HAL4NOW

@bennybear, @marshhawk, @0106, @durangoscots Even small domesticated dogs can create problems for deer and elk in deep snow and a good crust. The dogs can run over the snow while the deer and elk sink into the snow. No matter how sweet and nice and cuddly any of us think our pets are, they can be a danger to wildlife when left unchecked. It isn't really problem breeds; it is problem owners.

Our DD and her boyfriend were at the Istanbul airport for a stoppover on their way to a walking/driving tour through much of Croatia and Serbia. We knew they were arriving in Istanbul on June 16, 2016. We woke up to this news report that day: A gun and bomb attack on Istanbul's Ataturk airport has killed 41 people, at least 13 of them foreigners, and injured more than 230, officials say. Of course, as parents, we had no peace until we heard from them a day later. Turkey is 11 hours ahead of our local time and they had been to the airport and were gone prior to the attack. They recognized some of the employees at the airport, pictured in the news reports, as people they had seen that morning.

Part of the official letter we received from the Guest Services Manager on the Koningsdam when we were in isolation for Covid stated: "If you disembark due to illness before the sailing ends, we will also provide a credit to your onboard account for the refundable portion of taxes, fees, and port expenses for any ports visited after you debark."

Now that both England and Netherlands have been kocked out of the World Cup, I guess I have to decide between rooting for Croatia or Morocco. I think I will be rooting for Morocco; I always have kind of liked an underdog and they're ranked the lowest of all the remaining teams. Morocco also was able to overcome French and Spanish rule and reunite as a nation in the year of my birth. Maybe this Moroccan team, ranked 22nd in the world, will be able to overcome France again (ranked 4th) this coming week.

We have been to Cozumel twice on BHB's. The first time was on the Nuiew Amsterdam in 2018. We took a HAL tour to Tulum and a beach and a buffet. The second visit was on the Veendam in January of 2020 (just before Covid). We toured San Gervaiso Mayan ruins on that visit. We were scheduled to visit Half Moon Cay, but Cozumel got substituted because of weather. For some reason, I cannot locate any pictures of either of those visits. I did do a review of the 2020 cruise, but without pictures. My DB and DSIL were able to join us for that cruise on the Veendam. He was often mistaken for Santa Claus when people saw him.

We did a walk-about and also visited a cave when we were in Curacao in 2019. Dushi can mean a few things in Papiamento: sweet or yummy food, a term of endearment for a loved one, or just saying someone is "hot". Even the license plates had the colorful symbolic city line.

@kochleffelwere you able to take care of your Medicare choice today?

My DW and I both missed the window for Plan F. DW's sister has Plan F and is pleased because of the care she receives when cancer reared its head again and when she needed surgery on both feet. DW and I have been on Plan G for a few years but are switching to an advantage plan this next year. Hopefully we won't regret the move. It does include dental and vision and a few other things, Rx, etc., for a zero premium. My employer has been covering the cost of Plan G and our Part D coverage, but we didn't want to burden the church with that cost needlessly. We are both in good health and praying that we will be for a long time. Hoping for you to make the best decision for you @kochleffel.

I am waiting on AON to work with a claim we submitted October 25, 2022. After waiting in the "assigned" status for 39 days, we received an email from AON asking for us to submit the claim to our primary and/or supplemental medical insurers. Then to submit the response letter from our insurers to them for review. They have found a way to stretch the 30 days to much longer. Letting us know about this "additional documentation" at the very beginning would have been nice; it isn't like they didn't know they would want something this generic during the initial submission. I went on the Washington State Insurance Commissioner's site and found the following paragraph in the section where I could begin a complaint: "We are currently experiencing a backlog in complaint cases. We plan on reviewing your case within 45 business days of submitting your complaint. This may take longer depending on circumstances. Thank you for your patience." Not sure how @klfrodo got such a quick response. It seems to me that the entire insurance industry, including the state regulatory systems, are all working short and delaying the consumer's resolution timeline. Makes me think twice before adding travel insurance to any cruise. I know that the expense of not having insurance can be great but is there any guarantee that even after purchasing the insurance that any resolution will take place within our lifetime.

Thanks, Rich, for today's quote and for a reminder of Robert Fulghum's book. It is a worthy read. One of my favorite quotes from the book is: "Don't believe everything you think."

If both legs of the flight are Alaska Airlines, then they should both be in the same terminal at least, but it doesn't leave a lot of wiggle room. I prefer quick connections to long layovers, but I also just prefer to not fly commercial air and that means I don't fly often.

