8/17/08 Captain Jack's Repossession Repo Cruise to PC thru TPC #5

[Diznyfan68]

Real question for all you DCL veterans!

I want to set up with our servers the first night a few things that we would like to make sure we have every night either waiting for us at our table or just brought to us without our having to order - mainly cocktails (hey, I'm on vacation, I'm allowed to be a lush ). Anyway, I vaguely remember reading on the mainboard that some people have given an "advance" tip to the assistant server and regualar server at the beginning of the cruise and asking to have this done for them. Is this something that can be done and what would you recommend as a minimum and maximum tip amount for this? Obviiously, this would be IN ADDITION to the tip we would give them at the end of the cruise. TIA!

 

[micmse2003]

Good, if we get assignments for those on GTY status by the second or third week of July, we will have no trouble getting fish extender final lists ready for the beginning of August . . .

I hope you know how to do a spread sheet?? I don't.

how it can be snowing today yet the temperature outside is in the 40's? Obviously I'm not a meteorologist, but I would think we'd see light rain instead of flurries. Maybe it's colder in the upper atmosphere which I thought caused hail. Oh well...80's yesterday, snow today.

Also, thanks for the kind thoughts from everyone regarding yesterday's gout flare-up. It was my worst, but I'm a lot better today. I guess the preventative medicine at least helps keep them shorter. Nonetheless, I'm heading back to the doctor to see about upping my dosage as she started me out small to see how I do.

Yeterday 40 and today 75!!! This was our first over 70 degree day in 6 months.

http://i15.photobucket.com/albums/a352/GoofyontheHiSeas/AllDistrictChorusNames.jpg

For some reason Photobucket will not let me post a reasonable size photo.

I need stronger glassses Roger!! How are the legs doing.

 

[goofyforlife]

Real question for all you DCL veterans!

I want to set up with our servers the first night a few things that we would like to make sure we have every night either waiting for us at our table or just brought to us without our having to order - mainly cocktails

Actually...with a good wait staff.... Just tell em the first night and they will have them every night....

Last two trips my waiters got to know my odd quirks such as having a kids menu and bringing my own can of soda...

 

[got2travel]

Real question for all you DCL veterans!

I want to set up with our servers the first night a few things that we would like to make sure we have every night either waiting for us at our table or just brought to us without our having to order - mainly cocktails (hey, I'm on vacation, I'm allowed to be a lush ). Anyway, I vaguely remember reading on the mainboard that some people have given an "advance" tip to the assistant server and regualar server at the beginning of the cruise and asking to have this done for them. Is this something that can be done and what would you recommend as a minimum and maximum tip amount for this? Obviiously, this would be IN ADDITION to the tip we would give them at the end of the cruise. TIA!

I haven't done this on DCL but on other cruise lines I just made my request known on the first night and my drinks were always waiting for me. Adult beverages and regular. No extra tip needed.

 

[got2travel]

good evening everyone! crazy day here today...found out that dd has chicken pox!! she had the vaccination for it a few years ago...so thankfully, it is a mild case. the doc said i shouldn't watch kids for today or tomorrow though...oh bummer!! not!!! i have 2 babies that i watch that are too little to have had the vaccine yet, so it's not good for them to be here...and now i've got the rest of the week free! my kids are on spring break this week, and dd actually feels great...not itchy or anything, so we basically have the rest of the week free!

hope everyone else is having a great over the hump day!

yeah for no work....boo for chicken pox

 

[micmse2003]

For the record, that's a worst case # assuming everyone stays in, everyone wants to be listed in the directory, etc.

Just wanted to Thank You for another great newsletter!!!

Can you see it!!!!

 

[PBader]

Yeterday 40 and today 75!!! This was our first over 70 degree day in 6 months.

Hope you got outside to enjoy it. I washed the store windows today today to take advantage of the sunshine.


Thanks for the newsletter Tom!


Shannon sorry to hear your DD has the chicken pox, glad she's feeling good and not itchy. Enjoy your freedom the rest of the week.



Adam is going to be taking his ASVAB test again in 30 days to see if he gets a better score. He also scheduled his own dr. appointment for next Thursday to see about his asthma. They told him he couldn't use an inhaler, but could get allergy shots. He is disappointed about this because his asthma isn't only allergy related. I halfway feel sorry for him--a little more than half way. It just isn't what I saw him doing, but he is very serious about it.

 

[KSDisneyDad]

Yeterday 40 and today 75!!! This was our first over 70 degree day in 6 months.

Hope it stays warm for you. We've had several teases of 70's and even 80's, but then it has to get cold....still snowing here..


