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

[sgmn]

11 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

Good morning.

It is 33°F and snowing.

Currently there is at least 2 inches of snow on my car.

I hope everyone is safe and well.

Prayers 🙏 for our lovely friend Dani @dani negreanu and all of her family and friends for peace and happiness.

Post pics Graham, love snow. Hubby loves it too but he spent his  formative youth in Winnipeg in the 60s and 70s so he's use to having to dig his way out of his front door 

[grapau27]

14 minutes ago, sgmn said:

Post pics Graham, love snow. Hubby loves it too but he spent his  formative youth in Winnipeg in the 60s and 70s so he's use to having to dig his way out of his front door 

 

[aussielozzie18]

6 hours ago, jagsfan said:

In the US, it’s a cul-de-sac (borrowed from the French) or a dead end, which is purely American 

I grew up in a cul-de-sac.  We referred to it sometimes as a cul-de-sac and sometimes a dead end.  

[aussielozzie18]

We had a wild lightning storm come through on Saturday night. Dad was looking out the kitchen windows to watch the lightning, when he suddenly realised his ladies of the night were flowering again (bit out of focus but gives you an idea of how many he has)

Three more flowered tonight

 

 

 

[h20skibum]

I finally got caught up on this thread.  I was preoccupied last week because of things going on.

 

It started on Monday.  We watched our grandkids, because they had the day off from school. Our daughter was at Cleveland Clinic to have a day filled with many tests.   After all the chemo and radiation, she finally completed her eight cycles of oral chemo last month.  It was a long day, and before she got home, she already had some results that they found a spot on her lung and liver that needed further evaluation.  Monday is a sleepless night. 

 

They checked around, and the Cleveland Clinic in Canton, Ohio would be able to do the additional testing on Wednesday.   Tuesday, they call and tell her that they didn’t think insurance would cover the test.  Ok, we give her 5k to pay for the testing and have her keep the appointment. Tuesday is another sleepless night. 

 

Wednesday, I drive her to Canton.  Prep and testing did not go as smoothly as it should have, but they finally got going with it around 5pm.  Drive back to Pennsylvania, and it was another sleepless night for everyone. 

 

Thursday morning, and Susan and I were already talking about canceling our cruise in two weeks, depending on the results.  Thursday afternoon, the call comes. I am glad they prefaced their call with “It’s good news!”  No sign of cancer.

 

You can’t imagine the weight that was immediately lifted from our shoulders when we heard that news.   I know many of our friends here said a prayer for her and her family over the past couple years, and I thank you all for that.  I guess you could say that this is our Christmas miracle.  

[grapau27]

18 minutes ago, h20skibum said:

I finally got caught up on this thread.  I was preoccupied last week because of things going on.

 

It started on Monday.  We watched our grandkids, because they had the day off from school. Our daughter was at Cleveland Clinic to have a day filled with many tests.   After all the chemo and radiation, she finally completed her eight cycles of oral chemo last month.  It was a long day, and before she got home, she already had some results that they found a spot on her lung and liver that needed further evaluation.  Monday is a sleepless night. 

 

They checked around, and the Cleveland Clinic in Canton, Ohio would be able to do the additional testing on Wednesday.   Tuesday, they call and tell her that they didn’t think insurance would cover the test.  Ok, we give her 5k to pay for the testing and have her keep the appointment. Tuesday is another sleepless night. 

 

Wednesday, I drive her to Canton.  Prep and testing did not go as smoothly as it should have, but they finally got going with it around 5pm.  Drive back to Pennsylvania, and it was another sleepless night for everyone. 

 

Thursday morning, and Susan and I were already talking about canceling our cruise in two weeks, depending on the results.  Thursday afternoon, the call comes. I am glad they prefaced their call with “It’s good news!”  No sign of cancer.

 

You can’t imagine the weight that was immediately lifted from our shoulders when we heard that news.   I know many of our friends here said a prayer for her and her family over the past couple years, and I thank you all for that.  I guess you could say that this is our Christmas miracle.  

For your dear daughter.

[dani negreanu]

1 hour ago, h20skibum said:

No sign of cancer.

 

Mark, you brightened my day 🙏

 

Your daughter and John ( @Ozark_Kid) are always in my thoughts.

 

As a big bonus, glad ALL your approaching holidays plans are going ahead 😘

[Ourusualbeach]

A couple of miles north of me this guy escaped from the zoo and is successfully eluding those trying to find him.  Not everyday you can drive down the road and see a kangaroo in Canada.

