Castle Idol 2011 . . .

There is one day during our annual Beach Trip that is sure to get heated – and I’m not talking about the sun.  I’m talking about Castle Idol.  I don’t even know how it got started.  All I know is there was no competitive edge until the Knolls started vacationing with us four years ago, and it’s been a battle ever since.

First, there is their team. He’s a genius with a Harvard Law degree, a keen sense of humor and a soft spot for his daughters.  She’s an artist who dabbles in Edwardian script and oil painting while giving tours at the Library of Congress on the side.  They are formidable competition for sure.

And then there’s my team.  It consists of my brother, a photographer by degree, an information architect by employ and a totally egocentric crack-up by nature. And me – you know – a wanna-be graphic designer, photographer, decorator, etc. with an English teaching degree and a boat load of sass.

Here, in four quick steps, is how the showdown went down this year:

There was smack talk starting weeks ago, so we knew they’d be coming with something good.  Still, they seemed a bit sluggish getting started, so we were hopeful.

We’d come with an idea and it was a good one. We even had it mapped out on the iPhone. We recruited one of the youngsters {hi, Big C!} to do the grunt work of digging while we focused on detail work and schematics. With a team of three, we were done in under an hour.

Dang! Those Knolls pulled out a great replica of a MiniCooper complete with British flag on top, license plates and rearview mirrors.  I have to admit, they put the fear in us.

 

But after picking five random judges passing by us on the beach to name their favorite, team Lee/Carlson won for the second year in a row with our Rock Lobster {photo by my brother’s Little Camera}.

We spent the rest of the day enjoying 88 degrees, sand and sun.  Then we waited until the tide came in and took our sand creations away.  It was good times people. 

And we already have an idea for next year that is going to blow this year’s out of the water!  Bring it, Knolls! {consider that your formal invite.}

Previous Castle Idols here, here and here.