The Daily for Friday August 06, 2021

[durangoscots]

Noon here. I have been up, but busy with phone calls and getting Home Depot settled (Finally!!! I hope). I seem to have finally found a real person who understands the problem and seems to be getting it resolved.

 

Have been to Albany on the QE2. Did not see much of the town but liked what I saw. The entire ship seemed to come down with a horrible, hacking cough and we descended on the local pharmacy. The ship's shuttle dropped us all off at the front door. I got meds and went back to the ship to suffer in my room. It was the final world cruise and fortunately most of us seemed to shake the thing in a few days, but there were still sporadic coughs all the way back to the U.S.

 

Sorry to hear of a sad ending to the Alaska cruise. I have looked at that tour, but was always too chicken to take it.

 

Funny story from our shelter. A few days ago a man gave up two Macaws. They looked to be very handsome birds, but looked in poor shape as they had been under stress and were pulling out their breast feathers. Beaks were too long and needed trimming and they were really subdued. Evidently they belonged to his wife and she is ill and can not care for them. We made a vet appointment with a local vet who specializes in birds and yesterday we hauled them in. They did not want to be examined and so Dr. H. tossed a light cloth over  the male so he could get hold of him. From under under the cloth we heard a distinct little voice say "Oh S**t". Wonder what else those birds say. Turns out both birds are healthy and we have arranged for them to go to a sanctuary in Arizona. Today they are much happier, bouncing about and seemingly enjoying interaction with the staff. They are still not talking though. We will miss them when the go.

 

Roy, I think you can remove our shelter director from the care list. He is hopefully coming off as frequent dialysis. He has a long road ahead facing possible surgery but that is all down the road. We do miss him.

 

Susan

Edited August 6, 2021 by durangoscots
typos

[irishjim]

1 hour ago, irishjim said:

Wishing you both a very Happy 40th wedding and lots more.JIM.

 

[rafinmd]

1 hour ago, JazzyV said:

tay safe all. Our numbers continue to go up. Now about 200 new cases a day (I don't know the breakdown of unvaccinated to vaccinated). So mask up indoors with strangers!

 

Is that for your county or your statr?

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

16 minutes ago, durangoscots said:

Funny story from our shelter. A few days ago a man gave up two Macaws. They looked to be very handsome birds, but looked in poor shape as they had been under stress and were pulling out their breast feathers. Beaks were too long and needed trimming and they were really subdued. Evidently they belonged to his wife and she is ill and can not care for them. We made a vet appointment with a local vet who specializes in birds and yesterday we hauled them in. They did not want to be examined and so Dr. H. tossed a light cloth over  the male so he could get hold of him. From under under the cloth we heard a distinct little voice say "Oh S**t". Wonder what else those birds say. Turns out both birds are healthy and we have arranged for them to go to a sanctuary in Arizona. Today they are much happier, bouncing about and seemingly enjoying interaction with the staff. They are still not talking though. We will miss them when the go.

 

Roy, I think you can remove our shelter director from the care list. He is hopefully coming off as frequent dialysis. He has a long road ahead facing possible surgery but that is all down the road. We do miss him.

 

Susan

 

Like many on here, we watch Dr. Pol, and have seen him handling macaws, but none were as colorful vocally as the one you have at the shelter.  Are they scarlet macaws, or one of the other colors?  Glad you found a good home for them in Arizona.

 

I was lucky to see a pair of scarlet macasws take flight, circle our bus and land back in their tree.  Beautiful birds.

 

Glad you Shelter Directore is better and may not need dialysis as often.  Hope he can avoid surgery.

 

Lenda

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

@atexsix  Bruno, I hope you found a place to get the covid test. 

 

According to our local weekly newpaper, our county has asked the state for money to open a testing center as our county case numbers are climbing.  Texas is not doing well as far as the number of people vaccinated.

 

Lenda

[Crazy For Cats]

Good Morning, we finally had breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill.  Service and food were on point.  The billing issue has been resolved.  I was also able to get our five star pins.  We should have received them on the cancelled Zuiderdam 2020 cruise.

We  just watched “Origin Story”.  It’s the history of Holland America.  I thought that it was well done and worthwhile to attend.  I highly recommend.

 

 

[Vict0riann]

1 hour ago, kazu said:

 

I don’t blame her for wanting to protect her dahlias 👍 

I don’t think I have seen this before - Looking forward to your pic when it’s assembled!

 

I found a pic on line - I told her it might be useful at Halloween.

 

[Sharon in AZ]

3 hours ago, cat shepard said:

Yesterday’s tragic events made me think about it again. Nothing can lessen the grief of a loved one’s passing. But there are facts that can help one through the pain - such as someone passing doing something one loves to do, or doing something that gives that person joy. That is what I hope for me. I want people to be able to find some modicum of comfort knowing that I was enjoying this world and my life when I passed. I may not get what I want, but I am hoping I do. Sorry, but had to share this with the family. 
 

Well said Ann!