TOM -- Great newsletter and my DW promises to read this one!

 

[PBader]

Real question for all you DCL veterans!

I want to set up with our servers the first night a few things that we would like to make sure we have every night either waiting for us at our table or just brought to us without our having to order - mainly cocktails (hey, I'm on vacation, I'm allowed to be a lush ). Anyway, I vaguely remember reading on the mainboard that some people have given an "advance" tip to the assistant server and regualar server at the beginning of the cruise and asking to have this done for them. Is this something that can be done and what would you recommend as a minimum and maximum tip amount for this? Obviiously, this would be IN ADDITION to the tip we would give them at the end of the cruise. TIA!

Lorri, I have found that some of the servers are just better than others. Our last cruise was the worse we ever had--they were very nice, but didn't have it all together. I am good about giving the servers in the Cove Cafe and pool area a good tip at the beginning--they always remember.

 

[captaincrash]

Just wanted to post a THANK YOU to the neighbors who volunteered to staff the TASK FORCE for running the Magnetic Memo Board Project.

SPECIAL Thanks to ​

:

Downrivermama
MrsScooby
Pdarrah
Radioclash2
Tiggrbaby ​

Now we have to get to work to put this thing together!​

 

[wheelerkidz3]

Finally got my DCL Mail... It really seems official now. Looking forward to the 19th! Thank goodness we get to sleep in here on Monday!

Mary Jane

my ta emailed me today, and told me that she rec'd our packets and will be forwarding them to us....i'm wondering why our went to her and not to us directly like everyone elses?

yeah for no work....boo for chicken pox

i'm really "YEAH FOR NO WORK!" i feel like i'm a kid in school who found out they have a snow day! i'm too excited to go to bed tonite! the best part is that it's finally nice weather here!! so, a great time to get a few days off! and since dd feels great, it's even better!!

 

[poohmomof5]

Ah, I just got an update. The folks at Inventory Control (who are next door to revenue maximization) saw your suggestion. They will be combining both approaches - sometimes moving the contents of the rooms (including safes, fish extenders, etc.) and sometimes just renumbering cabins - in both cases the idea will be to maximize the amount of running around by passengers.
You will see a new fee for this service on your stateroom bill - the web site shows this as the:

"Cabin relocation fitness program: Exclusively for GTY passengers and those who participate in fish extender gift exchanges, this program presented by our health and fitness staff is sure to keep you ship-shape throughout your cruise. The cost of this service is a nominal $50/cruise ($90 for cruises of 7 days or longer) and can be combined with our extensive selection of spa foot treatments (which you'll need) for a 10% discount."

Written just like Disney would...good stuff!

 

[captaincrash]

how it can be snowing today yet the temperature outside is in the 40's? Obviously I'm not a meteorologist, but I would think we'd see light rain instead of flurries. Maybe it's colder in the upper atmosphere which I thought caused hail. Oh well...80's yesterday, snow today.

Also, thanks for the kind thoughts from everyone regarding yesterday's gout flare-up. It was my worst, but I'm a lot better today. I guess the preventative medicine at least helps keep them shorter. Nonetheless, I'm heading back to the doctor to see about upping my dosage as she started me out small to see how I do.

See.... please allow me to take FULL CREDIT here
without the chuckles we generated you don't wanna know where you might be now...

< chuckles >

 

[captaincrash]

good evening everyone! crazy day here today...found out that dd has chicken pox!! she had the vaccination for it a few years ago...so thankfully, it is a mild case. the doc said i shouldn't watch kids for today or tomorrow though...oh bummer!! not!!! i have 2 babies that i watch that are too little to have had the vaccine yet, so it's not good for them to be here...and now i've got the rest of the week free! my kids are on spring break this week, and dd actually feels great...not itchy or anything, so we basically have the rest of the week free!

hope everyone else is having a great over the hump day!

Sorry to hear of this ...

... fortunately, it seems to be remarkably mild!

​

 

[Esteri]

Happy 11th Birthday Jakob!!!​

Happy Birthday Jakob!

DS Esteri​

​

Happy Birthday Jakob!!!​

HAPPY BIRTHDAY​

JAKOB​

HAPPY BIRTHDAY JAKOB!!!

This one is too funny! And SOOOOO appropriate!

Happy Birthday Jakob!

Jakob!

Jakob says thanks for remembering him!! And if you have any loose change leftover from tax day... He's taking donations towards his SCUBA lessons in June! (right... )​

The highlight of his day was getting his first pocket knife (a real Swiss Army knife!) from his dear old mom and dad. ​

Sorry I haven't been by, and this is only a drive by... We decided to start looking for a new house - and it's sucking up most of my spare time.​

We are still a "go" to start t-**** pre-orders on the 28th though.​

I'll pop back in when I have more than 30 minutes to string together.
.​

 

[danfromca]

Well......

