The Fleet Report and Daily for Thursday August 29th, 2024

[lazey1]

36 minutes ago, kazu said:

 

I am sorry I have not been on.  Just doesn’t seem to be time.

 

Sick or I guess sick at the heart.  Just running out of strength and trying to find it in me.

 

@kazuJacqui, I am feeling the same way, just not for the same reasons. 

Either MS Tony has had medical appointments or I have, sometimes two a day like today, every day for the past two weeks. He had a slip and fall doing the splits last Sunday morning while I was in church and was stranded on  the kitchen floor for almost an hour and a half until I got home. The rest of the day was in the E.R. He saw his primary today, blood pressure extremely low, potassium extremely low, billirubin high. I get to see my primary this afternoon for new dx of osteoporosis, then we both have tests tomorrow. This old lady is running out of steam. 

Prayers for those who need them and cheers for those who don't. Very glad to read that food is interesting Tana and she can enjoy eating in small amounts.

 

Jane

[erewhon]

Thank you @StLouisCruisers for posting the HAL Fleet locations and the Daily.

New Zealand wine and port of call today.

News here is that the Maori King has died.

Will read all the posts later.

[sailingdutchy]

Thank you Sandi @StLouisCruisers  for the Fleet Report and everybody else for the Daily News ! 

 

I'm late , I'm very late and I have such a nice reportage to show you of our fantastic day in Tauranga , NZ .

 

Let me see if I can get it without accidents copied and transferred ...

 

Tony 😁

Edited August 29 by sailingdutchy

[grapau27]

Good evening.

We have just watched on UK TV a new series of 

Below Deck Mediterranean with Captain Sandi in Genoa Italy on yacht Mustique.

Ruan who was to be Bosun had false documents and taken off the yacht.

I hope everyone is having a nice day.

[ottahand7]

@kazu prayers for you as you go through this difficult time. 

Edited August 29 by ottahand7

[ottahand7]

@smitty34877 Happy to read Tana is eating something.   Thanks for the photo of little Camilla.  

 

Thanks for all the photos of Tauranga.  Lovely!  

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

Today is definitely an "Oh, Fudge" day.  Just as I was getting ready to submit my post, I went the new post, and my post disappeared.  Now, I get to start all over.  I hope the third time is the charm.

 

6 hours ago, smitty34877 said:

@Quartzsite Cruiser,Lenda, I had a good laugh with the NYC GPS meme!

My family is often surprised when I am the driver and laughs at my outrage! I think my accent gets worse too…

 

Terry, I thought of you when I saw the meme.  We lived in New Jersey, Delaware and Pennsylvania off and on from 1969 until we moved back to Texas i 1985.  We we often go into NYC, especially BC (before children) so we knew about NY drivers.  I can only imagine they are even worse now.

 

6 hours ago, ger_77 said:

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily!  I'm for all 3 days - individual rights, a halt to nuclear testing, and using more herbs and less salt.  I've never cooked with a lot of salt since my dad had a heart condition and couldn't have much salt.  I always put the shaker on the table for anyone who wants to boost their dishes and am never offended when they do.  Interesting quote.

 

It got cold quickly yesterday when it began raining in the middle of the afternoon - a sure sign that the "f" word is soon going to be here.  This morning we woke to a temperature of only 6 degrees (42F), but it should get up to around 20 which will be quite comfortable.  The skies are still cloudy, and it looks like there's a bit of a breeze, so hopefully things will clear off and we can enjoy some sunshine later today.

 

Didn't have much on the agenda today but that quickly changed last night when DH said "Oh crap, I just broke a tooth."  Thankfully it was one on his partial plate, as it can be easily repaired.  Because of his heart valve replacement, he's been told he can't have any dental work done until the beginning of next year.  This morning we're off to the denturist so he can get the tooth replaced - I'm driving him because he also woke up with a stiff neck and it'll make shoulder checking quite a challenge.  Maybe it's time for new pillows.

 

@smitty34877thank you so much for sharing the sweet picture of our dear little Camilla; hard to think she's starting pre-school already!  Our DGS's in Calgary start today; our oldest is in Grade 4, while the little guy has his first day of Kindergarten.  I'm sure it's going to be an exciting day for them!

