Sharon in AZ

Thank you for the heads up Lenda. We just checked and it hasn’t started yet. Craig looked it up and it now says 8:30 pm. We’ll try to get a picture. Safe travels on your journey. I wish we had met on the Koningsdam. Welcome home!

Dixie, I am so sorry about all your bruises and soreness. Ouch! I’m hoping you feel better soon. I highly recommend taking Arnica. They are little pellets and you take 5 under your tongue 3 times a day. Available in most health food grocery stores but I’ve started ordering them through Amazon. You might also use the gel and slather it on your bruises. I used to work for a plastic surgeon and she recommended it to her patients. Just don’t use the gel on your face near your eyes.

Good morning and Happy Wednesday from a sunny but cold Tucson. It rained off and on yesterday and we even got some hail in the evening. I’ll celebrate the days, wine and drink but I wouldn’t want the yogurt hollandaise. Give me full fat please. I’ve only made blender hollandaise and love it, especially when on a BHB on eggs Benedict. Today I’m making a new recipe I saw recently by Misty Copeland on Ina Garten’s show, Citrus Salmon with butternut squash mash. Craig isn’t fond of squash so it’ll be interesting to see if he likes this. I’m also going to make asparagus. I need to get ready for Blue’s pawdicure appointment so that’s all for now. Enjoy your day!

Thank you Lenda, Blue seems to be over whatever caused his digestive system problem and ate lunch and dinner like nothing happened. I’m thinking that delaying feeding him might have been the issue even though it was only an hour late. It sounds like you are almost ready to leave for Texas. Are you leaving this weekend? Debbie @dfish, I missed the discussion last week about itchy skin. I have used CeraVe before but really prefer Aveno. It seems to work better for my itchy skin and it has oatmeal which helps too. If it’s really bad I have to use my steroid creams. So very sad about the loss of life from the bridge collapse. Prayers for their families. Roy @rafinmd, I’m sure the mood in Baltimore is somber. 😔

Good afternoon and such a sad news Tuesday. Reading about the bridge collapse was heartbreaking. Prayers for those souls. I had a gastroenterologist appointment this morning which took me 9 months to get. Of course I’m overdue for “that” exam so have that on my calendar for the Tuesday after Mother‘s day. I explained my reaction of severe nausea I had to anesthesia during my cataract surgery and found out that they automatically give anti nausea during sedation. Yay. We were going to go out for lunch but decided to get takeout instead. Same restaurant but just need to reheat the pizza. Good thing we did because Blue had had an accident and it didn’t look good, like he’d been really sick. Not sure what happened but I did decide to delay his lunch so that might have been an issue. I have him on special food for his tummy so I might need to check with our vet. Maxine, I’m glad she was diagnosed so quickly and will be starting a new antibiotic. I was going to suggest possible 5th disease. I hope she recovers quickly. Have a great day everyone!

Debbie @dfish, I have taken our DGD to the doctor before. All that enabled that was a phone call from our DS to inform them. However, I’m sure if any treatment was needed it would have required our son’s approval in some way. Pennie, I’m very serious about the offer of help. I’m not sure when your surgery is scheduled for but I’ll be OOT the first weekend of May. Going to Waco and I’ll be back on the 7th so available after that. My email is in my signature. 🥰

Good afternoon and Happy Monday from a cool Tucson. It was windy and cold yesterday and today isn’t much better but at least it isn’t as windy. We went out last night with family for dinner at Texas Roadhouse. I had prime rib, yum. However, I have to say I liked the one I had on the Koningsdam more in February with the wonderful Yorkshire pudding. It’s not Craig’s favorite but he never orders steak! I keep telling him that is the best thing that they have. He had chicken fried steak, go figure, not really a steak imho. We still had fun with the family. I have stayed twice at the Montreal hotel where John and Yoko had one of their bed ins, the Queen Elizabeth. The other one was in Amsterdam. I have a picture of the door somewhere, it has a small plaque on it commemorating the bed in. Here is more info https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bed-ins_for_peace I have a recipe similar to today’s meal suggestion without the red peppers and it’s wrapped in bacon. It’s really good. I need to find the cookbook it’s in. I usually don’t like most chicken dishes but this one is a keeper. Debbie @dfish, I had to laugh about River not eating the chicken because of the sauce because that’s usually the only way I like to eat it. Pennie @Nickelpenny, if there is anything I can help you with during your recovery please let me know. I could even be your driver if you need one. Have a great day everyone!

