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

[brillohead]

2 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

Anybody got restaurant recommendations in Miami near the Hilton Miami Downtown? Looking at the Mambo Cafe in the Bayside area. Any one go there?

If you like Greek food, check out Meraki Greek Bistro:  https://merakibistro.com/

[brillohead]

5 hours ago, Lionesss said:

My 2006 GTO key FOB's just died.

They stopped making them 5 years ago.

If it's fully broken and not just needing a battery, check out ebay.

[jagsfan]

I guess this is a good time to tell y’all about our elevator incident. 
When we cruise out of Pt Everglades, we go a few days early to rest up from the 5 hour drive. 😊

We always eat at Zuccarelli and at Seaside Grill in Pompano Beach. 
Seaside has a flight of exterior stairs to climb, but luckily  they have an elevator for the handicapped. 
It is a rusty white metal box sitting on the ground next to the stairs. The exit is on the landing in front of the door. 
Dick dropped me at the elevator and went to park the car. 
The door was locked and the sign said push button to enter. 
I pushed the button and a few seconds later I heard a click and opened the door. 
Stepped in, closed the door and pushed the button. Nothing happened. The inside was so rusty, I shouldn’t have been surprised the buttons didn’t work. We hadn’t been there since April ‘19. 
Dick opened the door and asked what I was doing. 
When I said the button doesn’t work, he crowded in (it’s a one person elevator), slammed the door shut and pushed the button. Of course!!
He pushed all the buttons. Surprisingly, they didn’t work any better for him than they did for me!

Another surprise, now the door was locked!

We were  jammed together in a very rusty metal box in August in South Florida. 
It was hot and getting hotter. 
There was an opening at the top of one wall, so we could breathe. 
I pulled my cell out to call the restaurant, and No Service!!! The box must have lead in it. 
No one is coming up the stairs next to us. No sounds at all except traffic out on A1A. 
My 88 year old superhero husband saved the day!!!

He climbed up on the railings, one on each side of us, took my cane (which I almost didn’t bring), poked it out if the small opening at the top, and was able to poke the 2nd floor door to the restaurant. 
He kept doing it till a woman came to see what was making the noise. 
She went and pressed whatever it needed to unlock the door. 
She came out and down the stairs and took us up a few steps to the bottom floor of the restaurant and seated us there. She said she’d send a server down. 
No apology, not even an “Are you ok?”

The server did ask if we’d like some clam chowder, and comped us a sparse cup to share between us. 
We ordered and ate a good lunch, after all that. 
Had we not been through the trauma of trying to get our tests done the day before, we might have been upset by the fact that we could have stayed trapped in that elevator till the heat got us. 
But thanks to the test screw up, the elevator seemed almost inevitable. 
Needless  to say, Seaside Grill won’t see us again. 
But it sure made it twice as wonderful to get on the ship!

[DaniDanielle]

18 hours ago, Sunshine3601 said:

@DaniDaniellewere you able to work out stuff with insurance?   I hope so😀

Are the kiddos happy to be back to school?   They now have cruise stories to share🥰

Started the ball rolling, who knows who is covering what!  We have to wait for our health insurance and if they won’t pay than we do travel insurance.  Kids are happy, although Kayla is finding high school so different.  How is your job?  Was it hard to go back??

[George C]

15 minutes ago, jagsfan said:

I guess this is a good time to tell y’all about our elevator incident. 
When we cruise out of Pt Everglades, we go a few days early to rest up from the 5 hour drive. 😊

We always eat at Zuccarelli and at Seaside Grill in Pompano Beach. 
Seaside has a flight of exterior stairs to climb, but luckily  they have an elevator for the handicapped. 
It is a rusty white metal box sitting on the ground next to the stairs. The exit is on the landing in front of the door. 
Dick dropped me at the elevator and went to park the car. 
The door was locked and the sign said push button to enter. 
I pushed the button and a few seconds later I heard a click and opened the door. 
Stepped in, closed the door and pushed the button. Nothing happened. The inside was so rusty, I shouldn’t have been surprised the buttons didn’t work. We hadn’t been there since April ‘19. 
Dick opened the door and asked what I was doing. 
When I said the button doesn’t work, he crowded in (it’s a one person elevator), slammed the door shut and pushed the button. Of course!!
He pushed all the buttons. Surprisingly, they didn’t work any better for him than they did for me!

Another surprise, now the door was locked!

We were  jammed together in a very rusty metal box in August in South Florida. 
It was hot and getting hotter. 
There was an opening at the top of one wall, so we could breathe. 
I pulled my cell out to call the restaurant, and No Service!!! The box must have lead in it. 
No one is coming up the stairs next to us. No sounds at all except traffic out on A1A. 
My 88 year old superhero husband saved the day!!!

