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

[bobmacliberty]

8 hours ago, aussielozzie18 said:

Exciting day for Australian cruisers, with the first cruise ship arriving in Sydney after a 2 year cruise ship ban.

 

Congrats!  When does the first sail with passengers happen?  

[bobmacliberty]

12 hours ago, h20skibum said:

My assignment for the day was to create a dolphin theme fruit bowl carving for our granddaughter’s 7th birthday, and Easter. 

 

So not wanting to fail at this, I measured the circumference of the watermelon, and drew a wave template in AutoCad.  Ok, so far, so good.  The raw materials were gathered and the template placed. 

 

 

After tracing the template, it was time to cut the top off, and scoop out the melon.   Susan gave me her “are you crazy” look, when I brought the electric drill and a hole saw to the kitchen to work on it. 

 

Anyhow, this was the semi-finished product with a couple dolphins.  

 

 

Of course, by the time we got it to daughter’s house, my dolphins were starting to brown.  

 

 

It was a great party, but I found that these dolphins are much easier. 

 

 

 

 

This is absolute genius.  The result looks great!  I may steal your autocad template idea to carve other designs into a watermelon.

[Sunshine3601]

10 hours ago, Jimbo said:

Those that planted gardens all ready in the northeast, watch for frost tonight, cover up those veggies.

Glad I didn't plant yet as we had frost on our lawn this morning.   Today and tomorrow will be highs in the 50s then back to the 60s/70s.    

Plan on planting this coming weekend as long as forecast looks good for following week.

[bobmacliberty]

11 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Wow!   He's famous now @Ocean Boy

 

He's so famous now that I need to get his autograph...maybe on a little piece of paper that says something about a cure for my "glaucoma".  😉

[bobmacliberty]

I just weighed myself for the first time after returning from our Harmony cruise.  I only added 4 pounds.  I thought that damage would be worse.  Time to go for an extended walk to get the weight back down.

[aussielozzie18]

8 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

Congrats!  When does the first sail with passengers happen?  

31st May - same ship - P & O Explorer - Sydney to Brisbane - 4 Day cruise.  Considered booking it but I’ve done Syd to Bris and it doesn’t really appeal.

[Sunshine3601]

3 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

I just weighed myself for the first time after returning from our Harmony cruise.  I only added 4 pounds.  I thought that damage would be worse.  Time to go for an extended walk to get the weight back down.

Eric lost 2 pounds on our recent sailing.   I have no idea how as we all ate and drank too much!   I had my quickie diet with prep for colonscopy.

[dani negreanu]

21 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

This is absolute genius.  The result looks great!  

 

@h20skibum

 

+ 1 , Mark, such an innovative mind 👍 😁

 

[Momof3gurlz]

11 hours ago, h20skibum said:

I finished the book today.  I always preferred his Myron and Win characters better than Wilde.  I thought it was okay, and the pace picked up as the storyline developed.  
 

There were a couple things that time wise did not make sense, but it is still good escapism.

 

I just copied a book and author list from another site, and I will have to research some of them, since I am running out of authors.

I started a new series that was mentioned a while back in this thread.  It’s the Harry Starke series by Blair Howard. Ex-cop turned private investigator type thing. It started slow but it’s growing on me. Bonus - several are available for free Kindle reading with Prime.  

[Jimbo]

29 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Glad I didn't plant yet as we had frost on our lawn this morning.   Today and tomorrow will be highs in the 50s then back to the 60s/70s.    

Plan on planting this coming weekend as long as forecast looks good for following week.

Check my records last year, We had frost on May 13th, so I won't be putting anything in the grow until May 15th at  the earliest. Don't want to be like last year when I had to plant the whole garden over again. Not chancing it ! 😞

[Momof3gurlz]

I’ve been m.i.a. for several days, just doing the seasonal switchover of clothes and getting ready for Easter dinner.  Plus making sure I’ve covered all the bases with the recent fraudulent tax return using my info. I went to both of the banks we use on Thursday to notify them and see what needs to be done.  They were very unconcerned, stating this happens frequently and really nothing for them to do since I’ve already done the notifications.  
Also wanted to mention to Andrew @A&L_Ontthat it looks like booking is open at Margaritaville Hollywood FL for the pre Bella cruise dates.  We’re trying to decide if we’ll do 3/10 & 11 or just 3/11 the night before the cruise, because it’s pricey. 
 

[h20skibum]

1 hour ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Glad I didn't plant yet as we had frost on our lawn this morning.   

It is even colder on our end of the state.  I came home after the party last night, and dumped the ice cubes out of my cooler and on to the driveway.  There is still a pile of ice there this morning, and we have snow forecast for this afternoon.  We are supposed to hit the upper 70’s by the weekend.

 

[dani negreanu]

12 hours ago, h20skibum said:

I finished the book today.  I always preferred his Myron and Win characters better than Wilde.  I thought it was okay, and the pace picked up as the storyline developed.  
 

There were a couple things that time wise did not make sense, but it is still good escapism.

