Royal Caribbean Cruisers -- How Are Things Where You Are? (was "Routine" ​ 😁 ​day in lockdown... how was yours?)

[Ocean Boy]

29 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

RIP Bella.

 

Condolences to John and Laura.  The fond memories will be with you forever.

You know something that is not on the other thread?

[Arzeena]

33 minutes ago, Ourusualbeach said:

RIP Bella.

 

Condolences to John and Laura.  The fond memories will be with you forever.

🙏

[dani negreanu]

4 minutes ago, Ocean Boy said:

You know something that is not on the other thread?

 

As of 2 hours ago, Bella is no longer suffering. I'm typing this with tears in my eyes.

[Ocean Boy]

2 minutes ago, dani negreanu said:

 

As of 2 hours ago, Bella is no longer suffering. I'm typing this with tears in my eyes.

Oh....😪

[Arzeena]

3 minutes ago, dani negreanu said:

 

As of 2 hours ago, Bella is no longer suffering. I'm typing this with tears in my eyes.

Thank you Dani for letting us know. Reading this with tears.

My condolences to John and Lala.

[MJSailors]

This thread does move from topic to topic-NCAA basketball to ceilings to travel and Netflix etc shows lately.

Keeps things interesting as conversations among friends are usually like that.

My two cents about ceilings.

We built our home in 1984.The ceilings are flat, painted sheet rock with crown moulding.

I have been in many homes in my area and have only seen the type of ceilings that we have in our house.

We first experienced popcorn ceilings in Florida condos. When we purchased a condo in 2012 in FL, we looked into removing the popcorn as we did not appreciate the look of it. We were told that removal would be costly.

Since the condo was a second home, we put up with the popcorn.

I wondered why the popcorn was so prevelent in FL. I think I know why-the popcorn hides cracks and leak damage and repairs to it due to leaks are doing, I'm just waiting some cues clinic, relatively affordable compared to repair/replacing Sheetrock.

Maybe that is not the case, but a thought on my part.

Speaking of FL, my DH and I have returned from a month spent at a condo complex on the ocean at Hutchinson Island.

Since we sold our condo a number of years ago, we have decided to rent occasionally for a month 

Rents have skyrocketed there!

We spent the $$$ because we haven’t traveled much since 2020. So, if we divided the number of months we did not go anywhere into the rental fees etc, the amount of travel money we spent was,actually, affordable-that’s girl math. My hubby feels otherwise.

We had sunshine everyday ,except two days where there were intermittent showers.

We were able to go on daily walks, visit the beach, play shuffleboard and visit with friends both in the condo complex and in the surrounding area.

It was one of our better vacations.

We still would like to take a few cruises, but we are concerned still about becoming ill on the ship or after getting home.

We know that there was always the possibility of catching some illness on a cruise, but since we started cruising in 1987, we never contracted any illness on a cruise ship.

I keep reading postings about peoples’ cruise experiences and , perhaps, one day in the near future, we will book another cruise vacation.

There, my conversation went from ceilings to travel-oh, also glad for UConn’s win. They faced a giant and won the championship !

Yay, Huskies!

So, I got basketball into the conversation too!

Wishing all a good rest of the day!

MJ🙋🏻‍♀️

[MJSailors]

Just read the news about Bella. She was so cute and full of personality. She has a place in the hearts of many posters here.

Thank you John and LaLa for sharing her with us.

MJ♥️🥲

[lenquixote66]

20 hours ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

 

As a casual Kentucky fan (daughter got her undergrad degree there), I was happy to see Coach Cal go.  I was not the only Kentucky fan to feel that way.  He has arguably had the best talent of any college team (NBA teams are littered with former UK players) but they were all one and done.  No matter how much talent you have as a freshman, it's tough to go against some of the more experienced 3 and 4 year players on teams like Virginia, or Villanova, or Gonzaga.  He had a hard time just winning the SEC.  Cal didn't seem willing to move away from the one and done model.  Worse, he complained every year about how his guys had a hard time adjusting to being great team players. 🙄

 

Hopefully he tries a different approach at Arkansas and has better success.  I think he's still a good coach.

I have always been against a college athlete who attends solely to play a sport.There are many non athletes who cannot get into a college because of this.I am also against the college athletes who graduate but academically should not have been there at all.I enjoy rooting for players who are students primarily.

[lenquixote66]

I was rooting for UConn.The husband of one of my doctors is a U Conn graduate.He was at the game last night.