He climbed up on the railings, one on each side of us, took my cane (which I almost didn’t bring), poked it out if the small opening at the top, and was able to poke the 2nd floor door to the restaurant. 
He kept doing it till a woman came to see what was making the noise. 
She went and pressed whatever it needed to unlock the door. 
She came out and down the stairs and took us up a few steps to the bottom floor of the restaurant and seated us there. She said she’d send a server down. 
No apology, not even an “Are you ok?”

The server did ask if we’d like some clam chowder, and comped us a sparse cup to share between us. 
We ordered and ate a good lunch, after all that. 
Had we not been through the trauma of trying to get our tests done the day before, we might have been upset by the fact that we could have stayed trapped in that elevator till the heat got us. 
But thanks to the test screw up, the elevator seemed almost inevitable. 
Needless  to say, Seaside Grill won’t see us again. 
But it sure made it twice as wonderful to get on the ship!

MSc if you were in yacht club you could bypass other floors to get priority, I never did that but butler did to escort us. 

[h20skibum]

Tip of the day - Don’t ever start your dishwasher and leave the house while it runs.  

 

My story.  We never thought anything about starting the dishwasher and leaving the house, then getting home to put clean dishes away.  

 

Early last month, when we were having the early birthday celebration for our California grandson, we started a load of dishes from the meal, and went outside for cake and ice cream.  My Sister-in-law had gone in the house, and she came out and said there is water all over the kitchen floor. Yep, it was the dishwasher.  The dishwasher kept filling and the water would not shut off.  So, I go in and shut off the water supply line and turn off electric to it and clean up the mess. 

 

So the question was, should we get a new dishwasher, or should I repair the one we have.  It cleans in less than an hour, and everything is dry.  I didn’t really want to get a new one, at least at this point. 

 

I narrowed it down to one of two parts, so I ordered both and replaced both for a total cost of $60.  Kind of like replacing a battery in a key fob, much cheaper than new.  

 

We may eventually get a new one, but that will be problematic.   Why, is a story for another time.  In the meantime, I have a happy wife, because it now works again.  

[HBE4]

30 minutes ago, jagsfan said:

I guess this is a good time to tell y’all about our elevator incident. 
When we cruise out of Pt Everglades, we go a few days early to rest up from the 5 hour drive. 😊

We always eat at Zuccarelli and at Seaside Grill in Pompano Beach. 
Seaside has a flight of exterior stairs to climb, but luckily  they have an elevator for the handicapped. 
It is a rusty white metal box sitting on the ground next to the stairs. The exit is on the landing in front of the door. 
Dick dropped me at the elevator and went to park the car. 
The door was locked and the sign said push button to enter. 
I pushed the button and a few seconds later I heard a click and opened the door. 
Stepped in, closed the door and pushed the button. Nothing happened. The inside was so rusty, I shouldn’t have been surprised the buttons didn’t work. We hadn’t been there since April ‘19. 
Dick opened the door and asked what I was doing. 
When I said the button doesn’t work, he crowded in (it’s a one person elevator), slammed the door shut and pushed the button. Of course!!
He pushed all the buttons. Surprisingly, they didn’t work any better for him than they did for me!

Another surprise, now the door was locked!

We were  jammed together in a very rusty metal box in August in South Florida. 
It was hot and getting hotter. 
There was an opening at the top of one wall, so we could breathe. 
I pulled my cell out to call the restaurant, and No Service!!! The box must have lead in it. 
No one is coming up the stairs next to us. No sounds at all except traffic out on A1A. 
My 88 year old superhero husband saved the day!!!

He climbed up on the railings, one on each side of us, took my cane (which I almost didn’t bring), poked it out if the small opening at the top, and was able to poke the 2nd floor door to the restaurant. 
He kept doing it till a woman came to see what was making the noise. 
She went and pressed whatever it needed to unlock the door. 
She came out and down the stairs and took us up a few steps to the bottom floor of the restaurant and seated us there. She said she’d send a server down. 
No apology, not even an “Are you ok?”

The server did ask if we’d like some clam chowder, and comped us a sparse cup to share between us. 
We ordered and ate a good lunch, after all that. 
Had we not been through the trauma of trying to get our tests done the day before, we might have been upset by the fact that we could have stayed trapped in that elevator till the heat got us. 
But thanks to the test screw up, the elevator seemed almost inevitable. 
Needless  to say, Seaside Grill won’t see us again. 
But it sure made it twice as wonderful to get on the ship!