Good morning and Happy Friday from a sunny Tucson. It’s supposed to change tomorrow with wind and then rain on Sunday and a 20 degree drop in the temperature. I just heard about Kate’s cancer diagnosis. Prayers for her and her family. @seagarsmoker, thank you for the heads up about the Nieuw Amsterdam sailings. One of our favorite ships. I’m going to research cruises for next year. Sometimes I feel my age but mostly I don’t. When I was young I thought anyone in their 60’s were old, mostly because people tended to pass away at a younger age. Now that I’m almost 69 I don’t think that any longer. I love daffodils and I goof off most days. I’ll pass on the other things, I’m not a fan of fruity drinks and most cakes and most red wine. We have been to Jamaica but like most everyone else have no desire to go back. It was in 2004 on the Oosterdam and we docked in Ocho Rios. We were treated very badly by the employees at a pharmacy and hounded along the way. So a one and done. Have a great day everyone!

Now that Blue’s tummy is full I wanted to say a few more things. Pennie @Nickelpenny, thank you for the rocket launch picture. We went out about 45 minutes late and only saw the trail. Still impressive. There are supposed to be two more but the website doesn’t have the dates. If you find out please let me know. Looks like they are all for StarLink. Graham @grapau27, I can understand the anger Pauline and Sarah feel. So sad. To be so close by as neighbors but disowned and ignored has got to be stressful. No wonder it has affected Sarah’s health. Long Island Iced Tea used to be Craig’s drink of choice when we were out until Campari became more common in bars, so now it’s a Negroni. I’m not a fan of chicken cacciatore so will pass. I think we might be having Jersey Mike’s today. We like the cheesesteak sandwich and order a large one to share. I also love their potato chips, Miss Vicki’s, and I can’t find them in stores. The BBQ are my favorite and not overly seasoned. The pool deck is better but I can still see some black paint splatter in the crevices. We’ve asked the owner to come over to discuss.

Good morning and Happy Tuesday. I used to hate Tuesdays when I was working. It was our longest work day and usually was a 9-10 hour day. @Haljo1935, I retired when I turned 65 but had already taken early SS at 62. So that meant I could only work so many hours per week to keep getting my monthly benefits. It was a good arrangement but I hated that job, I never felt like it fit. But as a friend told me once, sometimes you have to have a job you hate to make ends meet. I decided to get early SS because the numbers for my work history weren’t worth waiting for full benefits since I mostly worked part time most of my working life with only about 10 years of full time work. Anyway my situation doesn’t help you but as you can see it pays to check the numbers for your own situation and work history. Thank you to everyone for your kind comments about my DM. They all are appreciated and make sense. I’m just going to keep on keeping on! Well Blue is wondering why he hasn’t had lunch yet so I better get going. He keeps nudging my hands. Have a great day everyone!

Good evening. I’ll read the posts later. Today was a day of waiting and cleaning. The painting people were to arrive this morning to address the overspray on our pool deck and fence so we waited for them to arrive. We both felt really sorry for the guy who arrived because he hadn’t been informed of the entire problem. After he did a treatment he left, a translation app was used to convey that he needed more supplies. He arrived several hours later with someone who helped him and another treatment was done. So far it looks good but we’ll know more tomorrow when it’s dry. In the meantime we cleaned the washing machine and dishwasher. The washing machine was really bad and it wasn’t noticeable until we removed the bleach and detergent trays. Yuck. I use a monthly cleaner in both machines but the washing machine needed extra attention. I’m currently watching an episode of Andrew Zimmern’s about Cork and Darina Allen and Ballymaloe is highlighted. I would love to visit. Also, I noticed my DVR recorded the first episode of this season’s Call the Midwife. I’m waiting for a quiet day to start watching. Our DS just called to tell us about a rocket launch. Of course we went to check it out. Wow, amazing that you can see it so far away. Have a good evening!

