The Fleet Report and Daily for Sunday September 29th, 2024

[doobieb]

1 hour ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

@doobieb  Have a wonderful cruise, Debbie.

 

 

Lenda

 

Thank you!

[aliaschief]

4 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

To Bruce and Sue @aliaschief 

Well thank you. We were two tired travelers and it will take a couple of days to get back in sync in Central time. 

[ger_77]

Good morning, thanks for the Fleet Report and Daily!  All four days are worthy of recognition, particularly the first two.  Wasn't sure what Michaelmas was, so I looked it up - was raised Catholic and don't recall it at all.  Interesting quote by Mark Twain.

 

Another gorgeous sunny day out there for us this morning, might be one of the last for us, as according to the little message in the bottom corner of my computer it says "temperatures plummet tomorrow".  Yikes!  We're supposed to get up to a high of 26 (78), and looking at my phone it will only reach half that tomorrow (13C 55F).  Guess we'd better get outside and enjoy it while we can.  DH has said this morning he wants to take the roofless car for one last ride, so I guess we'll head over to Tim Horton's for coffee and pumpkin spice muffins for breakfast.

 

@doobiebBon Voyage; have a great cruise!

@kazusorry you had another terrible night; it must be distressing not only for you but Ivan as well.  Would you think of trying acupuncture to help?

 

Not a lot going on for us today, just picking up those darn little ornamental apples again - the nut grabber is certainly worth it's weight in gold these days.  

 

I'd like to try the drink, would try the wine, and I really like the menu suggestion - I'm going to write out the first recipe, as I think it would make great breakfast muffins.   I've got a couple of chicken breasts thawing that will be cooked in the air fryer and served along with some onion & bacon potato skins (from a box) and sliced tomatoes that we can enjoy for dinner on the deck tonight.  And wine.

 

Prayers for everyone who is in need, especially those cleaning up from the devastation left behind from Helene.  Cheers to all with celebrations.

 

Smooth Sailing!  ☺️☺️☺️

Gerry

 

[kochleffel]

Excuse me, but every day is coffee day here.

 

Mark Twain and his wife spent summers here and are buried here. The quotation is from an account by Rudyard Kipling of a visit to him and needs context:

 

"Personally I never care for fiction or story-books. What I like to read about are facts and statistics of any kind. If they are only facts about the raising of radishes, they interest me. Just now, for instance, before you came in"—he pointed to an encyclopædia on the shelves—"I was reading an article about 'Mathematics.' Perfectly pure mathematics.

"My own knowledge of mathematics stops at 'twelve times twelve,' but I enjoyed that article immensely. I didn't understand a word of it: but facts, or what a man believes to be facts, are always delightful. That mathematical fellow believed in his facts. So do I. Get your facts first, and"—the voice dies away to an almost inaudible drone—"then you can distort 'em as much as you please."

 

Kipling's full account of the meeting is entertaining. It's at https://www.gutenberg.org/files/32977/32977-h/32977-h.htm#Page_1167.

 

As if that weren't enough local color, today's wine is from this region. "Make Me Blush" is Rock Stream Vineyard's best-selling wine and the only one that has won any awards. It's $9.99 in stores but $14 through Vinoshipper. Some retailers describe it as sweet, not semi-sweet; it's 7.8% residual sugar. Most of Rock Stream's wines are native or hybrid, although there are Rieslings (of course) and a Chardonnay, but what is more interesting about Rock Stream is its line of brandy, grappa, liqueurs, and port, although I don't know where they can be bought.

 

Some of the oatmeal cups would be OK, not with chocolate. If offered the drink, I'd ask for straight Jameson's instead.

 

I was not on the solar eclipse cruise, and my experience of the last solar eclipse was nothing to brag about: while the eclipse was 98% of total here, the sky was 99% overcast. I had volunteered as a scientific observer and had to record the temperature every 20 minutes before the eclipse and every two or three minutes during it.

 

[StLouisCruisers]

DH and I spent a good amount of time this morning trimming (limbing up) our pin oak tree out near the street.  Neighbor Brenda who is closing on the sale of their house tomorrow (!) was out there telling us we have the prettiest tree in the neighborhood.  I told her DH threatens to cut it down every year when the acorns come raining down!  Now we can see across the street from our house.  I hate tree limbs hanging down on trees.  Most of the trees in our neighborhood could use some trimming but the landscapers don't do that very often.

