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Thanks everyone; fairly quiet, but at least we got to wave to @StLouisCruisers! See you next time!

We have toots - not.

Here's a slightly closer view:

Great shots of Sandi & DH!!!

No toots!

A beautiful day for sail-away with lots of folks on deck.

I can hear the Princess singing.

Checking in.

Looking forward to being here later this afternoon!

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily @cat shepard! I don't cry over spilled milk, except when it's the last little bit I was hoping to have with my cereal. I feel like I've made so many wonderful friends since this thread began. Inventors need to be celebrated - where would we be without them? I just checked the weather and we're sitting at a pleasant -7C; when I checked my FB memories post from 1 year ago today said "Welcome to a balmy day on Mars" as we had extreme cold and high winds with a "feels like" -51C. Today we could reach a high of 0C, which means it will be just lovely outside; if it wasn't so icy, I'd drag DH out for a walk, but it isn't worth the worry. Bon Voyage to Sandi @StLouisCruisers; will be watching and waving back at you at sail-away this afternoon! This morning we're heading out to pick up some fresh cinnamon buns and coffee and will drop them off at a friend's house. She had cataract surgery yesterday morning, so we thought she might enjoy a treat - her husband will, too. Other than that there's not a lot going on, so I'll continue to work on knitting blankets. I've already got 2 done and am working on another - it puts spare time to good use. I think we'd like today's menu suggestion, but I've got ground beef thawing that will be made into patties to stick into the George Foreman. Hamburgers, oven fries and coleslaw will be what's on our kitchen table tonight. And wine. Prayers for everyone who needs them - especially for the people of Turkey and Syria, and of course, Ukraine. Special prayers for our Daily family dealing with health issues. Loud cheers and clapping for all with celebrations happening today. Smooth Sailing! 🙂🙂🙂 Gerry

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report & Daily @kochleffel! Thanks to @JazzyVfor the care and cheer list! Although it's going up to +5C, we won't need umbrellas, as I can see the sky is already perfectly clear. You'd think that living on the "frozen tundra", I'd have a closet full of flannel wear - nope, not a one! I prefer sweaters or t-shirts and bunny hugs instead. My dad taught me how to play cribbage when I was a child - sometimes he would let me win just to keep my interest. Sure miss those times. I've enjoyed Riojas several times in Spain. Nothing special on the agenda today, but DH and I talked last night about heading downstairs to the pantry to check what's there and see what we should be bringing upstairs to put in the cupboards to use, rather than having to throw things away because they're past their best before date. How exciting is that?!? LOL @marshhawkI hope you get good results from your scans. @seagarsmokerwhat a great upgrade; can't wait for pictures! @kochleffelI'm glad to hear the Paxlovid is working. @rafinmdslow and steady, that's all you need to get well. @AncientWanderersorry you're not well; hopefully on the road to recovery soon! @kazuyou're a smart girl, staying inside. You don't need to injure any other part of you! @StLouisCruiserssafe travels today! I like today's menu suggestion, but it's Friday so that means pizza will be what's happening at our kitchen table tonight. And wine. Prayers for everyone who is in need - and there are SO many. Hearty cheers for all with celebrations happening. Smooth Sailing! 🙂🙂🙂 Gerry

Kathi, sail always aren’t the same without you! Please know you’re in my daily prayers for a swift and complete recovery!

@Seasick Sailorit sounds like you've got all angles covered. Like you, I'm someone who gets seasick, so always take precautions. Over the years I've found taking 1/2 of a tablet of Bonine (Meclizine) at night beginning the night before we leave home and continuing throughout the cruise works for me. I figure if it makes me drowsy, I'm going to bed anyway, and it won't matter. I also always carry candied ginger in my pocket or purse whenever we travel. Now, regarding your doctor - would it be possible to go to a walk-in clinic, telling them that you have an issue from a fall, referring them to your results and see what they could recommend? It sounds like your doctor has terrible bedside manners, or just can't be bothered to deal with you properly. On another note, we went to DH's medical appointment and our doctor said just what I did - that DH is aging and his body is showing wear and tear. It looks like he has arthritis in the first joint of his big toe (the "this little piggy went to market" toe) which is causing him grief. A suggestion to wear comfortable shoes was made, as well as taking Tylenol to deal with the pain that may occur. We are thankful it wasn't anything more than that. Hope everyone has a great afternoon!