She’s 94, 95 in September. She is so healthy even with two different bouts of cancer, colon and lung. Both caught really early. Her doctor told her Friday that all her blood work is good and she said something about wondering when it won’t. He said that her most troublesome concern should be falling and breaking something. She said that’s why I use a walker. Anyway, your words are so true and I’m sure she hates me helping her so much. And yes, the facility would contact me if they notice something off. Thank you Debbie! I miss you!

Good morning and Happy Sunday. I’m Smiling Golden Balls and Craig is Cheerful Rainbow Lips on this St Patrick’s Day. Happy Anniversary to @irishjim and his DW! Bon Voyage @Scrapnana! We are having corned beef today but no cabbage with mashed potatoes. I have the corned beef in the crockpot right now, I’ll be adding carrots in a bit, and it will be ready for us at lunch. I always buy the uncured corned beef at TJ’s, it’s a bit more expensive than the regular one but well worth it, and I have a second one in the freezer for next month. I’m also going to make soda bread. I have some Irish butter and Dubliner cheddar to go with everything. Debbie @dfish, can you share your recipe for the Beef and Guinness Stew? Sounds yummy. I have one but it’s a pot pie recipe. Thank you to Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser, Jacqui @kazu, and Debbie @dfish for all your kind words last night when I was so frustrated with my day Friday with my DM. At this point I’m not going to reach out to her PCP. I think she would be really upset and I’m just going to wait and see for now. Part of the problem with this last outing is that we did too much in one day. I know better and plan to not do that again. She gets frustrated and I get stressed and tired. Have a great St Patrick’s Day!

Good evening and Happy Anniversary to the Daily. Thank you to Rich @richwmn for creating such a great space for us all to share and Be Kind to each other. I missed some birthdays, Lenda @Quartzsite Cruiser, Mitzi @Overhead Fred, and Mrs @VMax1700. There were others but I don’t remember now, sorry. Bon Voyage to @Suslor, @RedneckBob, and @Crazy For Cats. Pennie @Nickelpenny, congratulations on winning the cruise and welcome home! Great pictures of the sweet baby girls, Little Miss Camilla @smitty34877 and Baby Murphy @cruising sister. Sandi @StLouisCruisers, congratulations on the twin boys in your family. Ann @Vict0riann, ouch on your DD’s fracture. I’m hoping she heals quickly. Graham @grapau27, I’m so sorry about your situation. It’s understandable that Pauline is still upset. I’ve never been close with my brother but we still talk occasionally, I can’t imagine being estranged. Yesterday was difficult for me. DM’s walker fell apart and I purchased one on Amazon as a replacement and took it to her yesterday so we could get to her annual physical. (The center had loaned her one temporarily.) I had purposely picked one out that was lightweight, approximately 11 lbs, since I would be the one putting it in and taking it out of the car. When I picked her up she decided she didn’t like and wanted a heavy duty one like the loaner. Long story short we ended up buying a 19 lb one and will use the lightweight one for going out. And it now sits in the back of my car since she doesn’t have room to store it. At the physical the doctor asked about memory and DM pointed to me saying she thinks I have a problem. So, of course, she passed the test. I kept my mouth shut but wanted to tell them that they didn’t ask the right questions. After having lunch I was able to get the address corrected for the state and they will send the tax form but wasn’t able to get the Air Force retiree address corrected. However, I do have that form because it made it to my DS who now owns her old townhouse. Whew! Sorry for the long diatribe, it’s just been really hard and I don’t have anyone to talk to except Craig and he hears it all the time. Have a good evening all! Thank you for being here.

