The Daily for Friday November 19, 2021

[grapau27]

13 minutes ago, Overhead Fred said:

Our son and his girlfriend (Niall and Emilee) and Mitzi and I have all tested negative for covid. We have an 8 AM non-stop flight to FLL tomorrow (used Flight Ease) and a HAL transfer to the Nieuw Amsterdam! Mitzi and I are doing a B2B and the "kids" will be with us for the first week. Thrilled to be sailing again! 

 

We are not taking any computers and I didn't plan on buying ant internet plans so I may be unable to visit "The Daily Thread Show" until around Dec 5th. There will probably be free wifi in some ports, so I might try logging in through my phone or Kindle Fire. 

 

Anchors Aweigh!!!

Bon voyage.

Hope you all have a wonderful cruise.

Graham.

[HAL4NOW]

2 hours ago, rafinmd said:

A note of caution here.  There are 2 Canadian Cities with similar names that are easily confused.  Today's port is SAINT John in New Brunswick and is always spelled out. Just a little further is St. Johns in Newfound and always abbreviated.  It can be confusing and far too many times people have flown into the wrong city by mistake.

 

Roy

We are booked to go to both Saint John and St. Johns on the Zaandam in 2023. Thanks @kazufor the pictures and write-up of Saint John.

[grapau27]

2 hours ago, Cat in my lap said:

Good morning everyone!  Thanks for the welcome to this group.  
 

I love bagpipes - once a year our presbyterian church has a heritage service with bagpipes that was just a couple of weeks ago.  The group is from Dunedin which is a bit north of St. Petersburg- where the Toronto blue jays have spring training.

Welcome from me too.

Graham.

[durangoscots]

1 hour ago, Cruzin Terri said:

Hi everyone,

I’m back but can’t promise I’ll be here everyday.

I kind of dropped off the face of the earth and here without notice.  We had a rough time of it th

Terri

Terri.... I am so sorry to hear this. The loss is always bad enough.... the complications make it even worse. I know you both will miss him very much since he was so much a part of your lives.

 

Susan

[Cruisepucks]

@Horizon chaser 1957

 

Wishing you safe travels home

 

For your DS and DBil.

For those affected by the flooding and mudslides in BC and as a result of the multiple road closures  need to transit through the US,  are waived from the PCR testing requirement by the Canada Border Service Agency. Also the government is reportedly announcing this afternoon that Canadians who are in the US for less than 72 hrs will not need to have a PCR test. Stay tuned for more details this afternoon.

 

Stay safe.

[dobiemom]

4 hours ago, Horizon chaser 1957 said:

On a happier note, I watched the Konigsdam arrive and depart Puerto Vallarta yesterday. I waved to @dobiemom across the distance! It was so good to see a BHB with passengers again, and I dearly wish I was looking down at this right now:

😉 You we’re waving to @Quartzsite Cruiser yesterday. I was there Wednesday (along with 2 Princess ships) on the NCL Bliss. 😉

[kazu]

1 hour ago, Cruzin Terri said:

Hi everyone,

I’m back but can’t promise I’ll be here everyday.

I kind of dropped off the face of the earth and here without notice.  We had a rough time of it this summer.

My BIL, whom many of you know, was developmentally disabled, became ill  during the summer and after a stint in the hospital, went to a skilled nursing facility,.

We thought it would be for rehab, but turned out that he could not recover from the pneumonia and the myriad of other conditions he had.

He passed away on October 6.

We were his caregivers for over 40 years—from the time my husband’s father died.  

It has been a rough time.  

During the time he was in the SNF there were two lockdowns due to COVID and we were unable to visit.  He could not understand this. All we could do was wave through the window. Since we were not there to encourage him to participate in therapy and with his limited cognitive ability, things went downhill fast.

Try as we could, we could not get him on the road to recovery.  DH has had a hard time with this.  

So that is where I have been for the last few months.  

Trying to put our lives together after the loss of our sweet Eugene.  

Please say a prayer for us as we try to carry on.  There are good days and bad days.  We miss him terribly but know he is at peace.