 

Yikes & OMG are the only words I have for that. 

 

Good thing your 88 yo superhero was in there with you. 

[Sea Dog]

38 minutes ago, brillohead said:

If you like Greek food, check out Meraki Greek Bistro:  https://merakibistro.com/

That’s is a good possibility. Menu looks great!

[bobmacliberty]

1 hour ago, Sea Dog said:

Oh great it looks like I got competition and they are doing the same thing I'm doing.

 

 

 

Don't worry Greg.  Your unique perspective (food AND drink) will keep us glued to your thread.  I'm guessing that your professional skills may also add a little extra polish here and there to your thread. 😉

[bobmacliberty]

33 minutes ago, jagsfan said:

I guess this is a good time to tell y’all about our elevator incident. 
When we cruise out of Pt Everglades, we go a few days early to rest up from the 5 hour drive. 😊

We always eat at Zuccarelli and at Seaside Grill in Pompano Beach. 
Seaside has a flight of exterior stairs to climb, but luckily  they have an elevator for the handicapped. 
It is a rusty white metal box sitting on the ground next to the stairs. The exit is on the landing in front of the door. 
Dick dropped me at the elevator and went to park the car. 
The door was locked and the sign said push button to enter. 
I pushed the button and a few seconds later I heard a click and opened the door. 
Stepped in, closed the door and pushed the button. Nothing happened. The inside was so rusty, I shouldn’t have been surprised the buttons didn’t work. We hadn’t been there since April ‘19. 
Dick opened the door and asked what I was doing. 
When I said the button doesn’t work, he crowded in (it’s a one person elevator), slammed the door shut and pushed the button. Of course!!
He pushed all the buttons. Surprisingly, they didn’t work any better for him than they did for me!

Another surprise, now the door was locked!

We were  jammed together in a very rusty metal box in August in South Florida. 
It was hot and getting hotter. 
There was an opening at the top of one wall, so we could breathe. 
I pulled my cell out to call the restaurant, and No Service!!! The box must have lead in it. 
No one is coming up the stairs next to us. No sounds at all except traffic out on A1A. 
My 88 year old superhero husband saved the day!!!

He climbed up on the railings, one on each side of us, took my cane (which I almost didn’t bring), poked it out if the small opening at the top, and was able to poke the 2nd floor door to the restaurant. 
He kept doing it till a woman came to see what was making the noise. 
She went and pressed whatever it needed to unlock the door. 
She came out and down the stairs and took us up a few steps to the bottom floor of the restaurant and seated us there. She said she’d send a server down. 
No apology, not even an “Are you ok?”

The server did ask if we’d like some clam chowder, and comped us a sparse cup to share between us. 
We ordered and ate a good lunch, after all that. 
Had we not been through the trauma of trying to get our tests done the day before, we might have been upset by the fact that we could have stayed trapped in that elevator till the heat got us. 
But thanks to the test screw up, the elevator seemed almost inevitable. 
Needless  to say, Seaside Grill won’t see us again. 
But it sure made it twice as wonderful to get on the ship!

 

Wow.  That could have been a very scary situation.  Good that Dick's climbing skills are still sharp.

[bobmacliberty]

17 minutes ago, h20skibum said:

Tip of the day - Don’t ever start your dishwasher and leave the house while it runs.  

 

My story.  We never thought anything about starting the dishwasher and leaving the house, then getting home to put clean dishes away.  

 

Early last month, when we were having the early birthday celebration for our California grandson, we started a load of dishes from the meal, and went outside for cake and ice cream.  My Sister-in-law had gone in the house, and she came out and said there is water all over the kitchen floor. Yep, it was the dishwasher.  The dishwasher kept filling and the water would not shut off.  So, I go in and shut off the water supply line and turn off electric to it and clean up the mess. 

 

So the question was, should we get a new dishwasher, or should I repair the one we have.  It cleans in less than an hour, and everything is dry.  I didn’t really want to get a new one, at least at this point. 

 

I narrowed it down to one of two parts, so I ordered both and replaced both for a total cost of $60.  Kind of like replacing a battery in a key fob, much cheaper than new.  

 

We may eventually get a new one, but that will be problematic.   Why, is a story for another time.  In the meantime, I have a happy wife, because it now works again.  

 

I never even thought about this.  We put our dishwasher on time delay so that it runs in the middle of the night.  I can't imagine waking up to water that has spread all across our one-story house.  Might need to rethink our strategy.

[brillohead]

12 minutes ago, Sea Dog said:

That’s is a good possibility. Menu looks great!

