The Fleet Report and Daily for Monday April 1st, 2024

[grapau27]

7 minutes ago, ottahand7 said:

Good morning everyone!  Thanks for the Daily and Fleet Reports and maps Jacqui and Roy and for Sandi to note the NS is heading to Puerta Plata.   A sad quote by MM/   I would love one of those beautiful charcuterie boards, dates instead of figs please.  I am still getting over my date addiction from our days on the Eurodam.   The cocktail looks like a good one to ask for on a BHB and today's Cava looks wonderful.   I haven't been to Tokyo.  Thanks for finding these for us each day!

Prayers for everyone on our care list, especially Vanessa and Tana.  Prayers for everyone in war zones through no fault of their own, Ukraine and the innocents in Gaza.  

Today's is April Fools and John hasn't tried to trick me, he usually fails as I have 4/1 burned into my heart as 9 years ago I took my DD DH to the hospital, he never was to return home.  It is a beautiful day here but three days of rain and possible snow on Wednesday are due.    I have a lot of admin catch up to do today.  I have to start reviewing for a talk I do next Monday and the following week another Zoom class on a totally different topic.  Hopefully it will get warm here soon.  Have a lovely Monday!  Nancy 

 

So sorry to hear your sad memory of April 1st Nancy.

[rafinmd]

Today's sunrise is from my 2017 MS Zaandam cruise from Buenos Aires to San Diego.  April 1 was a sea day from Cape Horn to Puerto Montt:

 

 

Roy

[travelingbums]

Rabbit  Rabbit  White Rabbit

Thank You everyone for sharing.

 

[RMLincoln]

Said my Rabbits first thing.  Need good luck this month, waiting on eye surgery the 23rd. Raining in north Jersey now but it may stop before eye doctor appointment this afternoon. 50-ish.
 

The food looks good, the drink sound yummy, and the quote is too sad!  She allowed herself to be exploited for fame but it didn’t bring happiness. 

It was quite lovely yesterday. Beautiful Spring day, bright and filled with colorful blossoms. Lots of traffic when we went out, about an hour south and across to Staten Island to my parents’ cemetery. Only the second time I’ve been there since my mother died in 2001… we were living in NM until 2021 when we moved to Maryland, then here last November. We visited in 2014 when our ‘Round the Horn cruise terminated in NY. Tried to see my NJ brother then but he refused us. Now I’m learning the many refusals were due to his wife’s disorders. It all could have been handled better but it wasn’t. The cemetery is near a beach so it was nice to walk on the beach a bit!  Then we drove to my niece’s to visit for an hour before her turn at the hospital with her mom… brother didn’t join us. SIL has taken no food for a week so there may be decisions about interventions today. Tough. 
 

Talked with my other brother last night, he’s in North Carolina.  Hs wife’s brother died yesterday morning in Long Island NY. And of their closest friends, the husband died in the afternoon in Pennsylvania. That brother got married when I was 15 so his wife was like a sister, and her family was close to me too. And the friends they made in NC became like my family too. So it was a heavy day yesterday. And travel for services is unclear. My niece asked if my side of the family would come to services for her mom…. Hard to guess with everyone’s different needs, abilities and timing. 
 

I’m happy for Jacqui and Ivan!  
Sending blessings for all in need, and I greatly appreciate all the good thoughts for me, Richard and my family. Thanks all!  
 

Cheers to all celebrating happy milestones, Life is Good🌈. 
 

Smooth travels to all away, our cruisers and those returning from their Easter visits - Terry, Gerry’s family, others…. Lenda and DH enjoy the dessert trek!  It can be so beautiful!  I know that I-10 corridor quite well!  Stay safe. 
 

Graham, thank you for Fr David’s message, spiritual uplift needed here!  
 

Hoping all here can begin a good April!  Maureen 
 

Edited April 1 by RMLincoln
Tried to add a pic but it’s upside down! Ugh.

[Seasick Sailor]

Rabbit, rabbit, white rabbit!

 

Good morning Daily-ites from a 70 degree moving to 84 degree day.