@grapau27 congratulations on England's victory over Senegal. @JazzyV Power was still off when we had church this morning, and our oil furnace broke down, so it was not able to heat the building even with a generator. The inside temperature for the service did make it up to 38 degrees F. with the small portable heater we were using. Power at the house came on a little before 1PM. We hope it lasts at least 24 hours this time. The old-timers in town are saying this winter feels like it used to back in the '50's when power kept going off for extended periods. I got to know one of the old linemen that used to take his horses up on the power lines with equipment to make repairs. Now Puget Sound Energy flies helicopters up and down the lines to find the damage and then they send crews out. Times have changed, but it still requires some hard work and physical labor to keep the electricity flowing.

Odd; we can print luggage tags now for a cruise that doesn't sail until April of 2024.

We lived in Limerick, ME, for a few years and the town shut down by 6 PM. We got to know Freeport a little. A few times we wanted to do something late at night and L.L. Bean became a favorite destination because it was opened 24/7. We got to talking with one of the workers there that shared a story about a shoplifter. (Forgive me if you have heard this story before, but it is worth retelling). A guy walked out of the L.L. Bean store with a canoe over his shoulders. When the employees all started talking with each other about it, assuming someone else had sold the canoe, they realized he had boldly just stolen it right in front of them. The next night, this guy came back into the store and tried to walk out with a couple of paddles.

We have been on a couple cruises that had HMC as a scheduled stop. It was cancelled both times because of waves and not being able to tender. Hope you are able to make it!

National Cookie Day I was glad I was able to bake some chocolate chip cookies yesterday between power outages. I prefer to not use the oven while on generator power. Our little town of Skykomish had a tree lighting event (all with generator-power supplied by the fire department) that included singing Christmas songs, enjoying cookies and hot cider, kids and dogs and adults with Santa for pictures and goodie bags, and the town Christmas tree being lit up (which looked pretty cool on a moonlit night with all of the snow on and around the tree). The event was well attended and we all enjoyed coming out and sharing time with each other.

We had power restored yesterday at about 5:30 PM. Only got a few inches of snow overnight. Power is off again as of 1:30 PM today. We haven't had 24 consecutive hours of power yet this week.

If England and Netherlands both continue to advance, they would meet in the semifinals.

Jacqui, wasn't sure if you saw this one. You have a lot to keep up on with all that you do on Cruise Critic.

Team USA did well today, according to most of the statistics: more shots, more shots on target, more possession time, higher pass accuracy, fewer penalties. The one statistic that matters didn't go their way. Netherlands 3, USA 1. As a HAL cruiser, I guess I will be rooting for Netherlands for the remaining knockout stages. And in @grapau27 Graham's honor, I can root for England as an alternative.

My DW, who always has a better memory than me, told me what we did for our second day in Callao (Lima). We took a boat out to the Palamino Islands, and she swam with the sea lions. That continues to be one of her favorite cruise memories. It was another Holland America Excursion called Wildlife Lovers' Paradise. We saw lots of sea lions and penguins. P1050996.MP4 DW's highlight was swimming with the sea lions.

Website says until December 13

My DW and I plan to celebrate her birthday during this cruise: April 13, 2024 Eurodam 21-Day Panama Canal

We visited Callao (Lima), Peru, in April of 2019 on the Zaandam. It was an overnight, but I don't remember what we did the second day in port. The first day we took the Holland America excursion called Inca Civilization and Pachacamac. I will post a few pictures from that excursion. My DW had been in Lima as a teenager but didn't recognize anything in the city. The population had grown from less than 3 million when she visited to over 10 million when we visited. Lima is larger than New York City in population and didn't impress me as somewhere I would want to spend much time. This type of garage door was typical; houses came to the curbs and outdoor living areas are in enclosed courts. My DW posed beside a very unstable llama that began to fall when she bumped it. The llama and DW survived without an actual fall; it made for a good chuckle. Pachacamac was interesting and very expansive. Archeologists continue to work at the site. We visited a hacienda and were greeted by a ten-piece mariachi band. They played throughout much of the visit while the dancers and horses entertained us. We were given a lesson about paso horses and introduced to a colt to show that their special gate was not something that had been forced on them for show. It was a natural behavior. The paso horses were very majestic and the show was quite entertaining. We were then entertained by some dancers doing traditional Spanish dances; they then joined the horses and horsemen for a few more dances. We were treated to a large buffet style meal while the band continued to play, and additional dancers came out to perform around the table.

Thanks, Jacqui, I defer to your expertise and experience as a local. The two B2B Discover Newfoundland cruises seem to be only offered August 23 through September 13, 2023. We did experience some nor'easter storm activity when we lived in southern Maine. That was about 50 miles inland from Portland, and not on the water. They provided some pretty significant snow dumps and drifts. We do have a generator, so not really suffering that much from the power outage. More of an inconvenience and added fuel expenses.