The Fleet Report and Daily for Thursday December 15th, 2022

[Sharon in AZ]

Good morning from chilly Tucson. The overnight low was 30F, burrrr. We just aren’t used to it being this cold. 
 

The meal suggestion sounds wonderful and I’ve made a version using ground pork sausage and fennel from Ina Garten. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/rigatoni-with-sausage-and-fennel-1-4622116
 

We no longer have cats. I’ve regifted a few times, mostly took the regift to the work holiday party for Secret Santa. 
 

We were just in Saint John, NB (not to confused with St. John’s, Newfoundland) just two months ago. We took a trolley tour to the reversing rapids. The pictures don’t do it justice. 
 

 

 

And also the City Market that Jacqui @kazu mentioned.  However, it was closed, I don’t remember why but it was a Sunday.  Some vendors opened up just for the tourists. It’s huge inside. We saw Debbie @dfish and Carolyn & Henry @Cruising-along there but they were on a different tour. 
 

 

 

If we ever go back I’d like to take the tour Debbie did from the other side. They were able to walk on the riverbed. Refresh my memory if I’m wrong Debbie. 😉

 

Have a great day everyone!

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

We visited St. John, NB, on October 5 and October 17, 2004, on b2bs from NYC on the old Regal Princess.  

 

I didn't take too many pictures, but I did find a few.  Our first visit, we toured the town, and the second visit we rented a car and drove east along the coast of the Bay of Fundy.

 

These are some pictures from our day in St. John.

 

 

 

These are from our drive east of town.

 

 

 

The remainder of the pictures are of the reversing river taken both days we were in St. John.  It was going out the first day and coming in the second.  The ones from October  5.

 

 

From October 17 when the weather was not nearly as good.

 

 

Lenda

 

[RedneckBob]

Update from the NS. Left Aruba yesterday and will arrive at HMC tomorrow am. Captain told us at noon that ship was cruising at 23.4 knots last nite to reach HMC as scheduled.The ship was really vibrating last nite with all engines running full. For your more mature cruisers, the Misses asked me if I had put a quarter into the bed message device 😀.

Just had our Mariners get together with only eleven attending with days at sea ranging from 705 days to 3,147 days. I guess you can say this event has been cut back significantly! RNB out.

[Cruising-along]

23 minutes ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

@Cruising-along  Carolyn, I'm sorry you are still not 100 percent.  Take it easy and rest when you need to rest.  Are you going to share pictures of the tree after the grandsons finish decorating it?

Thank you Lenda.  Yes, I will definitely share photos when the boys are done. 🙂  I realized yesterday that our older boy may be able to reach up near the top, he's gotten so tall and this tree isn't quite as tall as our last one.  Especially if we get out the step ladder!

[marshhawk]

Just saw this in googly news-reminded me of yesterday's conversation

 

https://www.yahoo.com/news/five-dogs-attack-electric-worker-170107442.html

[AncientWanderer]

Good morning/afternoon.  Late getting going today.  I'm still testing positive, so am trying not to touch too many things around here. That means no holiday baking or prep like that.  I also had to miss DGD's school Christmas program.  Sigh.

Happy to hear @summer slope that your DH is negative now.  It does take time.

 

DD and I love a good afternoon tea.  I rarely regift, but this year "practical" is the watchword for all of our gifts.  The economy is on everyone's mind.

 

@smitty34877, sure hope you get cleared for surgery. Fingers crossed.

 

@superoma, the light display looks beautiful.  What a fun thing to do!

 

@luvteaching, good news that DH is improving and headed home.  Extra, extra special at holiday time.

 

@JazzyV, thanks for the tip about the government Covid tests.  We've gone through so many!

 

@Vict0riann, once you board, all wardrobe doubts and other cares will evaporate.  That's the joy of cruising.   None of my clothes fit.  Can't wear; don't care. lol

 

That's alarming about Peru.  When we were there a few years ago, it was scary how all the private homes had armed guard shacks, razor wire, etc.  Things looked very unstable.  Our guide was amazing -- spoke numerous languages, self-taught from "opera techniques."

 

@marshhawk, don't get me started on the dogs.  My gentle, kind BIL, son of a country physician, grew up around dogs, was very badly mauled by his own pet, a Chow Chow, who he'd had since a puppy.  He was lucky to have survived.  When I have Pocket or my grand-children at the park, we leave if certain breeds enter the park.  We just head right on out.