 

I'm going to pass on the drink of the day, the wine, and will let others enjoy today's menu suggestion.  As I thought, my godson brought a bunch of chicken, but this time it was from Popeye's, so we've got leftovers that we can enjoy for dinner tonight on the deck.  And wine.

 

Prayers for everyone who is in need, and even for those who don't think they do.  Cheers to all with celebrations.

 

Smooth Sailing!  ☺️☺️☺️

Gerry

 

Gerry, I'm sorry your DH broke a tooth, but glad it was a partial since he doesn't have to wait to have it repaired.

 

6 hours ago, RedneckBob said:

No, that’s not my bbq grill. My grill is attached to a Yugo and only can cook hot dogs!

 

What, no carrot dogs?  🥕 😁

 

6 hours ago, cruising sister said:

Good morning,

it will be another hot day with heat index above 100. We will cool down into the high 70’s next week. I look forward to the cool weather. I was in today’s port on the GANZ and went on a private tour and kiwi tasting. It ended up being just Caron and I which was nice. It was funny to see how kiwis grow on vines like grapes. We tasted a red kiwi which was sweet and delicious. I hope they will import them here soon. They mostly go to the Japanese market. At least we can get the golden ones here now. 
 

Prayers and well wishes to all. Have a great day. 

 

Lorraine, thanks for your pictures.  I learned something today.  I guess I always assumed kiwis grew on trees.  That will teach me to make assumptions.

 

6 hours ago, RMLincoln said:

Made it home yesterday. This was sunrise coming into Boston yesterday. It felt strangely warm. By the time we drove home it felt OMG hot! 94 at 3:30!  

 

It’ll be a busy day trying to re-orient.  Thank you all for your continued good thoughts and support. It’ll take awhile to try to get caught up. I’m happy for seeing some good news posted, sad for other news….  sending blessings for all in need of healing, comfort or hope!  
 

We had a very pleasant cruise on Emerald Princess to Newfoundland and Greenland. It was a very last minute booking!  We booked on Tuesday, drove to Boston Saturday, embarked Sunday. That was all pretty smooth!  Because a bunking barge was not available in Boston, we were refueled by trucks!  (Saw yesterday as we were getting off, there were fuel trucks lined up again!) Very, very slow so our departure was delayed until late Monday. But we spent all Monday in Boston and had a most pleasant day visiting there; Princess arranged a complimentary shuttle. Nice! Sydney NS port call was cancelled. We left Monday, late, we were hours late getting to Corner Brook NL but DH and I were  just so happy to be aboard!  
 

Upon embarkation we requested to be waitlisted for the one excursion we really wanted- the half day tour to the Viking Site from St Anthony NL. On board the price was about $100 more than advertised pre-cruise!  We cleared the waitlist and paid $359 each for a 4 hr tour. I thought that was crazy but we did it and we’re glad to have had the chance. (There was one tour in Greenland that was $789 to a natural hot spring!). 
 

Greenland had 3 ports but we only got into 2: Nuuk the capital we docked; Qacortoq we tendered. We had a lot of fog all around Greenland coast. Too foggy to tender into the 3rd port. Greenland was special to visit, absorb the history and the stark landscape. I walked to a place where I could visit with my “friends” the rocks! (I’m a geologist).  Very special.  We saw a lot of icebergs, so interesting, very different from Alaska. Temps were quite chilly there, 32F one morning but mostly around 40F, felt great to us old mountain dwellers!  
 

On the way back we stopped at St Anthony on the northern tip of Newfoundland, it felt warm at 50F, but rainy and I had twisted my back the day before so it was an uncomfortable day but I’m still very glad we got to visit the site. And I was ever glad to have my walking stick!  I shan’t leave home without it! 
 

St John’s Newfoundland was our last port and we visited friends there!  Friends we’ve been trying to get to since 2019.  Lots of life delayed our visit but it was golden to spend the day with them!  
 