One of my former co workers is a alum of the college.

 

 

 

[DaniDanielle]

43 minutes ago, MJSailors said:

Just read the news about Bella. She was so cute and full of personality. She has a place in the hearts of many posters here.

Thank you John and LaLa for sharing her with us.

MJ♥️🥲

+1😢

[bobmacliberty]

RIP Bella. 😢

[bobmacliberty]

44 minutes ago, lenquixote66 said:

I have always been against a college athlete who attends solely to play a sport.There are many non athletes who cannot get into a college because of this.I am also against the college athletes who graduate but academically should not have been there at all.I enjoy rooting for players who are students primarily.

 

I don't mind athletes in college, even if they are only a student in name.  If you want to play professional football or basketball, you have to go through college.  This is the path to a future for some of these kids, even if that future is not academically related.  The schools make a LOT of money from those 2 sports, especially the big-name schools.  That money funds scholarships for other athletes in smaller sports who ARE good students, don't have a pro sports option after graduation, and might not otherwise be able to afford college.  Combined with Title IX, this gives opportunities to a lot of girls who might not have been able to attend college.  At Kentucky, profits from sports were used to build a brand new academic building which benefits all students. 

 

I understand the thought that "student athletes" who are paid to attend a school just to play a sport are overly privileged, but I think it's quite a bit more complicated than that. 

 

Edit: I'll also add that sports are a fun part of the college experience for those who don't play sports.  It's a nice relief from the pressures of school and helps generate school pride.  Without sports, there wouldn't be student managers, marching bands, cheerleaders and dance teams, etc.  I'll get off my soap box now.  🙂

Edited April 9 by bobmacliberty

[Sea Dog]

RIP Sweet Bella. A life well lived with the family she loved the best. I know she has crossed the rainbow bridge and is free of pain. Peace be with John and Laura as they always hold her deep in their heart.

[Jimbo]

[Luckynana]

17 hours ago, Husky1987 said:

We'll just do knockdown.  We're doing a light gray over the walls and ceilings, with a darker gray with a bluish tint accent wall in the living room, master bedroom, and master bath.

You're getting there!

9 hours ago, aussielozzie18 said:

 

DH’s nephew has unfortunately joined the Canadian broken bones club.  He broke his femur on the last session of the last day of the ski season at his resort in BC.

Oh my gosh!  Is he okay?

[Luckynana]

@grapau27  I hope all went well with your skin screening, Graham🥰

[StanleyandGus]

10 hours ago, aussielozzie18 said:

DH’s nephew has unfortunately joined the Canadian broken bones club.  He broke his femur on the last session of the last day of the ski season at his resort in BC.

What a horrible break. Was he planning to go back to Australia after the season?

[Momof3gurlz]

2 hours ago, MJSailors said:

 

Speaking of FL, my DH and I have returned from a month spent at a condo complex on the ocean at Hutchinson Island.

 

 

This is something Andy and I would like to do each year from say mid-February to mid-March. Since he retired in 2019, we’ve spent 2-3 weeks in FL around this time (except 2020 of course) with our stays consisting of a combination of hotels, cruises and time at Disney using points.  We tried an AirBnB once and had a poor experience so we’ve been reluctant to do that again.  But I’d really like to have a 3 week to one month rental, staying in one spot and branching out in day trips.  
So my question is, how did you find your rental? Local realtor, VRBO, etc?  And how far in advance did you book?   

[StanleyandGus]

I tried to get a picture of my sparkly ceiling- I don’t know that it came out. We have several rooms of that. Beneath the sparkly ceiling, the rooms really suit us, so we are resigned to renovating.

 

Our house is not open plan, and we like it that way. We’re fond of each other, but we have no desire to spend every second together!

 

 @Coralc , we will definitely have the ceiling analyzed- it’s not likely that there’s asbestos, but it’s possible. And we will definitely remove the ceiling before we put in new floors!

[Coralc]

10 minutes ago, StanleyandGus said:

I tried to get a picture of my sparkly ceiling- I don’t know that it came out. We have several rooms of that. Beneath the sparkly ceiling, the rooms really suit us, so we are resigned to renovating.

 

Our house is not open plan, and we like it that way. We’re fond of each other, but we have no desire to spend every second together!

 

 @Coralc , we will definitely have the ceiling analyzed- it’s not likely that there’s asbestos, but it’s possible. And we will definitely remove the ceiling before we put in new floors!

