FEBRUARY 21, 2008

THE SEA: It still amazes me that I can tell where we are vis-à-vis open ocean and nearby land by the feel of the ship. We came through the Bismarck Channel, where there is land on both sides even if it is far away, and are now in open ocean. The ship hardly moves when in a protected area; now it is undulating again.
The howling of the wind by the patio door gives me some idea of our speed; the faster we are going, the more the howling sound.
I definitely have a cold now but it’s in the in between stage: not sick enough to stay in bed; not well enough to be enthused about getting up and doing anything. Ed got up about 6:30 am and I kept hearing this tap tap tap from the bathroom (him tapping his razor on the sink). He got dressed and left about 7:30 to exercise. I took advantage of the time and got myself ready and read until it was time to go to this morning’s lecture. Ed joined me later in the audience.
JAPANESE CULTURE AND CUSTOMS: A very proper British lady is doing this series of talks about the Japanese, with whom she has lived, albeit in a family rather well-to-do (by her own admission). She had a beautiful wedding kimono on display along with samples of the various slippers one wears in a Japanese home. She had photos of Japanese in various forms of dress for specific occasions. And she had a typical gift giving card for money. She speaks very slowly and deliberately and takes one through her landing at the airport until the afternoon at her host home. Since I’ve never been to Japan, it’s almost all new to me.
TRIVIA: We had our group of 6 and called ourselves “Crocks” today. Our member with cheat sheets didn’t unearth them today. There were many brain teasers for us, but WE WON! We all felt very vindicated. Our “gift” was a passport and ticket holder with Princess Cruises on it (of course). Apparently it’s a new item. I was delighted since my current one is on it’s last legs and this one will be just perfect (even if it does have their name on it; I suppose that’s a small price to pay for a gift.
Not so with the needlepoint kit however, I put “Dr. BonBon” on it where “Princess Cruises” was supposed to go. Some other ladies were delighted in this small token of rebellion.
LIBRARY: Dropped off another Vanity Fair today that Ed finally relinquished. Read the USA Times, and more in Iberia. We will only be in Barcelona in Spain but now I wish we could visit the cities and areas he discusses.
Speaking of Michener, this afternoon they are doing a repeat of the “South Pacific” DVD and discussion I told you about last week. So the pickings are slim this afternoon.
Amber, the poor dear from India who is assigned to the library told me that the next meeting of the book club is scheduled for the 26th and how did I like the book? I confessed the whole story including the fact that the person to whom I passed the book had read two chapters and couldn’t “get into” the book and is returning it to me. Several of the people reading the book have finished it and loved it! So go figure: it ain’t for everybody. Just as a reminder: It’s title is “water for elephants” and it’s a NY Times best seller.
I’m conflicted because I promised myself I’d read the books and magazines I brought along as a treat—and I’m moving along on that. So now I have to see about attending the book club meeting even if I haven’t read the book.
Crossword puzzles. I usually pick these up in the library but there have been some really weird ones lately. So I passed two of them along to him. He looked at the question, then looked at the answer to that question, and said: “What?!” So I’m being a little more selective about what I bring to solve.
LUNCH: My rabbit food again. Sat with one of the couples from Trivia. He’s rather full of himself but it wasn’t a terrible discussion. My opinion of him might be tainted by the fact that he kept insisting that virology was the study of microbes as in microbiology and rejecting the correct answer of “viruses.” I did prevail on that answer but I wanted to (figurately of course) slap him up side the head and get him to listen to my explanation! (For those of you who might be curious: microbiology includes the study of –almost-- anything you can put under a microscope, e.g. bacteria, protozoa, and yes, viruses with the electron microscope—but then I know all of you already knew that). The other thing that I had to act as if I was neutral on the topic was his discussing bring over nurses from the Phillipines to take care of the nursing shortage. Those who know me well, know this is a short f.use for me. You’ll be proud of me: I never mentioned that topic at all.
This same font of all knowledge, said that a 46 y/o passenger who had gone on the Macchu Pichu trip had collapsed and died up there. I know there have been some unscheduled disembarkations but I hadn’t heard this specific. It’s not so surprising however. In a population of this size with the average age group well approaching 80 y/o, you’re bound to lose a few even if we were sitting in the park in Ft. Lauderdale.
INTERNET CAFÉ: I went there and ran into Ed. The place was packed. He got up from his terminal to get something from the printer and a lady took over that terminal. (he who hesitates is lost). She left after a few minutes and I sat down since Ed was still working out getting his pages from the printer. (he said he was printing an article from the NY Times off for me to read but I don’t believe that’s what was going on. At 50 cents a page for seven pages?? I don’t think so.)
Anyway, I started to log on and Ed was desperate to print off the rest of said article, so I left him on my account and came to the room. The reality is that when there are this many people trying to access the satellite, your chances of being bumped off are higher and thus more frustrating.
TODAY’S MOVIE: Dan in real life. I just saw about 3 min of the beginning; look imminently forgettable. So I turned to “Burma Bridge Busters”. It’s got a lot of WWII vintage planes and such. Definitely not a winner in my book either. Now the Bridge on the River Kwai (which I understand we will be dealing with later in the cruise)? Now that’s a horse of a different color. Alec Guiness was terrific in that movie don’t you think?
FRANK SINATRA ANYONE? At 3:15 today they have a passenger appearing in a Tribute to Frank Sinatra. Apparently he’s become a minor celebrity due to his karaoke participation. I’ll let you know about that one.
ABOUT THOSE PHOTOS: I realized last night that I forgot to upload the photos from yesterday. I’ll try to do better next time I access the internet.
DINNER: There were 6 of us and the configuration for talking was in a “U” shape which made it a little better. Ed and I were at the bottom of the “U” so I tried to pay most of my attention to the couple on my right so that everyone was involved. To a limited extent, it was better but there are some ego issues at the table and I’m trying to stay out of it all.
ENTERTAINMENT: A pair of brothers who go by the name Whyte and who play Beatles music. They’re OK but I was surprised they were the act for this evening on this ship. Marty Allen took a seat next to Ed and we talked about a variety of things. It reminded me somewhat of the time I spent with the Hollywood producer (doing private duty). I looked for Dave who has yet to run into Marty Allen on the ship and who wants a photo with him, but I couldn’t locate him. Oh well, they’re on here for a few more days.
JOHN MCCAIN: Well the dirt is being dredged up again with some new wrinkles. I’m conflicted because it does reflect on his ability to be discriminating when it comes to folks who become friends.