This cruise was a 70th birthday celebration for me!  It was grand. It felt like “old times” and I let the burdens of the recent years melt away while celebrating that I’ve made it this far, we’ve made it this far together!  
 

DH’s eye pressures have remained low!  We took advantage of this plateau to grab this trip!  It’s been a lot of living through life to be here especially the last 5 years, and I’m so grateful for all the direction, support and miracles that have poured into our lives to get us to today.  
 

I’ll write more as I get re-oriented. I’m very glad to be back in touch with my Dailyite family!  Thanks for being here! 
Later, Maureen
 

 

Welcome home, Maureen.  I'm glad you enjoyed your birthday cruise, and also glad your DH's eye pressure remained low.   I'm glad you enjoyed Greenland, but sorry you missed two ports.

 

5 hours ago, durangoscots said:

Good morning to all. Sunny here and dry - the rains have moved on for awhile but right now we are out of the drought. Temps are cooling and I can feel Fall in the air in the mornings. Feels good.

 

Little happening here of note. I will spend this morning hanging "lost dog" posters for a friend whose Corgi has disappeared. I fear coyotes which is why my dogs are always on leash. It has been gone for 2 days now. The coyotes and mountain lions around here are so darned fast. Otherwise i will continue to just plod along in the house and maybe get a box or bag out of here. I have taken to reading in the afternoons which slows down the tossing but I enjoy it. As I finish up a book...out it goes.

 

Best wishes to all ... take care.... use your bubble wrap and remember, feet on the floor - heads up. I try to be so careful walking these days. I do have a couple of throw rugs which probably should be removed - have to think about that.

 

Susan

 

Susan, I hope someone finds your friend's corgi.  We learned in Quartzsite to be careful with our dogs, especially from just before sunset to after sunrise.

 

4 hours ago, Cruising-along said:

Good morning all!

I like all the days, especially More Herbs Less Salt.  I'm much more mindful of that now that I have to watch my kidney function (next tests will be on Tuesday, we'll see how I'm doing now). Between traveling and the Nephrologist's schedule, it's been awhile so I have no idea.

 

I agree with the quote, would like the wine and the drink, will pass on the meal.  Last night we had the Shish Tawook (recipe a few days ago).  It was great!  I marinated the chicken all day and instead of grilling large chunks, I cut it in strips and cooked it on the stove top.  We had it in Pita bread with garlic aioli, lettuce and tomato.  It was a hit and will definitely have it again.

 

Today we're taking advantage of the good weather and DH being home.  The plan is to pressure wash the front walkway, which involves moving a lot of plants.  It looks like it will be a beautiful day, low-mid 70's and heating up to the low 80's this weekend.

 

We were in Tauranga on the GANZ this year.  We took a tour to a Maori Villlage and had a great day!  The guide was delightful.  She grew up in the village (only 45 residents now) and was a wealth of information.  

 

Some of my photos:

On our way to the village there was kiwi growing along the roadside.

 

Arriving at the thermal village. It reminded us of a mini Yellowstone. The guide told me that her Mother had visited Yellowstone and how she wanted to go too.

 

One of the thermal pools.

 

More thermal activity

 

The steam box where they cook meat.  Our lunch was cooked in a steam box that day.

 

The Meeting House

 

Our wonderful guide in front of the Catholic Church.

 

Maori statue

 

They have to bury their dead above ground because of the thermal activity. 

 

Bathing tubs

 

We were entertained by the village with a wonderful Cultural Show.

 

 

 

 

 

Great pictures, Carolyn.  Enjoy your lunch with the DGSs.  The pressure washing can always wait.

 

3 hours ago, Vict0riann said:

Good morning, Dailyites.  Thank you all, for the Fleet Report and Daily News!  We have been to the area of New Zealand in the port of the day, twice, once on a ship and once by car  On the Statendam, we walked around Tauranga, I think the day before we had taken a ship's tour to a marae, where the men were persuaded to join in a haka.  Pat did his best!

 

.

 

The beautiful mile long beach in Tauranga in the NZ springtime.

