HBE4

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

We watched Seinfeld’s movie and enjoyed it.

55 minutes ago, George C said:

We also really liked Frosted.

Me too.

Not all comedy needs to be edgy or ground breaking, sometimes just good old fashion, light hearted fluff is what the world needs.

2 hours ago, h20skibum said:

Where are you staying pre cruise?  We are on Utopia August 2 with our grandkids.   Staying at the Holiday Inn Express.  

As of right now, the plan is to fly down July 31 & spend two night at a friends house, who are also on the cruise. They live about 35 minutes away from the port, Palm Bay.

3 hours ago, Luckynana said:

 

Is that the train that runs along the Hudson, that I see when we go over the Tappan Zee?

3 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

 There is a Metro North line that runs along the Hudson from upstate NY. However, the line I take runs from New Haven along the coast and into Manhattan on the east side at Harlem and then into Grand Central.

That's the train I take when going into the city.

3 hours ago, BonTexasNY said:

BTW a friend of mine has a house on LBI.  @Sunshine3601 Debbie doesn't know them.  I won't post their last name but they're Stacie and Ken from Rockland County; 3 children, grown now with kids of their own.  She's an interior designer, he had or has a furniture business.  I think they're in their 60s. That's all I'm willing to post. 🤐

Hey, I know them. They over-charged me for some work. 😅

Just kidding, I don't know them either.

7 minutes ago, Jimbo said:

My Wife grew up in West Haven.Ct.. keep telling her the Long Island Sound is not a real beach, it's gravel pit. Tell her to come with me where I used to live growing up and I can show her real sand on a Jersey Beach at Long Beach Island. 🙂

I have not been to Sherwood Island since the 1970's but gravel pit might be an apt description.   The place I was this past weekend had more sand than I expected but was still a bit on the rocky side. I've been to Hammonasset State Park on the eastern side of CT and the beach there seems pretty sandy & decent ocean waves. Make sense since that it where the ocean and LI Sound meet. BTW, why is it called LI Sound and not a LI Bay? I have no idea.

I spent 30 years visiting Long Beach Island as DW family used to rent a house there for 2 weeks each year. I agree, much better sand but also 3+ hour trip for me each way so no can do for a day trip. South Shore of Long Island (the Atlantic Ocean side) is the best I can do for a day trip. Jones Beach or Robert Moses State Park & even that is pushing it to the limit with summer weekend traffic. Hence, I go on weekdays. 🙂

53 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

I've been on Adventure several times out of both San Juan and Ft. Lauderdale. Had a great time on every one of them. Stop analyzing how you thing you will be feeling. Just go with the flow and take it as it comes. You have friends aboard when you want them and the ability to retreat when, and if, you feel like it.

 

These days, for various reasons, I mostly cruise solo now and I love it. You might just find that you feel the same. And if for some reason you don't like it, eight days will go by plenty fast enough and then at least you will know if cruising us still right for you. Just enjoy the anticipation.....

As always, thank you for your support.

🙂

2 hours ago, Arzeena said:

We are also going, end of August, on the Wonder.

Ah, okay. Aug 2nd for me. No chance of crossing paths at the pier.  However.....(see below)

1 hour ago, Momof3gurlz said:

Happy to read you’ve found a way to get back to cruising that you feel comfortable with.  Does this mean we might meet you on one of the Bella cruises?

Maybe.😊 There are a few other cruises on my radar & Bella 2.0 IS one of them.  I'm still focused on the August cruise with booking flights, excursions, pre- and post- cruise trips and the age old question of drink package or not? 

But once all of that is settled, I'll start looking down the road further. Let just say that at this moment, there is a better chance of meeting than not meeting. 😇

1 hour ago, Arzeena said:

 

Very happy you are going on a cruise! When is your sailing?

 

Thank you

This August!  Isnt that the best time of year to go deep into the Caribbean?😃

While it seems last minute,  my friends have been talking about it & trying to convince me for well over year now. I had been looking at various other cruises in recent months but this one just felt right.   And being on CC, I've been able to keep up-to-date with all the changes since my last cruise. Plus the people I'm going with are frequent cruisers so I'll be following their lead.

12 minutes ago, MJSailors said:

@HBE4 Is the beach on Sherwood Island (I might have the name wrong).

I have seen the sign for it off if 1-95 near Norwalk CT.

It is another 10 weather day here on Eastern LI.

We have been blessed with these days lately.

Thursday prediction is 90!

MJ🙋🏻‍♀️

No, I was at the very creatively named Island Beach Park which is run by the town of Greenwich CT.

