The Daily for Friday October 15, 2021

[Horizon chaser 1957]

3 hours ago, ger_77 said:

Good morning, thanks for the Daily!  Wow, a girl goes away for a week and there's a ton of catching up to do here!  DH and I are our own bosses, and I think we're good with them.  Don't see many white canes these days, and I try not to be a grouch, there are enough out there as it is.

 

We returned late last evening from our wonderful week away with our DS and his family.  There's a reason why child bearing/rearing is relegated to the young; those two little boys are hard to keep up with!  The older DGS (6) is self-sufficient, but is a bit of a picky eater, so needs encouragement to get enough nourishment into him.  The younger one (22 months) is such a going concern - he's been running since he was 8 months old and is starting to talk.  Currently his favourite phrase is "need help", then he takes you to where he needs assistance.  LOL   We took some family photos in the park across the street from their house and I'm anxious to see how they turned out, as it was a beautiful sunny morning.  True to Calgary weather though, about 30 minutes later we had clouds, wind, and later that day - snow. 

 

I have to tell you that Alberta is doing a better job at monitoring Covid than our home province of Saskatchewan is.  Even going into a fast food restaurant, one has to wear a mask, show proof of vaccination and provide photo ID.  Fortunately, we downloaded our proof to an app on our phones and had them readily available when needed.  Hopefully our province will get it's act together soon, as it's getting scary out there.

 

Today is laundry day, so that will take up some time, as well as taking care of the plants we brought indoors for the winter.  I like today's menu suggestion, and we happen to have some salmon in the freezer, so I think I'll put it together for dinner tonight.  I'll have to run out and pick up groceries, as our fridge is rather empty, and will pick up some Dijon mustard.  And wine.

 

Prayers for everyone who needs them - especially those I have missed over this past week with scary test results and other health issues - and we'll raise our glasses high tonight to toast all on the celebration list.   Stay safe, wash your hands, be well and wear your masks.

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂🙂

Gerry

Welcome back, Gerry.🍷

[Sharon in AZ]

Joy @Seasick Sailor:  I was able to get some pictures of those cabins on deck 8 for you. These are looking down from the Lido and the Canaletto. I hope this helps. 
 

 

 

 

[USN59-79]

Greetings from a cloudy, chilly and damp day in Western Washington.  I had been working every day at my rental house, but took today off as I had an appointment this afternoon for my monthly eye injection.  Just got a call that the doctor had an emergency and rescheduled for next week.  Anyway, it gives me some time to get caught up on a bunch of little things.  Direct TV started billing me an extra $5. a month for a service I never ordered.  Took about half an hour to go online and then chat to get that cancelled.  Sent a long email to my TA to try to get HAL to update my account.  They show as active four cruises on the Noordam that were cancelled, two of which I want to transfer to the Westerdam in 2023 and two that I want a refund and my FCC restored to be added to my next cruise.

Incidentally, I log into CC every day and have never had any real problem.  I use a desktop with Windows 10, Chrome, and Google.  DW and I need to make a Costco run today.  

Generally, when a port is mentioned I at least know where it is even if we haven't visited it.  Today's is one that I had never heard of; probably because we have never stopped in Sardinia.

[grapau27]

Good evening.

We had lunch out this afternoon.

Take care.

Graham.

[grapau27]

1 hour ago, Sharon in AZ said:

Good morning from the lovely Koningsdam!  We had such a great time yesterday on our Sonoma Wine tour with @AncientWandererMaxine, her DH, and @lazey1Jane. 
 

 

It was warm in Sonoma but the minute you cross the Golden Gate Bridge it gets windy and chilly. 
 

We ate lunch at a restaurant I would love to go back to. Lots of good things on the menu. 
 

 

 

 

 

Today is a sea day on our way to Ensenada so it will be a nice relaxing day. 

Have a great day everyone!

Nice group photo.

Graham.

[Crazy For Cats]

2 hours ago, dfish said:

Someone mentioned a Windows update recently and I recall that there was one the night before my problems started.  None of my Windows devices work with CC.  Just the iPhone and the Kindle.  Hmmmmmmm.

It's the opposite for me.  Ipad is glitchy at best.  Laptop works fine.

[Lady Hudson]

Another fine day in Pennsylvania.  Blessings and prayers to all on the care list.  
 

Thank you, Roy, for putting me on the shoutout list.  NEGATIVE Covid test complete.  Oasis of the Seas here I come.  Katherine 

[tjcox9]

2 hours ago, bennybear said:

Good morning and thank all! 
I wish CC would deal with what ever is causing all the issues,  makes reacting impossible and posting very difficult and time consuming!   It didn’t happen before their last update and seems to impact us all at different times.  
We visited Sardinia,  but the port  of Cagliari and some amazing pastries! 

Interesting walk up to the top as I recall!

 

[aliaschief]

We had our on-board antigen test at noon and no one has knocked our door. So good to go.

