Sea Dog is Live with Life on Liberty and the Pursuit of Happiness in the MDR. 10-16.

[Sea Dog]

3 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

A perfect start Greg!  First of many.  I'm sure I don't need to ask, but I'm interested in the bourbon supply onboard.  Hopefully you are close to boarding.  Have a great cruise.

Thanks Bob I will do an extensive search on board. Somehow I don’t think the selection will be as good as Symphony but I’m hopeful for some good brands.

[Ocean Boy]

1 hour ago, A&L_Ont said:

 

 

As Jimmy Buffett once sang in "A Pirate Looks at Forty"...

 

Yes, I am a Pirate.
Two hundred years too late.
The cannons don't thunder, there's nothing to plunder, I'm an over-forty victim of fate.
Arriving too late.

Arriving too late.

 

In days of yore the pirate usually has a peg leg and a compass rose.  Greg, you are today's modern day pirate with a sling and an iPhone. You are not arriving too late, you are right on time.

 

Cheers to a safe and enjoyable embarkation day. 

 

 

Edit: please, do not come home with an eye patch.

One of my favorite JB songs.

[#55worktoplay]

@Sea Dog I’m so sorry your trip started with you ending up with a broken bone and in a sling but happy it wasn’t much worse. 
 

I hope you have a great time!  Liberty was my favourite before Harmony came along. 

 

P.S. Lizzie and Charlie are adorable, they have grown so much. I can’t believe a year has passed. 

[Sea Dog]

 

In the que for entry. Doors have not opened yet. But at least I got a seat on a bench and talking to a wonderful lady who is on her first ever cruise after her husband passed away in March. He always wanted us to go on a cruise she said. I told her she will love cruising and that her husband would want her to be happy and would be smiling down on her. She agreed. She said she was a little nervous being a solo and I told her people are very friendly on board and she would have no problems making new friends. We had a nice talk. I hope I relieved any of her fears.

Edited October 16, 2022 by Sea Dog

[rudeney]

On 10/15/2022 at 9:34 AM, Sea Dog said:

That’s what the ER doc said. He also said some Orthopedic surgeons want to do surgery to repair the tendon (I think) that keeps the bone down. He did not think I necessarily needed that even though I can feel a raised ridge there on my shoulder.  Will that reduce over time?  My pain is tolerable and I can still move my arm around a little bit. I forgot to ask how long should I wear the sling? He also said I could take it off from time to time if I wasn’t in too much pain. I wasn’t even going to report on it on my review because I feel stupid but in an effort to be open and transparent I felt all of you should know.

 

My advice is to avoid shoulder surgery unless there is no other option,  I wen tin Dec. 2019 for a simple bone spur and arthritis cleanup and came out with 4 pins and a 6-way rotator cuff repair that is just in the last year began to function normally.  Add to that a C5/C6 disk issue due to "surgical positioning" and I wish had had just put up with the pain. 

[rudeney]

21 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

The people eating next to us had a service dog. It was a Cavapoo . Mix of Cavalier King Charles and a small poodle.

 

 

I think this is the same "service dog" on Voyager last week.  

[bobmacliberty]

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

Thanks Bob I will do an extensive search on board. Somehow I don’t think the selection will be as good as Symphony but I’m hopeful for some good brands.

 

You never know.  Liberty still has an R Bar (I think).  They may have a good selection there.  I'm sure that your search will be very thorough. 😜

[Sea Dog]

3 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

You never know.  Liberty still has an R Bar (I think).  They may have a good selection there.  I'm sure that your search will be very thorough. 😜

One the first places I’m going.

[HBE4]

2 hours ago, A&L_Ont said:

 

In days of yore the pirate usually has a peg leg and a compass rose.  Greg, you are today's modern day pirate with a sling and an iPhone. You are not arriving too late, you are right on time.

 

Edit: please, do not come home with an eye patch.

 

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

Andrew you made me cry, such words at the right time. I promise not to come home with an eyepatch. 

 

But you can come home with a Pirate's Booty. I'm not talking about the snack food or a girl on the side but bounty, ships treasure or what some people would call, winning tickets from Casino Royale. 🙂

 

[Sea Dog]

Check-in was smooth and easy. Surprised my new knee didn’t set off the metal detector.

 

 

In the waiting area. Told we should be able to board in 15 minutes. 10:49am now.

[ChutChut]

Thank you so much for detailing your wonderful journey! Hope your shoulder is better!

[Sea Dog]

7 minutes ago, HBE4 said:

 

 

But you can come home with a Pirate's Booty. I'm not talking about the snack food or a girl on the side but bounty, ships treasure or what some people would call, winning tickets from Casino Royale. 🙂

 

Argg! This Pirate loves a good plunder!

