The Daily for Monday Aug 17, 2020

[richwmn]

today is National Thriftshop Day   and National Black Cat Appreciation Day

Zymurgy's Law of Volunteer Labor:
    People are always available for work in the past tense.

Meal suggestion for today - Steak Fajitas

Wine of the day - Sequoia Grove Cabernet Sauvignon Napa Valley vintage 2015

Gulf Bridge (Amsterdam Luggage) Caribbean Sea destination Houston eta 8/18

At Sea Indian
Eurodam destination Durban eta 8/20
Nieuw Amsterdam destination Durban eta 8/21
Volendam destination Durban eta 8/18
Westerdam destination Durban

 

Katakolo
Veendam

Limassol
Maasdam

Punta Arenas
Koningsdam
Oosterdam

Rotterdam
Amsterdam - at Rotterdam Botlek
Rotterdam - at Rotterdam Botlek

Scheveningen NL Anchorage
Nieuw Statendam
Zaandam

Singapore Area
Noordam
Zuiderdam

 

 

[summer slope]

Good morning Rich and Daily-ites.  Prayers for all, stay safe, social distance, and WEAR YOUR MASK!  We want you all safe and ready to cruise again.

[Seasick Sailor]

Good morning Rich. Looks like you have a few more Daily-ites posting. Welcome to all!

I have a question for you. Do you ever make your meal suggestions or try the wine of the day? And also, is all the luggage going to be unloaded in Houston and shipped to passengers?

 

Good morning my sisters Ann and Denise. Denise I hope you made it home safe and sound. Wondering if you were able to sleep in your SD bed last night, or I should say this morning? Wonder what is causing the uptick in Hawaii, since it's pretty much been locked down?

 

Roy thanks for posting your pictures, and the care list. Praying for all on our Daily. I think your pastor did indeed have a prophetic mind! It reminds me of this person many year's ago: "If we lose freedom here, there is no place to escape to; this is the last stand on Earth" Who remembers him?

 

Goodness it is so hot I have been refilling the bird bath and water fountain twice a day. Sure wish we could get some rain soon. Looking forward to hearing how Denise and David are, and Cat's review of the wine of the day. If it's good and reasonable, I'll get a bottle for my girlfriends birthday next week.

 

Everyone take care, behave, find something to smile about. Send out prayers and blessings to all in need. Love ya'll!

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Bramcruiser]

Hello to all black cat lovers! We had our lovely Midnight with us for 24 (yes, 2-4) years. Passed away just two years ago and still miss her although our new brown tabby keeps us busy. Since we are not cruising the new one has no chance to miss us. Midnight lasted soooo long that I was beginning to think she was going to appear at our funerals. 🙂

 

 

[rafinmd]

Thank you for the daily Rich.  I bet a lot of thrift shops are feeling the pain although I'm not much into black cats.  That quote rings true.  My meal suggestion today dinner suggestion today is Pasta Primavera, Chilled Mixed Berry Soup, and Vietnamese Apple strudel as served on the Veendam 8/17/13.

 

Today's care list:

 

Fatcat's MIL

Mrs Vmax

summer slope's neighbor

Denise and David for a safe and stress free return to San Diego

The people affected by the Cedar Rapids derecho

Those fighting wild fires

Remaining Wilderness Adventurer Quarantined Passengers

The Matanuska crew

Rain and heat relief for Phoenix and much of the Southwest

Cruisin single for strength in a time of intense volunteering

and Krazy Kruizers and Joe

 

Today's celebrations and shoutouts:

 

The people of Baltimore.  A city councilman called for a volunteer neighborhood cleanup of the blast zone and was expecting a couple dozen people.  Hundreds showed up to help.

New Daily posters Obnxshs, Live4cruises, bouhunter, Norseh20, cunnorl, lazey1, and Bramcruiser

The end of the Sturgis Rally, hopefully accompanied by little spread of the virus

Sharon's in-laws

First line health workers

Tioga cruisers first real day of retirement

and

Happy birthday week Ann

 

Roy

Edited August 17, 2020 by rafinmd

[bouhunter]

My daughter has a black cat.  Thanks!  🙂

 

[1ANGELCAT]

Good morning and thanks for the update.

It’s a nice cool morning for the 1st time in months. 
I will pass on the meal suggestion, not sure what I’ll make. 
I appreciate my black cat every day. 
Meet the Ninja.

Stay safe and blessings and prayers to all.

[rafinmd]

I like all sunrises, even when the sun has a challenge coming out as happened on QM2 August 17, 2011.

 

 

Roy

[cat shepard]

37 minutes ago, Bramcruiser said:

Hello to all black cat lovers! We had our lovely Midnight with us for 24 (yes, 2-4) years. Passed away just two years ago and still miss her although our new brown tabby keeps us busy. Since we are not cruising the new one has no chance to miss us. Midnight lasted soooo long that I was beginning to think she was going to appear at our funerals. 🙂

 

 

Must have been a very special relationship. Black cats have such a bad rap. They have amazing personalities to match their beautiful coloring.

