New Years Eve

Spouse was scheduled to work until 4:30; I was scheduled to work until 1:00 so the plan was for me to go to the grocery store and purchase the ingredients to make potato salad for Steven & Thad's New Years Eve party, then make the potato salad before Spouse got home.  That way we could both relax before going to the party at 7:30.  What is that saying, "The best laid schemes of mice and men"??

Although my office closed at 1:00 as scheduled, I had an unexpected visit from an out-of-state client and her friend who wanted to take a look at some homes.  (Luckily for them I did not have any other appointments AND the homes they wanted to see were all vacant/available.)  Of course I agreed to show them the homes, so I didn't get back to the office until 3:00.

After grabbing what I needed at the grocery store and taking Marvin Parker outside to do his business, I finally got started on the potato salad at 3:45.  Spouse texted me at 3:30 saying he was leaving work early.  I had washed and cubed the potatoes and poured them into the pot on the stove when he got home to 'take over'.  He had to put the finished potato salad into the freezer to get it chilled in time to take to the party.

Steven & Thad are hosting a potluck style dinner and I'm sure many of our mutual friends like The Bobs, Joe P, Jason, and Thatcher will be there.  I'm not going to wait until midnight to drink the bubbly.  I'm bringing a bottle of champagne and St Germain to drink throughout the night.  Yes, I do love a good Cosmo but in the spirit of New Years Eve I'm drinking bubbly instead.

Here's hoping you have a fun and festive New Years Eve!

However you choose to celebrate, please do not drink and drive. 

Weekend highlights

I worked Sat from 9-11am, then came home to pick up Spouse and meet the others who were caravaning to Rusty's memorial service. It was being held in his family's small country church about an hour away.  Steven & Thad, the Bobs, Joe P, Chris, Dennis & Rasaahn carpooled with us.  It was a record-breakingly hot day, 105 degrees.  The little church had air conditioning but it wasn't sufficient.  There was a visitation hour scheduled before the service, but the visitation had to be extended due to the number of people who showed up to pay their respects.  Rusty worked at the same place for 27 years and many of his colleagues from over years were there, as well as many other friends like us from the beach area.  The service was about 30 minutes long and was about as uplifting as a funeral can be.  I was glad I had thought ahead and brought 2 pocket-size packages of tissues.  I shared 1 package with those sitting close to me, and the other package I gave to a couple standing in the visitation line near my isle seat.  One of the guys was sniffling and wiping tears from his cheeks with his hand.  Without saying a word I simply pressed the tissue package against his arm.  He mouthed the words 'thank you' and I just nodded my head.  At 1 point I was struck by the beauty of sorrow.  Of course its terrible to lose someone you love and a natural reaction to this is tears.  But as I looked at so many people crammed into that tiny church full of sorrow and tears, I was struck by the beauty of it all.  Strange, I know.

When we returned home from the funeral Spouse's brother Louis and his wife Karen were here.  They had asked if they could visit with us and stay over night since they were taking the ferry the next day to Cape May.  We had a snack together, visited for a few hours, and played with Marvin.  Louis is a huge dog fan and he got a kick out of little Marvin Parker.  That evening we had dinner together at Bethany Blues BBQ and then talked until bedtime.

Sun morning we had coffee at home, then decided to go to breakfast.  Since I had to be at work at 10 I drove separately.  I worked til 1pm, then Spouse & I went grocery shopping and took Marvin for a short walk since it was still so darn hot.  That evening we had dinner at Steven & Thad's house along with Joe P and 1 of the Bobs.  In honor of our friend Rusty who had given us 2 bottles of 'discounted' sparkling wine last New Years Eve, we used the sparkling wine to make Champagne Darlings and toasted Rusty.  It seemed fitting.

Weekend highlights

I worked on Sat, then Spouse & I had dinner at a new restaurant called Old Bay.  We both ordered burgers which we found to be lackluster.  That night I performed in the Legends show as Neil Sedaka.

The crowd really got into the performance and we all had a good time!