 

Poor Marilyn, what a sad life for such a beautiful woman. 

 

Jacqui  @kazu great news on finding a nanny for Ivan. @cat shepard ugh on jury duty. Graham @grapau27 that meal looks so delicious! @ger_77 Gerry, thoughts for you and your friends. (By the way, Oliver seems fine, thanks for asking)

 

I have no idea what's for dinner til I get to the market today. It will not be charcuterie. 

 

Prayers said for my friends and family, our Daily family, our soldiers, homeless veterans, Ukraine,  Israel, and all suffering illness and pain. 

 

Wishing all a blessed Easter Monday.

 

[RedneckBob]

Bob, formerly know as RedneckBob will no longer be posting on the Cruise Critic due to lack of material! 😩😩😩!

 

Is this April 1? 

[RedneckBob]

2 hours ago, summer slope said:

Rabbit, rabbit, white Rabbit.  Welcome April

 

Nude Beach cocktail:

The Nude Beach cocktail is a tropical delight, featuring light rum, coconut rum, peach schnapps, orange juice, and cranberry juice. With its vibrant colors and enticing flavors, this refreshing libation is perfect for pool parties, beach gatherings, or any occasion that calls for a taste of paradise. This recipe will transport you to a sun-soaked beach with just one sip. Cheers to a tropical escape!

2 oz. orange juice
1 oz. white rum
1oz. coconut rum
2 oz.. cranberry juice
1 oz. peach schnapps

In a glass with ice, add all the ingredients.
Stir well to combine, and garnish with an orange wedge or cherry.

This is my favorite drink at Orient Beach, St Maarten! Goes with the environment!

[Nickelpenny]

Rabbit, Rabbit, White Rabbit!  Happy Monday morning to all and thanks for the daily and fleet report.  No Tom foolery today.  A sad quote by MM, I love charcuterie boards and do them often, pass on the drink and wine, and I have been to Tokyo on a 4 day visit but not on a BHB.  I am an Apple girl so thanks to the 2 Steves.

 

 

It rained most of the day yesterday, was still raining when I got up at 0500 but we have a small break now.  It will rain off and on all day; presently it is 47F and will only get up to mid-50s later.  It is a hunker down day.

 

 

Yesterday I did make a nice dinner but had to space out the prep.  Still was able to get it all done at once.  Much smaller than I usually do but I enjoyed it.

 

 

Thoughts for those on the care list and cheers for those celebrating.  Have a great day everyone!

[kochleffel]

Rabbit, rabbit, over much of the country the rabbit will be sopping wet today.

 

No charcuterie boards, please. It's a fad that I don't understand, and since I don't combine meat and dairy and don't eat pork, a bit of a nuisance. The hue might be the best thing about the drink. For the wine, Gold Seal Blanc de Blancs.

 

I had a very hard time getting to sleep last night, not from pain but from mental activity. Eventually I slept soundly, just not enough.

 

[Haljo1935]

Extra hugs @ottahand7

[quilty964]

Happy Monday and Happy April Fools day.  The joke is on us...snow in the forecast for tomorrow! We had a busy weekend here preparing for church and Easter dinner.  I'm in the Handbell choir at church, we were there from 7 - noon yesterday.  I was tired when I got home!  We had a nice celebration dinner.  DH did the cheese and cracker tray, it was all gone by the end of the day!

Haven't been to the port, and not sure about the wine or the drink. 

@kazuHappy to hear you have your pet nanny set up, that's a stress of figuring out traveling.  Our pet sitter is expecting her 1st grandchild this spring, so that may be a cause some issues for our planning....

@StLouisCruisersYou say it's also Sourdough bread day.  I've been thinking about trying to make some, but the directions all look very confusing and difficult.  I've talked with 2 people that make it and they've said it's easy once you get started!  We shall see!

Have a good day, Karen

 

[StLouisCruisers]

2 minutes ago, quilty964 said:

Happy Monday and Happy April Fools day.  The joke is on us...snow in the forecast for tomorrow! We had a busy weekend here preparing for church and Easter dinner.  I'm in the Handbell choir at church, we were there from 7 - noon yesterday.  I was tired when I got home!  We had a nice celebration dinner.  DH did the cheese and cracker tray, it was all gone by the end of the day!

