PRINCESS CRUISERS: HOW ARE THINGS WHERE YOU ARE?!

[toescat]

On 8/19/2020 at 6:22 PM, Thrak said:

The sky is weird today and there are ashes on the cars. The air smells of smoke. The sun looks weird. Deja Vu....

 

Ours looks the same for the past week.  It was so Smokey I could barely see the house the street. We are in the middle of the Contra Costa, Santa Cruz, Hennesy fires.  Today we can go outside without choking the skies are somewhat clear.

[Mary loves to travel]

8 minutes ago, toescat said:

Ours looks the same for the past week.  It was so Smokey I could barely see the house the street. We are in the middle of the Contra Costa, Santa Cruz, Hennesy fires.  Today we can go outside without choking the skies are somewhat clear.

We're in the south bay area, so lots of smoke from the Santa Cruz fire, some from the East Bay fire.    No fire danger, no evacuation for us, very very lucky.    It was so nice this morning to have clear air and to be able to open the windows and air the house out!     

[Ombud]

at least we aren't evacuated anymore

[PurpleHays]

On 8/23/2020 at 3:34 PM, CPASam said:

Sitting on my front porch in Raleigh, NC.  Like someone else said, I am treating it as my balcony.  Our neighborhood is very walkable and its fun to see the neighbors walking by and occasionally we engage in conversation at a safe distance.  DH and I are retired and I have been working my 25 hour per week part-time job from my living room since mid-March.  When I am not working, sometimes I will log in to laptop and look at the Port Everglades webcam as well as the princess ship webcams to see their various locations.  My favorite two today are the Caribbean and Crown Princess Ships in Curacao.  It looks so sunny and warm there.  DH is a gourmet cook and we had the Princess Flourless Chocolate Cake a few weeks ago on our wedding anniversary.  We are also big hockey fans and were sad that our Carolina Hurricanes were knocked out of the Stanley Cup playoffs last week by the Boston Bruins.  We're still enjoying watching the teams continuing on -- on tv.  We're missing the cruise life.  Last cruise for DH was panama canal last December for his birthday.  He had a great time!  I am so looking forward to when we can cruise again.  One of our favorite cruises has been trans atlantic from Southampton to NYC and  Ft. Lauderdale in the Fall of 2018 and 2019.  DH is retired and a potter.  Our NC State Fair has been cancelled for Fall 2020.  He will not be able to sell his pottery or be a paid judge in the herbs and flower competition.  He is also missing his bridge games, but he is able to play online.

At least being on the internet at home, we don't have to worry about our internet minutes and the internet speed is a little quicker than at sea.  I am wondering what cruising will be like once covid is under control.  We both like to follow the rules so we will do what it takes to get back on a cruise ship.  Take care all!  CPASam

Hi, neighbor! I'm just next door in Durham, but I work in Raleigh near the PNC. I'm also sad about the Canes (danged Bruins) and my Blues are out too.

 

However, I can't say I'll miss the fair. I haven't been in *years*. Too d***** many people in one place.

[MamaFej]

At the risk of having my fellow Californians throw things at me, I’ll report back from lovely, non-currently-on-fire NW Montana. We did venture out from the RV park yesterday to go to the outdoor farmer’s market. Everyone in the uncrowded market wore a mask. We got some fresh garlic and tomatoes for bruschetta. Our son contributed some basil from the plant he bought at the market when he first moved here in early July. It was delicious!
It gets into the mid to high 80s F in the afternoon, but in the mornings, it’s so cool that we snuggle up under a blanket in front of the electric fireplace while watching the news. 
I will never again disparage a fireplace in an RV as excessive. This thing is really nifty. It significantly warms the area without heating up the whole coach, causing us to need to turn on the AC earlier than usual. 

I am feeling more than a bit spoiled, being able to be distant from other humans in such a beautiful place. 

[LoriPhil]

That looks wonderful - particularly like seeing your comfy feet tucked under your blanket... I can relate to that.  Enjoy that beautiful cool clear air.

[taznremmy]

Emphasizing the words "cool clear air"  It has been miserable here this week.

[rogueriver]

On 8/27/2020 at 11:30 AM, toescat said:

 Took a ride up to Eugene Oregon to pick up my grandson from school as College Football was canceled and his mom did not want him driving home to Brentwood Ca by himself.  He is a freshman and their #2 Quarterback he started at U of O in January of his Senior year of high school and had to fly home in March then they were cleared to go practice football in July and was there 4 weeks and back home. 