Good evening everyone. I’m way behind on reading the Daily and see by Vanessa’s well kept list that I missed some important events. I hope you feel better soon @JazzyV Pennie @Nickelpenny, I was saddened to read about Martina. It has to be very difficult for you. Graham @grapau27, please tell Pauline Happy Birthday for me. Your celebratory meals looked wonderful. Also sorry to read Sarah’s father passed. Please give her my condolences. Joy @Seasick Sailor, sorry about Allen’s dermatology appointment being rescheduled and his low sodium. I’m hoping the pills help. Give him my best. Our house painting is finally done however we have an issue with our pool deck where they painted the wrought iron fencing. The house looks great and very refreshed and updated. No more 80’s brown, yay! It was rather stressful though. I’m not good with upheaval. Thinking of you Maxine @AncientWanderer with your bathrooms. I have been dealing with some problems with DM’s taxes. It seems she didn’t update some addresses when she moved almost 5 years ago. Yikes! She is getting more and more confused about things which makes it difficult to explain things. For example, she couldn’t remember her DD DH’s birthday (not my father) and had difficulty finding a document with that information. I used to make bran muffins with Raisin Bran cereal and loved them but I’ve lost the recipe. I started to enjoy a glass of Pinot Noir on the Koningsdam last month when I had beef but hate to buy a bottle for just one glass.

Good evening all. I never did say what my name means. It’s Hebrew for plain, not plain as in “she looks plain” but as in an area of land such as the “Plain of Sharon”. I’m not sure I like being compared to a landscape so I’ll go with the alternative which is Princess. Joy, prayers for Allen. Hopefully he will take a muscle relaxer and it’ll be better tomorrow. It really was fun and one of the best we had the entire cruise. Be prepared to get in and out of the van multiple times but it’s well worth it. I would lick the beaters too, and probably the cake batter even though you aren’t supposed to. Elliot Rose is adorable! Prayers for the twins. Please keep us posted. I love my first and middle name but really don’t know what my middle name means. I’ll have to check it out. Thank you Jacqui. I’ll post a before and after. I vote for the 34 sea days!

We took an amazing excursion in Hilo just last month on February 10, 2024 while on the Koningsdam. It was labeled as “Tropical Farm Fruit and Waterfalls”, however it was much more. The farm is O.K. Farm named after the two men who own and started the farm. I’m going to try doing this by asking if you know what something is before I tell you what it is, answers will be at the end. This is really a great excursion for those who love food and knowing where your food comes from. We didn’t have to go very far to get there, our first stop was the little store, a coupe of delicious coffee, and this lovely plant. Do you know what it is? If you look at the distance you can see the ship. The following two pictures are cousins of the lychee. Do you know? They are delicious. This might be obvious to most but you usually see it after it’s processed. Can you guess? This one was hard for me to figure out, mainly because after they are dried they are a dark brown, can you? I guessed this one right away because I love cooking and learning about cooking and etc. We tasted many other things, plants and fruit. For example, a leaf from a cinnamon tree. The stem tasted just like cinnamon. Kaimukanaka Falls: Rainbow Falls. I learned that no rivers therefore waterfalls are owned but the farm was able to build a platform on their own land close by to get this unique and different view. However it was unnerving to see tourists who were crazy trying to get close. The first thing Craig said to me is “don’t look”. Our guide seemed undeterred but did say a lot of people fall. I don’t remember the statistics and don’t want to. We ended with a lovely spread of fruit and macadamia nuts. Have you ever had to shell one? Wow, they were so fresh. Answers: Vanilla Longan Rambutan Cacao Clove Outer shell — Mace Inner nut — Nutmeg Our guide told us he has a cacao plant and harvested it and made chocolate. It’s quite the undertaking and took him over a year mostly because of the fermentation process. If you are ever in Hilo and need something new to do I highly recommend this tour.

Good morning and Happy Wednesday. The painting is coming along but has turned out to be more stressful than I expected. All of our windows and doors, even the sliding glass door, are taped off and covered. I should say all but the front door but it’s still difficult to go in and out that way. Even the walkways and patio are covered. I’m very glad that they are being so careful. Poor Blue is confused about getting to the backyard via the front door and always with an escort. Keeping him from peeing on the paper and ladders and equipment is quite a chore. I love the new colors, the main color isn’t a big change, it’s a creamy beige versus the yellowish beige. But the trim is much different, it’s a dark grey blue and it’s turning out to be more blue than I expected which is good with me, I love blue, both the color and my dog. We have been to Hilo twice, once in 1984 and just last month on the Koningsdam. We went on a fantastic excursion and I’ll have to post them in a separate post after I go through the pictures Craig took. Have a great day everyone!