Haven't been to the port, and not sure about the wine or the drink. 

@kazuHappy to hear you have your pet nanny set up, that's a stress of figuring out traveling.  Our pet sitter is expecting her 1st grandchild this spring, so that may be a cause some issues for our planning....

@StLouisCruisersYou say it's also Sourdough bread day.  I've been thinking about trying to make some, but the directions all look very confusing and difficult.  I've talked with 2 people that make it and they've said it's easy once you get started!  We shall see!

Have a good day, Karen

 

 

Good luck with your efforts learning how to make sourdough bread.  I bet you will be glad you did it once you get some practice at it.  I've never attempted though I do like sourdough.  When you make some take some photos to share of the finished product.  We love photos of food!🥖

[Overhead Fred]

 

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

RABBIT RABBIT WHITR RABBIT 

 

 

Just a quick good morning while do thle last few things before hitting the road soon.

 

Lenda

[1ANGELCAT]

Good rainy and chilly morning.

I hope everyone had a lovely day yesterday.

The brunch at the Hotel Hershey was lovely. This is the first time in 5 years that they have done Easter. I already have reservations for Mother’s Day.

I have a routine Dr appointment tomorrow, was hoping to change it to later in the month, but her next available appointment was July.

  Blessings and prayers to all on our journey.

[StLouisCruisers]

Since it seems Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser and Steve are leaving town today I'm sure she is pretty busy now and I'll just post her photos for Tokyo for her.  I know you all will be happy to see them.

 

 

From Lenda's posts:

We have been to Tokyo twice.  The first time was in 2002 on the Asia Pacific Explorer Cruise on Volendam.  Our older DD was on for the first 11 days and disembarked in Tokyo.  After we helped her get settled in her hotel, the three of us toured the city.  Our second visit was in 2018 on Coral Princess.  That day we took the train from Yokohama to Tokyo.  

 

The pictures are a mix from our 2002 visit and our 2018 visit.  The air in 2018 was noticeably clearer in 2002.

 

 

In 2002, our older DD disembarked the Volendam and spent two nights in Tokyo before flying home.  The day we were port, the three of us toured the city.  We were lucky in 2002 and docked in Tokyo where we took a bus into town.

 

The view from DD's hotel room, and some of the area around the hotel, which was outside the main downtown area.

 

There was a small park near the hotel.

 

 

More of the local area near the hotel

 

 

An interesting tree near the Imperial Palace.

 

In 2018, we took the train from Yokohama where we docked.  The train station is the red brick building  in the background.  You could easily get lost in this huge. station

 

A market not far from the Ginza on our walk back to the train station.  There was also a show for the children.

 

 

We also found a Krispy Kreme in a mall next to this area, and naturally, we had to have a snack.

 

The next group of pictures are a combination of the Ginza area in 2002 and 2018.  All were taken at the intersection with the many crosswalks that is shown in most pictures from Tokyo.  In 2002, we had dinner in a restaurant in one of the big stores.  Since none of us spoke Japanese, we chose this restaurant because we could point to the displays of the dishes we wanted.  After dinner, we left our DD in the Ginza and took a bus back to the ship, while she looked around some more and then headed to her hotel.  For this mother, it was hard to leave her alone even though she was 26 and well travelled because of her job.

 

2002

 

 

2018

 

The intersection from the roof garden of a department store

 

In 2018 waiting for our train back to Yokohama

 

Lenda

 

  

[kazu]

2 hours ago, ottahand7 said:

Today's is April Fools and John hasn't tried to trick me, he usually fails as I have 4/1 burned into my heart as 9 years ago I took my DD DH to the hospital, he never was to return home. 

 

Sad memory for you today 😢 Hugs to you and you try t get through the day 🥰 

 

[dfish]

@ottahand7 Nancy, hugs to you and warm thoughts to help you through this difficult memory.