 

In our household we are HUGE U of O fans, so exciting to see that your grandson will be one of the quarterbacks we will be watching (if football ever starts again!!).  Go Ducks!!

[toescat]

23 hours ago, Ombud said:

at least we aren't evacuated anymore

That is good because that had to be scary.  My office at work is at the top of Willow Pass facing Mt Diablo and today I can hardly see it.  

[toescat]

1 hour ago, rogueriver said:

 

In our household we are HUGE U of O fans, so exciting to see that your grandson will be one of the quarterbacks we will be watching (if football ever starts again!!).  Go Ducks!!

Yes his name is Jay Butterfield and he was the biggest recruit of all time according the the news paper in Eugene.  At the time  he accepted he was the number 2 pro style quarterback in the nation.  He is a good kid who can play with out thinking he throws dimes (quarterback term) all the time.  His dad played for Stanford and the NFL for a short time.  Great family.  Right now football is schedule for spring but that is a HUGE IF.  

[toescat]

5 hours ago, MamaFej said:

At the risk of having my fellow Californians throw things at me, I’ll report back from lovely, non-currently-on-fire NW Montana. We did venture out from the RV park yesterday to go to the outdoor farmer’s market. Everyone in the uncrowded market wore a mask. We got some fresh garlic and tomatoes for bruschetta. Our son contributed some basil from the plant he bought at the market when he first moved here in early July. It was delicious!
It gets into the mid to high 80s F in the afternoon, but in the mornings, it’s so cool that we snuggle up under a blanket in front of the electric fireplace while watching the news. 
I will never again disparage a fireplace in an RV as excessive. This thing is really nifty. It significantly warms the area without heating up the whole coach, causing us to need to turn on the AC earlier than usual. 

I am feeling more than a bit spoiled, being able to be distant from other humans in such a beautiful place. 

That is awesome and I would never throw anything at a fellow cruiser.  Send some cool air California way, pretty please.

[Lindaru]

Valley County, Idaho, is up to 80 in our case count and have had one death so far.

The weather was in the extreme heat range here and then came a dry thunder storm which sparked a wild fire five miles from McCall.  The smoke haze has been largely hazardous any time of the day or evening, but the sun being blocked out for the most part has cooled it down slowly.  Sunday morning it should be only in the fifties with a high of around 60 that day and still cool Monday.  They said the air should be clear for us until the heat comes back in slowly warming us up and hazing everything back over (from fires in Oregon and California as the one by us was 100% contained recently).

I have not gone anywhere in 16 days.  We do not have company in, just my husband and myself.  Before that, had not been out for 18 days.  I only go to the stores as needed.

I am getting these census takers bugging me about my neighbors, wanting me to answer their questionnaire for them and when I refuse to do that, they shove informational flyers at me and demand I take it to the neighbors for them.

I have an E-Mail in to the Census Bureau about the one doing this (twice this week) to me because either the neighbor in question that day was not home or refused to answer the door.

In this time of pandemic, a compromised senior citizen should not be putting themselves at risk doing the job of the census taker.  Before I can confront the taker with this information, they have scooted off of my property and disappeared.

Anyone else having this problem?
 

Edited August 29, 2020 by Lindaru

[Lucky TGO]

56 minutes ago, Lindaru said:

Valley County, Idaho, is up to 80 in our case count and have had one death so far.

The weather was in the extreme heat range here and then came a dry thunder storm which sparked a wild fire five miles from McCall.  The smoke haze has been largely hazardous any time of the day or evening, but the sun being blocked out for the most part has cooled it down slowly.  Sunday morning it should be only in the fifties with a high of around 60 that day and still cool Monday.  They said the air should be clear for us until the heat comes back in slowly warming us up and hazing everything back over (from fires in Oregon and California as the one by us was 100% contained recently).

I have not gone anywhere in 16 days.  We do not have company in, just my husband and myself.  Before that, had not been out for 18 days.  I only go to the stores as needed.

I am getting these census takers bugging me about my neighbors, wanting me to answer their questionnaire for them and when I refuse to do that, they shove informational flyers at me and demand I take it to the neighbors for them.

I have an E-Mail in to the Census Bureau about the one doing this (twice this week) to me because either the neighbor in question that day was not home or refused to answer the door.

In this time of pandemic, a compromised senior citizen should not be putting themselves at risk doing the job of the census taker.  Before I can confront the taker with this information, they have scooted off of my property and disappeared.

Anyone else having this problem?
 