[atexsix]

18 minutes ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

@atexsix  Bruno, I hope you found a place to get the covid test. 

 

According to our local weekly newpaper, our county has asked the state for money to open a testing center as our county case numbers are climbing.  Texas is not doing well as far as the number of people vaccinated.

 

Lenda

I think I found a place, the same one everybody else is using, one of those covid clinics, but it's very expensive, however it's the most promising.  But I'm going to continue to search for a Plan B. 

 

It's becoming laughable, taking longer to get this researched than the vaccine itself back in March.

[grapau27]

43 minutes ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

Good afternoon.  I'm very late today, although I have been reading the daily.  It is just a very lazy day for both of us.

 

I'm still trying to take in the plane crash and loss of life yesterday in Ketchikan.  We did the Misty Fjords flight a few years ago, but not throught the ship.  The scenery was beautiful, but we will not repeat it.  I think there are more near misses than we realize, and our flight was one of those.  It was a misty day, and the mist cleared just in the nick of time for the pilot to turn and pull before we hit the mountain.  DH said we were seconds away form a bad end.  

 

Hiroshima is an important part of world history and we should remember all it stands for.  Fresh breath is good.  Like @kazu, Jacqui, I live in my Berkenstocks unless I absolutely have to put on closed toed shoes, which is rarely.  So I wiggle my toes a lot.

 

The Carl Sandburg quote is very appropriate today, and we can celebrate it with Miss Camilla.

 

Catfish is big in Texas, but it usually fried, which is not my favorite way to cook it.  It has been a few years since we've had catfish, which I cook in the George Foreman seasoned with Creole seasoning.

 

I will defintely pass on the drink, but the wine sounds good.

 

We have not been to Albany, Australia, but I have been to Albany, TX.  I guess that doesn't count. 😃

 

Good news that the PNW is getting moisture in any form.  Hope there is more to follow.

 

@msmayor I'll add my welcome to the Daily.  It is the friendliest, most supportive, happiest place on CC.

@StLouisCruisers  Sandi, thanks for the picture of Albany.

@grapau27  Your sunroom looks so relaxing.

@kazu  Your flowers are lovely.

@ger_77  Gerry, I'm glad your friend came through the surgery and that they did not remove her sense of humor and wit.  Here's to a speedy recovery.

@aliaschief  Hope your flight was safe and uneventful.  Have a great cruise and enjoy your Neptune Suite.

@bennybear  Thank you for the pictures of Hiroshima.  I was going to post some, but mine would be repeats.  

 

In 2005, we took a cruise on Pacific Princess that visited the islands of the Pacific Theater to commemorate the 60th anniversary of the end of WWII.  One stop was Saipan, and DH and I, along with one other passenger, flew to Tinian where we rented a car and drove around the island.  The north end of the island is administer by the NPS as a historic site, and two of the four runways are kept clear.  

 

A view of the four runways from our plane.  The two that were used for Hiiroshima are the ones that are being kept clear.  A lot of the area is being reclaimed by nature, but still worth a visit.

 

The ground view of runway Able

 

One of the monuments dedicated to the 509th Bomb Wing of which the Enola Gay and Bockscar and their crews belonged.  Tibbets name the Enola Gay for his mother, and Bockscar was named for Frederick Bock, the pilot.

 

The bombs were so heavy, in order to load them on the B-29s, the soldiers needed to dig pits, the bombs were placed in the pits, then planes were taxied over the pits.  The bombs were raised into position by a hydraulic piston.

 

The pits are protected by a plexiglass cover.

 

The time spent there was very interesting, informative and sobering.

 

Ledna

 

Thank you.

Great photos and interesting story of Hiroshima.

You certainly  had a very lucky escape with your float plane tour.

It is a frightening thought.

Take care and stay safe.

Graham.

[JazzyV]

27 minutes ago, rafinmd said:

Is that for your county or your statr?

That's for my county. 2 weeks ago it was about 25 cases a day, then a few days ago 100 per day, now about 200 per day. The state is currently averaging about 1500 cases a day.

[grapau27]

1 hour ago, irishjim said:

Wishing you both a very Happy 40th wedding and lots more.

Thank you so much Jim.

Graham.

[durangoscots]

30 minutes ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

 

Like many on here, we watch Dr. Pol, and have seen him handling macaws, but none were as colorful vocally as the one you have at the shelter.  Are they scarlet macaws, or one of the other colors?  Glad you found a good home for them in Arizona.

 

I was lucky to see a pair of scarlet macasws take flight, circle our bus and land back in their tree.  Beautiful birds.

 

Glad you Shelter Directore is better and may not need dialysis as often.  Hope he can avoid surgery.

 

Lenda

The macaws were blue. They will be lovely when they feathered out again. Guess it is very common for people to get them not knowing how much care they need and how long they live.

[atexsix]

9 minutes ago, JazzyV said:

That's for my county. 2 weeks ago it was about 25 cases a day, then a few days ago 100 per day, now about 200 per day. The state is currently averaging about 1500 cases a day.

