bobmacliberty

Welcome back! We played golf yesterday morning with that same squall making a few thunder noises here and there. Thought we might need to hide someplace for a while but we never did. Typical summer day in Florida. Are you staying in one of the condo buildings on Fletcher near the Surf Restaurant? Edit: Just saw your next picture that included a bit of the pier. 👍

I used to watch Le Tour a lot, particularly when Lance Armstrong was racing (before all of his drama). In addition to the scenery and history, I found the race strategy fascinating, and Phil Liggett was great to listen to. And I loved the mountain stages. You could just see guys hitting their physical limits when they drop in a steep section, only to come back out and do it again a day or 2 later. Armstrong's tolerance for pain and ability to mentally break his competitors on a climb was impressive, although less so now looking back.

Sounds like a great childhood. I wouldn't mind a life like that in retirement. The idea of living on a boat, on the water, in shorts and flip flops is highly appealing to me.

Cute picture. She's either seriously focused on her ice cream brownie, or she's already had one and is about to drift into a chocolate induced coma. 😁

I know the term SNAFU originated in the military, but it often fits Royal equally well. Sorry to those who have to go through this colossal waste of time.

Both of my parent's families were from around Boston. My mother's family all ended up on the Cape, either part time or full time. My grandparents had a cottage in Truro. I had Aunts/Uncles in Wellfleet, Dennisport, and South Yarmouth. Only the Wellfleet Aunt still lives there year round. GPs passed away many years ago and the others all are SW Florida residents who still have a place on the Cape. My mother was the only sibling who moved away. We'd still make the drive to the Cape every summer though. We knew all of the ponds. There was one in Wellfleet that you'd take a half hidden dirt road to get to. There was never anyone there. We called it naked pond, because we'd go there after the beach and strip off our bathing suits to rinse away all of the sand. Fun and much simpler times.

It's been years (decades!) since I've been to Martha's Vineyard. One of my best childhood memories was when my family took the ferry to Nantucket and my father paid for a small plane to fly us back to the Cape. I thought it was so cool flying in our own plane. Is there a ferry to Martha's Vineyard from RI or do you need to drive to the Cape? Driving to the Cape in the summer = yuck.

My two cents in the liquor shortage...it's not some conspiracy. I really do think it's just supply issues. Royal has plenty of other liquors on board, including many that are about the same retail price as what they are missing. Assuming that most people with the drink package will find something else to drink, Royal isn't really saving any money by having something be out of stock. All that does is upset customers who may chose a different line next time. On every cruise, Royal goes through a boat load (😉) of liquor, and they do that every week. It's a very different restocking scenario than the local liquor store. They probably also have a contract with a single supplier for best pricing and if that supplier has problems, then Royal has problems. I believe there is still a shortage of truck drivers across the country. I still see strange things being sold out where I live for weeks/months at a time. Lately, in my Publix, it's the 46 oz can of Dole Pineapple juice. That spot always seems to be empty. But I can find it at Harris Teeter. 🤔 I think it will take another few months before companies can no longer legitimately use the supply chain as an excuse, although I'm sure that some will. No matter the reason, it's definitely very disappointing, and can feel very misleading, when you can't get your preferred booze onboard. I would certainly not be happy about not being able to get my favorite bourbon drink.

And it's raining there also. Sad day in NH. ☹️

I always wondered about the logistics of buying art. Do you need to bring it home with you or will they ship it? Does it include the frame or do they give you the print in a rolled canister?

He is one massive dude. Love this picture of Judge (6' 7", 280 lbs) standing next to Jose Altuva (5' 6", 165 lbs).

We spent the whole day at Honeymoon beach and it was great. There's a ferry near where the ship docks (15 min walk) that takes you to Water Island, and then one of those open air bus trucks takes you from there to Dinghy's. Chairs and umbrellas were free if you bought food/drink there. Decent snorkeling among the rocks on the left, and other water toys available for rent. One of our favorite days at St. Thomas.

I love the dogs also. It's amazing how much personality they can show in their faces. It all looks so natural too. Jeff Bridges sits down and one of the dogs puts his head in Jeff's lap, or Jeff leaves the bed and one of the dogs jumps up and lays in his spot. The dogs are probably highly trained to do this. Rottweilers are supposed to be very intelligent.

How far are you from the boardwalk Lenny? Do you see yourself being able to walk there at some point?

Nice review. Thanks for posting. Allure is one of my favorite ships.

Swim up bar. Ding, ding, ding. Winner!

Looks like you had a great cruise, and you took some awesome photos. This photo in particular just says Greece to me.

That was my choice. I liked it.

What a great day with your son. You have a lot to be proud of...and some fun new "toys" to play with. What cocktail are you going to smoke first?

Great news about Owen. Hopefully, he's back to being a "normal" teenager quickly.

Costco sells Louis XIII? I'm impressed. We've never really lived close enough to a Costco to make it worthwhile joining.

You are totally right. Mojito time. Cheers to a great weekend!

Then don't.

Glad to see that you finally made it onboard. Hopefully, the boarding process is the low point of the week.

Our office cabinet install is 99% complete. There were two shelves missing in the two glass upper cabinets. They'll get delivered and installed in a few weeks. 🤞 We need to touch up a few drywall screw "pops" and install some cable trays under the workstation areas (they arrive tomorrow). We can then move everything that's currently on our kitchen island and dining room table back into the office. Will be nice to have our office back again.