 

I just copied a book and author list from another site, and I will have to research some of them, since I am running out of authors.

 

Mark, if you're referring to the list so graciously compiled by Joanie ( @GeorgiaPeach51), I'm adding the Inspector Troy series by John Lawton, and Roderick Alleyn's series by Ngaio Marsh.

 

Georges Simenon Series 

Gideon Oliver -Aaron  Elkins  series 

Louise Penny’s Gamache series.

Dorothy L. Sayers Lord Peter Wimsey series

Any books by Josephine Tey

Barbara Hambly - Benjamin January series, if you like historical mysteries!

JD Robb books and Robert B Parker

The Scarapetta series by Patricia Cornwell 

MC Beaton books

Elizabeth George’s Inspector Lynley Series. 

Donna Leon’s Brunetti series. 

Any books by Tana French

Any books by P. D. James.  

Greg Isles, a writer from Natchez, MS.

Snowblind” by Ragnar Jonasson.  (Book 1 of 6 - DarkIceland)

Cork O’Connor series by William Kent Krueger.  Also non-series books.

Brad Thor

JK Rowling (author of Harry Potter series), writing under the name Robert Galbraith -- the Cormoran Strike series.

* Andrea Camilleri -- the Inspector Montalbano series.

* Helen Fields -- the Perfect series.

 Karin Slaughter -- the Will Trent series

Daniel Silva - Gabriel Allon series

James Crumley —should be read in order

Winston Graham—Poldark series

Janet Evanovich—Stephanie Plum series.  Fox and Hare series.

Anything by Tim Dorsey or Carl Hiassen 

Old Archie comic books and Mad Magazine. 🙂

Ian Rankin’s Rebus series

Peter Robinson’s DCI Banks series

Nevada Barr’s National Parks series

Anything by Anne Cleeves

Richard Jury series by Martha Grimes - current times

Thomas Pitt series by Anne Perry - Victorian era

 (and if you are planning a trip to Egypt check out the

Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters)

Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City.  4 books.

The Longmire books by Craig Johnson.  Also suggest the fantastic series on Netflix.

David McCullough 'Path Between the Seas' (Panama Canal)

Caroline Graham Inspector Barnaby series. 

John Sandford , the Prey series and the Virgil Flowers series

Any books by Harlan Coben

Khalid Hosseini, A Thousand Splendid Suns

Cupcake Brown, A Piece of Cake

Andy Weir, “not science fiction but science plausibility”

Danelle Harmon Series

Caleb Carr -  The Alienist.

[Sunshine3601]

35 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

Check my records last year, We had frost on May 13th, so I won't be putting anything in the grow until May 15th at  the earliest. Don't want to be like last year when I had to plant the whole garden over again. Not chancing it ! 😞

In 2021 our last frost was April 22nd.

For now I will monitor and continue to harden my seedlings everyday.

That would be horrible to have all my babies die if planted too earlier.

[h20skibum]

7 minutes ago, dani negreanu said:

Mark, if you're referring to the list so graciously compiled by Joanie ( @GeorgiaPeach51), I'm adding the Inspector Troy series by John Lawton, and Roderick Alleyn's series by Ngaio Marsh.

That is the one, thank you.  
 

I am reading one of the Brad Thor books that I downloaded from our library.  
 

I have a new John Sandford book and a new CJ Box book on reserve at the library, so needed something to read while waiting for those. 

Edited April 18, 2022 by h20skibum

[Jimbo]

Rain/Sleet and Ice on our deck right now and some big flakes if snow every now and then

Edited April 18, 2022 by Jimbo

[Sunshine3601]

14 minutes ago, h20skibum said:

It is even colder on our end of the state.  I came home after the party last night, and dumped the ice cubes out of my cooler and on to the driveway.  There is still a pile of ice there this morning, and we have snow forecast for this afternoon.  We are supposed to hit the upper 70’s by the weekend.

 

Snow...uggh!   The only good thing with April snow is it won't last long.

[Sea Dog]

13 hours ago, h20skibum said:

My assignment for the day was to create a dolphin theme fruit bowl carving 

 

 

 

 

Wow that is fantastic Mark! 

 

 

1 hour ago, bobmacliberty said:

I just weighed myself for the first time after returning from our Harmony cruise.  I only added 4 pounds.  I thought that damage would be worse.  Time to go for an extended walk to get the weight back down.

 

That's awesome. My last cruise I gained 6 pounds. Really trying to exercise and lose weight for my next 3 cruises.

 

 

[DaniDanielle]

47 minutes ago, dani negreanu said:

 

Mark, if you're referring to the list so graciously compiled by Joanie ( @GeorgiaPeach51), I'm adding the Inspector Troy series by John Lawton, and Roderick Alleyn's series by Ngaio Marsh.

 

Georges Simenon Series 

Gideon Oliver -Aaron  Elkins  series 

Louise Penny’s Gamache series.