Terri

 

My prayers have been with you Terri since his death 🙏🏻 and will remain in the hopes they help you find the strength to carry on ♥️ 

 

1 hour ago, Cruising-along said:

My big news today is that DS and DDIL sold their house last night in Pasadena -- first step towards being able to move up here to WA!  They plan to rent an Airbnb until they find a home to buy in the Bellevue area.  They will be coming up around New Year's. 🙂 🙂 

 

 

That is excellent news!  You must be thrilled!

 

1 hour ago, Sharon in AZ said:

 

Roy @rafinmd and Jacqui  @kazuI should have read ahead before I said anything about the difference between Saint John and St. John’s.  😉

 

No worries at all 😉 Don’t even give it a second thought 😄 

 

51 minutes ago, Overhead Fred said:

Our son and his girlfriend (Niall and Emilee) and Mitzi and I have all tested negative for covid. We have an 8 AM non-stop flight to FLL tomorrow (used Flight Ease) and a HAL transfer to the Nieuw Amsterdam! Mitzi and I are doing a B2B and the "kids" will be with us for the first week. Thrilled to be sailing again! 

 

YAY - Safe travels and Bon Voyage!  Hope you all have a great cruise and a WONDERFUL time !!!!!

 

[bennybear]

4 hours ago, Horizon chaser 1957 said:

 

Today we fly home, and find out what awaits there. Anyone following the news from Canada has heard about the disaster situation in British Columbia. We are flying into Abbotsford airport, and BIL has his car waiting there. The airport is on higher ground, and still operating. Our flight has been rerouted from a four hour direct to a nine hour flight with a stop and layover in Edmonton. The prairies have been hit with their own winter storm, and none of us have the clothes for that climate with us. When we get to Abbotsford, we hope the water will have receded enough that we can get to Chilliwack. Chilliwack is currently an island. Routes to the west and south are under water from the Abbotsford / Sumas prairie flood. Routes to the north and east are cut off by mudslides at Hope and Agassiz. We will probably be staying with DHs cousin for a couple of days. She lives a twenty minute drive from the airport on higher ground and has beds waiting for us.

DS and BIL. They have no idea how long it will before there’s a clear route back to Kelowna. They may end up driving home via Seattle and Spokane, which would mean another PCR test to come back into Canada!

 

 

Yikes, hope you get home without too much difficulty!  

3 hours ago, kazu said:

 

It happens a lot - or baggage / a package in Newfoundland when it was supposed to be in New Brunswick and vice versa.

 

LOL Roy, St Johns, Newfoundland is more than a little further away 😉.  It takes time to get to the Rock 😉 

We visited Saint John years ago and really enjoyed the area.   Apparently there was a young British couple who thought they were going to Sydney, Australia but they bought tickets to Sidney, Nova Scotia😂🤷‍♀️

1 hour ago, Cruzin Terri said:

Trying to put our lives together after the loss of our sweet Eugene.  

Please say a prayer for us as we try to carry on.  There are good days and bad days.  We miss him terribly but know he is at peace.

Terri

So sorry for your loss! 
 

 

[irishjim]

1 hour ago, Sharon in AZ said:

Oh dear Terri, I am so sorry about your BIL. Prayers and thoughts to you, your DH and entire family. 

PRAYERS TO YOU ALL

                                     Jim.

[Seasick Sailor]

@Cruzin Terri I'm so sorry for your loss. 

[NextOne]

1 hour ago, Sharon in AZ said:

You are on the Nieuw Statendam October 8th?  That would be wonderful!

Looks like we need to have our CC Meet & Mingle in Saint John so @kazuJacqui can attend!!😁

[CrabbyPatti]

Good Morning Dailyites!

 

Have been stopping in and reading, but not posting.  Things have been busy here!

@Cruzin Terri My condolences with the loss of your BIL. 

@Horizon chaser 1957  I hope things are not to soggy when you get home.  Western Washington has had some flooding also, and have some friends who are working through the mess.  Here in Eastern Washington, I can't believe the amount of rain we have had in the past week.  Today my dog was quite wet when she came in..........she is not understanding why she has to dry in her crate!