There is a Sherwood Island beach near the Norwalk/Westport area of CT. My parents used to take us there as kids. I remember the beach as being very rocky and curiously, it is not an island. Go figure,

I do have a bit of good news to share. Tonight is Game 2 of the Stanley Cup finals and had the NY Rangers advanced, I'd be attending the game at Madison Square Garden with 3 others. (Playoff tickets are usually sold in advance before knowing if the team will make the next round).  I just got my refund for the 4 tickets I had purchased.

But that's not the good news.

How much was the refund? Well, the good news is that it will pay for my recently booked balcony cabin for a 8 night Southern Caribbean cruise on Adventure of the Seas.  And the round trip flight to Orlando.

First cruise in 5 years. First solo cruise.  Well, first solo-ish cruise as a group of friends convinced me to join them as well as their friends. So cruising with old friends while making new ones. First time visiting Aruba on a cruise ship (I've vacationed there at least 8-10 times in the past) and first time visiting Curacao and CoCo Cay. No Bonaire but I guess the Bahamas will be the substitute B for ABC islands. 😀

I'm cautiously excited. First cruise without DW, the only person I've ever cruised with (not counting the last one when her daughter joined us), but there will be a large enough group(s) of people to spread myself around & mingle with. And when I need to retreat to the sanctuary of my cabin to process the feelings I know I will have, I won't be impacting anyone else's enjoyment or leaving them high and dry.

So thank you Florida Panthers for knocking the NY Rangers out of the playoffs. An 8 night cruise is a nice substitute for attending one championship game. 😁

22 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

At least I am seeing more men wearing hats and long sleeve swim shirts in the sea and pool so it makes me feel more comfortable wearing them. In the end I would rather be safe and look kind of dorky than get skin cancer.

Me too. And at the risk of sounding conceited, the reason people keep gifting me with hats is that I'm told it's a good look for me. So there's that & I'm sure I'll get used to wearing them on a regular basis.

1. I wanted to add that when I was at the beach, I was mindful of the recent conversations regarding skin cancer. I hate wearing hats despite the fact I have at least 20+ different hats, ball caps, etc, f all sizes an shapes. People keep giving them to me as gifts over the years. Not sure why since I never wear them. Did I mention I hate wearing hats? Just don't like the feel of something tight on my head.

Anyways, had my first ever full body scan by a dermatologist a few weeks ago & while I passed with flying colors, she did recommend that I start wearing a hat whenever I'm outside to cover my *ahem* slight thinning spot (ok, bald spot) on top of my head.  It's been her experience that most men my age get skin cancer on top of their heads and ears.  So after reading about @Sea Dog recent experience and the various creams and side effects others have experienced, I decided I rather wear an uncomfortable hat. Fortunately, all the hats are in "like new" condition since I never wear them.

On 6/8/2024 at 9:44 AM, Ocean Boy said:

Spending the day in NYC

 

On 6/8/2024 at 10:45 AM, MJSailors said:

@Ocean Boy You have a perfect day to enjoy NYC!

It is a 10 weather day for sure!

MJ🙋🏻‍♀️

I could see NYC from the beach on Saturday 

Let's zoom in a bit 

And it certainly was a perfect 10 weatherwise. The beach was on a little island in the Long Island Sound a 20 minute ferry ride from Connecticut.  Small island packs in a lot, in addition to the beach it has a pavilion,  picnic grounds,  concession stand, bathroom,  showers, kayak rentals.  

On 6/8/2024 at 2:15 PM, Luckynana said:

 

I am finally caught up, since I haven't been on for two days or so.  It doesn't take long to fall way behind!

 

 

So true, especially on weekends. 

24 minutes ago, mo&fran said:

Today is not a good day. My wife Maureen passed away this morning.

I am so sorry, please accept my condolences. Whether it was sudden or expected, it is always too soon and too difficult.  My prayers go out to you and all your loved ones & to all that knew her.

More window pictures with Lenoard.  Yeah, I moved the chair next to the window so he could rest comfortably while he contemplates life. 

2 hours ago, George C said:

I have not seen any cat or kitten pictures in a while , we will be getting ours soon , currently have 120 pounds of kitten litter 😁😁, will buy them a new scratching post also.

Sing it with me:

"How much

For that kitty

In the window"

On 6/3/2024 at 5:43 PM, twangster said:

Typically when a mountain can make its own clouds its a big one.  

 

 

Weird seeing the ship & pool area so empty when its still day light (night light?) outside.

@SteelCityCruiser10

i used these 2 websites to do most of my research.

https://www.visitmusiccity.com/

https://nashvilleguru.com/

On 6/2/2024 at 6:51 PM, SteelCityCruiser10 said:

Does anyone have any recommendations for Nashville?  We will be there 1 evening  on our way to FL.  Starting to look for a hotel and a place to eat/drink.  We probably won’t arrive until 4-5 Pm and will need to be back on the road early in the morning.  What would you do with 1 night in Nashville?