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily! I'll celebrate pizza day tomorrow, I don't know of anyone (besides dentists) who would celebrate toothache day, and I used to love to read in the bathtub. Somehow it doesn't work well in the shower. It's a cool morning out there with temps of -15C, but it's expected to go up to -5 by later this afternoon. Yesterday we bought some ice melt and tossed it on the driveway to help get rid of the icy lumps left by the tire tracks. Unfortunately our house sitter didn't do a great job keeping the driveway cleared of snow, but I guess we hired a house/cat sitter, not a driveway sitter. LOL @Seasick SailorI hope you're up and around and will be on your phone directly at 8AM. You need to know what to do about your pleural effusion; is there medication you should take or something else you can do? Your doctor sounds like a bigger pain than your cracked ribs! @rafinmdI'm glad you're up and about, but taking things slow. It's good that you're pacing yourself and not forcing yourself to do more than you should. I'm off to wake up DH; he has an appointment this morning to discuss the results of his x rays and bloodwork from last week. I checked online at the results in his file and he's getting older, so his joints are getting weaker, but I'll let the doctor tell him that. LOL I look forward to today's recipes, but saw that romaine lettuce was on sale, so on our way back from the doctor's office, I'll get some along with pre-cooked boneless ribs for a ribs & Caesar salad dinner at the kitchen table tonight. And wine. Prayers for the souls of the 17,000 people killed in the earthquake (and their families), as well as the people of Ukraine, and all of our Dailyites who need them. A hearty cheer goes out to everyone with celebrations (no matter how small). Smooth Sailing! 🙂🙂🙂 Gerry

Your doctor's office needs a swat upside the head - someone from there, whether it's the doctor or the nurse should have called with results by now. Please call the office yourself and say you need to talk with the doctor because you're leaving in only a few days!!!

Oh my goodness, that's highway (or high seas) robbery! If I were you, I'd head to guest services to see if they had any in their lost and found. I'd simply tell them you weren't prepared to pay nearly $300 for a pair of sunglasses and see what they say. They likely have a box full of them somewhere! @rafinmd I'm happy to know you're making progress; good for you, but take it slowly so you don't overdo it.

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily! Our son was in Boy Scouts and really enjoyed the experience; kite flying is a little tough when you're dealing with snow drifts, and neither of us is a great fan of opera. It's 7AM and we've reached our daily high of -3C (26F); for the beginning of February, it's a great temperature, although it's scary to think this could be our new norm. It looks quite cloudy, so we could be in for more snow this morning. It's a good thing DH and I spent time on the driveway yesterday afternoon trying to scrape the ice chunks and lumps off, as it will make shoveling easier. Not a lot on the agenda today - there's always laundry, woo hoo. Today might be a good day to go through some of the baking pans and trays to see what I can get rid of or possibly replace. When doing the Christmas baking, I saw some of the were in pretty rough shape. @Seasick SailorI'm sorry to hear you're still in a lot of pain; please call and find out what your results were. I shudder thinking of your trying to wrangle your luggage all by yourself - is there anyone you can call on to help you get it to the UPS store? @smitty34877I'm glad you finally had some sleep - maybe you'll have to call on your DD to relieve you a little more often. Don't forget, you're still recovering from surgery! @marshhawkI hope your DH had a restful night; sending good vibes for the best outcome of your scan. @kazuyou're always in my heart; I just wish we lived closer so I could help you. I like the sound of today's menu suggestion, and will have to look up the recipe. We love mustard on salmon, so it should be nice on chicken as well. For us, who had chicken yesterday, we'll have a change of pace tonight with quesadillas, salsa, sour cream (yuck) and crudites at the kitchen table tonight. And wine. Prayers for all who are in need, especially for the people of Ukraine, Turkey and Syria. Great cheers for all with celebrations going on. Smooth Sailing! 🙂🙂🙂 Gerry