 

All the photos are beautiful today.  Thanks for posting them!  Many thanks to Rich and Company for the Daily.  Rigatoni sounds so good in this colder weather.

Have a great day, Everyone!

[NextOne]

Good afternoon, Daily-ites, from cold, soggy Maryland. We had ice on the trees this morning, but the roads were just wet, so the Meals on Wheels went on as scheduled. Now I'm back home, huddled in front of the fireplace and have no intention of stirring!

My cats don't take kindly to herding - they'd rather trip you up, instead! Love tea, and I have been known to re-gift on occasion.

My first visit to Saint John was this past October. My friends & I wandered around the city, toured a lovely church & had lunch in a great restaurant where I finally got to taste poutine. Loved it! The waitress was sweet & brought us a complimentary portion so we could try it. Yes, we tipped her well!

My favorite memory, though, was the gentleman who serenaded the ship on the bagpipes while we were waiting to depart. He had his own sound system  & played traditional and contemporary music. Who would have thought that "Unchained Melody" would sound so good on the bagpipes!

 

Edited December 15, 2022 by NextOne

[dfish]

1 hour ago, Sharon in AZ said:

Good morning from chilly Tucson. The overnight low was 30F, burrrr. We just aren’t used to it being this cold. 
 

The meal suggestion sounds wonderful and I’ve made a version using ground pork sausage and fennel from Ina Garten. https://www.foodnetwork.com/recipes/ina-garten/rigatoni-with-sausage-and-fennel-1-4622116
 

We no longer have cats. I’ve regifted a few times, mostly took the regift to the work holiday party for Secret Santa. 
 

We were just in Saint John, NB (not to confused with St. John’s, Newfoundland) just two months ago. We took a trolley tour to the reversing rapids. The pictures don’t do it justice. 
 

 

 

And also the City Market that Jacqui @kazu mentioned.  However, it was closed, I don’t remember why but it was a Sunday.  Some vendors opened up just for the tourists. It’s huge inside. We saw Debbie @dfish and Carolyn & Henry @Cruising-along there but they were on a different tour. 
 

 

 

If we ever go back I’d like to take the tour Debbie did from the other side. They were able to walk on the riverbed. Refresh my memory if I’m wrong Debbie. 😉

 

Have a great day everyone!

 

Love the pictures, Sharon.  They bring back such good memories.  I think the tour you are talking about is the one out of Halifax.  You go up to Burntcoat Head and walk out into the Bay of Fundy when the tide is out.  You can see tidal pools and all kinds of creatures.   

 

These are the stairs leading down to the ocean floor.

 

Here's a sea critter for you!

 

 

This is normally an island.

 

I'm not done in the kitchen yet, but I'll share some of my mess.  And, yes @ger_77, you qualify for the Messy Bakers Guild.   

 

I have it all over me.

 

Flour on the mixer, pumpkin on the counter....

 

Powdered sugar (icing sugar) everywhere.

 

Wax paper ripped off the cake.

 

I've managed to spread the mess throughout the whole kitchen.  I still have to make the filling and fill and re-roll the pumpkin roll.  You can't really see the mess on the floor because the color of the floor helps absorb it.  

[aliaschief]

Here’s a link to those free US government Covid test. 5 minutes and they are ordered.

 

https://www.covid.gov/tests

[Crazy For Cats]

Good Afternoon, a quick break from work to share some Saint John pictures from 2013.  One of the best HAL excursions we ever took.

 

The jetboat ride.  DH thought I was trying to drown him.  Everyone got soaked

 

 

The whirlpool

A picture of the crazy guy who gave us a great ride

[RedneckBob]

2 hours ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

We visited St. John, NB, on October 5 and October 17, 2004, on b2bs from NYC on the old Regal Princess.  

 

I didn't take too many pictures, but I did find a few.  Our first visit, we toured the town, and the second visit we rented a car and drove east along the coast of the Bay of Fundy.

 

These are some pictures from our day in St. John.

 

 

 

These are from our drive east of town.

 

 

 

The remainder of the pictures are of the reversing river taken both days we were in St. John.  It was going out the first day and coming in the second.  The ones from October  5.

 

 

From October 17 when the weather was not nearly as good.