Sun morning Spouse & I met up with Steven for breakfast (Thad was visiting his mom in PA) at Crystal.  We planned to go to the beach immediately after breakfast but the weather was very cool and overcast.  So instead we came home and I pulled weeds while Spouse treated the roses.  Cool overcast days are perfect for doing yard work.  That afternoon we did a little outlet store shopping and took Marvin for a nice long walk.  That evening we had dinner with Steven & Thad and our new friends Rahsan & Dennis at Purple Parrot.  We walked Marvin again but this time a different route, then went over to Chris & Jason's house to watch "True Blood" with them.  We got home a little past 10 and I felt exhausted so we went to bed.

It was a fun weekend!

Weekend highlights

Fri night Spouse & I had dinner with our friends Christy & Ted at Que Pasa.  Its a beachfront Mexican restaurant where you can actually dine on the beach.  It was lovely weather so we had margaritas and food at a table in the sand.  It was cool.

I worked on Sat, then we had dinner with Steven & Thad at a new restaurant called Hooked Seafood & Martini Bar.  I had lobster mac 'n cheese which was really good.  I dropped Spouse off at home and then went to see the Legends show at the Blue Moon.

Sun we had breakfast at Crystal restaurant with Steven & Thad, then the 4 of us went to the beach.  Alisha & Jack showed up a little afterward.  Spouse & I took a walk on the beach and ran into a bunch of other friends.  It was such a beautiful day I didn't want to go home, but we eventually did and after showering, feeding and walking Marvin, we stopped at a store and then went to dinner with Steven & Thad at the Miltonian Pizzeria & Wing House.  We all decided to suspend our diets/healthy eating and topped off our splurge with ice cream from Hopkins Dairy.  

 

Our friends Chris & Jason invited us to come over and watch the season premier of True Blood with them.  Spouse had been waiting for this!

It was a great weekend!

Weekend highlights

This was my weekend to work both Sat & Sun, but I still managed to squeeze in some celebrating and fun.

Sat evening we joined a bunch of friends at Saketumi for Jason's birthday dinner. The food was delicious as usual, and the company was fun. Then I was off to Blue Moon for the Legends Christmas show. It was really fun and the crowd was very responsive to our performances.

Sun after work we went to Steven & Thad's for dinner with Joe P, Alisha & Jack, and the Bobs. Steven made enough spaghetti for an army! We had a great time and it was a great way to end the weekend.

Weekend highlights

I worked on Sat. Afterward Spouse & I had hot dogs at Steven & Thad's for dinner. I left early for Legends show. Spouse, Steven & Thad, Joe P, and our friends Koset & Jim and Doug & Jim all came to the show. Koset took this video of my performance. Not long after the show, everyone left but Koset. He and I decided to hang out together and we really had a good time! Koset took this photo of me and Karla who performed as Donna Summer.
I took this picture of Karla and Koset.

Sun I worked. Spouse went to the beach with Steven & Thad and Joe P. Anticipating the season finale of True Blood that night on HBO (which we don't have but Steven & Thad do), Spouse offered to cook dinner and make dessert for them if they let us watch the show at their house. They don't follow the show like we do, so bribery was in order. Chris & Jason came over for dessert and the show. Spouse made a trifle for dessert and had me write True Blood on the top with gel icing.

Since I worked yesterday I was off today. I slept until 9am, watched a little TV while I drank my coffee, played several turns of Words With Friends (WWF), did several loads of laundry, had lunch, and then went to the beach. It was a beautiful day: sunny, low 80s, and low humidity. After returning home and having dinner with Spouse we settled onto the sofa and I played several more turns of WWF while Spouse watched TV. The original film 'Hairspray' by John Waters was on so that was going in the background as I played my turns. I love that film!

Weekend highlights

Sat I worked until 3:30. I left early so I could go home and run through my Legends show routine a few times before heading over to Steven & Thad's cookout. Spouse made potato salad and helped Steven & Thad get ready. Here's a photo of my back and ass in the background and some of the food in the foreground.
From left to right: Steven's macaroni salad, Steven's black bean and corn salad, and Spouse's potato salad.
They had a great turn out! Jason & Kevin, Chris & Jason, Jack, Allen, Joe P, Robin, the Bobs, Rusty and other friends and neighbors came. The food was great and we had fun talking and laughing. The weather was perfect for a cookout. I left at 8:30 to go to the Blue Moon for the Legends show. Our friends Marty & John and our neighbors Jim & Barb came to the show!

