My sister and I are hypercompetitive. This is due largely to the fact that we are barely 11 months apart in age. She's the older and I always resented that she got to do certain things before me (like go to school, date, or drive).

One of our childhood contests was to see who could hold her bladder the longest. It used to really piss my mom off (pun intended) because occasionally one of us would refuse to concede and end up wetting ourselves.

I thought we'd outgrown this silly challenge until last Sunday.

My sister just got engaged. Which burns me up because my boyfriend and I have actually been dating 4 months longer than Tessa and her new fiance. She knows this and pointedly asked me if I ever thought Steve would propose. So I challenged her to hold her bladder for the entire engagement party that afternoon.

This was a good challenge because we would be drinking a lot of toasts, plus standing in my mother's garden which has a very loud fountain.

We posted my younger brother (15) at the garden gate to make sure neither of us slipped into the powder room. At first, it was very easy, then lunch was served and I had to sit down. Which compressed my bladder slightly. I was suddenly aware that it was getting quite full. I winced and looked over at my sister. She was smirking! Time for action. I stood up, tapped my wine glass and proposed a toast to my sister and her fiance. This set off many toasts. Since everyone was looking at her and not me, I only wet my lips each time, but she had to take real sips. She narrowed her eyes at me as my dad leaned over to refill her glass.

The triumph allowed me to ignore my aching bladder for a while. Then, I heard my sister tell my mom that she thought it was time to start the dancing. Oh, no! Nothing is worse for a full bladder than bouncing around. My sister had the excuse of circulating among her guests, but I could hardly refuse to dance. My boyfriend pulled me out on the floor for a fast Latin number that left me biting my lip to keep from exploding.

Somehow I survived two dances. Then the photographer said it was time for a formal family shot. We stood at the center of the garden. Unfortunately, it was right next to the fountain. I kept squeezing my knees together, but it was agony. I was just about to admit defeat, when I heard a distinctive sound.

I looked over to se my sister pissing herself. Her face was beetred as first my family, then the photographer and guests stared at her. She ran off into the house leaving a trail of yellow droplets.

My mom stammered out some lame excuse about the excitement of the day and I started laughing. It was the wrong thing to do. My own bladder gave way with a sudden gush. As urine flooded my shoes, I was at least console by the fact that I had won!