UYE: Pinky’s Plunge

A bit backlogged with my reviews, but it is either reviewing or actually concentrating at work… Alas, Friday afternoon, and 20 minutes to spare…1, 2, 3 go… thank you so much for the Megel family who put so much care and planning into this event to bring together so many different people from different backgrounds and ample tastes into one location for one main objective — plunging with Pinky. What a great welcoming group of people, if you didn’t know someone, they will introduce themselves to you, and actually talk to you, and try to find out a bit more about you. Everybody contributed and shared drink or food with others and towards the end everybody sat around in a circle and shot the breeze until sunset.
The community manager does a great job at organizing year round events for the members of the BPBC community — he is down to earth, and actually knows the members of his community and partakes in the activities whether official or unofficial events. The UYE ladies are great at welcoming newbies like me, so it wasn’t difficult to mingle and get to know other members.

I wouldn’t know what to pen that hasn’t possibly be written already except to say that it was a wonderful event I’m so happy I went and the location was picture perfect — ‘cept for the cold breeze but hey, Florida in February isn’t always about the 80+ degrees. I want to thank everyone who basically fed me, making me feel at times not much better than the homeless kid who went foraging through out guacamole like an outta control bear in the woods, but no one seemed to mind as I helped myself to fried chicken, jello shots and other wonderful libations that put a smile on my face — of course the biggest part of keeping me happy was the camaraderie of all the good hearted generous Unilocalers — can’t wait for next year!

You know what nailed it for me as being an absolutely AWESOME event? The pic of Nancys dad and his happy face with the plate of food she brought him home.
Seriously real people to be met at Unilocal UYEs.
Big love and thanks to Jeanne, Gary and Katie for putting this together, for getting there and staking out a prime location. Awesome that the duckmobile could drive up and be right there which was great for our DD, Adrienne.
I will never think of «pudding» in the same light… or jello shots, shots, shots… Fireball to the wall awesome!!!
I think I’ll just upload some pics and let them speak for themselves

What a great way to spend Saturday afternoon! A beach picnic enjoying great company with my old Unilocal friends, meeting new friends, sharing awesome food and spiked drinks. The pavilion was perfect, with 2 tables full of great food, fresh guac, fried chicken, pin wheels, sausage, chips, salsa, cakes, cupcakes, hummus and so much more. And of course it wouldn’t be a Unilocal party with out the drinks! And my fellow Unilocalers did not dissapoint. There was delicious spiked punch, rum, Fireball jello shots, delicious pudding shots and so much more! I was definitely feeling very good, it was funny watching my dad do his first Jello shot, he loved it.
It was a lovely day, gorgeous weather, a little cool for our Floridian standards, but I wasn’t the only wearing a jacket, but the sun was out and it was a perfect beach picnic. It was fun watching the brave and adventurous group head into the water to take the plunge, I was cold for them but they said the water was actually warmer than the air.
Jeanne, thank you for hosting this fun event! I am so happy its a yearly tradition! Thank you Unilocalers! Thank you to all that attended for the great company, amazing food, awesome drinks, and great conversation.

Happy Friends, Shared Food and Perfect Temperature… So Good That Pinky Showed Up and Brought Two Friends, Too!
When Friends (you didn’t even know existed five minutes prior to their showing up) offer tents, grills and all the necessities for grilling… you know it is going to be a special day. Thank you Big Dave!
When Friends you have made through Unilocal join in and bring spare ribs, homemade Italian sausage, fried chicken, guacamole dip, humus, Pinky decorated cupcakes, lemon cake, salad, chips and salsa, beverages of many descriptions, punch, pulled chicken, fruit, pastries and many more items I cannot remember… it is a successful UYE event!
Over thirty-​five people attended and all brought something to share in addition to the camaraderie, conversation and the cooking. Five intrepid Unilocalers actually followed through on the theme and did do the Pinky Plunge in the 72 degree water! Hey, they are Unilocalers and cannot be held accountable for their actions, right? Pinky was there to cheer them on and laugh as some fell into the waves.
Thank you Jeanne M for thinking up this crazy UYE and setting it up for a second successful year. And thank you to all who attended and made it so special with your cooking talents, conversation starters and for your obvious enjoyment of the moment. I loved watching the passersby cast envious glances in our direction with smiles on their faces.
Unilocal is a special world. That is proven at every event our illustrious leader, Blue and his leaderette, Ros create for the community as well as the UYE guerrilla leaders inspired contributions, too.
Life is a journey and traveling that path with BPB Unilocal is indeed a TRIP!

