth it! Thanks for taking such great care of us Darbys.
P.S. Travel notes: we stayed the first night in Reno (Eldorado Hotel & Casino), and we drove straight through on the way home...with one small but necessary detour to IKEA.
