slidergirl

congrats on the new grand-rugrat!! I'm a hat person. If I could, I'd take 3 hats with me, not counting baseball hat and toque. But, alas, my good hats don't scrunch up and I don't have the money to buy a good travel hatbox. On the Brooklyns - the bermudas are on that Athleta sale. I may cruise up to Main St and see if I like them. I just remember I didn't like the fabric & fit of the pants.

Is your flight to ATH? Nice, long time, definitely worth the splurge to Delta One! Did you pre-order your dinner? I loved the extra choices on the pre-order form. Safe flights and safe cruising! I also use that weatherstripping on hats! If I need just a light touch, I'll use the fuzzy side of Velcro - put it in between the hat and the hatband.

Since you like Brooklyns, there is a bermuda version now, if you do shorts, I thought it kind of funny that someone over on the HAL thread brought up the 7-11 and egg salad sandwiches! I wonder what would make the chicken katsu sandwich from the run-of-the-mill breaded and fried chicken sandwich? With the clothing you mentioned above for Alaska, I guess I'll just pick out some of my everyday clothes and have at it. I do think I'll take my trail shoes and trail runners and not my boots. I'm not doing anything that I would think could not be done with my 2 choices. Plus, a little less space taken up in my bag since I can wear my black "dress" boots when I travel rather than the hiking boots.

There are most likely many positions that are not front-facing that could be automated. I wouldn't mind at all. Some of the busy front-facing positions could be augmented with automation. It would not bother me one bit. I do agree with Mary229 about apps not getting things right. As someone who was a system test engineer for decades, I see where corners were cut in the testing area all the times. The world needs fewer coders and more testers!!

People driving up here are really getting under my skin this year. Right now, like you, there is a layer of ice under the snow. People are all over the roads. AND, we have the winter potholes to contend with, too, Not those puny 3" deep 12" round ones, but ones as wide as your car and pop your tires and bend your frame kind of potholes. I have the bad ones on my way to work memorized! Regarding Easter Egg hunts - someone had a perverse idea of not dye-ing the eggs and just putting them white in the snow!!

I've used my bandana (really just bandana-sized scarves) as my head covering going into mosques and churches. As I love visiting churches and mosques wherever I go, having that bandana on my bag comes in handy! Melody - you woke up to the snow, I woke up to amazing, clear, skies and sun!! Nice to see for a change. It should be a great day for all the tourist skiers. I might dig out a little piece of my patio and put my lounge chair out and just vegetate. I was planning on going down the the Valley to get my rain shell, but since I have the extra week now between finishing work and going to Alaska, I'll just wait. I did book one excursion (not through the ship) in Sitka to go to the bear rehabilitation sanctuary. I'm a sucker for animal rehabilitation places. There's enough time after that to go visit the historical park. OOTD: another sweatpant & Tshirt day. If I end up outside, I'll put on my down sweater...

The Girl Scout in me makes sure I always bring a bandana. I just tie it to my bag. It can be used for so many things. It can be any pattern or color. I do also bring one of two long scarves that I can wrap around my neck for the evening. I have them very lightweight so they don't get too warm on me or take up much room. I'll take one solid color and one print. If I was doing your cruise, I'd absolutely taking my straw fedora!! It was a lifesaver in Europe last summer!

Purple - you are doing what I'm going to do belatedly for my birthday! I got my balcony cabin specifically so I could just sit out there, relax, read, and listen to music. I've got an "at sea" day right at the front end of the cruise, so it'll work great. I hope you DH manages fine through the pain until surgery time. I understand the Medicare thing. I know my shoulder is blown and needs surgery. But, with Medicare I'm afraid that I won't be able to use my ortho who did my shoulder back in 2004 at our local surgery center, but they will make me go down to the Valley to someone unfamiliar and then won't allow me to rehab up here. So, for now, I just deal with the pain. Lois - good snag of the Baggalini. I see women writing about them all over the travel sites I visit. Actual question on cruise fashion now: I'm going around about hats to take for Alaska. So many choices I have. First, definitely a baseball hat. all around functionality and works well if I have to put the hood on my rain shell. A travel staple. I think to be sassy I'm going to bring my Smokey Bear Trucker. I may bring a generic black or olive one, too - they pack up small and work to keep my hair from my eyes. I have hat clips that keep the hat attached to my collar to keep it from flying away. Used that clip skiing, on boats, in my convertible - a handy thing, Second, a toque/beanie. I still can't decide between my granny square crochet one or a generic black beanie. I thought of my black one with the faux fur pom but decided not. Third, one of my fedoras. I would really like to take my tan one to wear around towns if there is a nice, unwindy day. It would class me up a little. Does anyone wear nice hats around?

The only one that was surprising was Rwanda. I've wanted to go to Slovenia for awhile now.

