August 20, 2005 - L.A. to Port Canaveral - Eastbound Repo Cruise - The SHIP OF FOOLS Part 3

[mark & sandra]

Mark - it's just after 4am - I'm lying here in my hotel bedroom in Seattle having had a short but great sleep after about 21 hours of travelling - it's what always happens when we do long haul - I switch on the Dis board via the free WiFi here - head for the latest unread - and find your stunning story of how you used yourself as a crash dummy! NOt often that I laugh out loud at the boards - but, buddy, you sure can describe in graphic detail - and yes, I think I saw the missing objects flying past my 757 window, somewhere round about Spokane.

Thanks for a good laugh! They say the falsetto will ease off soon

Allan

Allan, I'm glad I was able to brighten your otherwise dreary day. Hope you have an enjoyable business trip...Mark

 

[mark & sandra]

A SISTERHOOD FIRST!!

Announcing a brand new on-board excursion for the Men!

In an effort to provide a comprehensive cruise experience for all the DHs, SOs and BFs, the SOF Sisterhood is proud to sponsor the Iron Man Competition!! We will be using the irons & ironing boards from the laundry rooms on deck 6 & 7 (and deck 2 if here is high demand) and have them set-up on secret deck 7 aft on a sea day in the 2nd week of the cruise. This will give you time to practice and strengthen your ironing arm for the intense competition. Here is a sample of the heated, cut-throat, testosterone-filled gamesmanship that will take place:

(thank you to Jazz, Grumbo, Mark, IzziBob & KMiles for posing for our sketch artist)

Red tank shirts with the Brotherhood Survivor Logo on the back are included in the sign-up fee. You must provide your own article of clothing to iron (and no sending it to the ship's laundry first for pressing!) Registration for this first-ever event will take place upon embarkation at Signals Bar on deck 9 and spaces are limited! Do this before getting Palo & Spa ressies so you don't miss getting your spot!!

The Sisterhood wants to see YOU on game day!

Nancy, I think you need to 'FOCUS' more on what the sisters will be competing for.

 

[mark & sandra]

Now for the COP, my 88 (almost) year old mother has decided that she may come along after all. I have an email in to DU to see if I can add her to my room (should be OK) and then I will have to add insurance.

Marsha, will she be sleeping on the couch or the pull down bed? Do you think she'll have any problems with all those car seats in your room?...Mark

 

[winotracy]

Anyone interested in chatting? I'm sitting outside on the patio with wireless in the chat room. Come on over!

Tracy

 

[RobinMarie]

Nancy, I think you need to 'FOCUS' more on what the sisters will be competing for.

 

[disneydudette1]

Mel-Still prayers for your MIL.

Kathy-pixie dust to your dad.

Dan-come back come back!!!

Marsha-you definately need travel insurance for your mom. There is no coverage outside the US w/ Medicare. Preferably one that will cover air ambulance transport (up front as it can cost as much as $40k +from Mexico). YOu wouldn't believe the number of seniors who do not get travel ins. for out of the country travel.

What a cutie Addison is!!

Love the iron man Nancy!

Beautiful day here in NJ.

 

[DenverVal]

This company is and its still the same rate as a seven day cruise:-

http://cruiselineformal.com/

Thank you Andrew, my DH was wanting this info too!

 

[lou.iannucci]

This company is and its still the same rate as a seven day cruise:-

http://cruiselineformal.com/

Thanks for this information, I will be giving them a call in the morning.

Thanks again,
Lou

 

[Jazzman]

Greetings from BWV!

Melinda - best wishes for your mil. We've recently been dealing with the same thing here - hope things take a turn for the better.

Jason & Travis - great meeting you guys the other day! Wish we had more time to hang out together.

Jazz & Denise

 

[Bmwdsny]

Hello Friends!
I just got home about 1/2 hour ago. It had finally hit me that this is really happening. It was so hard to leave to come home for i would have like to stay there and support my MIL as well as my FIL. She still in a coma state. No changes yet.
Now that i am home it will be so hard for me NOT to hear from my MIL this week. We also discovered that we still have her message on our machine that she called about 2 hours before her collapse (she called to wished my DD a happy birthday). We are going to tape it and have it forever remembered.

Here is a picture of Bob's parents on the Disney Cruise.

Again, thank you all for your support and prayers. i will keep you posted. Also, many thanks to all who have sent me E mails.

I have not gone back to read some posts in the last 2 days. I will read it when i get home from work tomorrow.

 

[DisneyElf]

NY weather was great too -- another nice barbecue today....

Kathy -- Hang in there -- Benita just had her gallbladder removed & my brother Paul had his out last July. Hopefully if they can do it laproscopic... it helps since there is less cutting & healing is faster. Keep us posted.

Mel & Bob --- Continued pixiedust to you too! Hopefully everything will improve.

Welcome to the new members..... don't forget to get your newsletters & get up to date.

Marsha -- when I saw COP in you title -- you got me worried

Dan -- can't wait to talk to you in chat again.

 

[big cheeser]

Allan, have a great trip to Seattle!!! We have family in Bellevue, WA close to Seattle. They, however, are in Italy right now visiting my niece who is is on exchange there for college. Otherwise, if it would work out, I know they'd love to have you visit!

Hey Barbara - I'm actually staying in Bellevue for the 4 nights - at the Bellevue Club Hotel which is pretty nice especially with free WiFi. So sorry I missed the connection with your family.

Hope they and niece are having a good time in Italy - good food and wonderful culture - as well as great scenery and nice people.

And thanks for doing the nightly check-up on Pam as requested!!!!