What better way to spend a Saturday at the beach, than with old and new friends from Unilocal.Thanks Jeanne for this great idea and so glad we caught it on the 2^nd year, forever to return.
Everyone brought a wide range of great food, drinks beer, wine, and of course charcoal and fluid for a great BBQ with Short Ribs and Sausage.
It was a beautiful day, windy, a little cool, but the sun was out all day and we all warmed things up with Samantha’s Fireball shots and Pudding shots. It really was fun watching my wife try to scoop the Jello shots out with her tongue. I guess this group is getting to know one another pretty well because she is not one to be watched by 15 people actually doing that.
As we waited for the «plunge», we all experienced a great variety of food, from outstanding pulled chicken in BBQ Sauce, Pinwheels, mini sandwiches, guacamole, homemade Hummus, it goes on and on. Charmie even brought all the ingredients for a Peruvian dish. The Vodka punch that Samantha made started me off «nicely», ending the day with Charmie’s punch. There were a couple of those Jello and pudding shots in between. Was feeling pretty good.
When Blue and Rosario showed up with Pinky it was decision making time. To PLUNGE or not to PLUNGE. I decided that it was more important to take a video of the one’s that did plunge, of which there were four. I believe we doubled the amount of plungers from last year, which was two. But, it was not about the Plunge that made this a great day. Jeanne’s idea was just a great theme to bring old and new friends together in a casual, Florida setting on the beach. I really love seeing my friends from Unilocal and yesterday enjoyed meeting more friends, two of which are new friends on
now.
This is the best kind of event; one that is not restricted to a venue by time and space, but one which the end is decided when the last one goes home, where to sit and where to move around allows us to make new friends easier and talk to old friends wherever we want to sit an talk. Just a great day!!!
It’s ironic that the ones who write reviews about eating establishments in BPB, just created their own BEST, by all the efforts and care that went into the food and drinks we all shared together.
Thanks Jeanne for such a creative way to all get together in such a casual way, on the beach with great people who share a common love for food, drink and new friends.

What a perfect way to spend a Saturday; in the company of fellow Unilocalers, good food, drinks, and Pinky of course. This was my first time attending the Pinky Plunge and it will be an event I will attend every year.
The setting was perfect and the weather as well was gorgeous; while it was windy that did not prevent us from having a wonderful time. Everyone brought a dish or drink which made it more fun, and of course no Pinky Plunge would be complete with Pinky, who made an appearance.
From Savannah’s BBQ short ribs, to David A’s pulled pork chicken, to Adrienne C bring fried chicken and other goodies, and to Cid P and Julio representing the Miami Unilocalers with pastelitos and croquetas, it was a feast for all.
We had our own grill area where we grilled and prepared the foods, drank and just a grand old merry time. Shout out to my fellow Unilocalers, Dave, Jeanne and Katie, who along with me, braved the 72 degree water, rip currents and man-​o-​wars to dip into the cool waters of the Atlantic Ocean. After that refereshing dip, we went back to our area and the party continued with Jello shots and pudding shots.
This has become a tradition for Unilocal and it is something that I hope gets continued. Shout to Jeanne, Katie and Gary for organizing this event.

What’s better than a beach picnic with great friends, great food, and lots of alcohol? Well, only a beach picnic with great friends, great food, lots of alcohol and pinky! And that’s what we all got to enjoy on Saturday at the 2^nd annual UYE pinky plunge.
Once again a huge thank you to Jeanne, Gary and Katie for arriving early and commandeering a spot on the beach. This year we had a huge area with two tables, a grille, and tons for space for spreading out.
The food was of course top notch. You can’t be a foodie Unilocaler and not know how to cook. But the alcohol this year really went above! Ever had a coconut pudding fireball shot? Yeah me neither, until now!
And to those brave 4 who actually took the plunge! I commend you! If you had waited for a little more alcohol in my system I would have been right there with you lol.
Great time with everyone who came out. Paul W’s pictures, Jeanne’s costume changes, Jell-​O shots, guns to my head, Cid taking a nap… so many memories!
Until next year!

My first plunge!!! What fun! Sorry I could only stay til 1 pm. but the 2 hours I was there were fantastic! Parking was a cinch… Unilocalers started showing up with food and DRINKS on hand (the beer from Wisconsin rocked!!!).I loved it. I made a tin (thanks big Dave) for my pops of all kinds of goodies everyone made and brought. I had a great time jean! Pompano beach is so clean and the tent Jean set up for all of us was like a VIP area. even the grass was soft and nice to sit on!!! JUST GREAT… the Wisconsin beer. the pudding fireball shots… Interesting, tasty and the BEST for a day at the beach, The CORN SALSA with the black beans and cilantro that was spicy was delicious… sorry i missed Blue… Thanks again!!!