Hi Lindaru,

A girl gave me a US Census 2020  Notice of Visit 2020 today.  I complete the questionnaire online. It took lest then 3 minutes.
If you see your neighbors tell them it’s no big thing. 

Tony
 

 

[Grego]

We have survived by booking the Enchanted Princess January 9th 2021 voyage to replace the November 2020 Enchanted Princess one that has been canceled and proceeded to move our January 29th 2020 voyage to March 2021 on the Crown because it was too close to the January voyage.  As it looks now we made the right decision.

 

That said, we are still having severe withdrawal from being on the ship's balcony and looking at the sea so........we got in the car and make a 34 mile road trip north to Vero Beach, FL and booked a room on the third floor of the Holiday Inn Oceanside for two days.  We then sat on the balcony, enjoyed a drink or three and looked out on the Atlantic and got a partial fix.  It will have to do for now.

 

Until we get the clearance to sail once again, we will continue to pray for a safe path forward, keep our suitcases our and count the days to our next voyage.

 

Stay safe.

[Lindaru]

13 hours ago, Lucky TGO said:

Hi Lindaru,

A girl gave me a US Census 2020  Notice of Visit 2020 today.  I complete the questionnaire online. It took lest then 3 minutes.
If you see your neighbors tell them it’s no big thing. 

Tony
 

 

 

Thanks, Tony . . . I am sure they know that already and I rarely see them anyway.  One is a part-time (only two months out of the year and lives in another state) resident of the house.

I just wish the Census Bureau would not make us responsible for the actions or inactions of others.  We did ours on line the day we got the notice.  I guess not everyone is as vigilant as we are.

🤓

 

[Thrak]

Turning into a rutabaga here. I soooooooooooo need to get out of here. In theory, we will camp for a week next month. We'll head north and drop in to visit for our second youngest grandchild's birthday. She will be three on September 27. Our youngest turns two on Sept. 2nd. We actually have a slew of birthdays this time of year. We had a grandson turn 18 this month and his sister will turn 20 next month. In April the oldest grandchild turned 24. Kind of spread out a bit in age... The only (so far) great grandchild is not quite 4 months. (How can anybody be that young?)

 

Today has been "exciting". NOT!  I mowed the back yard (the front is nothing but dirt at the moment but we're going to have someone "fix" it soon), went to the nursery with my wife so she could buy a plant, and then did a combination of sleeping in my chair and watching golf on TV. Sadly, I'm getting pretty good at that last combo.

 

Mixed up a light batter last night and made Fish and Chips for dinner. No mushy peas but they weren't missed. I'm guessing "real" mushy peas are likely a lot better than what is served with the Princess Pub Lunch. At least I would hope so. Tonight will be a shrimp stir fry and then tomorrow it's going to be tacos. I... Love... Tacos... No pre-made shells for us. I had actually never seen or heard of those crunchy taco shells until I was a teen and Taco Bell came to town. Nope, nope, nope. Tacos need real tortillas. I have never had a taco anywhere that was even vaguely close to as good as we make at home. I am really looking forward to making them. Kind of sad how much of life revolves around food these days. What makes it worse is having to do all of the prep, cooking, and clean up ourselves! Eating while cruising is soooooooooo much easier. A glass or two of wine in Vines coupled with some sushi would be a welcome "dinner". Maybe someday it will be possible again.

 

[Lucky TGO]

Hi to all my Cruise Critic friends,

The last couple of days in Boston was a little Cold. It’s supposed to be better today so I’ll be taking the Rowboat out for a few hrs. I was starting to lose my tan. 😳😁

 

 

[Reader0108598]

7 hours ago, Lucky TGO said:

Hi to all my Cruise Critic friends,

The last couple of days in Boston was a little Cold. It’s supposed to be better today so I’ll be taking the Rowboat out for a few hrs. I was starting to lose my tan. 😳😁

 

 

Down in Western mass the Boon docks according to Boston chilly here also fine with me the sooner we get this god awful year over the better. Enjoy the Rowboat 🙂

 

Edited September 1, 2020 by Reader0108598

[Lucky TGO]

On 9/1/2020 at 6:18 AM, Reader0108598 said:

Down in Western mass the Boon docks according to Boston chilly here also fine with me the sooner we get this god awful year over the better. Enjoy the Rowboat 🙂

 

Hi to all my Cruise Critic friends,

‘It’s been raining for about 24 hrs in Boston. I know we need the rain but I can’t wait until it stops. My tan is fading fast and I can’t wait to get back on The Rowboat. I miss fishing sooooooo much NOT 🙄 😁.