 

 

Lenda

 

Were we in the car with you. Pictures look very familiar. They was a place we stopped for clam chowder right past the covered bridge.

[Vict0riann]

Jacqui, @kazu, will be happy she missed all this:

 

[kochleffel]

Back in from shoveling the you-know-what. There's only about an inch of it and it's 34°, so it's melting at the pavement, making it slippery. When I stepped into the street to get the mail, I used the shovel as a walking stick.

 

The UPS package was actually SurePost, so it was in the mailbox. The Fedex package isn't coming today; this morning it was still in Ohio.

 

I woke up at 5:30 a.m., and before going outside I tried to have a nap with the Junior Cat, but she did all the sleeping.

Edited December 15, 2022 by kochleffel

[ger_77]

Good afternoon, time for a quick check-in.

 

@Seasick Sailorthanks for scouting out the Bigelow tea for me; I'm a happy girl now!

@luvteachingI only use white sugar in the recipe.

@kazuyes, that's the drinking game; I'm pretty good at it now!  I can definitely identify with your last meme; how many times has that happened to me over the years!?!

@dfish and @Quartzsite Cruiserthanks for granting me admittance to the Messy Bakers Club; I'll wear that badge proudly.

 

[Cruising-along]

Taking a break before baking the cookies.  Just getting it all mixed together wore me out -- and yes there's a mess.  I realized that my very old recipe book is the messiest of all.  It goes back to 1979 and has most of my favorites in it -- some of the recipes are nearly impossible to read there's so much splatter on the pages.  I'm too embarrassed to post photos! 

@ger_77you definitely qualify, welcome to the Messy Bakers Club!

 

[lindaler]

Hi everyone. I am going crazy. I leave tomorrow for the airport and will be sailing Saturday. I am all packed, the house is cleaned, fridge empty, clothes laid out, almost everything done. There is nothing left to do. I had better find a good movie and take my mind off the wait. The adventure is ready to start. 

[dfish]

21 minutes ago, lindaler said:

Hi everyone. I am going crazy. I leave tomorrow for the airport and will be sailing Saturday. I am all packed, the house is cleaned, fridge empty, clothes laid out, almost everything done. There is nothing left to do. I had better find a good movie and take my mind off the wait. The adventure is ready to start. 

I hope you have a fantastic time!

 

[4966and556]

It has been pouring rain here all day in the Niagara Region.  Both "big" bridges (Burlington and Garden City Skyway) were both closed this morning because they were so icy and both had serious accidents on them. They have both reopened, but there were so many accidents.  A pumper truck from a fire hall slid into a ditch.  Thankfully we are both retired and had no appointments.  We did bring in 2 wheel barrows full of wood for the fireplace just in case the power went out, but it didn't, so we are fine.  The temperatures are going down over night, but hopefully everything will be salted/sanded before the morning rush hour. 

[USN59-79]

Thanks @aliaschief for the link to the covid tests.  Looks like HAL will require them 3 days before boarding the Westerdam in March.  We arrive in Japan 4 days before the cruise, so these will be useful.  Saw the orthopedic doctor this morning and got a new set of x-rays of the load bearing bone with me standing.  Everything looks good; I see him again in 4 weeks.  I am finally getting used to my DW driving.  We went all the way to the hospital and back without one negative comment from me.😦

Ray

[aliaschief]

3 hours ago, aliaschief said:

Here’s a link to those free US government Covid test. 5 minutes and they are ordered.

 

https://www.covid.gov/tests

Received an E-mail being mailed Dec 19. It works.

[Seasick Sailor]

2 hours ago, lindaler said:

Hi everyone. I am going crazy. I leave tomorrow for the airport and will be sailing Saturday. I am all packed, the house is cleaned, fridge empty, clothes laid out, almost everything done. There is nothing left to do. I had better find a good movie and take my mind off the wait. The adventure is ready to start. 

Linda,

Take it easy. All is well. I freaked out on Sunday when our luggage finally arrived from luggage forward 20 minutes before we set sale. My sweet husband told me not to worry. Really? I thought I was going to have a heart attack. Have a wonderful Cruise and hope everything goes smoothly

[rafinmd]

10 minutes ago, Seasick Sailor said:

Linda,

Take it easy. All is well. I freaked out on Sunday when our luggage finally arrived from luggage forward 20 minutes before we set sale. My sweet husband told me not to worry. Really? I thought I was going to have a heart attack. Have a wonderful Cruise and hope everything goes smoothly

I'll bet it was one of the first pieces loaded on the ship.  I think sometimes when luggage gets backed up the incoming pieces get into the delivery queue right away while those that arrive before luggage delivery really starts come into the queue at slack times.