 

https://www.google.com/search?q=kangaroo+on+the+loose+oshawa&sca_esv=587464862&rlz=1C1RXQR_enCA975CA975&tbm=vid&sxsrf=AM9HkKkx4jN7B5iWwt7lefDVruNPWQYemw:1701608828179&source=lnms&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwih9P_tqvOCAxVrFTQIHRK1BhMQ_AUoA3oECAUQBQ&biw=1243&bih=722&dpr=2.2#fpstate=ive&vld=cid:fb925106,vid:RSav8TL2r98,st:0

[aussielozzie18]

@h20skibum Wonderful news regarding your daughter and a big relief.  May she stay cancer free for a very long time.

[derorim]

2 hours ago, aussielozzie18 said:

We had a wild lightning storm come through on Saturday night. Dad was looking out the kitchen windows to watch the lightning, when he suddenly realised his ladies of the night were flowering again (bit out of focus but gives you an idea of how many he has)

Three more flowered tonight

 

I always enjoy seeing your pictures of your dad's night blooming cereus.  I'm glad he decided to take a look out the window at the lightning and see his were in bloom.   It's nice that his plants can live outdoors year-round and he can clip them to the wall so neatly.  I have to bring ours in before it starts to freeze.  We store my plant as well as a friend's two plants on a shelf in our garage in the winter.  It never freezes in there.  They go without watering for about 3 months, then we take them down in the spring.  It's a real pain because the plants have become rather gangly and hard to fit on the high shelf without damaging them.  This spring I'm going to cut mine back, even if it means it won't bloom for another year since the blooms won't occur the first year on new growth.  I'll probably repot it and stick the cuttings in the soil.  It's such a homely plant, but the flowers are spectacular. This year I invited a group of friends to come over to watch it bloom.  We sat around drinking wine and then around 9 pm the show started.  It was a lot of fun, as they had never see one before.  

[derorim]

@h20skibum I'm sorry for the stress your family had to endure last week.  It's unfortunate that insurance did not want to pay for the test she needed, but I'm glad you were able to help her with getting it done.  I'm happy to hear the results were good and that everyone can breathe a sigh of relief and enjoy the "Christmas miracle." 

[aussielozzie18]

4 minutes ago, derorim said:

 

I always enjoy seeing your pictures of your dad's night blooming cereus.  I'm glad he decided to take a look out the window at the lightning and see his were in bloom.   It's nice that his plants can live outdoors year-round and he can clip them to the wall so neatly.  I have to bring ours in before it starts to freeze.  We store my plant as well as a friend's two plants on a shelf in our garage in the winter.  It never freezes in there.  They go without watering for about 3 months, then we take them down in the spring.  It's a real pain because the plants have become rather gangly and hard to fit on the high shelf without damaging them.  This spring I'm going to cut mine back, even if it means it won't bloom for another year since the blooms won't occur the first year on new growth.  I'll probably repot it and stick the cuttings in the soil.  It's such a homely plant, but the flowers are spectacular. This year I invited a group of friends to come over to watch it bloom.  We sat around drinking wine and then around 9 pm the show started.  It was a lot of fun, as they had never see one before.  

Homely is a good word for them when not flowering.  The special care you have to give them in your climate clearly pays off.  Love the idea of a watch party.  

[ReneeFLL]

It's 8:40 am and there's a line of people waiting to get on the ship. Why oh why? 🙄 People are still getting off.

[bobmacliberty]

2 hours ago, h20skibum said:

I finally got caught up on this thread.  I was preoccupied last week because of things going on.

 

It started on Monday.  We watched our grandkids, because they had the day off from school. Our daughter was at Cleveland Clinic to have a day filled with many tests.   After all the chemo and radiation, she finally completed her eight cycles of oral chemo last month.  It was a long day, and before she got home, she already had some results that they found a spot on her lung and liver that needed further evaluation.  Monday is a sleepless night. 

 

They checked around, and the Cleveland Clinic in Canton, Ohio would be able to do the additional testing on Wednesday.   Tuesday, they call and tell her that they didn’t think insurance would cover the test.  Ok, we give her 5k to pay for the testing and have her keep the appointment. Tuesday is another sleepless night. 

 

Wednesday, I drive her to Canton.  Prep and testing did not go as smoothly as it should have, but they finally got going with it around 5pm.  Drive back to Pennsylvania, and it was another sleepless night for everyone. 

 

Thursday morning, and Susan and I were already talking about canceling our cruise in two weeks, depending on the results.  Thursday afternoon, the call comes. I am glad they prefaced their call with “It’s good news!”  No sign of cancer.

 

You can’t imagine the weight that was immediately lifted from our shoulders when we heard that news.   I know many of our friends here said a prayer for her and her family over the past couple years, and I thank you all for that.  I guess you could say that this is our Christmas miracle.  

 

What great news Mark!  I'm sure the relief after all of that stress is tremendous.  Enjoy your cruise!

[bobmacliberty]

16 hours ago, Lionesss said:

Driving to Oxford Ohio. 
 

PARTY!!!!!!!!