On Sun I went to work again and Spouse met up with Steven & Thad, Joe P, and Allen for the annual Drag Volleyball game. For years now 2 teams of volleyball players dress up in themed drag and play. There's always a dramatic introduction and a 1/2 time show too! Here's a photo from this year's game:That evening Spouse & I met up with another bunch of friends for a birthday/cocktail party. It was fun to hang out with this group of friends again as well as meet some new friends. Afterward many of the guys went to a big dance in town but Spouse & I picked up an ice cream cake from Cold Stone Creamery (an early birthday treat for Thad's upcoming birthday) and took it over to Steven & Thad's and visited with them and Allen and Joe P.

This morning Spouse & I had a quick breakfast, packed our stuff and arrived at the beach at 10:15. The weather was mostly sunny, breezy and about 80 degrees. Steven & Thad and Allen were already there, and shortly after we arrived Joe P showed up too. We had a great day hanging out at the beach. We saw lots and lots of friends, including the guys from the previous night's birthday/cocktail party. The sun disappeared behind the clouds for an hour or so, but came back out again later. We'd brought lunch so we were able to stay until 4:15. What a great beach day! Once back at home we showered, dressed, and headed over to Steven & Thad's for dinner. Steven used the leftover chicken to make chicken enchiladas which we ate with the leftover salads. We ate outside in their yard and enjoyed the great breeze until it got dark and the bugs started biting. We went inside and had cherry pie and watched "True Blood".

It was a terrific holiday weekend filled with friends, food, celebrations, beach, and work.

Celebration

We had a lovely time last evening at Spouse's birthday dinner at Saketumi!

Steven & Thad agreed to pick up the Happy Birthday balloons for me, and Bryan picked up the cake from the bakery. That way Spouse & I could arrive together without me having to stop along the way.

In addition to Spouse & me there was Steven & Thad, the Bobs, Joe P, Robin, Bryan, PW, Chris & Jason. As usual, we all had delicious food and impeccable service.

When we returned home we watched another couple episodes of "True Blood" on DVD. It was a terrific evening.

What makes a home?

Flamingos!

Our dear friends Steven & Thad went to settlement yesterday on their new house. While they were at the attorney's office signing their names a thousand and one times, I was at their new house peppering their yard with plastic pink flamingos.

A facebook conversation gave me the idea for it, and a colleague reported she had seen pink flamingos at the Dollar Store. Yes, the Dollar Store!! So I immediately bought 10 plastic pink flamingos for the joyous occasion.

When they returned from settlement, keys in hand, they were greeted by the festive display of pink flamingos in their yard.Wish I'd thought of taking a photo. Photo above is from the internet.

Later that evening, Spouse & I put together a quick 'house viewing' party at their new place. Several of their friends were available on virtually no notice, which was great. Joe P, 1 of the Bobs, Liz, Diane, Rick & Candy, Chris, and Spouse & I had a tour of their new home (which Spouse crowned 'McStevenson Manor', an inside joke) and then gathered in Steven & Thad's kitchen to eat pizza, boneless 'flamingo' wings, and bright pink cake. Thanks to Joe P for these iPhone photos.

As the party was wrapping up there was a knock on the door. Two neighbor ladies came in with a bottle of champagne to welcome their new neighbors to the neighborhood. Donna and Darlene are likely in their late 40s/early 50s and have been friends since junior high school. We chatted with them and learned some of the stories of the other neighbors as well as Steven & Thad's home's previous owner. Donna and Darlene were absolutely delightful!

It was a lot of fun and we couldn't be happier for our dear friends!