@Hogladyrider Glad you made it home safely!

@Quartzsite Cruiser Safe travels, Lenda and Steve!

@RMLincoln Hugs to you and your family with your recent losses.  I hope SIL is comfortable.

@kazu I'm so glad you found someone who will be good with Ivan.  Now you can relax and enjoy your cruise.

 

Water fitness was great this morning.  I feel energized and refreshed.  Time to enjoy the beautiful day even if it is chilly.  The sun is wonderful!

[0106]

🐰🐰🐰Generally, I don’t think teachers are fans of April Fools Day but I once helped students pull off an epic prank.  The students were at school late for play practice on March 31. My roll was simply to unlocked the classroom doors. They took all the wall coverings, books and furniture from Teacher A’s room and swapped it with Teacher B’s room.  What surprise on the morning of April 1.  The prank was enjoyed by the entire school.  The afternoon was spent returning the belongings to the proper room instead of practicing for the play.

[puppycanducruise]

@ottahand7 Hugs to you.  Hope you have lots of happy memories to hold on to.

[bennybear]

Rabbit, rabbit, rabbit!  Hope everyone had a Good Easter!  We’re between snow storms so that’s good.

 

@ottahand7  hugs to you on this hard day! 
@kazu excellent news,  fingers crossed no more hiccups!

 

We had the pleasure to visit Tokyo and be there when the emperor abdicated.  We enjoyed a visit to the imperial palace and gardens.  Stunning beside the modern largest city; it can be a tad overwhelming.  We were glad we visited at the end of our trip. 
 

 

 

 

Edited April 1 by bennybear

[bennybear]

For the wine club

 

[ger_77]

Rabbit, rabbit, white rabbit.

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily!  No tom foolery happening here today, and I hope April Fool's day is a quiet one for everyone.  The quote is pretty cynical; how unfortunate that she was seeking the happiness that was just so elusive.

 

Yesterday morning started with shreiks of delight as the Easter Bunny made his appearance and left treats all over the house.  We got the kids settled with breakfast, then I started getting things together for our early dinner (4:30PM).  I had just unwrapped the ham and was putting it into the roaster when the phone rang; it was a number I didn't recognize, but thought I should answer it.  It was the social worker calling from the hospital asking if I could come in to support Ollie.  I hastily tossed the ham in the oven on low, wrote out a few cryptic notes as to what should happen for the rest of the meal and drove over to the hospital with my wheels barely touching the pavement.

 

Gord had not progressed at all, and the CT scan showed extreme damage to his heart; combined with the fact that he had not had a heart beat for 12 full minutes on Thursday at home meant that there was no hope for his recovery.  I stayed at CCU with Ollie, talking to Gord, reminiscing about the times we spent together, and generally being there for both of them.  We laughed, we talked, we cried, and we prayed.  And at one point Ollie said to me "Do you think it's time?"  I replied that the decision was hers as to whether or not she wanted the medical interventions to cease.  She did, but couldn't tell the nurses, so I relayed the information for her.   From the time the machines were disconnected to the time he took his last breath was less than 2 minutes.  So sad, as there was still so much they wanted to do as a couple, now Ollie is on her own.  I drove her home and offered to spend the night with her, but she declined, saying she wanted to be alone.

 

On my return home, the kitchen was bustling with activity - getting the ham carved, retrieving the baked potatoes, vegetables, etc., and the table was already beautifully set.  DH and our lovely DDIL Noriko did a great job of pulling it all together for us.  My sister in law arrived, as did DH's adult children, so there were 10 of us around the dining table for Easter Dinner.  

 

This morning the family got up, packed everything up (the back of their SUV looked like the Clampitt's moving to Bev-er-lee!), and started on their way back to Calgary.  Now the house is eerily quiet, but we'll be heading that way in less than 2 weeks, as we always go to Calgary to celebrate our oldest DGS Logan's birthday - he'll be turning 9 on the 11th.

 

@ottahand7sending you virtual hugs as you struggle to get through today.

@kazuI'm so pleased that you've got care for Ivan taken care of; what a big burden off your shoulders!

