Silversea Water Cooler: Welcome! Part Two

[Mark_K]

That might be a popular meal. Canada geese can make quite the nuisance of themselves!

Tell me about it. We've had two families on our little lake the past few years.

 

Fortunately, they aren't that smart, and if you string some white string along the shore about 6" off the ground, they don't realize they can just smash through it and stay in the water.

[UKCruiseJeff]

Good Afternoon all ..... from I reckon "The Last of The Summer Wine" here in the UK.

 

Grandkids and parents just left and I got a "talking to" by my daughter for using a "tone" with her son when he was misbehaving. I'm still licking my wounds. That video link made me smile.

 

M .... don't let the kids get you down .... Part of life's discouloring tapestry ...

 

Appreciate Jeff's added follow-up the need for a tripod in doing time-lapse photography. BUT, do I use the lighter and smaller table-top tripod? Or, bring one of the two larger tripods that I have. Choices?! Choices?!

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

 

 

 

Terry .... I am no expert in these things but it does rather seem to me that if you have a table I'd use a table tripod ... if you don't - I'd use a floor standing tripod ... but you know more about photography and these technical considerations I'd leave to you. Can't you use Darkroom or Photoshop to remove camera wobble?

 

Mark, in the UK we'd get strung up for saying anything about geese ...

 

Soapy is having a great time ... loving the food .... but not getting off today and lazing around. She has had some rack of lamb last night and says the fish is good ... and so is the filet mignon. (I always think the g and the n are the wrogn way round.

 

Lovely walk today, lovely low sun .... and some ribs and an onion loaf to remind me of Jilly's Ribs in Atlanta .... ! I wish someone would make and sell onion loaf in the UK. Sorry that my ribs are a bit blurred ...

 

Jeff

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[TLCOhio]

Terry .... I am no expert in these things but it does rather seem to me that if you have a table I'd use a table tripod ... if you don't - I'd use a floor standing tripod ... but you know more about photography and these technical considerations I'd leave to you. Can't you use Darkroom or Photoshop to remove camera wobble?

Lovely walk today, lovely low sun .... and some ribs and an onion loaf to remind me of Jilly's Ribs in Atlanta .... !

 

Appreciate Jeff's wonderful food, walking and woods pictures. Nice!! Perfect weather here in Central Ohio and probably will be that way for the next week or so.

 

Don't have either Darkroom or Photoshop to take out any "wobble". On tripods, the challenge is about the logistics for lugging and taking along those tools. Bigger can be better on a tripod's quality and performance, but that means more weight and hassles to pack and/or carry along. Will figure it out in January while doing my final packing plans. Keep stirring the pot and sharing with such creative photographic ideas and options.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

Enjoyed a 14-day, Jan. 20-Feb. 3, 2014, Sydney to Auckland adventure, getting a big sampling for the wonders of "down under” before and after this cruise. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1974139

for more info and many pictures of these amazing sights in this great part of the world. Now at 123,579 views for this posting.

[mysty]

Thanks for the words of consolation J! I know this all goes with the territory but it still stings! Your pictures are beautiful! How old are the gravestones in that picture? Such a beautiful shot! Your ribs look finger-licking good! The ones on the plate I mean. :)

[TLCOhio]

Terry, Unless I start taking them with something better than an iPhone 4, they're not going to look any better bigger, just fuzzier. Mark

 

mysty: Grandkids and parents just left and I got a "talking to" by my daughter for using a "tone" with her son when he was misbehaving. I'm still licking my wounds.

 

For Mark' date=' those in Michigan need to get into the 21st Century!! [b']Get a new iPhone. [/b] The quality and lots of aspects have improved so much, especially with pictures, reception, etc. Plus, a new camera! You can afford it! Am I good at helping to spend your money? Don't save it too long and have your kids fighting over it.

 

Yes, for mysty, there are "challenges" when your kids and grandkids visit. Just need to be "light" and not get too serious with certain of those challenges/concerns. Easier said than done. Our two grandsons, ages 5 and 3, will be visiting here in less than two weeks. Lots to do to get ready.

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

For Athens, Greece, check out this posting with many ideas, tips and exciting visuals for our visiting there and nearby. There have been over 11,346 views on this posting. Go to:

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1101008

[UKCruiseJeff]

I don't use a mobile phone Terry and Mark, and never will do except in an emergency.

 

Hi M,

 

The village has had people living here since 50BC or so and we don't know when we first had anchurch but the earliest church was first recorded here when the village was mentined in a Charter by Edward the Elder in the early 900s. The current church was built in 1710 and the earliest graves are from that time.

 

This evening was some simple thin and very lovely Scottish smoked salmon and chive philly bagels.

 

Jeff

 

Edited October 12, 2015 by UKCruiseJeff

[Mark_K]

Terry,

 

We inherited a little place in an RV resort in Florida this past spring, and the coverage with our current carrier (Sprint) is horrible there, so we'll be switching carriers before we go back down for the winter. I'm planning on getting an iPhone 6 when we switch.

