mr walker

I use very little cash. The only regular thing I use cash for is my haircut from the $15 hair cut man. As most places charge $35+, I am happy to drive 15mins to him and to pay him cash. I occasionally check my wallet when a Pacific Island cruise is upcoming and put any $10 & $5 notes in an envelope for spending money on the islands. Most times I leave home with somewhere around $50-60 for the local island markets, donating anything left over at last port (not Noumea - they have more money than me 🙂 ).

Yes, a trap for the unwary. I received a thankyou card from a kids sporting team I coached one year. Several years later I was doing a cleanup and opened up the envelope again, read the card again, I then saw that there was a gift card in it. It had expired 5 years earlier - thanks guys 🙂

Isn't that what the hot tubs are for?? 🙂

This talk of flyscreens on windows & screen doors reminded me of those renovation shows on TV, where they spend hundreds of thousands of dollars renovating houses & when they are finished, not a single one of them has window screens or screen doors. Apparently, screens detract from the appearance of the house???? Really practicable, not!!!!!!! The final straw for me was when on the blockhead show they built 5 x multi-million-dollar homes in the Victorian countryside with everything that opens & shuts & turns on (using green energy & being 'sustainable'), most of them totally overkill to make the sale price higher and no fly screens to be seen. I'm sure there are no flies around that area in the middle of summer. Spend millions & then have to arrange fly screens to be installed next day 🙂

Yes, that was my thought too 🙂 I thought, how much cruise money would they have if they didn't just buy less beers? What we spend money on is always a personal choice & we are all different. I had a mate years ago who was obsessed with not 'breaking' another big $ note, as in his view as soon as you broke it, the money would always end up spent. Of course, in those days a big note was a $20 🙂 I recall him missing on a good payout at the dogs in the last race when he refused to back our selection to save from breaking a $20 - his rule cost him $'s!!! There was someone who used to post on here that had some sort of calculator set-up which monitised the value of every pack of cigarettes they didn't smoke and converted it into cruise money or days or their cruises or something. Of course, not smoking was a win/win for them. When we were kids, Dad would empty his change nightly into a Milo tin (most of the money would have been the final change from his daily pub/club visit). This became the ice-cream money for us kids when we went on holidays. We had total control over the daily spend on our ice-cream treat on a majority rules basis - there ended up being 6 of us kids. We counted the money often, both ahead of, and during the holiday. We all learned that if we were frugal for a few days and had a paddle pop each, we could lash out on a drumstick or heart every now & then. Mum & Dad really knew how to teach each of us the value of money, singly & collectively. Of course we all knew the rules of when the money was all gone, there would be no more & hence no ice-creams for the rest of the holiday. As the eldest & custodian for the most part, at times I would find there was more money in the Milo tin then there was yesterday, & I knew Dad was adding on the quiet, but I knew to keep quiet & everyone would decide we must have counted wrong last time. Big brothers have a special role/place in this world. Maybe some of the young ones still don't realise today (50 years later) what was happening lol.

Must be similar there to here in Sydney, with flyscreens for doors & windows 🙂 The only time we really have trouble with flies & mozzies etc is when we are outside in their territory or when some person was "born is a tent" 🙂

not going there mate 🙂

Someone asked if the ducks are hidden or just left around. I think both. Not my photo, but this was a duck hidden on Cruisin' Country cruise on Brillance in December. It was described as having been hidden high up in the A hole of the sign 🙂 . It was posted that someone spotted it & that they needed to stand up on a chair to get it.

Was able to download new app from the link provided in the existing one, which I had downloaded and had mostly filled out ahead of our Feb Majestic cruise. New app wouldn't recognise my login details via email address & p/w, but I was able to login with my booking number and my details. All the info was there from the first app, and we are all checked-in except for Tracey's photo which I will do. So far so good - 42 days to go.

When you and Lynn are here in Sydney on your downunder trip, maybe we can arrange a visit to the Rusty Penny brewery here in Penrith for a sample or two - they have beer & Texas BBQ

Had to let Uncle Les know that I am celebrating Christmas Eve, not with a Crownie, but a special brew produced locally here in Penrith (Rusty Penny Brewery) in recognition of the mighty Penrith Panthers winning for 3rd straight year the National Rugby League. Premiers 2023!!!! cheers

Geoff, when I first saw the 'typos' I didn't get the no 'L' concept, and thought that our old mate Mr Gut's phat fingers typing had returned to join us thru your account 🙂 I miss his contributions & fondly recall trying to decipher some of his posts at time. He was a good man for sure & memories remain. Cheers

Merry Christmas & a Happy, Safe, Healthy & Prosperous 2024 to all our friends in our little community here on CC. Cheers to all from Neil & Tracey PS I'll have a crownie in your honour Uncle Les

Had to double check the date, making sure it wasn't Apr-1!! No-one had noticed that many balls disappearing, until, what all 22 went down the plug hole??? From my youth, I know that the 22 balls were not billiard balls, but snooker balls. Billiards is played with just 3 balls.

My suggestion is to contact local tour operator https://tourworks.co.nz/ Russ should be able to arrange something for you

All good Les. Very hot but we have the AC cranking & plenty of crownies in the fridge. Just having a few bets on the horses 🐎 Hope all’s well with you mate.

No red carpet at Mum's 🙂 That was the cruise we met you & Rosie. I want Mum to go again for her 90th in 2025 but she says she's too old these days!

One of life's mystery it seems. My Mum got the 'gbenjo red carpet experience' in Feb 2015 It was good to get to say G'Day on our return yesterday mate.

Loved the ship - Radiance class is our favourite! It was good to be back on RC (even without D perks) 🙂 No, no A. Harvey this time, but a great cross-section of Aus country music incl John Williamson, Beccy Cole, Amber Lawrence, Wolfe Brothers, James Johnson etc etc Great entertainment from 10am to 2 am or so 😮

just of Brilliance this morning (Çruisin' Country charter). Our waiter last night said the ship is going to Eden, Adelaide & Hobart for today's departure.

Yes glad you could catch up - I am reminded of Tracey & my dinner with Les at Raymond’s a couple of years ago now. Great dinner!!

Filled in 'enquiry/interest' form for Grand Princess Syd-Hawaii-Syd 37N in Oct '25 when the emails came out. Had a missed call from our planner yesterday & today received an email with booking for the cruise with 10% deposit required by 15Dec. BB mid balcony on Baja deck. Off on Brilliance tomorrow, so will have to give it some thought. Sth Pacific, Hawaii, Tahiti, Tonga & NI sounds pretty good 🙂

I'll give that a go tomorrow when we board BR for the Cruisin' Country charter 😉 I'm sure I can find something wrong 🙂 How was Brilliance Chilli? It's going to be hard having to pay for drinks on RC - advice is that D drinks etc do not apply on the charter cruise 😦 No OBC and no freebies!!!!!!

C'mon Mic, you and Rosie in matching 'loud' Lowes shirts is the go! 🤣 It will be compulsory to all wear matching outfits when/if we ever get the Aus/NZ CC cruise happening. I recall the photos of the American couple who wear matching outfits every day of the cruise - a different one each day 😮

Always a worry for me. I am a double, triple, quadruple checker & then one more time for luck 🙂 When I regularly flew OS for work DW would think I was mad. She would watch me put the passport in my carry-on bag. She'd then watch me check again a few minutes later, and then when I pick up the bag & my wallet, phone etc I'd check again. I'd check again as I went out the door. Often our regular shuttle driver would ask just before we pulled away "has everyone got their passports" & I'd check one more time.