 

Congratulations to your daughter and SIL!  I've been to Oxford a few times.  It's pretty easy to party there. 😁

[ValerieJo]

@h20skibum  So glad to hear the test results had a positive outcome.  Sending continued prayers to your family. 

[DeltaOne]

17 hours ago, Jimbo said:

Found it here too.

 

Add family members

1. Sign in to YouTube TV.
2. Select your profile photo > Settings > Family sharing .
3. Select Set up.
4. Type the email address or phone number of the person who you want to invite.
5. Select Send. You'll receive an email notification when someone joins your family.

 

One of the strange things about YTTV is some changes are better made on a certain device, some changes can only be made on a certain device.  

 

For example, it's much easier to create a custom channel grid on a computer using a web browser.  It's much easier to mark shows in the library as watched on a smartphone (works okay in a web browser too).  

 

I'm kind of obsessive with the New Shows in the library.  YTTV is great at recording everything, I spend a few minutes each morning and evening clearing the library of things we've already seen.

 

[A&L_Ont]

3 hours ago, h20skibum said:

I finally got caught up on this thread.  I was preoccupied last week because of things going on.

 

It started on Monday.  We watched our grandkids, because they had the day off from school. Our daughter was at Cleveland Clinic to have a day filled with many tests.   After all the chemo and radiation, she finally completed her eight cycles of oral chemo last month.  It was a long day, and before she got home, she already had some results that they found a spot on her lung and liver that needed further evaluation.  Monday is a sleepless night. 

 

They checked around, and the Cleveland Clinic in Canton, Ohio would be able to do the additional testing on Wednesday.   Tuesday, they call and tell her that they didn’t think insurance would cover the test.  Ok, we give her 5k to pay for the testing and have her keep the appointment. Tuesday is another sleepless night. 

 

Wednesday, I drive her to Canton.  Prep and testing did not go as smoothly as it should have, but they finally got going with it around 5pm.  Drive back to Pennsylvania, and it was another sleepless night for everyone. 

 

Thursday morning, and Susan and I were already talking about canceling our cruise in two weeks, depending on the results.  Thursday afternoon, the call comes. I am glad they prefaced their call with “It’s good news!”  No sign of cancer.

 

You can’t imagine the weight that was immediately lifted from our shoulders when we heard that news.   I know many of our friends here said a prayer for her and her family over the past couple years, and I thank you all for that.  I guess you could say that this is our Christmas miracle.  

This is amazing news. ❤️

[Momof3gurlz]

3 hours ago, h20skibum said:

I finally got caught up on this thread.  I was preoccupied last week because of things going on.

 

It started on Monday.  We watched our grandkids, because they had the day off from school. Our daughter was at Cleveland Clinic to have a day filled with many tests.   After all the chemo and radiation, she finally completed her eight cycles of oral chemo last month.  It was a long day, and before she got home, she already had some results that they found a spot on her lung and liver that needed further evaluation.  Monday is a sleepless night. 

 

They checked around, and the Cleveland Clinic in Canton, Ohio would be able to do the additional testing on Wednesday.   Tuesday, they call and tell her that they didn’t think insurance would cover the test.  Ok, we give her 5k to pay for the testing and have her keep the appointment. Tuesday is another sleepless night. 

 

Wednesday, I drive her to Canton.  Prep and testing did not go as smoothly as it should have, but they finally got going with it around 5pm.  Drive back to Pennsylvania, and it was another sleepless night for everyone. 

 

Thursday morning, and Susan and I were already talking about canceling our cruise in two weeks, depending on the results.  Thursday afternoon, the call comes. I am glad they prefaced their call with “It’s good news!”  No sign of cancer.

 

You can’t imagine the weight that was immediately lifted from our shoulders when we heard that news.   I know many of our friends here said a prayer for her and her family over the past couple years, and I thank you all for that.  I guess you could say that this is our Christmas miracle.  

Wonderful news Mark!  Now you can all truly enjoy the holidays and your upcoming trip. 

[akcruz]

3 hours ago, h20skibum said:

I finally got caught up on this thread.  I was preoccupied last week because of things going on.

 

It started on Monday.  We watched our grandkids, because they had the day off from school. Our daughter was at Cleveland Clinic to have a day filled with many tests.   After all the chemo and radiation, she finally completed her eight cycles of oral chemo last month.  It was a long day, and before she got home, she already had some results that they found a spot on her lung and liver that needed further evaluation.  Monday is a sleepless night. 

 

They checked around, and the Cleveland Clinic in Canton, Ohio would be able to do the additional testing on Wednesday.   Tuesday, they call and tell her that they didn’t think insurance would cover the test.  Ok, we give her 5k to pay for the testing and have her keep the appointment. Tuesday is another sleepless night. 