 

The thing is I hardly ever use it as a phone, and I like the size of the 4, so I've been reluctant to do anything. I had been kind of waiting for the 6c, but looks like that's not happening.

 

Mark

[mysty]

I love wandering through old graveyards J! My imagination comes up with all kinds of possible stories for the lives, loves and cause of death for those buried. Sounds a little morbid maybe but not for me.

 

Thanks Terry! I usually am the "fun" grandparent. It was a long day and the almost 4 year old was being a handful. I'm not a perfect anything let alone perfect grandparent. :(

[UKCruiseJeff]

Good morning coolers,

 

Sad to see the coverage of the last flights of that lovely old Vulcan that Robert Pleming has spent years keeping in the sky. An end of an era. The beeb had a lot of coverage with Robert this morning. I was suprised to hear him say that access to the plane and it's flights is so strictly controlled that he has only flown on it once even though he started and is ceo of the trust that saved, maintained and flew it.

 

Jeff

 

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2015-10-12/british-vulcan-bomber-s-farewell-tour-draws-crowds-of-250-000

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-england-34495905

 

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-34505010

[mysty]

Another fragile piece of history is shelved. I wonder what will be deemed worthy of keeping from our current era. Planned obsolescence is reducing the number of possible candidates.

[mysty]

Oh and I cooked Myster his favourite prime rib dinner for Thanksgiving yesterday. He was pleased. :) Nothing gourmet - just mashed potatoes, brussel sprouts, gravy and prime rib cooked to medium. No pictures.....no time.

[TLCOhio]

Terry, We inherited a little place in an RV resort in Florida this past spring, and the coverage with our current carrier (Sprint) is horrible there, so we'll be switching carriers before we go back down for the winter. I'm planning on getting an iPhone 6 when we switch. The thing is I hardly ever use it as a phone, and I like the size of the 4, so I've been reluctant to do anything. I had been kind of waiting for the 6c, but looks like that's not happening. Mark

 

mysty: Thanks Terry! I usually am the "fun" grandparent. It was a long day and the almost 4 year old was being a handful. I'm not a perfect anything let alone perfect grandparent.

 

Appreciate these two above follow-ups. Yes' date=' understand for Mark in how cell service, in certain locations with some companies, can be poor or challenging. Might look at [b']a different service carrier??[/b] I use Verizon and view their network as generally better. As I have mentioned, the digital cameras, BOTH on cell phones and in regular cameras, keep getting better and improving so much. I use my cell phone lots and lots. Love the way Apple has the Cloud sharing to keep my calendars, messages, etc., linked and connected between these two devices that I use constantly.

 

YES, for mysty, I am sure you are a "fun grandparent"!! I am sure that you are nearly "perfect" at and with many different things. Keep up the good work!!

 

THANKS! Enjoy! Terry in Ohio

 

If Venice is one of your future desires or past favorites, look at this earlier posting for many options and visual samples this city that is so great for "walking around", personally seeing its great history and architecture. This posting is now at 54,869 views.

Venice: Loving It & Why??!!

http://boards.cruisecritic.com/showthread.php?t=1278226

[mysty]

Thanks for being my cheering section Terry! :)

[mysty]

It's much too quiet here. I just heard a pin drop. Everybody doing OK?

[spinnaker2]

Ditto. Churchmouse quiet.

Hope all well.

 

I finally am tackling another chest of my mother's stuff.

Besides some lovely spode, there are many memories.

Found an envelope with 20 or so pages of her handwritten notes.

She had titled the envelope, "to be rewritten".

She apparently never did so. It piqued my curiosity.

The writing starts with how she met my father at a train station.

She follows with her thoughts and how much of a romantic my Dad was.

She writes that my father wanted to be a psychiatrist, but couldn't afford medical school. Still he learned German so he could read Freud in the original version. I never knew that fact.

My father went to Yale undergrad and then started Harvard law, but the war happened.

She describes the first years of their marriage as idyllic.

She related how they bought their furniture together, investing in pieces much too expensive, but paying over time. They bought wisely. I still have some of that furniture.

So poignant. A view into their lives. Much of it I never knew. She wrote well.

I have resisted reading her diaries and journals up to now.

I am still not ready to do so.

I will finish going through what is in the trunk and put the journals away for another day.

I heard her voice in my mind as I read her notes.

It was comforting that I still could.

Edited October 14, 2015 by spinnaker2
Typo

[mysty]

Spinnaker2, that is beautiful! What a wonderful gift your mother left for you and yours. I have my mom's diaries too. She died a month after my first child was born (a daughter), about 35 years ago. I still cannot read them without tears. It was the minutia of her life and it was what was important for her. I'm so glad that you were comforted!

[jpalbny]

Very nice to have those memories, spinnaker2. My late mother was an avid letter writer and even now, years after she passed, people continue to send some of those letters to me and my siblings. Great to read them.

