kochleffel

Back from shopping. You might remember that I had bok choy left, which led me to buy tofu for a stir-fry. Now I have tofu left, so today I was buying beet and turnip greens for another stir-fry. Tofu that remains will be used some other way. The greens have small beets and turnips attached, which will be pickled (separately). I also bought a head of red leaf lettuce and will use some of it tonight. I occasionally notice where some of the local wineries can ship. Many can't ship to Alaska, Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Nebraska, Oklahoma, Rhode Island, or Utah. There are some other states that they can ship to only through an intermediary such as Vinoshipper. Indiana, BTW, is such a state.

I think that everyone hates it.

The Serenade itinerary in 2019 was Stockholm, Visby, Tallinn, St. Petersburg, and Helsinki. There were many British passengers and enough from Spain that many announcements were repeated in Spanish. Also one couple from Norway that I know of. I cruised from Copenhagen more recently on the Voyager of the Seas: Oslo, Kristiansand, Skagen, Aarhus.

Sailed for day in the Stockholm archipelago on the Serenade of the Seas in 2019, and called at Visby the next day. It was during Almedalen Week, and Visby was teeming with politicians, political operatives, and political demonstrators. The younger political operatives appeared to spend more on their clothes and hair styles than most people would on a car.

I was on a Baltic cruise over the Fourth of July in 2019. I thought about putting a U.S. flag magnet on my door, but the cabin I had was all the way forward and no one would ever pass my door. I later got an upgrade but too late to obtain the magnet. A door magnet to help in recognizing your room is a good idea. My next cruise is on NCL but, as mentioned, I haven't seen that they enforce the policy against door decorations, at least not if they don't stick out too far.

That often happens. CC wants there to be a separate roll call for each leg, but typically someone jumps the gun and posts a combined roll call for the first of the two. Because they can be booked as one itinerary, the person may not even realize that it's two married segments. It can be worse. My first cruise was a NCL western Med itinerary that interported between Barcelona and Rome. I was boarding at Rome and ended up participating in three roll calls: one for the first Barcelona sailing, one for the Rome sailing, and one for the second Barcelona sailing. The first sailing was the beginning of the Med season and there was also some relevant discussion in the roll call for the TA that preceded it.

I started to work on my Shavuot decorating this morning. I am nearly sure that I have a dried sheaf of barley, but I have no idea where it is. I may have to substitute wheat, which is easier to obtain. I also need a frame for a print that is supposed to represent Moses and Aaron at Mount Sinai (19th century French, so it's entirely the artist's imagination). Michael's will have both and I can stop at the blue big-box store for fencing stakes (nothing to do with Shavuot).

I looked up St. Erasmus. He died around 303 and is the patron saint of sailors and abdominal pain. I'm reading "healthy" as "not made from diseased ingredients," because I can't really class a chocolate tart as healthful. I'm avoiding sugar right now, so I have to pass. I might like the drink, but I'd be wary of raw egg white. There is Finger Lakes vermouth! "Method Sweet Vermouth is styled after traditional Italian sweet vermouth, but made using wines and brandy from the Finger Lakes region of New York. It is a versatile bar staple whose quality elevates common classic cocktails and stands on its own as aperitif served on the rocks or with a splash of soda," about $25. The plot thickens until it curdles. My fall class, which I thought would be on Thursdays, will be on Wednesdays. Disembarkation from the Panama Canal cruise will be on a Wednesday, and I would be in the air during class time. It appears that I'll have to stay an extra day in Panama.

I'd also be surprised if they didn't.

Your Mona looks a lot like my Mona (Lisa), although I can't see whether there's a white blaze on the chest. Mona Lisa goes up to bed before I do and then yells at me that it's bedtime.

Rabbit, rabbit, grey rabbit. (Does anyone remember the unlicensed bus service by that name that ran up and down the west coast?) I'm not sure about the juxtaposition of international children's day and the global day of parents. I've been trained in the Heimlich Maneuver. I have the ingredients for egg salad but I might make a tofu, imitation egg, salad instead. The key is not to load it up with mustard and turmeric; a little to take away the extreme whiteness is good, but enough to make it look like egg salad would make it taste strongly of mustard and turmeric. Instead, add a shake of Himalayan black salt, which imparts the slight sulfurous character that will make everyone think of eggs. The drink might be OK for dessert, but I don't love tequila and would substitute something else. For yet another SB, Hosmer Estate 2021. "The nose is of rich meyer lemon and coconut cream, leading to lime blossom and cherimoya on the palate. The finish is rich, carried by soft tropicals and notes of jasmine," $22. Kos was not in my 2022 itinerary on the Norwegian Jade, and I don't even know where in Greece it's hiding. Yesterday I was thinking about packing for the conference in July, and that led to thinking about packing for the Panama Canal cruise in December. Especially, I was wondering whether my distaste for airline baggage fees would persuade me to use only carry-on baggage. (This is only a consideration for the outbound flight, to Miami.) My first cruise, in 2018, was with bags that could have been carried on, although I actually checked one. That came about through dislocating my shoulder right before; the ortho doc said I could go if I packed light, checked the main bag, and kept my cabin bag light enough to place overhead using just one hand. The cruise in on NCL, which has no formal nights and has a passable laundry service, both of which help. School will be in session and there will be two class sessions during the cruise. My iPad mini is sufficient for attending classes online, but if I have to give a presentation on one of those days, I might have to take a laptop computer. Camera gear is also an issue. For travel in scenic areas I usually take a DSLR and multiple lenses, but when photography won't be so prominent, I use just my phone. Would I regret not having the range of camera equipment? This afternoon I'll be helping at my former organization's booth at the community Pride Festival. The synagogue celebrates Pride Shabbat at the end of the month, closer to the anniversary of Stonewall.