 

 

After we disembarked in Aukland, we flew to Christchurch, where we met Pat's sister and her hubby, and we drove for two weeks.  We stayed a couple of nights in Rotorua (oh, for smell-o-vision, the aroma remained with me for weeks!) and visited a couple of hot spring areas, and the Agrodome.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Great pictures, Ann.  I loved the one of Pat and the men doing the haka.

 

3 hours ago, JazzyV said:

Good afternoon. Thanks for the Fleet Report/Daily.

I'll celebrate individual rights, if they don't interfere with the rights of others. And no nuclear tests. Also more herbs, less salt is healthier. Interesting quote. I'll pass on the meal (not an eggplant fan), drink and wine. I have been to Tauranga. A good day for Brazil and a sad day for Beatles' fans. 

 

A repeat day of heat (89F) and humidity, so I'll be indoors mainly. I have minimal symptoms doing the vertigo exercises, but still get bothered if I bend over to tie my shoes or do anything else. Today was day 12 of continuously doing them. Now we have to worry about mosquitos and the diseases they carry! It never ends.

 

@StLouisCruisers Thank you for starting the FR/Daily today. Nice photos from Tauranga. 

@ottahand7 I am sorry to hear what's going on with your DB; is there someone with him that could act as an advocate? I hope he can get to see the surgeon soon. 

@Heartgrove It will be helpful to DSIL to have the house all ready. I'm sure she'll be happy to get released to home for good.

@kochleffel Good luck with the Representative.

@smitty34877 I'm glad that Tana is eating what she can, and that you are so willing to make what she requests. Camilla does look so cute and grown up in her school uniform.

@Seasick Sailor Sad about the typhoon, and those killed and injured. A vlogger on YouTube wrote about it as they're on a cruise that has altered it's course because of it. I hope Bonnie doesn't have to wait too long for her second surgery.

@marshhawk I found that Departures is on Amazon Prime, so I want to start watching it. I'm glad you've got some time off this weekend. 

@Mtn2Sea Thanks for the photos. 

@Haljo1935 I hope you won't have too much pain when the stone passes.

@richwmn Enjoy Seattle and your upcoming cruise.

@Cruzin Terri I'm glad you're safely home. Good news about just doing PT for the shoulder, and I hope the slight increase in Prednisone helps the PMR.

@Sharon in AZ Thanks for trying to share your cruise. Are the photos from your phone? I know if the size is too big in terms of megapixels, they may come out as black squares.

@ger_77 Sorry to hear that DH broke his tooth, but good that it's an easy fix. 

@Sir PMP Thanks for the map and photos.

@cruising sister Interesting how kiwi fruit grows; I had no idea.

@RMLincoln Welcome home! Beautiful sunrise. I'm glad you had a good cruise, despite the slow start due to bunkering by truck, and missing some ports. A nice way to celebrate your birthday a bit early. Good news that DH's eye pressures have remained low.

@quilty964 Yay on getting connected to the dishwasher, lol. I have a Bosch, but it has no wifi.

@Cruising-along Very nice NZ photos. 

@Vict0riann Love the Haka dance photo! And the others.

 

Prayers for the Care List and a Toast to those Celebrating.

 

A few pictures from Tauranga (2006, Statendam)

Arrival to Mt. Maunganui, Tauranga

 

Lake Karapiro and the dam

 

 

Waitomo Caves Totem

 

Coming out of the caves. I didn't get any good pictures inside.

 

We stopped at a private home for lunch

 

 

Their birdhouse

 

The gardens

 

Scenery as we left; it was so green

 

Otorohanga Kiwi House

 

 

 

Vanessa, I'm sorry you are still having some problems with dizziness.  It took DH quite a while doing the maneuvers to get over the inner ear problem.

 

1 hour ago, kazu said:

 

I am sorry I have not been on.  Just doesn’t seem to be time.

 

Sick or I guess sick at the heart.    working away and hitting road blocks on a lot of stuff but that’s been life for the last couple of years.  Just running out of strength and trying to find it in me.

 

thanks Brenda, and sorry I have not been posting but I have nothing cheerful or fun to say.