Dorothy L. Sayers Lord Peter Wimsey series

Any books by Josephine Tey

Barbara Hambly - Benjamin January series, if you like historical mysteries!

JD Robb books and Robert B Parker

The Scarapetta series by Patricia Cornwell 

MC Beaton books

Elizabeth George’s Inspector Lynley Series. 

Donna Leon’s Brunetti series. 

Any books by Tana French

Any books by P. D. James.  

Greg Isles, a writer from Natchez, MS.

Snowblind” by Ragnar Jonasson.  (Book 1 of 6 - DarkIceland)

Cork O’Connor series by William Kent Krueger.  Also non-series books.

Brad Thor

JK Rowling (author of Harry Potter series), writing under the name Robert Galbraith -- the Cormoran Strike series.

* Andrea Camilleri -- the Inspector Montalbano series.

* Helen Fields -- the Perfect series.

 Karin Slaughter -- the Will Trent series

Daniel Silva - Gabriel Allon series

James Crumley —should be read in order

Winston Graham—Poldark series

Janet Evanovich—Stephanie Plum series.  Fox and Hare series.

Anything by Tim Dorsey or Carl Hiassen 

Old Archie comic books and Mad Magazine. 🙂

Ian Rankin’s Rebus series

Peter Robinson’s DCI Banks series

Nevada Barr’s National Parks series

Anything by Anne Cleeves

Richard Jury series by Martha Grimes - current times

Thomas Pitt series by Anne Perry - Victorian era

 (and if you are planning a trip to Egypt check out the

Amelia Peabody series by Elizabeth Peters)

Armistead Maupin's Tales of the City.  4 books.

The Longmire books by Craig Johnson.  Also suggest the fantastic series on Netflix.

David McCullough 'Path Between the Seas' (Panama Canal)

Caroline Graham Inspector Barnaby series. 

John Sandford , the Prey series and the Virgil Flowers series

Any books by Harlan Coben

Khalid Hosseini, A Thousand Splendid Suns

Cupcake Brown, A Piece of Cake

Andy Weir, “not science fiction but science plausibility”

Danelle Harmon Series

Caleb Carr -  The Alienist.

Stephanie Plum books make me laugh out loud!  Lula is the best😁

[Sunshine3601]

44 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

Rain/Sleet and Ice on our deck right now and some big flakes if snow every now and then

Yuck!  Bright and sunny morning but only 45 now expect scattered rain showers later.

What planting zone are you?

[BonTexasNY]

1 hour ago, Sunshine3601 said:

In 2021 our last frost was April 22nd.

For now I will monitor and continue to harden my seedlings everyday.

That would be horrible to have all my babies die if planted too earlier.

When I planted veggies in NY, I never planted in April.  Once flying into Kennedy airport in April, there was snow on the ground.

19 minutes ago, DaniDanielle said:

Stephanie Plum books make me laugh out loud!  Lula is the best😁

I once was reading a Plum book in my work cafe during my  lunch break.  I kept laughing out loud so much people were staring at me.  Hard to eat while laughing! Oh, that Lula!

Edited April 18, 2022 by BonTexasNY

[Jimbo]

12 minutes ago, Sunshine3601 said:

Yuck!  Bright and sunny morning but only 45 now expect scattered rain showers later.

What planting zone are you?

No idea.. zipcode is 24324

[BonTexasNY]

@dani negreanuDani, thank you for the list.  I saved it and will research since I haven't heard of many on the list.

[HBE4]

17 hours ago, jagsfan said:

Even though we don’t see you often, we still think about you and your wife. 
How blessed you are with your stepdaughter!!

 

It is indeed a blessing.   When I picked her up from  Houston - in addition to the situation with her mom - she faced several other crises on a professional & personal level. I was determine to create a "safe space" for her where she could find peace, clear her mind & hit the reset button on her life to move forward. Little did I know I was doing the same for me as well.

 

15 hours ago, BonTexasNY said:

Although you might not post often, you are thought of by many in here with affection.  Count me among them.  You're my Rockland County connection!!

 

So glad your stepdaughter decided to stay.  I'm sure Easter dinner was delicious.

 

Thank you.  The food was delicious and the presentation was amazing. Worthy of a HGTV program. Unfortunately, I was to busy basking in the warmth of love from my sisters, nephew & niece - all from Rockland County - to snap any pictures.

Edited April 18, 2022 by HBE4

[akcruz]

36 minutes ago, HBE4 said:

 

It is indeed a blessing.   When I picked her up from  Houston - in addition to the situation with her mom - she faced several other crises on a professional & personal level. I was determine to create a "safe space" for her where she could find peace, clear her mind & hit the reset button on her life to move forward. Little did I know I was doing the same for me as well.

 

 

Thank you.  The food was delicious and the presentation was amazing. Worthy of a HGTV program. Unfortunately, I was to busy basking in the warmth of love from my sisters, nephew & niece - all from Rockland County - to snap any pictures.

 

We really do need a ❤ button here on CC.  Glad to hear you are able to enjoy some good times and create some happy memories.