Cheers

Allan

Allan

 

[kmiles]

Marsha--

Your possible COP sounds like a good COP!

 

[invaderzim]

Good morning -- and HAPPY MONDAY


First of all -- to all of you with ill family members and family emergencies I send much pixie dust and thoughts and prayers!

Second, did any of you hear about this on the news this morning. Very frightening to think of a wave hitting a ship that is as tall as the building I work in!!!


Cruise Ship Returning After Wave Damage


Apr 18, 8:26 AM (ET)

CHARLESTON, S.C. (AP) - A freak seven-story wave that slammed into a cruise ship sent furniture sailing through the air, knocked Jacuzzis overboard and forced some passengers to sleep in hallways in life jackets.

The Norwegian Dawn docked in the Charleston harbor for repairs after running into the rough weather Saturday while returning to New York from the Bahamas. The 965-foot vessel departed early Sunday after a Coast Guard inspection and was expected in New York at midday Monday.

"The ship was hit by a freak wave that caused two windows to break in two different cabins," Norwegian Cruise Line said in a statement. It said 62 cabins flooded and four passengers had cuts and bruises. The wave reached as high as deck 10 on the ship, company spokeswoman Susan Robison said Sunday.
James Fraley, who was taking a honeymoon cruise with his wife, said they called their loved ones as the wave pounded the boat because they thought the ship was going down.

"It was pure hell. We're talking 47-foot waves hitting the 10th floor, knocking Jacuzzis on the 12th floor overboard - people sleeping in hallways in life jackets," Fraley told WCBD-TV in Charleston. "Just pure pandemonium."

Bill and Ellen Tesauro of Wayne, N.J., said they went to the ship's casino when waves started slamming the vessel. "We figured it would take our minds off this (and) that's when the captain announced that drinks are free all night," Bill Tesauro told the Daily News of New York. "But then there was another horrendous slap on the water." The panicked couple decided to return to their suite.

"A desk went flying across the room," Ellen Tesauro said. "And a glass table toppled down, with glasses and food on it."

Stacy Maryland of Hamilton, N.J., woke up to find shoes and magazines floating in a foot of water. "I thought I heard water sloshing around, and then I woke up and saw it, and it was surreal," she told the newspaper.

The cruise line said passengers whose cabins were flooded were flown home from Charleston and the safety of the ship "was in no way compromised by this incident." Each passenger on the ship got a refund of half the trip's cost and a voucher for half the price of a future cruise, Robison said.

The ship left New York on April 10 with 2,500 passengers aboard. Robison said about 300 passengers decided not to return by ship from Charleston. About 100 were flown back to New York and the rest made their own arrangements, Robison said.

"I rented a car and drove nine hours," said Fraley, of Keansburg, N.J., who kissed his driveway when he got home. "No more time on the Titanic for me."

 

[kmiles]

Wow. I didn't really read the article until you posted it to the thread Cathy. I tend to stay away from stories like this in the news.

I can't imagine a 47 foot wave! I guess it really puts everything into perspective though. While these cruise ships may be huge they're still nothing compared to nature.

It's also interesting to see the "compensation" that the cruise line offered. I'm sure that will stir a few "discussions."

Thanks for posting the article.

 

[mmouse37]

I must also agree about the insurance.....it is vital for someone that age or any age for that matter. We never used to get travel insurance but lately a little voice keeps telling me...you have been lucky for too long....don't chance it any longer. Look for travel insurance to cover you before you leave (if something happens to anyone in your party resulting in some or none or you being able to travel), it should cover your flight, if anyone gets sick while onboard, and most importantly, if anyone needs to be air lifted or emergency evacuated from an island to a better care facility. When you compare the price of insurance to the actual cost of the trip and what it would cost for medical care while away, especially an emergency evacuation...it really does not add up to much.

We always get it now.

 

[kmiles]

On the travel insurance, we have done both: Purchased it for some trips and opted out for some.

One thing that I would urge everyone to do prior to purchasing the insurance is to call your health insurance company (if you have one) to find out what you are currently covered for and what you are not covered for. Ask them lots of different questions about various scenarios.

Most insurance policies provide for coverage outside of the United States. And yes, most too will cover emergency evacuation if no other means of providing care exist. [While I was in graduate school I had no other option but to carry a student policy. Even this minor policy covered me outside of the U.S. and emergency evacuation.]

The main goal of travel insurance seems to be to cover the cost of your travels if something were to go wrong. So, while you're regular health insurance policy will most likely cover anything you encounter on that end, it wouldn't cover the cost of the lost trip.

So, while doing research and deciding to buy the travel insurance or not to buy, call, call, call your regular policy administrator! Just my two cents.

 

[DisneyElf]

It's also interesting to see the "compensation" that the cruise line offered. I'm sure that will stir a few "discussions."

I was thinking that myself Notice how fast NCL came through with credits

Too bad I didn't know you then - since Benita & I were on the 9/7 Frances cruise.

I am still trying to figure out what ship the local TV station in NY was using for the story -- since it has classic liner look - black hull etc. The Dawn is an all white ship with the graphics painted on it.

 

[jhemond]

It's also interesting to see the "compensation" that the cruise line offered. I'm sure that will stir a few "discussions."

They were given 50% of the cruise fare back, plus vouchers for 50% off a future cruise fare. They were also given free drinks (unlimited) the night of the "incident". I'm sure that was interesting. Rough seas and free drinks...

 

[Perdita&Pongo]

Now for the COP, my 88 (almost) year old mother has decided that she may come along after all.

Marsha - David's 93 year old still-sharp-as-a-tack Grandmother is cruising with us!! Maybe these two can buddy up during the cruise.