You can have a Dream fastpass, to ensure you get to Guest services, but I understand GS are taking training from our Terminal five, and there might be a wait of a few days or weeks, whilst they find out what is actually happening, and then send it to Italy to process.

I wouldn't worry - the guest service personel taking training at terminal 5 will be stranded there well into 2009.

Oddly enough, I've never had a problem with guest services, or even a long wait. Maybe I just go there at odd times (or settle up early?). On the med cruise they were absolutely positively my heroes - they fought with Iberia on our behalf, kept us up to date on the luggage search, gave us free phone calls to try reaching Iberia, and were quick to credit us for time lost when the Internet connection went down.

Aw...I'll miss out...I'm not GTY.....what is the program for folks who already have thier first night assignment???

Oh, didn't you hear? GTY stands for "guarantee" which means we get a cabin of that class or better (even if it does move around). Those who aren't GTY are, by definition, not guaranteed anything (regardless of current assignment). I believe the current plan is to have all of you initially sent to Deck 9 with your luggage. Then periodically crew members will select random families for special surprises including cabin assignments. The lucky ones will get the category 1 cabins or a night or two in the captain's cabins. Those not picked will get to stay in tents pitched in that large empty room near the medical center where they store the luggage the night before departure. I think they're calling it the "cruise of a million dramas" event?

 

[danfromca]

Real question for all you DCL veterans!

I want to set up with our servers the first night a few things that we would like to make sure we have every night either waiting for us at our table or just brought to us without our having to order - mainly cocktails (hey, I'm on vacation, I'm allowed to be a lush ). Anyway, I vaguely remember reading on the mainboard that some people have given an "advance" tip to the assistant server and regualar server at the beginning of the cruise and asking to have this done for them. Is this something that can be done and what would you recommend as a minimum and maximum tip amount for this? Obviiously, this would be IN ADDITION to the tip we would give them at the end of the cruise. TIA!

In my experience the serving staff are generally psychic. They usually know what you want before you want it. Seriously - ask for something two nights in a row and chances are it will magically appear from then on unless you ask otherwise.

 

[paulasillars]

Agreed...

... even on our last Disney sailing we had 120 cabins or something like that. I had already bought things that were more suitable for hte kids - so I just gave fish extender gifts to the kids.

I think I have enough gifts for about 150 cabins - that is going to take some time to deliver them all! Good job its a 15 night cruise huh?

 

[radioclash2]

 

[captaincrash]

I think I have enough gifts for about 150 cabins - that is going to take some time to deliver them all! Good job its a 15 night cruise huh?

I think on our last sailing there were slightly over 110 cabins... and kids of an age I targeted with gifts in about 70. I believe I walked 2.5 nights for a bit over an hour each nite before I was done. That took me across all decks with cabins and it was tedius.

With 150-175 cabins ... and with this project reaching ALL of the cabins ... and especially since we will be distributing EARLY with sometimes NO indication the cabin is a DIS family .... we'd have to be careful to have the correct cabin some of the time. In the past sailing I had cabins that were well marked usually. SO..... with so many cabins to reach on this sailing I can easily imagine spending 5+ hours to distribute the dry erase memo pads. Plus I need time to get organized with the memo pads (hand work of some sort).... so this might be 8+ hours including prepatory labor ... more or less.

As such, it's been good that we have a task force comprising 6 people total. This means we'll probably finish distributing everything in under an hour (on average per person) plus we'll certainly spend less than an hour each in prepatory hand labor just prior to distribution of the memo pads.... assuming we have 150-175 to distribute.

So ... YOU have 150+ things to distribute, eh? Sigh, you're gonna be up for hours. I did mine after there was nothing else to do on the ship - which means after 11PM generally. I hope to ship everything out to my TASK force mates a couple of weeks prior - so as to allow each person a chance to do some of thier prepatory/organizational work in advance of the sailing. No sense in wasting precious time on the ship eh? Even IF we have 15 nites!

Yanno... maybe we can work out a deal... if ya want a little help distributing stuff ... maybe we could cut a contract ... or accord if ya will ... and we'll assist for the right price. How many Mickey Bars do ya have on ya? And if you'd be good enuf to ship me what ya wnat me to distribute - then this gives me a chance ta ebay yer stuff so as I can have more cruisin' moola to handle gratuities and excursions! What do ya say???