Weekend highlights

Sat morning Spouse went to the (ghetto) gym and I went to work. Yes, gone are the days of having Saturdays off. However I did get to ride along with an agent who was showing property to a couple from the DC who are looking for a 2nd home at the beach. It was nice to be able to observe how the agent worked with them, and I was glad to have some common ground with them (being from DC) for conversation. That evening Spouse & I had dinner at home (a rarity for a Sat) and then watched a DVD from Netflix "Grey Gardens" with Drew Barrymore and Jessica Lange. It was really good - I would recommend it.

Sun morning Spouse & I met Steven for breakfast at the Long Neck Diner. (Thad was visiting his mother in PA.) On the way home we stopped at the grocery store, then I made sweet potato shuffle (the crowd-pleasing recipe I've made a thousand times) while Spouse was at the gym. That evening we took the sweet potato shuffle to Chris & Jason's for a pre-Easter dinner. We had ham, macaroni and cheese, baked ziti, salad, and the sweet potato shuffle, plus lots of desserts. We had a great time with our friends.

It was a nice weekend.

Weekend highlights

Sat morning I went to real estate school, somewhat nervous because I knew that I would be taking my math final that day. We covered the last short chapters in the math text book, then the instructor gave us a short review. We took a 15-minute break, then took the final. Fortunately it was only 20 problems, but they were all word problems. I completed the final and left the school by noon, feeling relieved but unsure.

When I got home Spouse & I went to Rehoboth Beach for a late lunch at the Green Turtle on the boardwalk. Its a 2nd floor restaurant with killer views of the ocean. We sat in the bar area at a table with an unobstructed view. This is the actual view from the restaurant's balcony:

I think the spectacular ocean view made the food taste better! Afterward it was a bit too chilly and windy to walk on the boardwalk as we usually do, so we walked the streets of town, peeking into some of the stores we'd not been into in a long time. Although cool and windy, it was sunny so it was nice to be outside. After returning home Spouse took a nap and I watched some shows on the DVR.

Later that evening we met up with Steven & Thad and Thad's friends Matt & Stacy for drinks. Thad, Matt and Stacy have known each other since high school. Since it was Matt's birthday weekend, they came to Rehoboth Beach for a birthday getaway. We enjoyed meeting them and had a nice time chatting over drinks. Then the 2 of them went to dinner for Matt's birthday, and Steven & Thad and Spouse & I went to dinner at Dos Locos. I ordered the Mexican Plate which I knew was too much food, but I wound up taking home a 1/3 of it for later. We had a good time.

Sun morning I went to real estate school to take my law final. I'd done a good bit of studying on Thurs and took a couple sample tests online on Fri so I felt pretty confident I would do well. Our instructor gave us a review for about an hour, we took a short break, then sat down to take the final. It contained 100 questions, of which there were only 3 or 4 I wasn't too sure about. Again I was done and out of class by noon. After arriving home, I ate the leftovers from the previous night's dinner from Dos Locos. Then I got an email from the math instructor advising me that I had passed yesterday's math final. Whew!! That was a huge relief, as the math final was the one with which I had the most concern.

That evening we went to Steven & Thad's for an Oscar party. Our friends Chris & Jason, Rusty, 1 of the Bobs, and Rick & Candy came as well. It was a potluck and everyone brought great food! Spouse brought cheese tortellini with panchetta and peas in a blush sauce, a special request from Thad. We ate and drank and socialized, then sat down to watch the last of the red carpet coverage and critique the celeb's gowns. We all agreed that the Oscars show itself was rather boring. I thought Anne Hathaway did a perfectly fine job keeping her energy level up, but James Franco seemed like he'd been awake for at least 72 straight. And the writing (the banter between celebs presenting) was just awful. None of it was funny and the celebs were crashing and burning. It was most likely the least interesting Oscars I've watched. Thank god we had good food and friends to make the night fun!

Today I heard from the law instructor: I passed the law final. This means that next Sat I will make my final 160 mile round trip drive to real estate school to pick up my certificate showing I passed the real estate course. That certificate will allow me to then sit for the state and national boards exams. I can't believe the 8 weeks of school have passed so quickly! It seems like yesterday that I started school, yet I'm done now. But I'm looking forward to taking (and passing) the state and national boards soon so I can start working as a licensed real estate agent.

