Royal Caribbean Cruisers -- How Are Things Where You Are? (was "Routine" ​ 😁 ​day in lockdown... how was yours?)

[Sea Dog]

1 hour ago, Momof3gurlz said:

Well this wouldn’t work for us. Andy’s a worse over packer than I am!

 

I’m the same way. I pack more than Linda does.

 

 

1 hour ago, A&L_Ont said:

At the airport and on the plane. Feels good. 
 

 

Safe travels wished for you!

[jagsfan]

Darned if I know who the last pic turned upside down! I told y’all I’m technologically inept!!!

Just  take a screenshot and flip ‘em!

That’s my solution!

[Sea Dog]

2 minutes ago, jagsfan said:

I’m fine. Just getting past being tired from our week in Maine with our kids and grandkids. 
Dick and I drive up, everyone else flew. 
it’s hard work supervising his driving, so I’m still tired. 
I had bad breathing problems when we got home…probably from trading wonderful Maine air for humid Florida air. 
I booked a bunch  from my women’s club on Allure sailing Feb 26, and invited them to pay toward their balances when they have a little extra.

That, and answering questions has kept me busy!  Really,really like herding  cats!
Don’t remember if I mentioned it, but 

ParkPortCanaveral is running a 50% off sail that expires 31 July. 
It’s good for cruises through June 2024. 
Good place to park and shuttle. It’s closest to the port. 
Thanks for thinking about me.

Trying to keep up, but I keep falling behind so I’ve mostly been skimming. 
Now that I’ve completely unpacked and found the capris I thought I left in Maine, hopefully I’ll be back running my mouth!!
First photo is my attorney granddaughter Megan, my son Scott, and me. There’s one of Dick and me at our cousin Bruce’s home. He and his wife Lee know how to make us happy! We all had all the lobster we could stuff in! And Lee made a hot crab dip with fresh picked Maine crabs that was to die for!

Then at various restaurants, we had steamers, fried whole belly clams, lobster rolls, Maine and Connecticut, and lots of scallops. 
Our daughter rented a five bedroom house in Boothbay, and it was perfect. 
Dick had mentioned two years ago it would be nice if we could rent a big house and visit Maine one more time. Everybody already had vacation plans, so it took two years to line everything up. 
The house was perfect, the dining room table seated 20, so there was room for the 12 of us to be comfortable.,and spending quality time with family was priceless!

Grest pictures. Welcome home.

[dani negreanu]

8 minutes ago, jagsfan said:

I’m fine.

 

Glad you're fine and back to your usual cheerful self 😘

[Ozark_Kid]

13 minutes ago, jagsfan said:

Darned if I know who the last pic turned upside down! I told y’all I’m technologically inept!!!

Just  take a screenshot and flip ‘em!

That’s my solution!

Thanks for posting.  Great pics. I can't believe the 2 flipped over as I was replying! 😳

 

[h20skibum]

23 minutes ago, jagsfan said:

We all had all the lobster we could stuff in!

 

Looks great!  Send this picture to Royal so they know what lobster should look like.

[Lionesss]

@A&L_Ont

Safe travels!!

Have a great fun cruise. 
 

@h20skibum

Over pack, or backpack. 
Yup both 

We make the most of airline suitcase maximum limit. 
Concerned as we plan for our Alaskan cruise next month. 
If the spouse overpacks again.  You would think it would be me but noooooooo.  
We will pack for HOT and  COLD weather, so we really have to decide and be frugal. 
 

But to sum it up. 
I’m doomed. 
 

I feel 

2 suitcases 

2 carryon 

1 back pack

1 purse 

Better be all we take. 
 

Wish me success in limiting what goes in. 
 

Be safe. 

[A&L_Ont]

33 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

Safe travels wished for you!

Accepted. 

[h20skibum]

7 minutes ago, Lionesss said:

Over pack, or backpack. 

Speaking of overpack, on our recent trip to Myrtle Beach, my daughter had one bag for her and her two kids, plus backpacks.  Her bag weighed over 50lb on the way down, and the airline let it slide.

 

Fast forward to the return trip, which include all the shells, shark teeth, souvenirs, etc., and her bag was way over 50lb.  So she tries to convince the agent at check in, that she is entitled to 6 bags, so just divide the weight by 6, and she is way under.  NOPE!  So we are forced to open her bag, and redistribute to our two bags and my backpack to get under the weight.  
 

Sometimes the weight on bags is just ridiculous.

[Jimbo]

7 minutes ago, h20skibum said:

Speaking of overpack, on our recent trip to Myrtle Beach, my daughter had one bag for her and her two kids, plus backpacks.  Her bag weighed over 50lb on the way down, and the airline let it slide.