 

Today it's laundry, getting the house back into shape, doing a bit of vacuuming, and just breathing.  Late in the day we'll head over to Ollie's to see how she's doing and to see what we can do to help.  Although we've got lots of leftovers, we'll be picking up roast beef sandwiches and Tim Horton's coffee to enjoy at Ollie's kitchen table tonight.  And wine.

 

Prayers for everyone who is in need, in pain, and in grief.  Cheers to all who have celebrations today.

 

Smooth Sailing!  ☺️☺️☺️

Gerry

[DeeniEncinitas]

7 minutes ago, ger_77 said:

Rabbit, rabbit, white rabbit.

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily!  No tom foolery happening here today, and I hope April Fool's day is a quiet one for everyone.  The quote is pretty cynical; how unfortunate that she was seeking the happiness that was just so elusive.

 

Yesterday morning started with shreiks of delight as the Easter Bunny made his appearance and left treats all over the house.  We got the kids settled with breakfast, then I started getting things together for our early dinner (4:30PM).  I had just unwrapped the ham and was putting it into the roaster when the phone rang; it was a number I didn't recognize, but thought I should answer it.  It was the social worker calling from the hospital asking if I could come in to support Ollie.  I hastily tossed the ham in the oven on low, wrote out a few cryptic notes as to what should happen for the rest of the meal and drove over to the hospital with my wheels barely touching the pavement.

 

Gord had not progressed at all, and the CT scan showed extreme damage to his heart; combined with the fact that he had not had a heart beat for 12 full minutes on Thursday at home meant that there was no hope for his recovery.  I stayed at CCU with Ollie, talking to Gord, reminiscing about the times we spent together, and generally being there for both of them.  We laughed, we talked, we cried, and we prayed.  And at one point Ollie said to me "Do you think it's time?"  I replied that the decision was hers as to whether or not she wanted the medical interventions to cease.  She did, but couldn't tell the nurses, so I relayed the information for her.   From the time the machines were disconnected to the time he took his last breath was less than 2 minutes.  So sad, as there was still so much they wanted to do as a couple, now Ollie is on her own.  I drove her home and offered to spend the night with her, but she declined, saying she wanted to be alone.

 

On my return home, the kitchen was bustling with activity - getting the ham carved, retrieving the baked potatoes, vegetables, etc., and the table was already beautifully set.  DH and our lovely DDIL Noriko did a great job of pulling it all together for us.  My sister in law arrived, as did DH's adult children, so there were 10 of us around the dining table for Easter Dinner.  

 

This morning the family got up, packed everything up (the back of their SUV looked like the Clampitt's moving to Bev-er-lee!), and started on their way back to Calgary.  Now the house is eerily quiet, but we'll be heading that way in less than 2 weeks, as we always go to Calgary to celebrate our oldest DGS Logan's birthday - he'll be turning 9 on the 11th.

 

@ottahand7sending you virtual hugs as you struggle to get through today.

@kazuI'm so pleased that you've got care for Ivan taken care of; what a big burden off your shoulders!

 

Today it's laundry, getting the house back into shape, doing a bit of vacuuming, and just breathing.  Late in the day we'll head over to Ollie's to see how she's doing and to see what we can do to help.  Although we've got lots of leftovers, we'll be picking up roast beef sandwiches and Tim Horton's coffee to enjoy at Ollie's kitchen table tonight.  And wine.

 

Prayers for everyone who is in need, in pain, and in grief.  Cheers to all who have celebrations today.

 

Smooth Sailing!  ☺️☺️☺️

Gerry

🌺Aloha,

My GOSH Gerry you are an angel on this earth, and such a saint to be able to be there for your dear friend during this time in need! Godbless you for your full heart of kindness. You are such a endearing SOUL.

🌺Mahalo,

Denise

[kazu]

Oh Gerry @ger_77 I am so very sorry to hear of Gord’s passing 😢. My condolences to you and Maurice, Ollie & all of his family. And prayers 🙏 

Bless you for being there and offering so much kindness & support ❤️