halloween cruise/ Magic: October 28th-nov..4th 2006

[cntkg1]

Hello fellow DISers!!

I guess we are a little late in signing in on this thread. We booked this cruise during our last 7 day Eastern in October of 05. Not sure if we will be keeping the date though. We had to sign up for something to get our 10% off and $200.00 shipboard credit so we picked 10-28...11-4.

Took us two years to save up for that one, so unless we win the lottery we will be switching the date to Oct of 07.

So....in hoping that we do win, I thought we'd check in.

Had a blast with other DISer's in October. We even played DIStag with little gifts left as "fishmail".

Celebrated our 25th anniversary on the last cruise, so we sailed without our kids. First vacation ever without them. Shhhh...it was REALLY nice!

I'll be checking in every now and then. Talk to you all later.

Nancy & Chuck

 

[buckifan]

cntkg1- good luck with the lottery. I always joke about how our life would change if we ever won.....but it's extreme wishful thinking, as WE DON"T EVEN PLAY!

kritter- LOVE the new pix! They are such little pumpkins! You must kiss them all day!

 

[joksten2000]

I've been retired for three years the wife is finally retiring Oct 1st 2006. We.re going on this cruise to celebrate

 

[kritter]

Hello fellow DISers!!

I guess we are a little late in signing in on this thread. We booked this cruise during our last 7 day Eastern in October of 05. Not sure if we will be keeping the date though. We had to sign up for something to get our 10% off and $200.00 shipboard credit so we picked 10-28...11-4.

Took us two years to save up for that one, so unless we win the lottery we will be switching the date to Oct of 07.

So....in hoping that we do win, I thought we'd check in.

Had a blast with other DISer's in October. We even played DIStag with little gifts left as "fishmail".

Celebrated our 25th anniversary on the last cruise, so we sailed without our kids. First vacation ever without them. Shhhh...it was REALLY nice!

I'll be checking in every now and then. Talk to you all later.




Nancy & Chuck

Helloo and welcome we will pray that yo win the lotto so you can join us...

tell us more about things that you did onboard with your fellow disers..???

 

[kritter]

cntkg1- good luck with the lottery. I always joke about how our life would change if we ever won.....but it's extreme wishful thinking, as WE DON"T EVEN PLAY!

kritter- LOVE the new pix! They are such little pumpkins! You must kiss them all day!

bUCK,
Today the girls saw pictures of your kids while I was online and they asked your daughters name and said they were excited to meet her on the cruise..It was soo cute...then just tonight they said they wanted to see her soon and how far is it till we meet our new friend???

 

[kritter]

I've been retired for three years the wife is finally retiring Oct 1st 2006. We.re going on this cruise to celebrate

that is soo cool my parents are retired now and have been on so many cruises they love it they are coming with us on the disney one...

 

[kritter]

ok I need help to shrink this picture...???


Also lets pretend we all one the lotto what would you do with the money besides a disney cruise>>HE HE!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[tchrmom]

Also lets pretend we all one the lotto what would you do with the money besides a disney cruise

Hire a weekly housekeeper and personal trainer and chef!

Fran

 

[kritter]

forget the housekeeper....let buy a home at magic kingdom.......

 

[tchrmom]

let buy a home at magic kingdom

Well, I'm pretty close to that now...................but do you think they would let us buld a home on Main Street?
Fran

 

[captaincrash]

If I won the lottery - and it had at least 8 figures lump sum after taxes - then I would want to establish a little self-sustaining charitable mini-foundation with about 1/4 of my proceeds. I would like to have it benefit the kids from the schools my spouse and I attended + other academic groups TBD later. Or I might designate the purpose of the fund later - it's just that I don't need much more than 7.5KK since the conservative rule of thumb for a non-declining inflation adjusting sum is 2-3% draw = 150-225K to spend a year. And that's more or less enough for me and my spouse. The charitable foundation would throw off 50,000-75,000 which makes for a meaningful renewing sum - even after allowing for a token skim for management, administration and legal upkeep..... estimated at 10-15%.

I like this idea because it would operate in thoery well beyond our days and help probably 100s of others with modest $500-5,000 scholarship or merit awards. And that's just over a dozen years! Consider - if only 50,000 were drawn annually in constant 2005 dollars - and 15% skimmed for legal and management expenses and impounds, then we would still have $42,500 annually to give away. That could take on the form of 4 awards of $5000; 12 awards of $1,000; and 21 awards of $500. This would allow for 37 recpients annually and over just 10 years it would benefit 370 individuals with $425,000 in constant 2005 dollars... and it would just keep on going. AND the fund is likely to grow slightly since a 2% draw represented in this example is almost certain to add in size at such a conservative draw rates. However, the growth would be at 1% or so over inflation- and as such it would take 72 years or so to double the total fund to $5,000,000 in 2005 adjusted dollars. Which means if inflation were 3% annually averaged over the next 72 years then in 2078 it would have to double 3x with the inflation estimate... and it would look like 2.5=5=10=20=40 (yes - 40 million because we are under-drawing at 2% leaving a 1% excess for growth ahead of inflation of 3%) ... yeah... it would be $40,000,000 by 2078 in actual dollars but have the buying power of 5,000,000 today. Astounding, eh? And by that time my kids might be in their twilight years (my spouse and I probably long gone) and their kids might get a chance to manage this foundation fund if they demonstrate the "right" temperment.