 

Fast forward to the return trip, which include all the shells, shark teeth, souvenirs, etc., and her bag was way over 50lb.  So she tries to convince the agent at check in, that she is entitled to 6 bags, so just divide the weight by 6, and she is way under.  NOPE!  So we are forced to open her bag, and redistribute to our two bags and my backpack to get under the weight.  
 

Sometimes the weight on bags is just ridiculous.

Not sure but the weight limit is there more for the baggage handlers lifting that one bag which is over weight.....not so much about the total weight the airplane can carry. If the entire plane's passengers thought like that, might end up with a plane full of over weight bags. Putting more stress on the crew lifting those bags on and off the planes.

 

So they charge you or ask you to redistribute to other bags to even out the weight.

[BonTexasNY]

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

 

I’m the same way. I pack more than Linda does.

 

 

Safe travels wished for you!

Jack does too but he'll never admit it.

[bobmacliberty]

1 hour ago, jagsfan said:

Dick and I drive up, everyone else flew. it’s hard work supervising his driving, so I’m still tired. 

 

We all had all the lobster we could stuff in! And Lee made a hot crab dip with fresh picked Maine crabs that was to die for!  Then at various restaurants, we had steamers, fried whole belly clams, lobster rolls, Maine and Connecticut, and lots of scallops. 

 

Sounds like you had a fantastic trip.  I understand how tiring it must have been to supervise Dick's driving.  😉

 

The food sounds like heaven.  I could eat that stuff constantly and never get tired of it.  Maine lobster is SO much better than the things that Royal serves in the MDR.

[Keksie]

1 hour ago, jagsfan said:

I’m fine. Just getting past being tired from our week in Maine with our kids and grandkids. 
Dick and I drive up, everyone else flew. 
it’s hard work supervising his driving, so I’m still tired. 
I had bad breathing problems when we got home…probably from trading wonderful Maine air for humid Florida air. 
I booked a bunch  from my women’s club on Allure sailing Feb 26, and invited them to pay toward their balances when they have a little extra.

That, and answering questions has kept me busy!  Really,really like herding  cats!
Don’t remember if I mentioned it, but 

ParkPortCanaveral is running a 50% off sail that expires 31 July. 
It’s good for cruises through June 2024. 
Good place to park and shuttle. It’s closest to the port. 
Thanks for thinking about me.

Trying to keep up, but I keep falling behind so I’ve mostly been skimming. 
Now that I’ve completely unpacked and found the capris I thought I left in Maine, hopefully I’ll be back running my mouth!!
First photo is my attorney granddaughter Megan, my son Scott, and me. There’s one of Dick and me at our cousin Bruce’s home. He and his wife Lee know how to make us happy! We all had all the lobster we could stuff in! And Lee made a hot crab dip with fresh picked Maine crabs that was to die for!

Then at various restaurants, we had steamers, fried whole belly clams, lobster rolls, Maine and Connecticut, and lots of scallops. 
Our daughter rented a five bedroom house in Boothbay, and it was perfect. 
Dick had mentioned two years ago it would be nice if we could rent a big house and visit Maine one more time. Everybody already had vacation plans, so it took two years to line everything up. 
The house was perfect, the dining room table seated 20, so there was room for the 12 of us to be comfortable.,and spending quality time with family was priceless!

 

So glad you are fine.  That sounds like a wonderful trip to Maine.  I know about herding cats.  I am in charge of the plans for the fiber fest trip in October for 6 of us.  It will be fun but it is like pulling teeth to just find out who wants to go to the Biltmore the first day and who will be driving.  Sigh.

[HBE4]

2 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

I think I will, and if so I’ll start it once we are airborne.  

 

Following 🙂

[grapau27]

2 hours ago, jagsfan said:

I’m fine. Just getting past being tired from our week in Maine with our kids and grandkids. 
Dick and I drive up, everyone else flew. 
it’s hard work supervising his driving, so I’m still tired. 
I had bad breathing problems when we got home…probably from trading wonderful Maine air for humid Florida air. 
I booked a bunch  from my women’s club on Allure sailing Feb 26, and invited them to pay toward their balances when they have a little extra.

That, and answering questions has kept me busy!  Really,really like herding  cats!
Don’t remember if I mentioned it, but 

ParkPortCanaveral is running a 50% off sail that expires 31 July. 
It’s good for cruises through June 2024. 
Good place to park and shuttle. It’s closest to the port. 
Thanks for thinking about me.