 

I asked DD this morning if her power was back on in Ohio and she said YES!  They had a generator to run their refrigerators since Friday but only ran it during daytime so the noise wouldn't disturb their neighbor's sleep.  I thought that was nice of them.  Anyway, I also asked if Ashley and Christopher have their luggage now and they do!  I chose not to text them and interrupt their Rome fun.  I did see on her Instagram story a photo of their dinner yesterday, a lovely pizza and a plate of lasagna. 🍕 So looks like things are going well now for them.  DH said they'll probably laugh about their honeymoon drama some day and I said I hope so but it may take a while!

 

For @doobieb I hope you have a wonderful cruise!

 

 

[marshhawk]

Good Sunday Morning Dailyites!  The sun is trying to break through the clouds, but our weather person says that while Helene has moved north, she might still be giving us some light showers later today.

 

During the storm a tree limb came down in our yard. Its not a big thick limb, but it is long.  Looked like a long black snake.  I noticed yesterday that it had moved on it's own about 4 feet from where it fell, and then this morning, it is now more towards the center of the yard.  Maybe in a few days it will roll itself down the hill, and get picked up by the refuse guys.  ??  In reality I think it's the fox moving it.  It is in it's path down the hill.

 

Other than all the things I need to do today, a nap keeps calling me.  I hope I answer.

 

@Cruising-along I have been loving your pictures.  I am glad that you had a good time.

 

I love the quote.  I pretty much love all that Twain wrote.  Binged year one of Downtown Abbey yesterday. I like the idea of a Solar Eclipse cruise, but that's a lot of money to spend if its a cloudy day.

 

Clogged gutters drowned my front garden, but since the lantana attracts the butterflies, and they are still coming through, I will let the branches tangle over the sidewalk.  Until just before Halloween.

 

While Firefly is still posting on their fb, they are not responding to emails, and since it looks like their office is no more, I doubt if they would be able to handle a refund.  So when i feel more awake, I need to call the CC company.

 

 

 

[marshhawk]

@doobieb

[GTVCRUISER]

Have a Good Day 🙂 

[aliaschief]

Good morning. Haven’t been able to say that in a while. Yesterday’s trip was uneventful other than lack of sleep. We had dinner at One Flew South located in E Terminal at Atlanta airport. It’s always good and has been rated one of the top airport restaurants in the world. Sue went the sushi route and I had an outstanding smash burger.

Arrived home on time and finally got to bed around eleven.

@doobieb and @JazzyV have great vacations. Bon Voyage!

Today is unpacking, shopping and a trip to pharmacy who have bugging me that my meds are ready to pick up. 
So it’s time to get going. Lot’s to do before a nap.

Thanks for the welcome homes, Bruce

 

 

[durangoscots]

Good morning. Sunny here and the dry weather continues. My time seems to be taken up with trying to clear out the back bedroom (read storeroom) so the renovation can begin the end of October. Even the closets need to be cleared. Slow and steady right not.... will panic in about 10 days.

 

I am waiting to hear from a step-sister who lives in the Asheville area.... I hope she and her husband are ok but I think their area took a hard hit.  Am also watching the Canton area where I lived for awhile. Our home was high on a hill and well above the river .... but it sounds like things are pretty dire with almost no communication with the outside world. What a terrible mess in western NC.

 

Sending my best wishes to all. Will check back later but now the dogs need a second walk and I need to clean the kitchen down good before starting to deal with the closets again. My heart is just not into house cleaning or clearing out.

 

Susan

 

[Heartgrove]

Thank you Sandi, thank you Debbie, thank you Vanessa, thank you Ann, and thank you Dixie for all your work.  And thank you everyone for being here!

 

Prayers for those affected by Hurricane Helene and the families of the 63 that lost their lives!

 

End of a rough week and start of one that hopefully will be better! Checking off items on our list before leaving next Monday for Rotterdam and our Transatlantic on the Rotterdam. It started by getting our flu shot last Sunday. Sue complained about the injection point pain but I was fine - until about 3:00 AM!