 

[Thrak]

What is the "rain" of which you speak?

 

Today we will be having a picnic at a small park for a 2nd birthday. Pineapple upside down cake. Hot dogs. Nothing snazzy but it won't be "sitting at home".

[voljeep]

6 minutes ago, Thrak said:

What is the "rain" of which you speak?

 

Today we will be having a picnic at a small park for a 2nd birthday. Pineapple upside down cake. Hot dogs. Nothing snazzy but it won't be "sitting at home".

Saturday we will go to a good friends 60th Birthday celebration ... front yard tailgate style bbg ... BYOB, BYOC(chair)

low 90's , chance of afternoon showers ... until oct 

 

cornhole available ... 

 

we have a potential day(s)  trip to meet our kids at Disney before Christmas, then they will come stay with us.  That "may" be a precursor to how things "may" be on a cruise in regards to masks, sanitation ...

[Thrak]

10 hours ago, voljeep said:

Saturday we will go to a good friends 60th Birthday celebration ... front yard tailgate style bbg ... BYOB, BYOC(chair)

low 90's , chance of afternoon showers ... until oct 

 

cornhole available ... 

 

we have a potential day(s)  trip to meet our kids at Disney before Christmas, then they will come stay with us.  That "may" be a precursor to how things "may" be on a cruise in regards to masks, sanitation ...

 

Very cool. 60th birthday. Sigh... I remember those days. Heck, I remember having a 20th Anniversary Party here (same house we are still living in - we've been here 31 years or so) and thinking how amazing it was to be married for 20 years. It was sooooooooooo freaking long! Wow. It doesn't seem like it was very long ago but... in another couple of years (May 6, 2022) it will be 50 years. What...???

 

Tell  your friend HAPPY BIRTHDAY and, if you are both comfortable with it these days (no idea of your "circle", etc.) give them a big hug. It's still possible to do that with some folks. I do love the BYOC (which means you likely won't be hugging...) and meeting outside is actually a fun alternative to everybody huddling together inside.

 

As for playing Cornhole... Okay... I know the name has been around for a long time and likely refers to "corn filled bags" that were tossed but... There was also an alternative definition of "cornhole" that has also been around for a very long time. It's not politically correct but it goes back to the time of using corn cobs as a toilet paper alternative. You can likely imagine what the "corn hole" was. Sadly, that is the definition I always knew so, when this game suddenly seemed to explode onto the scene everywhere I was appalled.  Fortunately, it seems that most folks have no idea about the previous connotations or even the old time use of corn cobs.

 

Sorry if I have offended anybody. That wasn't my intent but this is actually "historically" and "culturally relevant" information. I just think it's very strange...

[Lindaru]

17 minutes ago, Thrak said:

Sadly, that is the definition I always knew so, when this game suddenly seemed to explode onto the scene everywhere I was appalled.  Fortunately, it seems that most folks have no idea about the previous connotations or even the old time use of corn cobs.

 

Actually, that was the only definition I ever knew of having never heard of the game.

 

Add to that, I used to say that I always believed some rest area toilet paper was merely paper thin dried out corn cobs judging from its sand paper quality.

Either way, your post made my day!
 

[dreaminofcruisin]

6 hours ago, Thrak said:

As for playing Cornhole... Okay... I know the name has been around for a long time and likely refers to "corn filled bags" that were tossed but... There was also an alternative definition of "cornhole" that has also been around for a very long time. It's not politically correct but it goes back to the time of using corn cobs as a toilet paper alternative. You can likely imagine what the "corn hole" was. Sadly, that is the definition I always knew so, when this game suddenly seemed to explode onto the scene everywhere I was appalled.  Fortunately, it seems that most folks have no idea about the previous connotations or even the old time use of corn cobs.

 

Sorry if I have offended anybody. That wasn't my intent but this is actually "historically" and "culturally relevant" information. I just think it's very strange...

 

Yeah...I know the same definition as you do on this one.

I was surprised to hear the term used for this game. I don't know if this is one of those regional terms or what?

I live in the Midwest and we call the same game just "Bags" or "Bean Bags".

[voljeep]

10 hours ago, Thrak said:

(same house we are still living in - we've been here 31 years or so) and thinking how amazing it was to be married for 20 years. It was sooooooooooo freaking long! Wow. It doesn't seem like it was very long ago but... in another couple of years (May 6, 2022) it will be 50 years. What...???

yeah, we've been our house since '89 and will celebrate our 45th anniversary this December ... amazing