 

Tonight is Nami Sushi night so that will be a nice change. Went to another of our cruise / travel director lectures on Caribbean rum. Valerie is very good at her job.

 

Spent a lot of day on Verandha watching the Pacific go by. Love watching the sea birds effortlessly gliding and diving for the catch of the day. Main species are Compliant as they are Masked Booby’s. We have had several fish and dolphin sightings.

 

One more day at sea before our Panama Canal transit Sunday. Tonight’s act the Ally Cats.

 

 

[kazu]

4 hours ago, tjcox9 said:

in 2009, we just strolled around the town and had a lovely lunch with some of the staff from the Prinsendam - some of you may remember Frank Buckingham and Thom and Tina Faulkner. First pix are from that stop.

 

What nice company to have for lunch 👍 Thom & Tina were gems 🙂

 

 

6 hours ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

I better get moving so we can get on the road this morning.  Depending on the internet, I'll check back later once we stop for the day and get settled.

 

 

Very safe travels to you!

 

6 hours ago, smitty34877 said:

DD sent me a picture of her black cat in her Halloween  house.Everyone decorates around here......

 

 

Now that is what I call the real Hallowe’en spirit 🙂 

 

6 hours ago, ger_77 said:

Good morning, thanks for the Daily!  Wow, a girl goes away for a week and there's a ton of catching up to do here! 

 

Welcome home Gerry 🙂 

[HAL4NOW]

31 minutes ago, aliaschief said:

Valerie is very good at her job.

She seems to be able to bring life to any subject she presents.

[St Pete Cruiser]

8 hours ago, rafinmd said:

I'm quite sure Nieuw Statendam is not coming into the port.  I did see her on the Fort Lauderdale Hilton webcam:

 

https://www.fllbeachcam.com/

 

Roy

Not in port at 4pm Florida time.  Marine traffic shows her offshore of Ft Lauderdale.  Maybe picking up crew via tender?

[St Pete Cruiser]

8 hours ago, Crazy For Cats said:

Good Morning Everyone, thanks for the daily report.  The CC gremlins have been hitting me hard yesterday and today.  Even while logged in it will sign me out.  DH and I are seriously looking at a December cruise.  Trying to work out the details and get the needed approvals.  It would be 11 days out of Tampa.  I hope that everyone has a good day today.

I'm so disappointed Holland America has left Tampa, at least for now.  They were the only cruise line offering a 14 day itinerary, but I see some of the others are offering some longer than 7 day ones.  In my future years, I was hoping to "amble over" to the local port when land travel becomes more of a hardship for me.  Amtrak has one train a day from Tampa to Ft Lauderdale, but it doesn't arrive until after 5pm going to the port.

It does work for the return leaving Ft Lauderdale at 12:30pm.   

[rafinmd]

27 minutes ago, St Pete Cruiser said:

I'm so disappointed Holland America has left Tampa, at least for now.  They were the only cruise line offering a 14 day itinerary, but I see some of the others are offering some longer than 7 day ones.  In my future years, I was hoping to "amble over" to the local port when land travel becomes more of a hardship for me.  Amtrak has one train a day from Tampa to Ft Lauderdale, but it doesn't arrive until after 5pm going to the port.

It does work for the return leaving Ft Lauderdale at 12:30pm.   

Unfortunately, I doubt that HAL will see Tampa much as there are very few ships left that can get there.  You need a new terminal somewhere South of the Bridge.

 

Roy

[ger_77]

@Quartzsite Cruiser safe travels as you make your way to your winter abode!

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂🙂

Gerry

[rafinmd]

6 minutes ago, ger_77 said:

@Quartzsite Cruiser safe travels as you make your way to your winter abode!

 

Smooth Sailing!  🙂🙂🙂

Gerry

Yes, have a great trip.

 

Roy

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

Good afternoon.  I think I mentioned a day or so ago that this year we're taking our time getting to Quartzsite.  We're doing it in four easy days, instead of two very long days.  That means, we be out of Texas Sunday morning.😄

 

We made it to our first stop about 2:30 this afternoon without major incidents, just road construction in a few places and some wind.  I'm not complaining (much) about the road work as it is very much needed.  DH liked our cooler weather as the engine ran cooler.

 

Now, we are relaxing and watching the traffic in the Interstate go by.   Its  nice to be able to just sit and do nothing but catch up on the Daily.

 

@mamaofami  Carol, that's great that the aide tested negative.  Hope you and Sam had a great lunch.

@ger_77  Gerry, welcome home.  Very glad you enjoyed your visit with your family.

@smitty34877  Terry, what a great and festive picture of your DD's cat.

@Sharon in AZ  Sharon, thanks for the picture of the three of you.  It’s nice to have faces to go with names.

@tjcox9 and @bennybear Thank you for the pictures of today's port and other places in Sardinia.  It's on the bucket list.