Trying to keep up, but I keep falling behind so I’ve mostly been skimming. 
Now that I’ve completely unpacked and found the capris I thought I left in Maine, hopefully I’ll be back running my mouth!!
First photo is my attorney granddaughter Megan, my son Scott, and me. There’s one of Dick and me at our cousin Bruce’s home. He and his wife Lee know how to make us happy! We all had all the lobster we could stuff in! And Lee made a hot crab dip with fresh picked Maine crabs that was to die for!

Then at various restaurants, we had steamers, fried whole belly clams, lobster rolls, Maine and Connecticut, and lots of scallops. 
Our daughter rented a five bedroom house in Boothbay, and it was perfect. 
Dick had mentioned two years ago it would be nice if we could rent a big house and visit Maine one more time. Everybody already had vacation plans, so it took two years to line everything up. 
The house was perfect, the dining room table seated 20, so there was room for the 12 of us to be comfortable.,and spending quality time with family was priceless!

Lovely photos Mimi @jagsfan

[Sea Dog]

So close yet so far…….

 

The knee saga continues. Met with my Knee Surgeon today after yesterdays appointment with my brothers buddy. I was due for another injection of hydraulic “Duralane” yesterday but we decided to hold off until my doctor’s appointment today.

 

Todays appointment was to see if they could schedule total knee replacement in the next couple of weeks to give me enough time rehabbing for our October 21st cruise.

 

Good news was that they had a cancellation on August 4th in a couple of weeks. This sounded perfect until I realized the day after is my station’s 75th anniversary celebration where we are inducting members into our first ever KMBC Hall of Fame. I’m on the committee and I am giving a speech for one of our recipients sportscaster Len Dawson of NFL HOF, Super Bowl 4 MVP, etc…. Even though he passed away it’s a big honor and his wife will be there to accept the honor. As much as I want to get this knee done I owe it to Len’s memory to do this speech as we were very close working together for 12 years covering the Chiefs on home and away games. Plus there we a lot of people I worked with coming in from out of town for the celebration.

 

Now it looks like I will get it replaced in early November right after our cruise. It does interfere with my holiday plans for Christmas but I will have to make due. I guess I can put out the decorations in October but I will have to scale back. The knee just can’t handle it.

 

I guess in the long run it will work out. It does give Linda more time to recover from her hand surgery and gives me enough time to get all the pre testing done and a CT scan on my knee.

 

So the plan is get an injection mid August to hopefully last through the cruise. I may be a little gimpy on the cruise but hey that’s what a “Painkiller” will do at the Soggy Dollar Bar.

 

Cheers!

[aussielozzie18]

4 hours ago, HBE4 said:

As I was typing up that last post, this picture was sent to me. Action shot proof that I was kayaking.

 

Re: Kayaking - had dinner on Monday night at my dad’s.  Dad’s kayaking friend joined us.

Richard is a mechanical engineer who built himself a blue kayak named Blue Moon.  Last December he departed Hobart Tasmania in  Blue Moon and kayaked 1767km  in 67 days to Riverton in the very south of the South Island of New Zealand.

He became the first person to paddle  solo, unassisted, non-stop between Australia and New Zealand.

 

A lovely, humble guy who did it just to encourage others to get out, be active and be adventurous.  There was no media coverage at the time, just a daily private blog that I had the pleasure of following.  He has since done talks at schools & unis and the NZ media posted a few articles once he arrived there.

 

If you are interested to see the self-righting kayak he built & paddled just google Blue Moon/Richard Barnes.

 

[aussielozzie18]

@jagsfan Lovely photos of you, your daughter and your trip.  Thanks for sharing.

[bobmacliberty]

28 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

So close yet so far…….

 

The knee saga continues. Met with my Knee Surgeon today after yesterdays appointment with my brothers buddy. I was due for another injection of hydraulic “Duralane” yesterday but we decided to hold off until my doctor’s appointment today.

 

Todays appointment was to see if they could schedule total knee replacement in the next couple of weeks to give me enough time rehabbing for our October 21st cruise.

 

Good news was that they had a cancellation on August 4th in a couple of weeks. This sounded perfect until I realized the day after is my station’s 75th anniversary celebration where we are inducting members into our first ever KMBC Hall of Fame. I’m on the committee and I am giving a speech for one of our recipients sportscaster Len Dawson of NFL HOF, Super Bowl 4 MVP, etc…. Even though he passed away it’s a big honor and his wife will be there to accept the honor. As much as I want to get this knee done I owe it to Len’s memory to do this speech as we were very close working together for 12 years covering the Chiefs on home and away games. Plus there we a lot of people I worked with coming in from out of town for the celebration.

 

Now it looks like I will get it replaced in early November right after our cruise. It does interfere with my holiday plans for Christmas but I will have to make due. I guess I can put out the decorations in October but I will have to scale back. The knee just can’t handle it.