[cat shepard]

5 minutes ago, rafinmd said:

I like all sunrises, even when the sun has a challenge coming out as happened on QM2 August 17, 2011.

 

 

Roy

It appears that someone is sending out a searchlight through the clouds!

[Gail & Marty sailing away]

Thanks for the info ...

[cat shepard]

Thank you for today’s Daily, Rich! Morning Dailyites & my Sisters! Denise - hope you and David are safely home in SD. Hope the rest of this year is much calmer for you. Heck, I hope it is calmer for all of us!  Joy, bless you for taking care of your feathered friends. Wish I could send some of my rain to those who need it. 
 

A huge shout out to our Dailyites, who are just joining the posting gang! Welcome!
 

I prefer to do most of my shopping online these days. I find I am less inclined to buy things I do not need that way. ❤️ black cats for their striking beauty and amazing personalities. I keep trying to convince Bindi that she needs a feline friend. Haven’t succeeded yet.  
 

The quote is all too true. I will tuck the meal suggestion away for future reference. I still have leftovers, so I guess I will finish them up tonight.

Today’s wine is well-rated, and priced at the top of my limit: mid-high $40s. But the wine blend sounds amazing. And the WS description makes me want to add this one to my list.  

Blend: 84% Cabernet Sauvignon, 7% Merlot, 6% Cabernet Franc, 2% Malbec, 1% Petit Verdot

WS93

Wine Spectator

Rich, smoky oak and plump dark berry, mocha, cedar and sage flavors form an enticing mouthful, supported by a supple, caressing texture, ending long and full. Drink now through 2030

 

Prayers to those needing support and 🥂to those we are celebrating!
 

Stay well everyone!  And stay away from Florida. 😷

 

 

Edited August 17, 2020 by cat shepard

[cat shepard]

53 minutes ago, rafinmd said:

 

Today's celebrations and shoutouts:

 

The people of Baltimore.  A city councilman called for a volunteer neighborhood cleanup of the blast zone and was expecting a couple dozen people.  Hundreds showed up to help.

 

 

Roy how wonderful! And encouraging!

[Lcubed]

Thanks Rich for the info, Roy for the prayer & celebration lists, Daily-ites for pictures, recipes and stories. Roy could you add students, teachers and their support staff who are returning to class at home or school to the prayer list?

Thank you all!

[rafinmd]

3 minutes ago, Lcubed said:

Thanks Rich for the info, Roy for the prayer & celebration lists, Daily-ites for pictures, recipes and stories. Roy could you add students, teachers and their support staff who are returning to class at home or school to the prayer list?

Thank you all!

Thank you.  Sure will.

 

Roy

[ger_77]

Good morning, thanks for the Daily!  Welcome to all the new people checking in here - it's always great to see others join this positive group.  Black cats are adorable; we had one for about a year, then she decided she wanted to live with people about 3 blocks from us - no reason given, she just left!

 

I love thrift shops - here's my story:  2 weeks after our stores reopened, DH and I dropped off a huge car load of things, but of course, I had to go in and see what was there.  Well, I came out with the most amazing Hermès  scarf ever!  I checked it out, and it is authentic; a beautiful silk number with a fuschia pink background featuring jockeys wearing different coloured silks (jerseys).  Cost:  $4.99 Cdn ($3.76 USD).  Score!!!

 

Great meal suggestion tonight - I have to get some groceries today, so will include a small steak so we can enjoy fajitas tonight; that combined with leftover tomato pie will make a great hot August night meal.  And wine.

 

Prayers to everyone who needs them, and even for those who don't think they do.  Be well, stay safe!

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂🙂

Gerry

 

 

[cat shepard]

1 minute ago, ger_77 said:

Good morning, thanks for the Daily!  Welcome to all the new people checking in here - it's always great to see others join this positive group.  Black cats are adorable; we had one for about a year, then she decided she wanted to live with people about 3 blocks from us - no reason given, she just left!

 

I love thrift shops - here's my story:  2 weeks after our stores reopened, DH and I dropped off a huge car load of things, but of course, I had to go in and see what was there.  Well, I came out with the most amazing Hermès  scarf ever!  I checked it out, and it is authentic; a beautiful silk number with a fuschia pink background featuring jockeys wearing different coloured silks (jerseys).  Cost:  $4.99 Cdn ($3.76 USD).  Score!!!

 

Great meal suggestion tonight - I have to get some groceries today, so will include a small steak so we can enjoy fajitas tonight; that combined with leftover tomato pie will make a great hot August night meal.  And wine.

 

Prayers to everyone who needs them, and even for those who don't think they do.  Be well, stay safe!