On my very first cruise, I met a passenger who cruised frequently and couldn't really afford it. They reduced the cost by disputing credit-card charges (that were legitimate) and getting them charged back.

Yes. This was an organization with affluent members and the person thought that the rummage sale had a reputation for selling only top-quality clothing. (The actual reputation was for checking donations carefully for damage, and displaying them well.)

I always pack the OTC medicines that I keep on hand at home. There have been highly entertaining posts from time to time by people who take an entire suitcase of medical supplies and equipment, but some of them were medical workers who would at least know what to do with the stuff. No personal experience with buying watches, jewelry, or electronics on board, but I'll mention that people used to like Caribbean cruises for the opportunity to shop in free ports. Marketing in North America has changed since then and the items in duty-free shops in places like St. Thomas, even if genuine, no longer appear to be especially good values.

I was initially put off by the parsnip idea, but I gather that in this recipe the parsnips function like grated carrots. I would probably pass on the cocktail, but the wine is a natural for the Finger Lakes. I'll go with Weis Vineyards; this is the one whose owner is from the Mosel region. Weis produces many different Rieslings in a single vintage, some representing different terroir (slate vs. limestone, for example) but I'll make it simple and nominate the flagship Dry Riesling (2022): "wonderfully crisp, clean, and full. The nice balance of minerality, fruit, and lively acidity make this a perfect wine for pouring a glass or pairing with food. It presents with notes of lime, grapefruit, guava, and lingering undertones of pear," $20.99. I woke up too early and I didn't like that. It was 42° outdoors and I didn't like that, either.

I used to be the director of a nonprofit organization that held an annual rummage sale. The person who ran it for years wouldn't allow any clothing that contained even a molecule of synthetic material; everything had to be 100% natural.

I would rather not post insulting comments about people who need or want to save money. There is nothing wrong with wanting to cruise but also watching the budget. Some tips are be appropriate and helpful, just not necessarily the ones cited in the article.

Yes - we see that confusion fairly regularly. Thinking about port names: I don't consider it deceptive to write "Rome (Civitavecchia)" or "Athens (Piraeus)" since those are the ports of those cities, and people who haven't embarked from there before might not know. "Orlando (Cape Canaveral)" isn't quite the same, because Cape Canaveral is not actually the Port of Orlando. Rather, Orlando is the main airport for getting to Cape Canaveral, although I think that Melbourne is closer (fewer flights) and I would likely fly to Sanford (nonstop from where I live). In this case, it would be clearer to write "Panama City (Fuerte Amador)" and label the first one as overnight and the second as disembarkation.

I felt the same way when I had chosen HAL for a TATL partly because of the Lincoln Center Stage, and then it was discontinued before the sailing.

Thank you. Which is also somewhat dishonest, but the information is usually not concealed. In this case they are also using the name of a terminal that appears not to exist. Where a ship overnights at a port, cruise lines usually just say that.

Thank you. The thread started in 2023, and the most recent post bumped it up after the last time I checked. From other posts, I think that more has been completed at Fuerte Amador but it's all still rather up in the air and likely to change by the time I'm there. This sort of thing is annoying and it feels like NCL is being coy about it.

Annals of Stupidity: a man in Michigan had to attend a court hearing over Zoom about his suspended driving license. When he signed in, everyone could see that he was driving at the time. https://wapo.st/4bVA016 He was ordered to report to jail by 6:00 p.m.

Exactly. Some of the other suggestions are not crazy. For example, spa treatments are wildly overpriced compared to where I live, but if it's a luxury you enjoy and can afford, you shouldn't let some online personage tell you not to. I think that an average cost-conscious passenger would be able to figure that out on their own. I think it was altogether wrong to say that there's free wifi at some bars and shops onboard. However, if your needs are flexible and not too extensive, you might be able to manage with free wifi on shore. I'm currently buying not only onboard wifi, but premium wifi, because of having classes on Zoom. (If you must have wifi on board, for work or school, avoid cabins that are all the way forward or all the way aft, because on some ships they have poor connectivity.)

I need help understanding the itinerary for a Panama Canal cruise that I've booked. It's a one-way cruise from Miami to Fuerte Amador. (Either you fly back from Panama, or you book it B2B with a one-way in the other direction.) The itinerary shows Panama City, Pacific Cruise Terminal, as a port of call for the next-to-last day. The day after that, disembarkation is at Fuerte Amador. Are they the same place, or...? NCL offers no excursions for Panama City on that next-to-last day.

The AMA website says that the Wellness Exam under Medicare is not an annual physical, nor is it a follow-up for existing conditions. Anyone who scheduled a wellness exam by itself would likely be disappointed. It's about prevention and screening for unsuspected problems, and does not require hands-on examination or labs. I don't think that annual physicals as such are even covered under Medicare, although some practices might do the equivalent under cover of a diagnosis. In theory, the wellness exam could take the form of an online questionnaire, except that they don't think we're sufficiently compos mentis to fill one out.