 

I woke up with a 102 degree fever and was not able to get back to sleep for about 1-1/2 hours. The fever dropped but I still was feverish until Tuesday. I was able to accomplish cutting the grass which is now growing again after our drought this Summer. The rest of the week was not the best with the amount of rain we had. A lot of local flooding plus loss of power due to a tree taking down a feeder to our area on Friday afternoon. Sue had our dinner in a crock pot than had to be tossed.

 

Finalized our cruises for next Spring and found a smashing good deal using points on United Airlines to fly home. After disembarking in Civitavecchia we will head for the Lake Como area for four nights.  A little over a week going around Switzerland to then fly home from Geneva (GVA). For some reason on a day that worked for us, UAL was only requiring 50K points each for Premium Economy on a non-stop to IAD! Checking regularly for possible airports to fly home from really helps. Flights from FCO, MXP (our usual for Italy), ZRH, VEN, and even FRA were twice to three times as many points.

 

Now to continue planning our 2026 trip!

 

Stay Safe, and prayers for those in need.

 

- Jack

[marshhawk]

@HeartgroveGood to hear from you, I know everyone is talking NC, but I figured if you got some of this weather, it would be bad.

 

 

[Vict0riann]

Good morning, Dailyites, I don't often make it to page 2!  My Michaelmas daisies (asters) are blooming.  It is strange how many flowers know just when they are to bloom.

 

 

They are usually full of bees getting a last minute swig of nectar, but this year we have been very short on bugs.

[wdw1972]

Enjoying a lazy sunny (but hot) Sunday here. DH & I went out for breakfast, then I picked up storm debris once we returned home. He plans to do some tomorrow - we'll see if it happens. DH is looking forward to football on the tv, so I'll use the time to work on a jigsaw puzzle and pack. We head to Ft Myers for 2 nights on Tuesday. 

 

The days are all worthwhile, although I'm not a coffee drinker. I love the smell, but not the taste - and don't want caffeine. I'll also pass on the meal & drink, and probably the wine as well. I'd never heard of a solar eclipse cruise until this year, and it sounds like something fun to do some year!

 

@cat shepard your wine bar experience sounded great!

@ger_77 how I wish my forecast was temperatures will plummet, lol!

@StLouisCruisers that was very thoughtful of your daughter to not run the generator at night

 

Have a wonderful rest of the weekend.

Sue/WDW1972

 

[ottahand7]

@doobieb  Bon Voyage!! 🍾🚢

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

This is the latest update from Roy's nephew.

 

Roy says he feels about the same today, but he was able to take a long walk and seems better to me.

 

Unfortunately, his EKG indicated they needed to tune his medicine dose which might impact moving to rehab tomorrow. This medicine helps his heart but too much causes negative side effects, so they need to "tune" the dose. However, the doctor said it is still possible based on his EKG in the morning. I know Roy is eager to get back to rehab. According to the doctor, they want to figure out the most power but still safe dose of heart medication he can handle before they release him to rehab.

 

I am flying back to San Diego this evening, but Roy seems much better than he did a few days ago.

 

Thanks to everyone for your love and support.

 

Keith

 

Lenda

 

 

 

 

[quilty964]

Good afternoon, it's a sunny day with temps in the low 70's.  It's been very windy the last few days, they said it was because of Helene.  Prayers for all of those suffering because of the storm.  The destination today sounds fun, I watched the last one with some neighbors.  The meal might be ok, I'm trying to eat more soluble fiber!  I'm eating lots of plain oatmeal with blueberries.  

@Quartzsite Cruiserthanks for sharing the update on Roy.

@kazusorry to hear that the meds aren't helping, hoping for much better days for you.

@doobiebEnjoy your cruise! 

@JazzyVEnjoy your cruise!  I hope the wrap stays on as long as you need it.  

 

Prayers for all of those suffering and cheers to those traveling and doing other fun stuff!  

 

Our pastor talked about Michaelmas this morning!  Have a good day, hoping the Packers get better soon!  K

[StLouisCruisers]

Jacqui @kazu I'm sorry to hear the pain is keeping you from sleeping at night, plus how uncomfortable it makes you.  Hoping that turns around soon!