 

 

Jacqui, thank you for checking in today.  I'm sorry this move is so difficult for you.  Parting with a lifetime of treasures is not easy as we learned when we moved here.  Remember we are here for you any time whatever your mood.

 

1 hour ago, Cruzin Terri said:

Well, I got my hair done and then got myself over to Physical Therapy.

i was lucky to get the same therapist as the last time and set up all the appointments for the next six weeks.

So I start next Tuesday, Sept. 3.

i am looking forward to being pain-free, after all this time.

Terri

 

Terri, I'm glad you have the PT appointments set up for the next six weeks and have the same therapist.  I hope you are pain free at the end of the six weeks, if hot before.

 

29 minutes ago, StLouisCruisers said:

Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser DS just texted me it's raining at their place in Frisco.  He said quote "unusual".

 

Sandi, I'm glad they are getting rain.  Texas needs all the ran we can get, and this is normally our dry season.  I hope we get rain today, but often there is a lake effect, and rain goes around us.  🤞

 

I just checked the hourly forecast, and our 60% chance of rain is now 20% chance.  😒

 

Lenda

Edited August 29 by Quartzsite Cruiser

[sailingdutchy]

 

 

We had a wonderful  day and I had an amazing experience while on a tour with Jim Archer in Tauranga , New Zealand .

 

On April 1st  2013 while on the Oosterdam on a cruise from Auckland to Sydney to Hawaii and ending in Vancouver we landed in Tauranga and with a small group  we first stopped at one of the beautiful beaches , than went to a Kiwi farm to do some fruit and honey tasting  and from there went to Rotorua where we witnessed all of the geothermal activity in the Te Puia Whakarewarewa Valley and to the indigenous Maori Village .

 

 

The kiwis are grown about 5 or 6 feet off the ground ,they keep the branches tied down for easy picking of the fruit.

 

 

 

 

 

 

This is Jim Archer a wonderful guide who is of Maori ancestry.

 

 Just try to pronounce this Maori word in one breath ..............

 

 

 

 

Before we were allowed to enter the Maori Village we , the  strange looking people  ( That was our group  ) from a different world, had to go through a special ceremony and Jim had made me the Chief of about 100 visitors , to meet the Chief of the village .

I was guided by an older lady a village elder and I had to convince the real Chief that we had come in Peace . They had first tried to scare me with their spears , loud voices and wild dances. Everybody even DW had to be at least 5 paces behind me and than  I had to pick up a small evergreen branch off the ground after which we were than allowed to enter the Community Hall and witness a number of dances and of coarse the Haka and once I had to touched noses with all of the Haka dancers in stocking feet we were all treated to more wonderful with smiling dancers performing their routines .

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

After the ceremony was over we saw  and smelled the spewing and bubbling earth activity all around us 

 

 

 

 

 

Before leaving the village we went through the hall where they still make all of the beautiful pieces for their homes , ceremonies and for the tourists .

 

 

 

I will never forget this honour Jim bestowed on me and for a long time on that cruise I was called Chief by  a number of other guests who toured Rotorua with us that same day. 

So I can really recommend Jim for a wonderful day in Tauranga  / Rotorua 

 

Tony 😍

[puppycanducruise]

@kazu  Thanks for checking in, we're here for you.  Hugs for you.

[1ANGELCAT]

Good sunny late afternoon. It was still warm and humid today but it will be cooler tomorrow. Next week will be in the 70’s.

@kazu Jacqui, sending hugs to you and Ivan as you face this new chapter in your lives. We are all here for you.❤️

  Safe travels this weekend for all our daily family. 
Blessings and prayers for all on our journey.

[StLouisCruisers]

This afternoon we called Flight Ease to see if they can tell us when we will see a refund of our airfare from our cancelled flight in Boston last month.  Oddly enough, the same young man named Mike answered our call, the same person who I talked to on July 25th..  Do they only have one representative answering the phone?  We explained we had taken his advice from my last call to him and emailed Guest Relations asking for our refund.  I did that the same day and received an auto-generated email with a case #.  On Aug. 4th Delta informed us they had refunded funds to what appears to be Flight Ease.  So I waited 11 days with no reply from Guest Relations and emailed them again.  Got another case # emailed back to me.  Absolutely no word from them in the past 5 weeks.  