 

Wednesday, I drive her to Canton.  Prep and testing did not go as smoothly as it should have, but they finally got going with it around 5pm.  Drive back to Pennsylvania, and it was another sleepless night for everyone. 

 

Thursday morning, and Susan and I were already talking about canceling our cruise in two weeks, depending on the results.  Thursday afternoon, the call comes. I am glad they prefaced their call with “It’s good news!”  No sign of cancer.

 

You can’t imagine the weight that was immediately lifted from our shoulders when we heard that news.   I know many of our friends here said a prayer for her and her family over the past couple years, and I thank you all for that.  I guess you could say that this is our Christmas miracle.  

 

Woo hoo🎉.  You had me nervous there for a bit, I can imagine how stressful that would be, glad to hear all is good. Enjoy your cruise!

[Sea Dog]

3 hours ago, h20skibum said:

I finally got caught up on this thread.  I was preoccupied last week because of things going on.

 

It started on Monday.  We watched our grandkids, because they had the day off from school. Our daughter was at Cleveland Clinic to have a day filled with many tests.   After all the chemo and radiation, she finally completed her eight cycles of oral chemo last month.  It was a long day, and before she got home, she already had some results that they found a spot on her lung and liver that needed further evaluation.  Monday is a sleepless night. 

 

They checked around, and the Cleveland Clinic in Canton, Ohio would be able to do the additional testing on Wednesday.   Tuesday, they call and tell her that they didn’t think insurance would cover the test.  Ok, we give her 5k to pay for the testing and have her keep the appointment. Tuesday is another sleepless night. 

 

Wednesday, I drive her to Canton.  Prep and testing did not go as smoothly as it should have, but they finally got going with it around 5pm.  Drive back to Pennsylvania, and it was another sleepless night for everyone. 

 

Thursday morning, and Susan and I were already talking about canceling our cruise in two weeks, depending on the results.  Thursday afternoon, the call comes. I am glad they prefaced their call with “It’s good news!”  No sign of cancer.

 

You can’t imagine the weight that was immediately lifted from our shoulders when we heard that news.   I know many of our friends here said a prayer for her and her family over the past couple years, and I thank you all for that.  I guess you could say that this is our Christmas miracle.  

Wonderful news Mark! I’m so happy for your daughter and your family. My wish is for her to continue to get stronger. And remain cancer free. Thank you for sharing your life with us. We love you!

[Ocean Boy]

3 hours ago, h20skibum said:

I finally got caught up on this thread.  I was preoccupied last week because of things going on.

 

It started on Monday.  We watched our grandkids, because they had the day off from school. Our daughter was at Cleveland Clinic to have a day filled with many tests.   After all the chemo and radiation, she finally completed her eight cycles of oral chemo last month.  It was a long day, and before she got home, she already had some results that they found a spot on her lung and liver that needed further evaluation.  Monday is a sleepless night. 

 

They checked around, and the Cleveland Clinic in Canton, Ohio would be able to do the additional testing on Wednesday.   Tuesday, they call and tell her that they didn’t think insurance would cover the test.  Ok, we give her 5k to pay for the testing and have her keep the appointment. Tuesday is another sleepless night. 

 

Wednesday, I drive her to Canton.  Prep and testing did not go as smoothly as it should have, but they finally got going with it around 5pm.  Drive back to Pennsylvania, and it was another sleepless night for everyone. 

 

Thursday morning, and Susan and I were already talking about canceling our cruise in two weeks, depending on the results.  Thursday afternoon, the call comes. I am glad they prefaced their call with “It’s good news!”  No sign of cancer.

 

You can’t imagine the weight that was immediately lifted from our shoulders when we heard that news.   I know many of our friends here said a prayer for her and her family over the past couple years, and I thank you all for that.  I guess you could say that this is our Christmas miracle.  

That is great news. I also find it disgusting that insurance companies leave people hanging in the breeze at times when people need them most. I see this over and over again.

[jmh2006]

@h20skibum  So happy for that bit of good news Mark!  I was holding my breathe as I was reading it which is only a fraction of the feelings you and your family had last week.  Blessings to you all!

[Ocean Boy]

1 hour ago, ReneeFLL said:

It's 8:40 am and there's a line of people waiting to get on the ship. Why oh why? 🙄 People are still getting off.

I've been know to be in that early lineup from time to time.😊

[helen haywood]

When the vet called with the results of Minnie’s surgery to remove the lump on her head…her first words to me were “It’s the best possible news!”  I was elated and relieved.  For about two seconds.  Then she said “Well, for a malignant fibrosarcoma it is great news.”  😢  She meant it was great that I’d found it so early (too small for a biopsy) and she’d gotten clear margins.  
 

Returned yesterday afternoon from a cruise on Apex.  The girls are exhausted from all the exuberant welcome home purrs and rubs they gave us.