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂🙂

Gerry

 

 

Now that is a find, Gerry!

[kazu]

5 minutes ago, ger_77 said:

Well, I came out with the most amazing Hermès  scarf ever!  I checked it out, and it is authentic; a beautiful silk number with a fuschia pink background featuring jockeys wearing different coloured silks (jerseys).  Cost:  $4.99 Cdn ($3.76 USD).  Score!!!

 

Nice, Gerry!  That is a real score 😄 

[richwmn]

I have refrained from answering a couple of questions in the past, and some have been answered but asked again. So here goes some answers.

1. How long do you spend on the Daily?
  This isn't an easy question to answer because the time is not spent in one chunk.  
  The daily quotations come from a program available for Windows and Mac called appropriately "Fortune" and modeled after fortune cookie sayings. It is a standard part of every Unix, BSD, and Linux installation. At times I run the program several times because a quotation is not appropriate.
  In the same way, the meal selections were found during an afternoon search session and are automatically added each day. Until a week ago (or so) I  used a random method of selecting the meal, but the list wasn't long enough so I have selected the order in which they will appear.
  The wine list came during an afternoon search and consists of the top 100 from Total Wines for 2017,2018, and 2019 if I remember right.
  The time consuming thing, at least right now, is determining where the ships are and fixing the map(s). That really doesn't take long, at least not so much time that I find it inconvenient. When the ships start cruising again that will take no time as the schedules will be entered in one session and just displayed each day.

2. Do I fix the meals?
  Truthfully, no, although I have had several of them in the past. Since I live and generally travel alone it is not convenient to fix the meals since more would be left-overs, then eaten and I don't do left-overs well.

3. Am I on a Roll Call?
  Currently I am on 5 roll calls, but all are pretty much inactive right  now. First is Volendam's Christmas, then a Pacific Coastal on Koningsdam, finally the inaugural and 2 successive cruises on Rotterdam VII. I have noticed several people on these roll calls that post here on the Daily and look forward to meeting them and everyone else.

4. Where am I from?
  My profile lists Athens, GA but I currently live just outside the city. If anyone lives in the general area or is visiting I would be pleased to get together. Although I live here now, I did not grow up here. I moved here in 1980 so I guess I should call Athens home.

5. How can I be reached?
  I have several email addesses, including my screen name here at gmail.com, yahoo.com, and wa70.com. They all go to basically the same place so it really doesn't matter which one you use. Recently I have been trying to consolidate my travel emails to the gmail account. I would enjoy hearing from anyone.

 

Thanks for all your positive comments about the thread. I only start it. It is really the product of many people who post each day. To those that have been lurking and recently posted, thanks for letting us know who your are.  For those still lurking (including a few members I have met), stick your foot in the water - it is warm and inviting.

 

Rich

 

[kazu]

Thanks for the Daily, Rich and our morning smile 🙂 

 

Welcome to our new posters - glad you are joining us 😄 

 

Wish we had a Thrift store here so I could celebrate by shopping 😉   Another black cat fan here.  Our lovely Muppet passed away a few years ago but in celebration of her and other black cats:

 

 

 

The meal suggestion sounds good.  Not sure what we will have tonight as I don’t know if I will get my kitchen back or not too cook for tonight.  Time will tell.  That wine sounds great!  Thanks @cat shepard for the description.  Appreciate you saving us googling every day 😉 

 

@rafinmd that’s such a nice story on the people of Baltimore.  Very heart warming ❤️ 

Prayers to all those on our Care list and love the celebrations and shout outs.  

Have a great week everyone.  Stay safe and wear your masks.

[cat shepard]

13 minutes ago, kazu said:

 

 

 

 Not sure what we will have tonight as I don’t know if I will get my kitchen back or not too cook for tonight.  Time will tell.  That wine sounds great!  Thanks @cat shepard for the description.  Appreciate you saving us googling every day 😉 

A garden of black cats! How rare! 
 

Good luck on getting your kitchen back, Jacqui. And now that I have found a great site to use in my wine searches, it is easy for me to add the description. Easier than posting all your garden pics! So consider this my partial repayment. Stay well!

[Overhead Fred]

These are from a Spring 2019 Southern Caribbean cruise on the Koningsdam.

 

View from High Lands Bar near Mount Hillaby, Barbados -

 

Beach at Bathsheba, Barbados - 

 

[TiogaCruiser]

@Overhead Fred 

I’ve never really had an interest in cruising the Caribbean but your pictures are changing that. Thanks for posting them.

[puppycanducruise]

Good morning everyone. 

Thank you to Rich for the Daily Report.  I love the map to see where the ships are.

Love the quote.

I've been doing a lot of cleaning up (and out) lately, and I have several boxes of glassware and crystal destined for our local thrift shop when it starts accepting donations.

Sending prayers to heal the world.

Stay safe.

[llbz327]

thanks for the daily