 

 

3 hours ago, Heartgrove said:

Thank you Sandi, thank you Debbie, thank you Vanessa, thank you Ann, and thank you Dixie for all your work.  And thank you everyone for being here!

 

Prayers for those affected by Hurricane Helene and the families of the 63 that lost their lives!

 

End of a rough week and start of one that hopefully will be better! Checking off items on our list before leaving next Monday for Rotterdam and our Transatlantic on the Rotterdam. It started by getting our flu shot last Sunday. Sue complained about the injection point pain but I was fine - until about 3:00 AM!

 

I woke up with a 102 degree fever and was not able to get back to sleep for about 1-1/2 hours. The fever dropped but I still was feverish until Tuesday. I was able to accomplish cutting the grass which is now growing again after our drought this Summer. The rest of the week was not the best with the amount of rain we had. A lot of local flooding plus loss of power due to a tree taking down a feeder to our area on Friday afternoon. Sue had our dinner in a crock pot than had to be tossed.

 

Finalized our cruises for next Spring and found a smashing good deal using points on United Airlines to fly home. After disembarking in Civitavecchia we will head for the Lake Como area for four nights.  A little over a week going around Switzerland to then fly home from Geneva (GVA). For some reason on a day that worked for us, UAL was only requiring 50K points each for Premium Economy on a non-stop to IAD! Checking regularly for possible airports to fly home from really helps. Flights from FCO, MXP (our usual for Italy), ZRH, VEN, and even FRA were twice to three times as many points.

 

Now to continue planning our 2026 trip!

 

Stay Safe, and prayers for those in need.

 

- Jack

 

Jack, too bad about the fever after your shot.  I hope any other after effects are minor.  DH and I need to get our flu shots now too. Your planning for your cruise and trip sound great and are a good reminder about trying other airports.  You saved quite a few miles doing that.  We should ask for your advice next time we do any planning like that!  I'm sorry to hear about the power outage and tossing of dinner Friday night.  Are things getting back to normal up there?

 

 

 

2 hours ago, wdw1972 said:

Enjoying a lazy sunny (but hot) Sunday here. DH & I went out for breakfast, then I picked up storm debris once we returned home. He plans to do some tomorrow - we'll see if it happens. DH is looking forward to football on the tv, so I'll use the time to work on a jigsaw puzzle and pack. We head to Ft Myers for 2 nights on Tuesday. 

 

The days are all worthwhile, although I'm not a coffee drinker. I love the smell, but not the taste - and don't want caffeine. I'll also pass on the meal & drink, and probably the wine as well. I'd never heard of a solar eclipse cruise until this year, and it sounds like something fun to do some year!

 

@cat shepard your wine bar experience sounded great!

@ger_77 how I wish my forecast was temperatures will plummet, lol!

@StLouisCruisers that was very thoughtful of your daughter to not run the generator at night

 

Have a wonderful rest of the weekend.

Sue/WDW1972

 

 

Thanks Sue, I don't know many people who would consider how annoying generator noise is.  But if they can keep the frozen things frozen and food pretty cool, running only during the day is a workable solution.  By the way, I like the new avatar, though the other one was pretty cute with the youngster and you.  I also like avatars because it makes it easier to pick out names for the blue bubbles!

 

 

 

50 minutes ago, Quartzsite Cruiser said:

This is the latest update from Roy's nephew.

 

Roy says he feels about the same today, but he was able to take a long walk and seems better to me.

 

Unfortunately, his EKG indicated they needed to tune his medicine dose which might impact moving to rehab tomorrow. This medicine helps his heart but too much causes negative side effects, so they need to "tune" the dose. However, the doctor said it is still possible based on his EKG in the morning. I know Roy is eager to get back to rehab. According to the doctor, they want to figure out the most power but still safe dose of heart medication he can handle before they release him to rehab.

 

I am flying back to San Diego this evening, but Roy seems much better than he did a few days ago.

 

Thanks to everyone for your love and support.

 

Keith

 

Lenda

 

Thanks for the update Lenda.  Let's hope the tests show Roy can get to rehab tomorrow and the dosage is just right.  So nice of Keith and Amanda to keep us updated on him this past week and we're all very grateful they could come help out.