@JAM37 Julia, that's great news that your DH's cough is subsiding and he feels like tackling more renovations.

 

A big thank you @StLouisCruisers, @JAM37, @cat shepard, @dobiemom @kazu, @ger_77, @ger_77 and @rafinmd for your good wishes for our safe travels.

 

Lenda

[grapau27]

13 minutes ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

Good afternoon.  I think I mentioned a day or so ago that this year we're taking our time getting to Quartzsite.  We're doing it in four easy days, instead of two very long days.  That means, we be out of Texas Sunday morning.😄

 

We made it to our first stop about 2:30 this afternoon without major incidents, just road construction in a few places and some wind.  I'm not complaining (much) about the road work as it is very much needed.  DH liked our cooler weather as the engine ran cooler.

 

Now, we are relaxing and watching the traffic in the Interstate go by.   Its  nice to be able to just sit and do nothing but catch up on the Daily.

 

@mamaofami  Carol, that's great that the aide tested negative.  Hope you and Sam had a great lunch.

@ger_77  Gerry, welcome home.  Very glad you enjoyed your visit with your family.

@smitty34877  Terry, what a great and festive picture of your DD's cat.

@Sharon in AZ  Sharon, thanks for the picture of the three of you.  It’s nice to have faces to go with names.

@tjcox9 and @bennybear Thank you for the pictures of today's port and other places in Sardinia.  It's on the bucket list.

@JAM37 Julia, that's great news that your DH's cough is subsiding and he feels like tackling more renovations.

 

A big thank you @StLouisCruisers, @JAM37, @cat shepard, @dobiemom @kazu, @ger_77, @ger_77 and @rafinmd for your good wishes for our safe travels.

 

Lenda

Hi Lenda.

Sending you both our best wishes for a very safe journey.

It is a great idea to split the journey into 4 shorter daily segments instead of 2 long daily segments.

Take care and stay safe.

Graham.

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

35 minutes ago, grapau27 said:

Hi Lenda.

Sending you both our best wishes for a very safe journey.

It is a great idea to split the journey into 4 shorter daily segments instead of 2 long daily segments.

Take care and stay safe.

Graham.

 

Thank you Graham.  We started taking 3 or 4 days for the trip  several years ago, and found we were not as tired when we got to Quartzsite.

 

Lenda

[JazzyV]

Good evening. Thanks for the Daily. I'm really late today.

Good days, including the extras. I don't have a boss any longer, and was often my own boss. I admire those using white canes and how they can get around. I am not a grouchy person.

Very true quote.

I'll pass on salmon, as usual. Pass on the drink and wine. I like Roy's meal.

I haven't been to Sardinia. Thanks for the great pictures.

 

It was another pleasant day here (75F), but it's cloudy and we expect storms and high winds overnight. Also a sharp drop in temperature. Time to put the comforter on the bed. I am appreciative that on my PC using Chrome, I have no CC issues (knock wood).

 

@VMax1700 I'm glad your back is doing better.

@Quartzsite Cruiser Safe travels.

@mamaofami Sorry to hear of your continued bureaucratic issues. Good that the aide tested negative. 

@JAM37 I'm glad your DH is feeling better.

@smitty34877 Love the cat Halloween house.

@ger_77 Welcome home. I'm glad you had a great time with family. 

@TiogaCruiser Fingers crossed on the landscaper.

@dfish I had a windows update 2 days ago, and so far no issues 🤞

@Sharon in AZ Looks like a good time!

@Lady Hudson Congrats on the negative test! Have a great cruise.

@grapau27 Nice lunch!

 

Prayers for the care list and cheers for the celebration list.

Stay safe and wear your mask if needed.

 

 

 

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

@TiogaCruiser Hope the landscaper coming Tuesday works out,

 

@Lady Hudson  Congratulations on the negative covid test,  Bon voyage and have a great cruise.

 

Lenda 

[cat shepard]

In honor of National Grouch Day….

[erewhon]

Thanks for sll the Daily contributions, another port we have not visited, so appreciate seeing the photos.

@ger_77 Welcome back, glad you had such a good visit with your family.

@Quartzsite Cruiserthanks for reporting in during your journey, wishing you continuing safe travelling.

@smitty34877 what a beautiful black cat.

A pleasant sunny Saturday,  Temperature 16 C. Have been busy in the garden today, now to go for a walk.

Stay safe, take care everyone.

[dfish]

Oh, my goodness.  The laptop is now working.  Of course, it took me an hour to find the power cord and then it took it another hour to boot up.  This thing needs to go in for some maintenance.  But, not until another device is working.  

[JazzyV]

2 recent additions to Captain Albert's Blog:

10/11/2021: https://www.captainalbert.com/2021-oct-10-koningsdam-returns-to-service-press-release/

10/15/2021: https://www.captainalbert.com/2021-oct-15-prinses-margriet-will-christen-the-ms-rotterdam-vii-n-2020/