Time for a quick check-in. @dfishI'm glad you got your brother to his home and set up so that someone else (not family) can take care of him. @marshhawkyour spouse sounds like a tough patient; you might have to find some of those "good" pills and slip another in his food to get you through! Patty melt sounds like a great dinner tonight - anything you can eat with your hands while you can't see is a good thing. Take care of yourself while you take care of DH! @Seasick SailorI'm happy you haven't heard from the doctor's office yet - it usually means they haven't found anything serious. Be careful though, to not overdo it when you're packing! Also, Happy Birthday to your DS! @cruising sisterYay on the new iPad; sorry about the fall in the airport - you're right, it not only hurts the body, but the pride!! @tupper10continued prayers for your son's recovery. Heartbreaking news about the law enforcement officers killed in the line of duty. Just heard on the news that in Syria a baby was born while the mother was under the rubble from the earthquake; they rescued the baby, who was still connected to mom by the umbilical cord, to find she was the only surviving member of the family. Gut wrenching.

Bon Voyage everyone !!!

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily! I have a couple of cards to send out today - yesterday I mailed off the Valentine's cards for our grandsons. I always wave all my fingers at my neighbours; we're blessed with good ones. The most memorable ballet we saw was on a HAL cruise that stopped in Odessa, Ukraine - a beautiful ballet in an even more beautiful building. Hopefully it will remain standing. I'm late to the party today; I slept in! A rarity for me, so I don't know what happened. All I do know is I was busy dreaming that several people delivering pizzas came into the house, one took my purse (ostensibly to give it to me for payment), I was distracted, and when I opened it, all my credit cards were gone. Argh! I've got breakfast this morning with a number of former colleagues, but we're going to be minus one; her husband passed away while we were on vacation in January. She's doing alright, but just before Christmas she was diagnosed with cancer and is having radiation treatments. The radiation in addition to the grief is really hard on her system, so we're going to put together a plan to hire help to assist her with meals, housekeeping, etc. I like today's menu suggestion, although I've never made it. We haven't had shrimp in a while, so I think it's time to make lemon pasta with shrimp to be served at the kitchen table tonight. And wine. Prayers for all who need them, especially for the people of Ukraine, Turkey, and Syria. We'll give a loud cheer for all with a celebration in their life. Smooth Sailing! 🙂🙂🙂 Gerry

We saw them at the beginning of January and totally enjoyed their performances!

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily! I like frozen yogurt, but it still doesn't beat good old fashioned ice cream. Lame Duck Day - we need to acknowledge poor little ducks who can't walk properly! (I'm being facetious, folks!) I'm pretty good with chopsticks; DH, not so much. Although it's still dark outside, the temperature is already at 0C (32F), and we're supposed to reach a high temp of +1 (33.8F) - it just means we're going to have daylight and nothing more today, which is fine - at least there's no snow. Because it's going to be quite warm (it's all relative), I might start working on the snow covering the back patio. I'll give it a try and see how it goes; if it's too hard, I'll call the Crocus Co-op people to come over and do it for us. @bennybearI'm so sorry to hear of your Aunt's passing. @Seasick Sailorget on that phone, girl and make the appointment; you don't need/want to be in pain!!! Not a lot happening here today, I think I'll print off our passport renewal forms, get them filled out and make an appointment for photos with the motor club. Our passports don't expire until October, but considering how long it seems to be taking, I think getting the forms in early is the best thing. This Canadian spy balloon was spotted recently flying over New York City: I like today's menu suggestion, but I've already got chicken breasts thawing. I'll coat them in crumbs and parmesan and bake them in the air fryer. Chicken, mashed potatoes and veggies will be what's happening on our kitchen table tonight. And wine. Prayers for all who are in need, especially the people in Turkey and Syria who experienced the 7.8 earthquake in the middle of the night. Cheers to all with celebrations. Smooth Sailing! 🙂🙂🙂 Gerry