      Hubby had a friends ask us when our next cruise was yesterday................well our cruise money went to give each of us a new dental crown.  2 in one week was a bit spendy!  I have sworn off ever eating popcorn again!  Bit down on a corn kernal and tooth broke....................I had just had a dental check up two weeks ago and all was good.  Dentist said it was just bad luck!

        Wishing all who are ill, or hurting speedy healing!  Take care and stay dry out there!

Denise

[rafinmd]

@Cruzin Terrimy condolences as well.  An awful situation made worse by world events.

 

Roy

[NextOne]

Good afternoon, Daily friends! I'm tired today because I got up at 3:30 am to watch the lunar eclipse. Stayed up until the moon was totally pink ( a little after 4) then went back to bed. The cats thought I was nuts!

I had an early start to my day's activities -- a trip to the Ford dealership where my late DH used to work to get my SUV's brakes fixed. I had to wait a week for them to get the part, and I was nervous the whole time -- the brakes just didn't feel right. But now they're good! His friends there take good care of my car.

It's cold and blustery here today - I liked it better on Thursday when the temp hit 70 degrees! But now it feels like Thanksgiving!

Prayers for all who need them, and cheers to all who are celebrating! A special welcome home for @rafinmdRoy! @Cruzin Terri, Terri, I'm sorry for your loss. It's hard, I know. @Horizon chasersafe travels home!

Edi

 

Edited November 19, 2021 by NextOne

[dobiemom]

5 hours ago, dfish said:

This version adds in a little bacon to the brussels sprouts and apples.   https://tasty.co/article/christinebyrne/single-skillet-chicken-thighs-bacon-brussels-sprouts-apples

 

  

Bacon makes everything better. 😋
 

2 hours ago, Cruising-along said:

Good morning all!

I love the sound of bagpipes, and have always loved playing Monopoly.  Growing up my sisters and I would have Monopoly marathons, staying up super late playing Monopoly, and eating popcorn and fudge. 

We used to have marathon Monopoly games during Christmas break. We would divide the properties and double the money. My sis would usually win because somehow she ended up with all the railroads. 🤔😄

[kazu]

7 minutes ago, NextOne said:

Looks like we need to have our CC Meet & Mingle in Saint John so @kazuJacqui can attend!!😁

 

LOL - that’s a long drive 😂. Kidding - it’s not far.   We don’t live in Saint John - we are outside in God’s country where it’s warmer in the summer and we have little fog.

But we pay the price in winter as the Bay of Fundy wreaks havoc with the snow storms.  We get a lot more snow than Saint John does and sadly, the storms can hang here due to the influence of our rivers out here & the Bay of Fundy.

 

The difference between the weather in Saint John & here can be truly amazing at times considering the relatively short difference.  My BFF lives in Saint John and she is often incredulous when she has just a bit of snow and I am having to dig a path on the deck for the dogs to get out.

 

 

[jimgev]

Good Afternoon. Thanks for the daily and the care lists.

We went out this morning to get our covid tests in preparation for our cruise this Sunday. Happy to say the results came back negative for both of us.

But nothing is easy. My wife noticed that her front tire was low. I filled it with air but it immediately begam to lose air. I brought it in to the tire store and they found a nail. Unfortunately, the nail was close to the side of the tire and could not be repaired. They need to order another tire and it will take a week or more for it to come in. So we will not be driving that car to the cruise port. Lucky we have a second car.

All this last minute stuff is going to make the cruise all the more reelaxing and appreciated.

Stay safe everyone

Jim

[jimgev]

3 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

Bagpipes have their time and place,

Definitely. In their proper time and place I can enjoy and appreciate them. But I must confess that when I want to listen to some music, the though of bagpipe music has never, ever, come to mind.

[tjcox9]

A few more pix from St John. We were there on the QM2 on a RT NY cruise some years ago. It's been the only cruise on which we've been where just disembarking in port was more trying that tendering. How can that be??

 

We took a city bus tour, visited the very colorful market and had mussels for lunch at Billy's Seafood. In the city square there was an Occupy Wall Street encampment that seemed somehow out of place......