 

Her mother (my grandmother), still going at 97 years old, has over the past few years written a ton of memoirs. Her stories of growing up in Upstate New York during the Depression, teaching school during WW2, and the early days as her children were born while they were struggling to put my grandfather through medical school make me feel soft, hearing about what they went through. Some priceless family treasures there!

Edited October 14, 2015 by jpalbny

[mysty]

We do have it easy compared to our parents and grandparents. I'm not sure how easy our grandchildren will have it though.

[UKCruiseJeff]

Good Evening team ...

 

It was lovely to read of those memories and I must admit to being envious. C'est la vie.

 

A few days ago I announced to wifey that as we were not heading off to Singapore as planned for December and January, I was intent on creating the tackiest and most illuminated vista from her couch out through the glass doors as seemed tolerable and appropriate. I explained that it was not a topic for discussion. So I have added a load of wetherproof electric circuits out to the spot in question all circuits controlled by wifi switching so a turning on and turning off ceremony will occur at prescribed hours each evening. I may even find approproiate music. I am going to do this gradually to make sure it is tasteful.

 

When I was younger I use to get involved with a group of friends in chasing the first Beaujolais Nouveau which this year is November 19th. But as I grew up I realised that the stuff was so disgusting that it wasn't worth drinking .... and one year .... wifey ate smoked mackerel and drunk too much BN and I won't go into detail but we never did get the smell out of the car and I had to sell it to a garage in part exchange who was clearly without a sense of smell.

 

So what has replaced that primeval urge ... and has become a real obsession is the first sweet chestnuts of the year. I get really twitchy this week or so every year because the harvest has been happening in Spain for a few days and the cropping is now as North as France. I write each year to the supermarkets and ask them what day it will arrived and Tesco India CS center suggested Chilli Peanuts but Waitrose are expecting their first batch next Wednesday ... exactly 7 days. They have told my local manager to expect me and they have told me to ask for him if they aren't out on show. Of course being childish and impatient - seven days was drving me mad ... so I have indulged myself in a personal delivery from Spain that is arriving tommorow before 10am! I am beside myself with excitement. I have even bought myself a back up maroni cutter just in case. :):D

 

I have installed a small twin hob in Maroni's - which already has heaters - and this is going to be used for warming up the first punch mit schuss of the season ... and I have some frozen summer berries coming on Friday so electric punch tommorow and the chestnuts will be cooked on the lava grill and kept warm on the hob.

 

I know all of this sounds terribly trivial but this festive season wifey will have Christmas lights from her couch and regular trips outside to Maroni's for electric punch and nuts.

 

Jeff

[mysty]

Now I am envious J! That sounds absolutely magical to me! What a wonderful way to celebrate the Yule season and the run-up to the season! I hope you both enjoy it to the max! And it is in the trivial where the joys of life are found!

[jpalbny]

We always roast some chestnuts on Thanksgiving. That keeps us from starving to death while dinner cooks! Nothing worse than being hungry for hours while all this delicious food is cooking - the smells will drive you crazy!

[Mark_K]

In Michigan we'll be looking to roast some horse chestnuts the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

[mw8811]

Still here lurking around in the background - in full get ready to go away mood - one case packed. Two others to be done. DH had cataract surgery, cat has urinary infection, I did my back in so all in all an eventful couple of weeks. Along with trying to give grass a final mow before we go away, arrange for gardener to trim the hedges while we're away, wondering why window man hasn't appeared on his scheduled day, being presented with things that need washing/cleaning/altering all before Tuesday - whimper

 

Hoping the Med is a little warmer than here and wondering how this cruise will be with a line we've never tried before - hey ho interesting times ahead.

 

Loved all the pix that have been popping up all through the thread - love looking at food even though I try to be strong and live on salad (got to get into all those new gowns - arrgggghhh).

 

M

[UKCruiseJeff]

In Michigan we'll be looking to roast some horse chestnuts the Saturday after Thanksgiving.

 

I hope not Mark. Horse chestnuts (conkers) are poisonous ..... please choose sweet chestnuts as we can't lose any more members .....:D

 

Jeff

[UKCruiseJeff]

We always roast some chestnuts on Thanksgiving. That keeps us from starving to death while dinner cooks! Nothing worse than being hungry for hours while all this delicious food is cooking - the smells will drive you crazy!

 

JP, I hope you are also going to have some electric punch with that ..

 

Jeff

 

ps .... I use to have a mate who was also a client ..... and terribly competitive. So we had competitions. Our best competition was trying to get extra free nuts out of the maroni sellers in the Vienna Christmas markets by just using pleading eyes and gesticulations ie no words or sounds .... just mime. These competitions use to last us the whole trip and of course got better the more punch we drank and by the end of the trip we had lost count of the extras so couldn't work out who had won. So we argued about who had won. :)

Edited October 15, 2015 by UKCruiseJeff