 

I guess in the long run it will work out. It does give Linda more time to recover from her hand surgery and gives me enough time to get all the pre testing done and a CT scan on my knee.

 

So the plan is get an injection mid August to hopefully last through the cruise. I may be a little gimpy on the cruise but hey that’s what a “Painkiller” will do at the Soggy Dollar Bar.

 

Cheers!

 

Sounds like you made the difficult but correct choice.  Sorry that it couldn't have worked out better for you.  I agree with your Painkiller prescription! 

[HBE4]

31 minutes ago, aussielozzie18 said:

If you are interested to see the self-righting kayak he built & paddled just google Blue Moon/Richard Barnes.

 

67 days, wow! That's amazing.  I read his story in Men Journal, which was the first result Google returned. I guess there was no rescue or "chase" boat nearby? At least the article didn't mention it. So he was totally on his own.

 

I wonder how long it took to get his "land legs" back?

 

[Ocean Boy]

5 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

At the airport and on the plane. Feels good. 
 

 

In those economy seats again?

 

Have a great trip!

[Luckynana]

21 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

You’re welcome. As for the cruise you are a couple days early, we board on Friday. 

 

@A&L_Ont  I'll try this again, Andrew...have a great time on your cruise tomorrow!!!!  Bon Voyage!!  Happy Anniversary!!

 

20 hours ago, jmh2006 said:

  Dave, my son and I are headed to NJ/NYC Friday for the weekend to see Manchester United vs Arsenal at MetLife stadium in a preseason exhibition game on Saturday.  Manchester United is our team and this will be the fourth time seeing them in person, 2 times at University of Michigan and 1 time at Old Trafford in Manchester.  So looking forward to it!

 

Enjoy the preseason exhibition game on Saturday, Jennifer!

 

 

20 hours ago, HBE4 said:

The cabin belongs to the family of college friend #2, the one I saw every couple of years but now more frequently.  Very rustic but has electricity, fulling functioning kitchen and running water but not for drinking. That comes from a spring.  No TV, Internet or cell phone service.

 

The cabin.

 

 

What a wonderful memorable few days with your college pals, their mates and little Miss HBE4!

Jim's family used to have a nice sized cabin in Smallwood, NY,  near White Lake.  Jim spent his Summers there growing up, and our daughters did also, until the cabin was sold in the 1980's.  If I close my eyes, I can still smell the beautiful Summer air in the woods, and I have such fond memories of long walks with Jim and the girls.  

Thank you for sharing.  The pictures are great!!

[lenquixote66]

23 minutes ago, Luckynana said:

@A&L_Ont  I'll try this again, Andrew...have a great time on your cruise tomorrow!!!!  Bon Voyage!!  Happy Anniversary!!

 

 

Enjoy the preseason exhibition game on Saturday, Jennifer!

 

 

What a wonderful memorable few days with your college pals, their mates and little Miss HBE4!

Jim's family used to have a nice sized cabin in Smallwood, NY,  near White Lake.  Jim spent his Summers there growing up, and our daughters did also, until the cabin was sold in the 1980's.  If I close my eyes, I can still smell the beautiful Summer air in the woods, and I have such fond memories of long walks with Jim and the girls.  

Thank you for sharing.  The pictures are great!!

A childhood friend of mine and her husband owned a restaurant in White Lake for many years.She was the Chef .

[Luckynana]

11 hours ago, Momof3gurlz said:

I can’t imagine it either Maryann! The only reason we’re considering it is having to manage our luggage. When we arrive in Venice we’ll take  water transport into the city & walk to our hotel. Two days later we then have to get it to the train station to head to Rome.  I think the alternative will be a backpack each, one carryon that I manage and one checked bag that Andy handles.  It’ll give us a little more space.  

That would make sense, Deb.  I haven't been to Venice (thank you, Covid, for canceling our Venice cruise🫤) I forgot about how tough it is to travel in Venice with luggage.  

[h20skibum]

Last night, I took my grandson out to celebrate National Hotdog Day, and we loaded up on hotdogs while enjoying an outdoor blues concert. 
 

Today, we traveled to the White House.  

 

That box just might be filled with some delicious donuts.  Besides the donuts, we were there for something else. 
 

 

Yes, it is Pick Your Own Blueberries time. 
 

 

So we headed into the fields to pick a few.  Of course, someone had to sample some from every bush, but we eventually filled a bucket. 
 

 

So tomorrow or Saturday, some of those may find their way into a coffee cake we will make.  
 

It was a beautiful day, but right now we are getting heavy rain, high winds, etc.