[Cruising-along]

38 minutes ago, dobiemom said:

We used to have marathon Monopoly games during Christmas break. We would divide the properties and double the money. My sis would usually win because somehow she ended up with all the railroads. 🤔😄

Oh yes, those railroads are like gold if you can get at least 3 of them.  Now I want to play Monopoly. 😄

[kazu]

23 minutes ago, tjcox9 said:

A few more pix from St John.

 

Saint John.  Never St. John 😉 

 

23 minutes ago, tjcox9 said:

We were there on the QM2 on a RT NY cruise some years ago. It's been the only cruise on which we've been where just disembarking in port was more trying that tendering. How can that be??

 

It sounds like you were here in 2011 IIRC the Occupy Wall Street & some of the construction at the port correctly.  it’s very easy and disembarkation friendly now 😉 

 

23 minutes ago, tjcox9 said:

 

We took a city bus tour, visited the very colorful market and had mussels for lunch at Billy's Seafood. In the city square there was an Occupy Wall Street encampment that seemed somehow out of place......

 

 The Occupy Wall Street encampments were a big deal in the Maritimes to point out the problems of poverty and economic unfairness.  Hope you were still able to enjoy King’s Square & the Loyalist burial grounds despite it 🤞 

 

[tjcox9]

17 minutes ago, kazu said:

 

Saint John.  Never St. John 😉 

So SORRY!

 

It sounds like you were here in 2011 IIRC the Occupy Wall Street & some of the construction at the port correctly.  it’s very easy and disembarkation friendly now 😉 

 

It wasn't just SAINT John with disembarkation issues. It was every port, particularly Boston. I'm not sure why, but perhaps they had  just come off a season of doing only transatlantic crossings with no ports where they never had to deal with that, just embarkations and disembarkation at end of cruise.

 

 

 

 

[StLouisCruisers]

@Cruzin Terrimy condolences to you both on the loss of your BIL.  Covid restrictions have been so unfair to those in poor health at hospitals or nursing homes.  My DS died 4 weeks after a TAVR procedure last summer.  Her 5 kids could only visit one person per day while she was still in the hospital, but after she went to hospice she could have two people at a time, and as many per day as we wanted.  Thank God I got to see her before she passed away.

 

Prayers for you both as you adjust to this life changing event.🙏

[StLouisCruisers]

Here's my report on our dermatologist visits.  The spot on lower back is like I thought, a "barnacle" from ageing.  There were several pre-cancerous spots on each of us that needed the freezing with liquid nitrogen treatment.  I had a punch biopsy done on a tiny rough spot on my forehead near the hairline.  It is very close to a previous Mohs surgery at the hairline of a basal cell cancer.  Doctor will let me know what the biopsy comes back as and whether or not I need the Mohs surgery there.  I'm confident all will be well eventually.🙂

[JazzyV]

Good afternoon. Thanks for the Daily.

Interesting days. I won't be blowing bagpipes. Haven't played Monopoly in years. A salute to Women Entrepreneurs.

Good quote.

The meal sounds interesting, especially the sheet pan version. I like the drink and wine.

I haven't been to today's destination. I'm embarrassed to say I haven't seen much of Canada. Thanks for the pictures.

 

I had a Rheumatology appointment this AM. All was ok; I'll continue low dose steroids for my eyes since they've been pretty quiet.

Had a call from the CDC VSafe people, regarding the post-vaccine symptoms I mentioned. I told them it was just routine vaccine stuff and I didn't need to fill out extended paperwork.

 

@grapau27 A happy heavenly birthday to your Dad.

@rafinmd I know it must be great to be back at home.

@Horizon chaser 1957 Prayers for safe travels. It sounds like a challenging return home.

@Cruzin Terri Welcome back to the Daily. My condolences on the loss of your BIL Such difficult circumstances, not being able to visit him. Prayers to you, DH and the entire family.

@Overhead Fred Safe travels and Bon Voyage!

@StLouisCruisers Praying all come back good from your Derm visit. I was asking the Rheum doc this morning about a great Dermatologist I had seen in the past, only to find out she retired last year. So I need to find someone again.

 

Prayers for the care list and a toast to the celebration list.

Stay safe everyone and wear your mask.

 

Edited November 19, 2021 by JazzyV