 

Roy

[Seasick Sailor]

37 minutes ago, rafinmd said:

I'll bet it was one of the first pieces loaded on the ship.  I think sometimes when luggage gets backed up the incoming pieces get into the delivery queue right away while those that arrive before luggage delivery really starts come into the queue at slack times.

 

Roy

 

I called Luggage Forward and the guy told me he wasn't sure if our luggage left the facility 40 minutes ago or it arrived at the port to the porters 40 minutes prior. Just matters the luggage got on board on time.

 

 

[kazu]

7 hours ago, Vict0riann said:

I'm sorry the mobile passport didn't work in TO, or was it Montreal?  

 

It was in Montreal Ann,  it was done right but he just couldn’t scan it.  He said it was too new and they were having issues - just wanted to give you a heads up in case it happens in YVR

 

7 hours ago, Vict0riann said:

I don't think we've been to Saint John, but on a driving trip we saw the tidal bore in the Bay of Fundy so we must have been somewhere in the area

 

There are only 2 places to see the tidal bore - Truro Nova Scotia and Moncton NB.

And of course, the Reversing Fall in Saint John which is far better than the Tidal Bores.   

 

6 hours ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

We visited St. John, NB, on October 5 and October 17, 2004, on b2bs from NYC on the old Regal Princess.  

 

It is SAINT John please - not St. John. - St. John’s is in Newfoundland.  People are finicky about their names 😉 
 

 

 

4 hours ago, Vict0riann said:

Jacqui, @kazu, will be happy she missed all this:

 

 

Yes, I knew that was coming and with connections in both Toronto and Montreal I knew that if I didn’t get out yesterday, it would be a mess.

 

It was yesterday or not at all as we were getting hit again.

Thanks for reinforcing my decision Ann - but i’m here - now you and Pat have to get down 😉 
 

 

3 hours ago, Cruising-along said:

It goes back to 1979 and has most of my favorites in it -- some of the recipes are nearly impossible to read there's so much splatter on the pages.  I'm too embarrassed to post photos!

 

Oh my - memories - my first cook book by my Mum - one she relied on and ad libbed on - and I still go to.  It’s a paper back and held together by elastic bands - it fell apart long ago 😂 

 

 

3 hours ago, lindaler said:

Hi everyone. I am going crazy. I leave tomorrow for the airport and will be sailing Saturday. I am all packed, the house is cleaned, fridge empty, clothes laid out, almost everything done. There is nothing left to do. I had better find a good movie and take my mind off the wait. The adventure is ready to start. 

 

 

Wow - you are much better than me but I am in slow motion admittedly. 😉 Wishing ou all the best for a wonderful cruise - enjoy 🙂 

[dfish]

5 hours ago, Cruising-along said:

Taking a break before baking the cookies.  Just getting it all mixed together wore me out -- and yes there's a mess.  I realized that my very old recipe book is the messiest of all.  It goes back to 1979 and has most of my favorites in it -- some of the recipes are nearly impossible to read there's so much splatter on the pages.  I'm too embarrassed to post photos! 

@ger_77you definitely qualify, welcome to the Messy Bakers Club!

 

 

You mean kind of like this?

 

 

 

 

5 hours ago, ger_77 said:

Good afternoon, time for a quick check-in.

 

@Seasick Sailorthanks for scouting out the Bigelow tea for me; I'm a happy girl now!

@luvteachingI only use white sugar in the recipe.

@kazuyes, that's the drinking game; I'm pretty good at it now!  I can definitely identify with your last meme; how many times has that happened to me over the years!?!

@dfish and @Quartzsite Cruiserthanks for granting me admittance to the Messy Bakers Club; I'll wear that badge proudly.

 

 

You are more than welcome.   

 

5 hours ago, aliaschief said:

Here’s a link to those free US government Covid test. 5 minutes and they are ordered.

 

https://www.covid.gov/tests

 

Thanks!  Ordered mine.