I wanted to spend the whole day on the beach with my Unilocal friends, but Clyde and I had promised my cousin we would go with him to a meeting and luncheon in Stuart, Florida, over an hour north of Pompano Beach.
We got back from Stuart at about 3:30 pm and headed straight for the Pompano Beach pier. I didn’t know exactly where the Pinky’s Plunge picnic would be and I couldn’t pull it up on my phone. I knew it was near the pier so Clyde and I walked up and down the pier looking over each side for a tent with red and white balloons, or someone we recognized. When that didn’t work we got in the car and drove along the beach. Success. I spotted the tent with the balloons.
We didn’t have any problem finding parking, probably because it was late afternoon, and it was pretty chilly. There were still a lot of Unilocalers drinking, munching, and talking. I settled down at one of the picnic tables with a glass of red wine and a delicious assortment of desserts in front of me. I tried a few desserts including Jeannie’s chocolate stout cake with the caramel sauce. Delicious.
Clyde and I visited for a while and got to catch up with some of our fellow Unilocalers. I’m so glad we got to spend a little time with our friends, in spite of missing most of the picnic.
Thank you Jeannie for putting this event together and for sharing your delicious stout cake. It was great seeing everyone and I’m looking forward to spending the whole day next year.

I had a great time getting to know more Unilocalers. Thank you Jeanne for hosting. Jell-​O shots were great Samantha. I had never had fireball Jell-​O shots. And the stout cake was to die for. I love the caramel sauce.

The first time I read anything about the Pinky Plunge was in November of 2014. The Event had just been listed on Unilocal.I’m going to be honest with you, I completely ignored it. I was all like, «Blah, drive all the way to Pompano Beach for an UYE from Hialeah? Whatever… I don’t think so.»
Then, this year, 2015, people started posting comments on the Event listing. I noticed because a few of the comments were posted by friends of mine on Unilocal.
It didn’t take long for me to join-​in on the conversation. Anyone who knows me well in person knows, that I love me a good olé online conversation. You probably noticed at this Event and possibly at others, I’m a pretty quiet person in person. Not online, though. So, I didn’t always reply to the talk thread but, I was constantly reading. The closer we got to the Event date, I was like, «Yeah man… I can’t miss this. This is the real deal here.»
BEST decision I’ve made, so far in 2015, was leave the confines of my house and head to Pompano Beach for this UYE. I may be quiet and somewhat timid in person but, I love me a good hangout with great people.
and THAT, it was. I already can’t wait until 2016 for the next Pinky Plunge.
THANKS to Jeanne M. for putting this together. It was flawless.
THANKS to everyone for the company, the food, the drinks, the conversations and the LOLs. All of you are what make Unilocal a great place to be.
P. S.: HATS OFF to the brave souls that actually took the plunge in them frigid waters. You’re NUTS and I love it.

This by far was the best picnic I have ever been to! The food, the atmosphere, and most of all, ALL the great Unilocalers! I met so many new people at this event and loved it! It wasn’t like everyone stayed in their own areas. Actually everyone moved around, conversed with each other, and got to know one another.
Let’s start off with the most important ingredient involving a beach party and this is the alcohol! We had Rum & Coke, delicious unique beer, a couple of different Rum Punch-​ish Juices and for the very first time I made Fireball Jello Shot and Hawaiian Fire Pudding Shots! Everyone was enjoying their drink of choice while spending time together!
For the food, there was everything from Fried Chicken to Guacamole & Chips, Pin Wheels, Corn & Black Bean Salsa, Croquettes, Salads, Roasted Veggies, Short Ribs, Pulled Pork, and much much more! The Chocolate Stout Cake was amazing that Jeanne baked for the crew and I kid you not. There was not a crumb left out of the whole cake!
Even though the blistering cold winters this SoFL gets at a fringed 68* there were some brave soles (check the page for the videos :)) that plunged into the water to come out to the windy cloudy kind of day we were having but that did not stop them! Congrats!!! (I was not one as it was far too cold fully clothed :))
So no matter if you are into the «Pinky Plunge» part or not, this event will not let you down and I am already super excited for 2016’s Third Annual Pinky Plunge!
**As always it was soo much fun seeing new and familiar faces and being able to hang out in such a relaxed atmosphere! Couldn’t have planned and put together a better Saturday Pinky Party for all of us Jeanne! Thank you! :))