If you want to eat on the patio, call and make reservations.  I didn't call ahead, and we ate inside (which was fine with us -- I'm not picky).

Also, the place is HARD to find if you don't know where to look.  The address is just an unmarked sidewalk between two unrelated buildings.... walk down the sidewalk and it opens into a courtyard shared by several different restaurants, none with good signage so you know which is which!  Turn right and Meraki is on the right at the end of the courtyard.  

[h20skibum]

11 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

 

I never even thought about this.  We put our dishwasher on time delay so that it runs in the middle of the night.  I can't imagine waking up to water that has spread all across our one-story house.  Might need to rethink our strategy.

In our case, it got so far, that it looked like it was raining in our unfinished basement below the kitchen.  When researching after the fact, I saw a lot about dishwasher floods.  
 

Now I will be researching water sensor alarms. 

[brillohead]

Just now, h20skibum said:

In our case, it got so far, that it looked like it was raining in our unfinished basement below the kitchen.  When researching after the fact, I saw a lot about dishwasher floods.  
 

Now I will be researching water sensor alarms. 

You can also look into placing a drain pan under a dishwasher if you replace one in the future.

[dani negreanu]

17 minutes ago, bobmacliberty said:

Might need to rethink our strategy.

 

My DH's standard OP is never leave the house when the dishwasher, washing machine, even the toaster oven [which has a timer] or the microwave [same] are working 😕.

 

Bothersome, I know, but not "surprises" either.... 

[HBE4]

2 hours ago, Ocean Boy said:

Changing the battery in  fob is not hard. You just have to pry the two halves apart. The first time is hard only because you are worried that you are going to break it.

 

That was my experience replacing the fob battery the first time. Felt like it was going to crack into 10 different pieces 

[HBE4]

7 minutes ago, dani negreanu said:

 

My DH's standard OP is never leave the house when the dishwasher, washing machine, even the toaster oven [which has a timer] or the microwave [same] are working 😕.

 

Bothersome, I know, but not "surprises" either.... 

 

I've had a friend of mine - a daughter of a fire chief - that would unplug all unnecessary appliances when leaving the house.  And I mean everything - coffee machine,  toaster, TV's, etc.

 

Edited September 14, 2022 by HBE4

[HBE4]

3 hours ago, Lionesss said:

 

That actually was the first thing I did.

 

After they got done laughing hysterically at my request, they told me they are not available any more.

 

Thanks anyway.

 

 

 

I have the same issue with my Saab. Owned by GM for over 20 years before they shut the brand down in 2012.  Except i get looks of sympathy from the service & parts guys.

 

Last time I needed a part, it came from a salvage yard in AZ. I live in NY.  @A&L_Ont will probably have an easier time finding parts for his 1972 (?) Vintage pick up truck. 

Edited September 14, 2022 by HBE4

[HBE4]

2 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

Oh great it looks like I got competition and they are doing the same thing I'm doing.

 

 

 

I'll take a SeaDog over a StealthDog anytime. 

 

But I'll read both anyways. Always good to get various perspectives. 🙂

[h20skibum]

30 minutes ago, brillohead said:

You can also look into placing a drain pan under a dishwasher if you replace one in the future.

Thought of that, but a drain pan would need to drain somewhere.  In our case, either the float switch, or the water inlet valve, or both malfunctioned.   Therefore, it didn’t sense there was water in there, so it kept filling and filling, till we caught it. 

[brillohead]

4 minutes ago, h20skibum said:

Thought of that, but a drain pan would need to drain somewhere.  In our case, either the float switch, or the water inlet valve, or both malfunctioned.   Therefore, it didn’t sense there was water in there, so it kept filling and filling, till we caught it. 

I was thinking that the drain pan would be plumbed into the adjacent plumbing system.  

The washer would keep filling..... and then just drain on down the pipes.  Waste of water, but saves your floors!

[Luckynana]

2 hours ago, Sea Dog said:

Oh great it looks like I got competition and they are doing the same thing I'm doing.

 

 

Not to worry, Greg.  You're a Pro.. you've got this!

[lenquixote66]

29 minutes ago, HBE4 said:

 

I've had a friend of mine - a daughter of a fire chief - that would unplug all unnecessary appliances when leaving the house.  And I mean everything - coffee machine,  toaster, TV's, etc.

 

The father in law of one of my son in laws used to do that too years ago.

[aussielozzie18]

@jagsfan Thank goodness you were able to get yourselves out of a that potentially dire situation.    

Being trapped in a narrow lift by myself is a fear of mine.

[aussielozzie18]

We are guilty of leaving the dishwasher and washing machine on when not home despite knowing that the firies tell us not to.