[wdw1972]

24 minutes ago, StLouisCruisers said:

Thanks Sue, I don't know many people who would consider how annoying generator noise is.  But if they can keep the frozen things frozen and food pretty cool, running only during the day is a workable solution.  By the way, I like the new avatar, though the other one was pretty cute with the youngster and you.  I also like avatars because it makes it easier to pick out names for the blue bubbles!

 

Thanks Sandi. Having spent much of my adult life somewhere susceptible to hurricanes I know how loud generators can be! The youngster is my grandson Ari (in Florida) - he's 8 years old now so that avatar was getting old 😉

 

Sue/WDW1972

[Quartzsite Cruiser]

Good afternoon from a sunny and breezy central Texas.  It is 86F with a 6mph wind from the north.  By the time I was ready to start trimming the bushes, everything was in the sun, and it was getting pretty warm.  I decided to wait until tomorrow morning when most of the bushes will be in full shade for several hours.  While it will still be cooler early, I'll work on the Silverado sage which will be in the sun most of the day.  I just I hope I get everything done before the trash pick up.  This afternoon, I'm working on doing other things on my to do list.

 

5 hours ago, Cruising-along said:

Good morning from Yellowstone!

We had another great day yesterday, we stayed around the Old Faithful area and walked the Upper Geyser Basin. 
 

Today is our last full day here. We’ll have half a day tomorrow and then fly home tomorrow afternoon. 
 

As usual I’m having problems uploading photos on CC but here are a few. We saw much more. 
 

Giant Geyser. Last erupted 10 months ago. 

 

Old Faithful seen from our walk. 

 

Mammoth Terraces

 

 

I hope everyone has a good day!

 

Thanks for more great pictures, Carolyn.  Safe travels home tomorrow.

 

4 hours ago, StLouisCruisers said:

DH and I spent a good amount of time this morning trimming (limbing up) our pin oak tree out near the street.  Neighbor Brenda who is closing on the sale of their house tomorrow (!) was out there telling us we have the prettiest tree in the neighborhood.  I told her DH threatens to cut it down every year when the acorns come raining down!  Now we can see across the street from our house.  I hate tree limbs hanging down on trees.  Most of the trees in our neighborhood could use some trimming but the landscapers don't do that very often.

 

I asked DD this morning if her power was back on in Ohio and she said YES!  They had a generator to run their refrigerators since Friday but only ran it during daytime so the noise wouldn't disturb their neighbor's sleep.  I thought that was nice of them.  Anyway, I also asked if Ashley and Christopher have their luggage now and they do!  I chose not to text them and interrupt their Rome fun.  I did see on her Instagram story a photo of their dinner yesterday, a lovely pizza and a plate of lasagna. 🍕 So looks like things are going well now for them.  DH said they'll probably laugh about their honeymoon drama some day and I said I hope so but it may take a while!

 

For @doobieb I hope you have a wonderful cruise!

 

 

 

Sandi, I'm glad you DD's power was restored.  BTW, with modern refrigerators, if you don't open the door, things will stay cold and items in the freezer will stay frozen for quite a while with the power out.  I'm glad the newly weds have their luggage and are enjoying Rome.

 

3 hours ago, Heartgrove said:

Thank you Sandi, thank you Debbie, thank you Vanessa, thank you Ann, and thank you Dixie for all your work.  And thank you everyone for being here!

 

Prayers for those affected by Hurricane Helene and the families of the 63 that lost their lives!

 

End of a rough week and start of one that hopefully will be better! Checking off items on our list before leaving next Monday for Rotterdam and our Transatlantic on the Rotterdam. It started by getting our flu shot last Sunday. Sue complained about the injection point pain but I was fine - until about 3:00 AM!

 

I woke up with a 102 degree fever and was not able to get back to sleep for about 1-1/2 hours. The fever dropped but I still was feverish until Tuesday. I was able to accomplish cutting the grass which is now growing again after our drought this Summer. The rest of the week was not the best with the amount of rain we had. A lot of local flooding plus loss of power due to a tree taking down a feeder to our area on Friday afternoon. Sue had our dinner in a crock pot than had to be tossed.