Ann, thank you for the update about your sister. I’m still thinking and praying for her. You have been an amazing sister helping her with cleaning and laundry. I can’t imagine the stress and worry that you have had. Praying that the cardiologist has good options.

Yes! I kept getting error messages and finally waited until about 11:30 MST and it was back.

Good morning and Happy Leap Day Thursday. It’s sunny today after our dreary past few days with rain. The painting is slowly moving along. They power washed this morning and have to do it again. The backyard is soggy. We have stucco so I think that’s why they have to double power wash. @Mr. Boston, the jambalaya was a CO special several times during our recent cruise. Craig ordered it once and liked it, however I was surprised that it was offered so many times, I think three times. Joy @Seasick Sailor, so good to have you back. I missed you. Tell Allen I’m sympathetic about his eczema flare up. I recently had one, really severe over the holidays, and my dermatologist changed my meds from psoriasis meds to eczema meds. She said that they can seem similar. I had a steroid injection in December and I started on Dupixent in January and have cleared up with just a few nagging areas. At one point I thought we might have to cancel our cruise but everything kicked in late January. Pennie @Nickelpenny, I’m enjoying your comments about your cruise and your pictures too. Bruce @aliaschief, wow on that excursion to Ayers Rock. I honestly don’t think I could have done it in the heat. I’m really enjoying your comments and pictures. Happy Heavenly Birthday’s to your loved ones @puppycanducruise and @Haljo1935 Have a great day everyone!

Annie, I was also fascinated with the house covered in ice and all the snow in Doctor Zhivago when I first watched it many years ago. I can imagine your surprise afterward going outside and seeing all the snow. My DM was always taking me to the movies when I was young and this was before the rating system so I saw a lot of stuff I probably shouldn’t have, like the Birds, which was traumatizing as a youngster. I am glad your internet is back, you were missed. Lenda, I feel the same way about the Mash finale. Maybe it’s because it was so hyped up by the media. Also, I loved your cartoons today! The podcast one is hilarious.

Good morning and Happy Wednesday. It’s currently 64F and going to 66F with thundershowers expected at noon. The house painting is going slow due to this weird weather. And someone has to stay at home to be with Blue so he doesn’t freak out with all the commotion. I always make chili with beans and prefer pinto beans. That’s how my DM made it so it just doesn’t seem right without pinto beans. I would like to try the wine. Floral design was celebrated quite often on our recent cruise. The florist held many classes and I even noticed a small private one that wasn’t listed on the Daily program. I think it might have been for those who purchased vases because each participant had their own vase and set of flowers. Eva @superoma, Happy Anniversary! Congratulations on your 54 years. Vanessa @JazzyV, it’s so good to hear about your better sleep and less pain. Ann @cat shepard, I have continued to pray for your sister. Please keep us updated. So scary. I hope you were able to get some rest after you got home last night. Terri @Cruzin Terri, that’s good news about your shoulder and nose. Hopefully your exercises will help your shoulder. Joy @Seasick Sailor and Linda @lindaler, I hope you are both well and that everything is okay. Have a great day everyone!

Ann, continued prayers for your sister and hoping that the surgery fixes the problem for her.

Ann, prayers and thoughts going for your sister. Wow about the Noro outbreak on the Koningsdam. Thank you! I have my DVR set. Even though we’ve seen them before I will enjoy watching them again. Maxine ~Good wishes that the migraine med helps and you don’t experience any side effects. Also hope your deck repair goes smoothly. Enjoy planning for your Japan trip. Sounds wonderful. Thanks for thinking about Craig. He will probably come around but it might be in a year or so. I’m going to plan a solo cruise in the meantime, I just don’t know when or where. I need to consider my DM’s needs too. She’s starting to get confused about stuff, minor stuff, but still unusual for her. Example— I told her multiple times we were sailing round trip San Diego and for how long, even put it on her calendar but she was still confused about how we got home and from where and when. We do all of her shopping for her and she’ll say that she doesn’t need it right away, just the next time we see her. Then suddenly it becomes urgent and she gets hostile that she hasn’t gotten it yet. She has even said that she doesn’t want us to help her anymore. So, because of that, we’ve been getting things to her quickly.