A lot of things have changed in the last nine and a half years. A couple of divorces (that should explain the name changes in my story) kids have moved out, dogs have passed away. Diane and I are getting closer to our fortieth anniversary. If, on that occasion, we were to take another sea cruise, which is doubtful, because we prefer to land cruise, I would hope it would be as good as our last one.
Voyager of the Seas 10-06-2002 to 10-13-2002
Part II Saturday: South Beach, Swatches, Kids, Emba
Reading this old blog makes me want to take another cruise. I'll settle for a long trip in the coach to somewhere really warm, like Tarpon Springs. Hopefully that should happen soon.
Voyager of the Seas 10-06-2002 to 10-13-2002
Part III Sunday: Departure, Dinner, enjoy the Night
“I want to go to the Windjammer! I’m hungry!” I did not voice these thoughts out loud. Diane was on the balcony talking to Christine on her cell phone. “We are on board. Did not take too long to check in, the cabin is
Part IV Monday: Day at Sea, Black, White and Red Evening.
We woke before the dawn. The balcony door was open with a gentle breeze blowing the sheers across the bed. (A bed without a dog sleeping at our feet)
I kissed Diane on the forehead and whispered “Happy Anniversary” she dittoed sleepily. Without another word between us we jumped out of bed, threw on shorts, shirts, shoes, grabbed a camera and headed out the cabin door. Dawn waits for no man or cute Greek girl. In just a couple of minut
Part V Tuesday and Labadee is over there.
Another morning of delight began, another morning with no alarm clocks, no Katie Couric, no disturbing pager calls. Today is going to be a great day; a day of nothing to do and happy to do it. I awoke slowly, very slowly, and took a look out the open balcony door. I could see the village of Labadee.
The resort area was on the other side of the ship.
I slipped on my robe and stepped out on the balcony. It was already very hot. I looked down at the blue
People, after reading this cruise story, have asked me how I remembered so many details. The answer is....I don't know. Half the time I can't remember where I put my car keys.
Part VI : Wednesday; Learn to Rub Her the Right Way or A very Adult Day!
We both woke around eight. Diane was still pretty mellowed out from the night before until I knocked over a glass of last night’s wine into the phone. I grabbed a towel and mopped it up. We had to keep our appointment with Joe, and her body composit
Part VII Thursday: Swimming with the Rays.
At seven forty five the phone rang. I answered and it was the spa giving us our wake up call in time for Diane to keep her appointment. She was having the seaweed wrap and deep tissue massage. I envied her. I was going to be spending the morning without her. She threw on her clothes and headed out the door. I got up a few minutes later and tried to figure out how to spend my morning. She was going to be gone for a couple of hours. I went out on the bal
Part VIII Friday: Rain, Rain, Don’t go away.
We woke up at our usual time, around seven thirty. Our Catamaran swim and snorkel, or snorkel and swim, was not until ten thirty, so we chatted for awhile, about an almost incident from the night before. You have heard the saying that it is a small world. Well the world is small, even on the world’s largest cruise ship.
Before Dinner, while walking through the Royal Promenade, Diane spotted a woman in a very short and very tight black spandex dres
I have been meaning to write the second part (the better part) of our trip to Melbourne, Florida to see our daughter and Gavin, our new grandson. However, my writing has been delayed by a web site move, a pinched nerve in my neck (I can't feel two of my fingers on my left hand) and other related work stuff. Also it is an anniversary, a sad anniversary which has turned my thoughts towards another grandson and just how precious a life can be, even if it is a short one.
I wrote this last year. I d
It has been a peaceful two weeks since May 22, the day we left our brick house in Portsmouth. Once again we had to take our coach on the road for service before we could actually start our first long trip this year. The coach hasn’t been parked the whole time since our last long venture, which took place last September, I think. We made a fall trip to our spot at Deer Creek Motor Coach resort (the one in Virginia). I left Diane there while I made a trip back home in the car for work-related reas
I thought I would tell a happy story. It is a picture story, about what we have done, and where we have been, the first half of this past year. I have heard that pictures are worth a lot more than words.Take a look, if you please: Half Year in Pictures
I really enjoy photography. It is the art of capturing a moment in time. Like any art form it is subjective and therefore what constitutes a good picture is really a matter of opinion. I learned that really fast from the people judging the very first contest I entered. What I thought were my best pictures received no mention and one that I entered as a lark in the still life category, almost took best in show.
The most important thing is to know how to use your camera in order to take the pictu
Lenses:
To quote Sony.com “Every Lens tells a story!”
That is not true. Not completely anyway. A lens does no good unless it is attached to a camera, and the camera is only as good as the eye looking through it.
Then again it is true if you remember that an eye is also a lens; a lens attached to a photographer.
It is up to the photographer to tell the story.
It can be a story about love, or friendship, history, the beauty of nature. It can be sensual.
A lens is a tool to make that s
I suspect that some of you that have read my first three lessons are thinking that getting deeper into digital photography and purchasing a DSLR is just TOO much. It is too complicated and too expensive. Why bother when my cell phone or inexpensive point and shoot camera works just fine?
Well, it all depends on what you want from the experience of shooting pictures. If I can use an analogy, you can take a vacation, stay in a hotel in a great location that you drove or flew to, or you can travel
I think photography is in my DNA. One of the things that fostered my interest in becoming a shooter is the fact that my Dad was one for many years. He shot thousands of pictures of places he traveled to while serving in the U.S. Navy, both at sea and shore duty. His pictures also included travels at home, to the mountains of North Carolina and Virginia as well a trip to Canada in 1967. Dad’s camera was always recording images of birthday parties, holidays, and trips to the beach.
Now my daugh
Part 1 "That Day"
Recently Diane and I were given two large gifts. These gifts allowed us to escape from work, from our day to day routines, to recover from disappointment and hurt, to be refreshed. These gifts allowed us to spend time with many friends, including our closest ones, to learn new things, and to have a whole lot of fun in the process.
These two gifts were tied together by time, distance, and a long black ribbon.
Sometimes a black ribbon is a sign of mourning.
On December thirt
The Black Ribbon part 2
The French Broad River is a very beautiful, naturally flowing river, meaning that it is not dam controlled by the TVA like so many others are in western North Carolina. It flows north easterly through the mountains which includes Asheville and there it connects with the Swannanoa River. From there it continues through the county seat of Marshall, our destination. Eventually the French Broad flows into the Holston River in Tennessee and on into the Tennessee River nea
Another lesson about my passion...Digital Photography. Its been awhile but take a look you might see something you like, or something that makes you just a bit hungry!
http://www.myrandomviews.com/blog/2015/5/7/the-grocery-store-a-visual-exercise
Over the last ten years, Diane and I have learned, discovered, or otherwise stumbled upon a few things that have helped us during our adventures on the road.
http://www.myrandomviews.com/blog/tipsandhints
Today I would liked to have posted a blog about how much fun it has been since Diane and I retired. I wanted to tell you about our adventures in the coach, describe all the new sites we have seen etc..
http://www.myrandomviews.com/blog/2015/7/10/the-human-whisperer
I love puns and one liners. I love blurting them out...regardless of those in hearing range around me want to hear them or not.
http://www.myrandomviews.com/blog/punsandoneliners
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