You have receive solid advice for all so far so I figured I'd add my .02 cents, taken with  grain of salt as I went once for a 6 day trip back in 2019. Not sure how much has changed in 5 years. 

Since you basically have a 12-14 hour window, I agree that staying near Broadway is your best bet for convenience. We stayed at the Residence Inn Downtown which is 2 blocks from the start (or end) of Broadway's nightlife district. It shares the same building and common areas/amenities with AC  Hotel Downtown and SpringHill Suites Downtown. Too bad hockey season is over because you have to walk right past Bridgestone Arena (home to Nashville Predators) to get to Broadway.

Since you can walk to the start of Broadway, I'd suggest go down the one side of the street to the end & come back the other side. Most of the smaller, more local places will have the windows & doors wide open so you can enjoy live music from the sidewalk. I had a few interesting  conversations with some of the local musicians when they were on break or waiting their turn on stage. I found the bigger, celebrity-owned places to be too crowded &  loud, even on a Monday or Tuesday night.  It seems to be always Saturday night in Nash-Vegas as some are calling it.  Expect to hear "Wagon Wheel" by Daruis Rucker and Shania Twains "Man, I Feel Like a Woman" every 15 minutes. At least, in 2019 that was the case.

One place I found interesting was called 6thandPeabody which is also within walking distance of the Residences Inn but not on Broadway.  It's a distillery, brewery, beer garden (with all the beer garden games), retail shop, beer & moonshine tasting, live music, big screen TV's for whatever major event, food and probably a few other things.  I never knew moonshine was a legal product that comes in many flavors, some really good, some disgusting.  I always thought it was something that was brewed in the back woods of the Appalachian Mountains by the boys from Dukes of Hazzard. 😉 So it was an educational experience as well.

https://6thandpeabody.com/

From what I'm told, Prince's Hot Chicken is the Nashville original and still the best Hot Chicken.  Since it was the only Nashville Hot Chicken I had there, I don't know if it's the best but it's far better than any Hot Chicken I had in non-Nashville locations.

https://www.princeshotchicken.com/

Now, the flavors (i.e. scale of hotness) ranges from plain, lite mild.....up to XXX Hot. Disclaimer: I'm of German-Irish decent and consider salt and pepper to be major spices but I know hot spicy food and I think they are grading on a curve. Even the plain had a good kick to it & the lite mild was pushing me to the limit.  Proceed cautiously.

Should you decide to spend the day, try Music City Rolling Jamboree is a fun, day time experience.

https://musiccityrollinjamboree.com/about/

5 hours ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

What did you say that caused them to want to chat? 🤣🤣

I was wondering the same thing. @h20skibum must be sending out mixed signals 😁😉

2 hours ago, NHProud said:

@HBE4  My favorite sport is tennis and in my younger days I played a lot . Can you name another sport where you are competing solo for 41/2 hours and your match ends at 3:00 AM ? This is at the French Open.  You get to rest when you change sides and not for long .  As much as I’m not a fan of Djokovic he is phenomenal for a 37 year old. 

Tennis is certainly a test of endurance.  Especially for someone at age 37. Impressive. 

 Having said all that, the only thing left to say is........"Let's Go Yankees!"🙂 

Shaping up to be a very good year for them as well. How about that Judge guy?

16 hours ago, Jimbo said:

Maybe Next Year  NY Rangers !! President's Trophy doesn't mean that much now does it.

Disappointing for sure. I really thought they'd win last night.  Having said that, out of 32 teams that start the regular season, 16 make the playoffs and the NY Rangers were part of the final 4, only 2 wins away from Stanley Cup round. I consider that a very good year*. The Rangers played well, but Florida played just a bit better & deserve the win.  Two or three pucks bounce in a different direction & we'd be having a different conversation.  Either way, I got to enjoy 6+ weeks of "bonus" hockey & it was a fun ride. I went to 2 playoff games & watch every minute of the rest on TV

Lord Stanley Cup has been around since the 1890's & is the oldest trophy in all sports. The Presidents Trophy for best regular season record has only been around since the mid-1980's & it seems the only people that care about it are sports writers in the media that like to post headlines like: "Presidents Trophy winner once again fails to win Championship".  As with other sports that gain more teams and more & longer playoff rounds, it seems the team with the best record fails to win the championship more often then not.

*HBE4's scale of success:

Making the Playoffs = A Good Year but expected

Winning Round 1 = Pretty Good Year

Winning Round 2 = Very Good Year

Winning Round 3 - Excellent Year

Winning Final Round  (Stanley Cup) = Over the moon, Fantastic Best Ever Year.

8 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

Thanks very much. Awesome weather. I'm reading this at the beach.🙂 Barely a ripple in the ocean.

 

 

 

No toes? Must be pre-pedicure.  @Arzeena

Happy Birthday & congrats on another year of becoming more wiser.