 

So Mike put us on hold (checking back frequently) and after about 45 minutes he got a hold of Robert from Guest Relations, who then spoke to us, and said he would send the info on to what sounded like Air and Sea.  Said we would probably hear from them in several weeks' time.  So we are still waiting.  This feels so much like 2020 and the long wait for cancelled cruise refunds!

 

We looked up the Terms and Conditions on the HAL website and see this fine print. 

 

Quote taken from Flight Ease Terms and Conditions:

 

Liability and Relation with Airlines -

“If, due to any cause beyond our control, we are unable to arrange for air travel or the air travel we arrange is unavailable or otherwise fails to materialize, to the extent permitted by applicable law, our sole liability will be limited to refunding the air price paid to us.”

 

I hope that means they will refund the full amount we paid to them.

[puppycanducruise]

1 hour ago, erewhon said:

Thank you @StLouisCruisers for posting the HAL Fleet locations and the Daily.

New Zealand wine and port of call today.

News here is that the Maori King has died.

Will read all the posts later.

So sorry to hear the king has died.  RIP

[Haljo1935]

2 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser DS just texted me it's raining at their place in Frisco.  He said quote "unusual".

Please have DS send some of that rain our way (SW of him) 🫣

[summer slope]

4 hours ago, Seasick Sailor said:

Jeez, the "last and final" upgrade from our Signature suite to Neptune is $2579 PP. This is now the 5th time. 

We got a quote to upgrade from our ocean view to a Neptune suite for 8500 per person or two a signature suite for 3700 per person for our November Mediterranean cruise. Needless to say we passed on both.

[Sharon in AZ]

6 hours ago, St Pete Cruiser said:

Did the broken window in the Crow's nest get replaced?  We so enjoyed the Voyage of the Vikings, but that was a bit of an annoyance.

No. It’s still all taped up. Do you know how it happened?

[TiogaCruiser]

We had a lovely day in Saguenay and are on our way back out the fiord.

 

Tomorrow is Quebec City and I’m a bit nervous being on our own. We’re planning to get an Uber to Montmorency Falls in the morning and then we have a walking tour of the old city afterwards. We have 30 minutes after that to get to the ship after the walking tour. I might tell our guide we might leave them a bit early. ( and pre-tip). 
 

We were just downstairs on deck 5 and the most beautiful music was coming from the ladies room. The violinist was playing in there, looking out the window at the fiord. (Ladies who have been on the R class ships know what I’m talking about.)

[Cruising-along]

Good afternoon,

It turned out to be such a nice day. And yes, Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser the pressure washing can wait until tomorrow.

It did this Nana's heart good to see the boys. I was really missing them.  We'll see them in 8 days but I couldn't wait until then.  Even the kitties were excited to see us LOL!  They definitely remember being with us so much this summer.  

 

Shep (9) and Foster (11)

 

 

Jacqui @kazu sending lots of (((hugs))), wish I could do more.  This has to be so hard - I can only imagine how hard. 

 

 

Edited August 29 by Cruising-along

[smitty34877]

@kazu,Jacqui, As others have said, I can’t imagine how hard it is to pack up and leave . I was glad to hear from you and send hugs. It doesn’t help that you are in pain and not feeling at your best. I find hugging the dog helpful but that is just me.

[Denise T]

@kazu, sending hugs your way.

 

[Haljo1935]

Hugs 🫂 🤗 @kazu

[Cruzin Terri]

3 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

This afternoon we called Flight Ease to see if they can tell us when we will see a refund of our airfare from our cancelled flight in Boston last month.  Oddly enough, the same young man named Mike answered our call, the same person who I talked to on July 25th..  Do they only have one representative answering the phone?  We explained we had taken his advice from my last call to him and emailed Guest Relations asking for our refund.  I did that the same day and received an auto-generated email with a case #.  On Aug. 4th Delta informed us they had refunded funds to what appears to be Flight Ease.  So I waited 11 days with no reply from Guest Relations and emailed them again.  Got another case # emailed back to me.  Absolutely no word from them in the past 5 weeks.  