 

Finalized our cruises for next Spring and found a smashing good deal using points on United Airlines to fly home. After disembarking in Civitavecchia we will head for the Lake Como area for four nights.  A little over a week going around Switzerland to then fly home from Geneva (GVA). For some reason on a day that worked for us, UAL was only requiring 50K points each for Premium Economy on a non-stop to IAD! Checking regularly for possible airports to fly home from really helps. Flights from FCO, MXP (our usual for Italy), ZRH, VEN, and even FRA were twice to three times as many points.

 

Now to continue planning our 2026 trip!

 

Stay Safe, and prayers for those in need.

 

- Jack

 

Jack, I can sympathize with you on the vaccine reaction.  We got both the double strength flu vaccine and the new covid vaccine Wednesday.  We also switched from the Pfizer vaccine to the Moderna vaccine.  The reaction really hit me hard Thursday, but I was lucky that I was back to normal on Friday.  Great news on the deal on your flights.

 

Lenda

[luvteaching]

Good afternoon, 

It's a fairly quiet and sunny/overcast/typical Pacific Northwest Sunday here. I've gotten in a couple of walks and am getting ready to head out in a few minutes. I'm not a coffee drinker at all (It stunts my growth which is why I'm so short from the few sips I've had) and am very much a "tea granny". Today's tea was Murchie's English Afternoon. 

I printed out the second recipe today to try and my neighbor who comes for tea wants to try it as well. Now off to town to go to a friend's Open House (she's a realtor) to see how the other half lives. 
Enjoy your day!
Karen

 

[Sharon in AZ]

Good afternoon!  Yesterday’s high was 107 and today it’s supposed to be 101. We will see. 
 

Craig is on his pre cruise diet and messing up my menu planning and only wants chicken or fish. Chicken breast was on sale so I purchased 3 huge ones and cut them into 3 pieces and marinated them, we are grilling them today. Debbie @dfish, I had some Garlic Expressions left and used that as some of the marinade. 
 

I got a lot of things scheduled for the December cruise but we’ve decided to change one reservation so I need to get that changed. It’s a “speak easy” , really just a small bar/lounge with food at the hotel. It sounds like fun.  Craig has the other restaurants planned. 
 

Have a great day everyone!

[Heartgrove]

@StLouisCruisers, @Quartzsite Cruiser  Lenda and Sandi, I can't believe the deal using points for Premium Economy! Using Mileage per person it is 36.1K for Economy, the 50K that we have for Premium Economy, and 200K for Business. To use money - just for the Premium Economy it is $3,030.00 per person! Icelandair (my choice for cash) in Saga Class was $1,700.00 for two of us. You can see how lucky I feel about finding this fare. Sue actually wanted to come home five days earlier but then I found this. So five more nights in Swiss hotels.

 

- Jack

 

 

Edited 8 hours ago by Heartgrove

[SusieKIslandGirl]

We were on the Discovery Princess in April off Mazatlan for the eclipse. Scott, from our roll call shared these photos. It was a magical experience.

2 separate photos-should have added a space between the 2.

Edited 7 hours ago by SusieKIslandGirl
forgot to add something

[StLouisCruisers]

1 hour ago, Heartgrove said:

@StLouisCruisers, @Quartzsite Cruiser  Lenda and Sandi, I can't believe the deal using points for Premium Economy! Using Mileage per person it is 36.1K for Economy, the 50K that we have for Premium Economy, and 200K for Business. To use money - just for the Premium Economy it is $3,030.00 per person! Icelandair (my choice for cash) in Saga Class was $1,700.00 for two of us. You can see how lucky I feel about finding this fare. Sue actually wanted to come home five days earlier but then I found this. So five more nights in Swiss hotels.

 

- Jack

 

 

 

Jack, 50K for premium economy sounds good with those prices!  Very good!   United you said.  Since we live near Atlanta, we don't fly United a lot.  Delta for the most part.   We have flown Icelandair a few times and it's good.  Just have to watch the carry on weight.  I don't think they've ever weighed our carry on but they do have limits.  I just heard this week in an email from them they are adding Nashville and are having sales on flights to and from there.  Just another option for us.