 

https://giphy.com/gifs/piratesparley-approved-approval-i-approve-Yx4sDmie0yZTaimvlx

 

Edited October 16, 2022 by Sea Dog

[Sea Dog]

 

We are on Board at 11:00. Sling and all.

 

Beautiful ship even if a little old.

 

 

An old fashioned in the “R” Bar. Now they say everything is big in Texas except the liquor laws on Day 1. Because of Texas’s liquor laws they have a limited selection of  alcohol. So I had a very weak old fashioned with a bourbon I’d never heard of JT’s Brown????

 

 

So around 6pm they will open up the full bar.

 

 

I think the Texas liquor laws are stupid but I have to live with it. I’m still a happy camper.

 

Edited October 16, 2022 by Sea Dog

[Sea Dog]

So far at the R-Bar a poor selection of Bourbons that will be available when we are 12 nautical miles out to sea.

 

 

 

JT ‘s Brown bourbon not a fan.

[HBE4]

2 hours ago, NHProud said:

When someone recommends a hotel consider their travel style .  Their standards may not be yours .  I looked up the hotel in Travel Weekly which was the reference manual ( now online ) when I took the TA classes.  Your hotel has a 3 rating while the Doubletree has a 7 rating .  It is a good idea to check reviews, also.   

 

I took the TA classes just to be an informed traveler . Never used it otherwise.

 

 

 

I usually look at TripAdvisor, Expedia and Hotels dot com reviews. As you said, everyone has their own standards so I focus on the rating percentages rather than the actual written review. For example, the reviews for hotel in question are all over the map with 54% of the people saying it was good or excellent and 38% poor or terrible.

 

While there might be exceptions, usually budget, I generally won't consider a hotel with anything less than 80% good/excellent rating or has a poor/terrible rating in the double digits.

[HBE4]

27 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

I think the Texas liquor laws are stupid but I have to live with it. I’m still a happy camper.

 

I agree but for a different reason. One of my favorite beers - a fine Texas brew called Shiner Bock - is only available the first day, up to the 12 mile limit out, although the folks in the English pub were a bit slow to take it off the shelf so I got to enjoy it well into evening, probably a little longer than I should have.

[Btank]

3 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

 

Not the greatest pic from a moving car. But we made it to he terminal at 8:30am to drop off luggage.

Yeah, navigating around there can be a bit challenging.  You're one of the last sets of RCL passengers from Terminal 2; the Houston Chronicle said the new terminal is on track to open on November 9th.

 

      --bruce T.

 

[Sea Dog]

32 minutes ago, Btank said:

Yeah, navigating around there can be a bit challenging.  You're one of the last sets of RCL passengers from Terminal 2; the Houston Chronicle said the new terminal is on track to open on November 9th.

 

      --bruce T.

 

Driving by the new terminal and I am very impressed. It’s beautiful and is 100% energy sustainable with its large solar array. Can’t wait to cruise out of there.

[Ocean Boy]

Deleted

[Ocean Boy]

Either CC is actung up or I have forgotten hiw to use it.🙄

[Sea Dog]

Windjammer Lunch. Food was actually pretty good but I’m sorry I didn’t take food pic.

 

Nice welcome cake.

 

 

Got there at the right time before it got too crowded.

 

 

Not pictured but the chocolate bar and Orio cheesecake was delicious.

 

Muster complete next up room availability in just a few minutes.

 

 

[Ocean Boy]

1 minute ago, Sea Dog said:

Windjammer Lunch. Food was actually pretty good but I’m sorry I didn’t take food pic.

 

Nice welcome cake.

 

 

Got there at the right time before it got too crowded.

 

 

Not pictured but the chocolate bar and Orio cheesecake was delicious.

 

Muster complete next up room availability in just a few minutes.

 

 

Looks like Liberty still has those lighter wicker type chairs in the WJ. Some of the ships have gone to much heavier chairs that I find a bit hard to slide on the carpet.

[Sea Dog]

Rooms! As solo I always defer to the Mrs. Linda gets the Balcony cabin 9404 with it’s great aft balcony.

 

 

 

 

I think there is room to mount a go pro safely!

 

 

Me in my he cheap Suite but actually a nice inside cabin right around the corner from Linda.

 

 

 

 

 

Nice closet for storage.

 

 

 

No usb outlets but I knew that coming in. Plenty adapters that I have.

[HBE4]

1 hour ago, Ocean Boy said:

Either CC is actung up or I have forgotten hiw to use it.🙄

 

Maybe the admins are messing with you? 😉😇

[Sea Dog]

Best cruise accessory ever!

 

 

convert that European outlet at 230v to 120v plus have two usb ports.