 

So Mike put us on hold (checking back frequently) and after about 45 minutes he got a hold of Robert from Guest Relations, who then spoke to us, and said he would send the info on to what sounded like Air and Sea.  Said we would probably hear from them in several weeks' time.  So we are still waiting.  This feels so much like 2020 and the long wait for cancelled cruise refunds!

 

We looked up the Terms and Conditions on the HAL website and see this fine print. 

 

Quote taken from Flight Ease Terms and Conditions:

 

Liability and Relation with Airlines -

“If, due to any cause beyond our control, we are unable to arrange for air travel or the air travel we arrange is unavailable or otherwise fails to materialize, to the extent permitted by applicable law, our sole liability will be limited to refunding the air price paid to us.”

 

I hope that means they will refund the full amount we paid to them.

Looks like it’s time to contact Chris Elliott.

Terri

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

1 hour ago, smitty34877 said:

@kazu,Jacqui, As others have said, I can’t imagine how hard it is to pack up and leave . I was glad to hear from you and send hugs. It doesn’t help that you are in pain and not feeling at your best. I find hugging the dog helpful but that is just me.

 

Me too, if we still had a dog.

 

Lenda

[Cruisercl]

Good evening everyone,

 

Hope you all had a pretty good day. Catching up here but do read as much as I can daily.

Met some friends for lunch today and had fun, it was a long lunch. We got caught up as we have not seen each other for a few months.

 

@cruising sister Lorraine, so glad to hear sweet Murphy is able to get outside. It appears she is coming along nicely. Wish her Mom the best with her upcoming new additions to the family!

I also remember the tour in Tauranga being good, the guy was very nice. I gave the tea I bought in that little shop to my BIL and he loves it, says it is good quality tea. I don't drink tea very often so I would not know.

@smitty34877, thanks for the picture of sweet Camilla! I can't believe she is so grown up already. What a happy little girl, she is indeed loved. Best to you and Tana.

@Cruising-along, Carolyn, great picture of your guys, including Henry!!

 

We have had lots of bad storms with tornados this week. I lost power for 21/2 hours on Monday. It is a first world proplem for sure but I am entitled enough not to like it. 😜 Lots of damage to homes and the MN State Fair. Things are supposed to settle down after today. Our weather this Summer has been wild!

 

Good to hear from you all who post daily, thanks for your efforts for the rest of us.

Prayers for comfort and hugs for all struggling now. Life is alot of pain at times, unfortunately.

Prayers for all of us.

Still jealous of all of the cruisers, I am afraid that the jealousy may never go away! I don't cruise until Jan 2025. Safe travels for all who are lucky to be traveling, a cruise or anything else. It is always fun IMO. 

Please take care everyone. 

Caron😊

 

 

 

[RMLincoln]

💔 @kazu Jacqui, I felt utterly wounded tearing myself from our mountain home that we built, and the community we served, felt loved by, cared about and respected. But I healed. I have wonderful memories, no regrets because life ahead was not going to be like life of years ago, just like I’m not going to be 40 again. Cry when you need to, mourn the loss, lean on others, and remember what’s good right now… so much! Sometimes we have to do hard things!  Sending ((((🤗)))) 

Maureen 

[erewhon]

Finally finishd reading all of the posts today..

Today is Daffodil Day, Fund raising day for the Cancer Society. The Daffodil Day message this year is simple and profound " The 1 in 3 could be me, you, or someone you love."  highlights the statistic that one in three New Zealanders will be diagnosed with cancer in their lifetime.

For many years we have volunteered with helping to collect  donations at locations such as at  the entry to  supermarkets for people  to donate, and buy daffodils, either real or artificial. Folk from the Cancer Society  refresh supplies of daffodils throughout the day.

 

@RMLincoln Welcome back from your cruise.

@smitty34877  thank you for the delightful photo of Miss Camilla.

@puppycanducruise  the Maori King died from Complications after surgery.  He was only 69.

@grapau27 thank you for your reply yesterday.