Martincath - nice to see you are still around. You turned me onto some good Vancouver eating awhile back. I've got a similar 4 hour late stop the first week of May. I have a People's Drug stop planned to pick up some goodies, but I want food. I was thinking Chinese, but nothing on the usual boards was sounding worth the money. Do you know of any? Or, do I stick to Red Fish Blue Fish for some tacos?

I spent a few days in Bordeaux last Summer. It is a wonderful city to wander in and sightsee. Walk along the River - it's a nice promenade. The Cite du Vin was actually very good and instructive and you get a free glass of wine at the end up on the top of the building (wonderful sights). If you want to pick up some wine "to go" they have an amazing wine store as well as a fun souvenir shop with lots of wine accessories.

Be aware that the land portions of the park are potential closures when the weather is hot to try to keep fires to a bare minumum if possible. Be sure to check before you think about doing a hike.

Be aware that the land portion of the Park closes off and on in the hot time of the year to prevent fires. Last year that meant all summer and part of fall. You could still do the boat trips that go among the calinques.

I'm a sucker for Sostanza. Lunch or Dinner. Tiny place. Cash only and you need a reservation unless you want to get there right when it opens and hope there is an opening. You may share a table. Amazing petti di pollo al burro (chicken in butter) and tartino di carciofi (artichoke fritatta). I've never had their steak, but I have heard it's good, too.

Katie Parla, who I've known via emails and old Chowhound communication since 2007, just updated her "The 38 Essential Rome Restaurants" for Eater. Also cruise around her own website (her name) for more goodies. Alas, I cannot recommend any of her food or historic tours since everytime I get to Rome she is off somewhere!! She is the one who turned me onto Roscioli, Armando al Pantheon and Casalleto al Cesare back when there weren't all this web stuff around. If nothing else, reading her stuff will get you salivating and thinking of a plethora of good things eating & drinking!!

I had one of my local junior athletes come and cat sit when I was gone for short trips. It was a nice way to help fund her travels and equipment. My dog would go to the kennel - he LOVED it there. If I was going away and my sitter was otherwise engaged, the kennel also had cat boarding, so he'd go with the dog. I'd pay for the larger dog run and both would stay together when the dog was done playing with the other dogs.

That's a bit much. Outside of Albert ("just call me Joe from Philly"), my Monaco bobsled friends from the early 2000s were not wealthy at all. But, 2 of the pushers were his security guards. I think my fave has been Abu Simbel. Paid extra for it on my Nile cruise. I remembered hearing about it when I was a little kid from National Geographic in the 60s and how we collected donations from the neighborhood to help preserve it. About 50 years later, I got to see it!!!

That's why I bring my noise-cancelling headphones with me 😉 I am currently sitting at my Front Desk, listening to Samara Joy through my little speaker...

I recant the "not as bad" comment. When I drove through the snow on the driveway and looked at my tracks, there was more than 5", maybe 8". The first 4 miles driving to work was riduculous - about an inch of crusty icy snow breaking down as more people drove on it. The drive up the hill was fine - just wet. It's so weird how we have little micro-conditions around here! My co-workers couldn't get up the mountain again, so it's just me and the maintenance guy again. OOTD update: changed my mind and went with my regular faded jeans and my white&blue striped shirt.

Purple - early Happy Birthday! You know, April is the best month for birthdays 😸 Snow, snow, snow. but, fortunately, not a bad here as everyone predicted. Maybe 5" on the driveway. Up at the resorts, they are saying 9" and 12" of new. Some more supposed to come today. I used my 50% off birthday coupon from Sweaty Betty to buy a new pair of hiking boots. Nice Merrell Moab 3 Mid GTX. They are a bit more rugged than my Chameleons so I can alternate depending on where I'm going. I wasn't particularly in the market for boots, but that 50% was nice. I didn't see anything else on the site this time that I would want. I can always use footwear!! My gosh, it was BORING at work. My co-worker couldn't make it up from Salt Lake (the interstate was bad over the summit), so it was me and the maintenance guy. I just hung out and listened to music and looked some more at Alaska ideas. Today will be more of the same. At least it's my Friday. But, it will be a little sad as 2 of my owners are leaving Thursday and today will be the last time I see them until next Winter. OOTD: my black jeans and a hoodie.

I go later to avoid the "gotta get on FIRST" herd. Go to room, open my wine, relax until the muster drill.

What about some Chinese? I'm not hitting Vancouver this time, so maybe some Chinese would be in order.

I went ahead and got on the website last night and found that I could indeed sign up already. I got that same message back. I'm not worried - if I'm turned down, I'll just go back to my original plan of dropping it off at my pre-stay hotel and tipping the bellman.

OK Seattle folks and previous Seattle cruisers: I'm staying down at the Marriott Waterfront for 1 night before my cruise. Since I'm not stopping in Vancouver this time, looking for a good Japanese/sushi/izakaya place, maybe within walking distance or cheap Uber of the Marriott...

I didn't look elsewhere, but: Do you have either proof of guardianship or some such official document that permits you to take the girls without parents?