 

I think sometimes the sparklies come from vermiculite. (which has asbestos) But I'm not a builder or knowledgeable. I do see that Amazon now sells a wide variety of inexpensive asbestos test kits. You just send the sample off to the lab and they email the results. (check for extra lab fees) 

 

They don't look horrible. They are just dated. I think smooth ceilings look much better. 

[TravelGirlinDallas]

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

RIP Sweet Bella. A life well lived with the family she loved the best. I know she has crossed the rainbow bridge and is free of pain. Peace be with John and Laura as they always hold her deep in their heart.

+1 💔

[h20skibum]

5 hours ago, Ourusualbeach said:

RIP Bella.

 

Condolences to John and Laura.  The fond memories will be with you forever.

Sorry to read that about Bella.  Condolences to John and Laura.  

[MJSailors]

16 minutes ago, Momof3gurlz said:

This is something Andy and I would like to do each year from say mid-February to mid-March. Since he retired in 2019, we’ve spent 2-3 weeks in FL around this time (except 2020 of course) with our stays consisting of a combination of hotels, cruises and time at Disney using points.  We tried an AirBnB once and had a poor experience so we’ve been reluctant to do that again.  But I’d really like to have a 3 week to one month rental, staying in one spot and branching out in day trips.  
So my question is, how did you find your rental? Local realtor, VRBO, etc?  And how far in advance did you book?   

@Momof3gurlz Glad to give you some insights.

Friends of ours found this condo complex,Ocean Village,when they retired in 2009. They bought a unit in 2010 and invited us to use it when I retired in 2011. We liked the complex very much, and rented in 2012. We then bought a unit after that stay. We renovated our unit and basically flipped it,selling in 2014. We realized that,for us, it was better to rent then own.

In subsequent years, we rented through the RE agency in the complex or through VRBO. Most units require a month stay during the high season- Jan. through April.Ocean Village (OV) is a gated community which has a 9 hole golf course, ocean beach waterfront,a library,several pools,bocce and tennis courts with shuffleboard and basketball courts,and a community center for various activities with a fitness center on premises.One caveat is that there are plans for reconstructing the large swimming pool and surrounding area with completion slated for 2025.Work has not begun,yet.

You could check out the complex by Googling Ocean Village,Ft Pierce,FL

We also rented two times in Island Beach Resort, Jensen Beach. It is a smaller property offering a swimming pool and ocean beach waterfront. There is a restaurant attached,Shuckers.

You can rent directly on their web site,and it may be possible to rent there for a few weeks rather than a month. Google Island Beach Resort,Jensen Beach FL.

You could also look at other complexes by looking at VRBO. We are familiar with Vero Beach, Ft Pierce,Jensen Beach,Stuart and Singer Island. The properties we have researched are all on the ocean. Obviously, we like to be on a beach as we find it relaxing for a vacation spot.

As for when to rent- if you are thinking of Winter,2025,I would suggest that you start looking now. People were looking for rentals for next Winter at OV by the end of March. We decided this past December that we wanted to stay for March at OV. By this time, condo offerings were sparse. The condo we were able to rent had everything we needed and everything (appliances ,TV,Wfi etc ) worked well, but the decor was very dark - heavy gold velour drapes in the bedroom,for example- that did not reflect the tropical FL atmosphere of the grounds. We thought it was a good thing that we had sunshine for almost all of the days,as being in that condo on a rainy day would be dismal !

As I noted in my previous post, the rent and fees gave us sticker shock. In the past (13 years ago ) I recall the monthly rent and fees to be between $2,000 and $3,000.

This Winter,we paid $7000 with a refundable security deposit of $500. But, most travel costs have skyrocketed in the past few years.

I hope you find this info helpful. If you have any further questions, please post them to me.

MJ👩🏻

 

 

[aussielozzie18]

4 hours ago, dani negreanu said:

 

As of 2 hours ago, Bella is no longer suffering. I'm typing this with tears in my eyes.

That explains why John left the WC suddenly.  Her loss is going to hit them both very  hard.  Bella was such a beautiful dog. She will be very much missed by cc members too.  Condolences to John & Laura. 

[aussielozzie18]

1 hour ago, StanleyandGus said:

What a horrible break. Was he planning to go back to Australia after the season?

No.  He only arrived in Canada in November.  Fortunately, his mum has a medical background and has family friends in Canada where he can recouperate once he is out of hospital.

 

@Luckynana  will hear more today.