Aside from that - I would say it would be nice to hit the lottery. With 8 figures I could lay out a series of tax free gifts to fund 403B education funds for all the nephews and nieces that have yet to start college. That would be cheap and enduring.

I would leave the world health efforts to the Gates... has anyone else read about their efforts? Their 29 BILLION foundation has marshalled lots of additional attention <IE, their foundation gave 1.5 billion for one program and triggered 15 billion over 5 years from the USA and 10 billion from a European network pledged over 10 years! 25 billion AFTER their 1.5 billion committment. > for improving health care for the poor of the world - among other things for the 3rd world. It's way too much to recant here - but impressive none-the-less. Not a bad return for having let them become worlds' richest folks.

Anyways - on the garden variety side of things - I would probably take my new money and help out some friends and family in theoretical neeed - help them with a home or condo. Stuff like that. And - I would still sail in less then the big suites. I am perfectly satisfied with a basic veranda or window cabin. However - I think it would be nice to take a crystal Harmony WORLD cruise - or at least knock off a regional segment this year - and another regional segment on another year.

So much to do - and not enough real money to throw around. Guess it's time to get back to work and try to squeeze more return from our working assetts! If I ever get our assetts over 5KK then we'll probably really start earmarking funds for a mini-micro-foundation!

YEAH< I imagine most anyone would look at this posting and decide in no uncertain terms that I'm a "NUT"... and you're all probably right!

Anyways, HAPPY NEW YEARS to E-V-E-R-Y-O-N-E!!!

TTFN...

 

[cntkg1]

Helloo and welcome we will pray that yo win the lotto so you can join us...

tell us more about things that you did onboard with your fellow disers..???

Hello Kritter (and all),
Well, we started out by wearing Mardi Gras beads at the Port on Saturday so we would all know who the DISers were. Many of us first met in the Terminal.

We had two DISmeets. One on Sunday afternoon up on deck 9 behind the CoveCafe and one on Thursday in the same place. On the Sunday meet, we gathered to discuss the rules of DIStag. A couple DISers arranged this game to get to know everyone and just have fun. We all brought enough gifts for 22 rooms. We actually had over 40 families in our group but only 22 of them wanted to play tag. We had a blast running around "tagging" rooms. DH and I raced down the stairs once and I took a tumble and sprained my ankle. Good thing it happened on Thursday and not earlier in the week.

DH and I had our ressies linked with two of most wonderful cruisers (and DISers) so we had our dinners together. We did hang around with them after dinner too. They really got into "Pirate Night". He was a Jack Sparrow lookalike!!

It was so nice to run into DIS families all week. It felt like we knew each other for years.

Before the cruise the two guys who arranged the tag game set up a separate "secure" site for us to exchange personal info on. We shared Birthday's, Anniversaries, etc... After the cruise they set up yet another site so that we could post pictures and order each others prints.

DH and I gave cards to every DISer room that had a celebration. We also received cards and gifts from other DISers and even some other cruisers. We had quite a few magnetic door signs showing off our anniversary celebration. I brought along some extra cards and gave them out to non-DISers who had hand printed birthday or anniversary signs on their doors.

I brought along extra tag gifts and included a few with a card for a little girl down the hall who was celebrating her 8th birthday. She knocked on our door and gave us both a huge hug and kiss as a thank you!!

Many of us are still in touch with each other and as far as I know, 3 DIS families are cruising together again. (We are one of them).

 

[kritter]

I do not know Fran but if we had the money anything is possible right?? Or how about celebration that would be cool too???

 

[tchrmom]

Or how about celebration that would be cool too???

Those homes are beautiful.........but I think I read somewhere that it was no longer owned by Disney..................or maybe I dreamed that....who knows with me!

Fran

 

[kritter]

Fran,

Oh that is too bad..Went there once for lunch and loved it....


Buck,
My kids are still talking about your daughter today and tell her happy new year!!

 

[kritter]

Happy New Year....to All....

 

[captaincrash]

Happy NU Yea-EAR!!! .... again (boink)

 

[kritter]

happy new year back at you captain...

buck how was your new years???

 

[tchrmom]

Good morning to all.............. we had a great new year's eve.......and the Latest one that I can EVER recall.........we did not go home till after 5! Good thing we live across the street from the party!

We spend yesterday just relaxing and snacking. We're doing the same today, until Kelly has to go to gymnastics this afternoon.

Hope everyone had a great weekend!
Fran

 

[kritter]

FraN,


OH YOU PARTY ANIMALS YOU...

We are doing the same thing today and I am cooking a roast as well./Went to the dr. this morning have an ear infection on the outside of my ear sounds weird uH??? it is and painfull..have fun at gymnastics...