It's getting scary, we went back to watching from home for church, it's not like people walk around with a sign that states they are vaccinated, we decided the safest way to go about business in public is to assume everybody are not vaccinated, this variant is 1,000 times more contagious, I don't think people have a good grasp on what that means. 

[AncientWanderer]

1 hour ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

Good afternoon.  I'm very late today, although I have been reading the daily.  It is just a very lazy day for both of us.

 

I'm still trying to take in the plane crash and loss of life yesterday in Ketchikan.  We did the Misty Fjords flight a few years ago, but not throught the ship.  The scenery was beautiful, but we will not repeat it.  I think there are more near misses than we realize, and our flight was one of those.  It was a misty day, and the mist cleared just in the nick of time for the pilot to turn and pull before we hit the mountain.  DH said we were seconds away form a bad end.  

 

 

 

DH actually had a near-miss as well while salmon fishing in Alaska, apparently caused by "bad fuel."  The plane cut out and lost elevation twice.  The pilot was able to start it back up and they headed immediately back to the airport.  

 

These are anecdotal stories, but one hears too many of them, I think.

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

9 minutes ago, AncientWanderer said:

 

DH actually had a near-miss as well while salmon fishing in Alaska, apparently caused by "bad fuel."  The plane cut out and lost elevation twice.  The pilot was able to start it back up and they headed immediately back to the airport.  

 

These are anecdotal stories, but one hears too many of them, I think.

 

These are the type of stories you cannot like, but should be known so that people can assess the risks involved, and make an informed decision as to whether or not to go.

 

In 1993 on our first Alaska cruise, we took a helicopter flight to Taku glacier.  Our pilot was very aware of the weather, and when we were ready to take off after our glacier landing, he noticed the clouds and mist gathering on our route back to Juneau.  Instead, he took us back on the route we took to get there as the weather was still clear that way.

 

It was one of the best tours we've done, and we booked it at their booth on the street.

 

Lenda

 

[aliaschief]

Made it to Seattle with no problems. Norwegian Encore is berthed right in front of our hotel. Maybe a sail away later?

 

 

 

 

[rafinmd]

1 hour ago, JazzyV said:

That's for my county. 2 weeks ago it was about 25 cases a day, then a few days ago 100 per day, now about 200 per day. The state is currently averaging about 1500 cases a day.

My county seems too volatile to see a trend but it is increasing.  On a Per Capita basis Maryland and Pennsylvania are pretty similar in new cases.

 

Roy

[aliaschief]

View from our balcony and we can see a Celebrity at Pier 91 so will see Nieuw Amsterdam in morning.

[mamaofami]

Good afternoon everyone. I’ve been busy and distracted today and forgot to sign in here. We had some company today who were here two weeks ago and they were amazed at the difference in Sam’s ability to walk with a cane and his speech improvement. I guess we don’t see it because we are with him every day.

Grandson number two, Misha, left for college today. He spends three weeks with just Freshmen on campus at Bard College in NY. They have a reading and writing seminar. After unpacking, he went to try out the piano in one of the practice rooms, probably to see if it was up to his standards.

 

Stay safe everyone,

Carol

[mamaofami]

38 minutes ago, aliaschief said:

Made it to Seattle with no problems. Norwegian Encore is berthed right in front of our hotel. Maybe a sail away later?

 

 

 

 

Bon Voyage. Have a great cruise.

[kazu]

1 hour ago, Crazy For Cats said:

Good Morning, we finally had breakfast in the Pinnacle Grill.  Service and food were on point.  The billing issue has been resolved.  I was also able to get our five star pins.  We should have received them on the cancelled Zuiderdam 2020 cruise.

We  just watched “Origin Story”.  It’s the history of Holland America.  I thought that it was well done and worthwhile to attend.  I highly recommend.

 

 

 

Glad to hear a positive report on breakfast in the PG.  It was one of the benefits of an NS IMO. 😉 

 

Glad your billing problem is fixed and congrats on your 5* pins.

thanks on “origin story”.  Sorry to think you will be having to put out your luggage tonight 😔 

[kazu]

43 minutes ago, aliaschief said:

Made it to Seattle with no problems. Norwegian Encore is berthed right in front of our hotel. Maybe a sail away later?

 

 

 

 

YAY 👍 

[kazu]

1 hour ago, Vict0riann said:

 

I found a pic on line - I told her it might be useful at Halloween.

 

 

Thanks Ann.  I have certainly seen things like this here at Hallowe’en.

looks like it has to be plugged in?  Bummer, don’t think it will reach my retainer wall gardens 😔 

Not sure if DH would permit it in the front yard or not 😂 🤣

But, I’m going to show it to him.  Thanks.

[Sharon in AZ]

21 minutes ago, aliaschief said:

View from our balcony and we can see a Celebrity at Pier 91 so will see Nieuw Amsterdam in morning.

What hotel are you staying at?  I’m thinking of changing our plans.