A new chapter in my life is beginning.

Weekend highlights

Fri night our friend Jody had a New Year's Eve potluck at his beach house. We met him at the beach this past summer, along with several other friends from DC and Baltimore who also came to the potluck. It was our 1st time seeing many of them since the summer and we had a great time. The food was amazing, too. Afterward most of us from the potluck headed over to the Double L bar, where we met up with several of our local friends too, to ring in new year. Even Spouse went to the bar, which is quite unusual. We talked, talked, danced, and had fun. At midnight we all toasted with champagne and wished each other a happy new year. At 12:30 we called it a night and went home.

We slept in until 9:30 Sat morning, then began preparing to have company. Steven & Thad hosted a retirement party at our house for our mutual friend Joe P so we cleaned the house and set up for party. In addition to Steven & Thad and Joe P, several other friend's of Joe's came such as Alisha & Jack, one of The Bobs, Chris & Jason, Allen, Deiter, Jim, Rick & Candy, and Rick & Nick. Thad brought balloons and made decorations out of 'vintage' photos of Joe P.

We had Spouse's cranberry/orange glazed turkey, pasta with meat sauce, pork and sour kraut, antipasto, potatoes au gratin, homemade cheesecake, pecan tartlets, and my cranberry/orange bundt cake. Everything was SOOO good, and we had a great time.

The last of the folks left just before midnight.

Sun morning we had breakfast at the Long Neck Diner with Steven & Thad. It was a rainy day so after we got home we just relaxed the rest of the day, watching TV and putzing around on our laptops. That evening we met up with Steven & Thad and Joe P for dinner at La Tonalteca. It was the perfect end to our holiday weekend.

Laughter

As I mentioned in yesterday's summary of our vacation, we shared a LOT of laughs with our friends. Hopefully I can describe some of them so you can enjoy them too.

Honey, what's this? What's happening? Why am I still sober? (Said with a Karen Walker voice)
This was a favorite phrase of mine and Steven, likely the 2 biggest Karen Walker fans, whenever there was a lull in any conversation.

Is that Standard time, ship time, or Central time?
The night we set sail, most of the US set their clocks back an hour. For some reason, the ship's clocks were not set back until a few days later. Then we crossed from Eastern into Central time, then sailed back into Eastern time again. It seemed we never really knew what time it was!

Let's not ignore the obvious
When we entered a souvenir store on Grand Cayman the female shop keeper said to Steven "The plus size t-shirts are over here" to which he replied "What are you trying to say?" Giving Steven a once-over, she said "Let's not ignore the obvious", which easily became the most repeated phrase on our vacation!

I figured as much
In another store on Grand Cayman Steven & Thad and I were pointing and laughing at the 'hooker heals' for sale. The female shop keeper asked if we wore high heels. Steven said "I don't, but he does" and pointed to me. Without missing a beat, the shop keeper replied "I figured as much." We decided Grand Cayman must have the boldest shop keepers in the Caribbean.

Red dot!! Red dot!!
Chumley Bear Cruise passengers were issued ID tags to wear which gave us admission into Chumley events and helped us identify each other throughout the ship. Monogamous couples were instructed to place a red dot on their badge while singles and non-monogamous couples used a green dot. One morning Spouse was approached by a man in the elevator on his way to the gym. Spouse's badge had flipped over so the red dot could not be seen. The man made his interest in Spouse very well known. Later as I recounted this incident to the others I said that Spouse probably flipped his badge over and yelled "Red dot!! Red dot!!"

Yes thank you please
Cruise ships pride themselves on having a diverse, international crew. One of the waiters at dinner bore a striking resemblance to Imelda Marcos and even appeared to be wearing make-up. He was a terrific waiter and each time we spoke with him he ended the exchange with 'Yes thank you please'.

Pocono Ed
One of the guys we met in advance of the cruise was named Ed who lived in the Poconos of PA. When we saw him on the ship I said "There's Pocono Ed" and from then on he retained the moniker.

Mini Bear and Howard Stern
Two other guys we met in advance of the cruise and then saw frequently on the ship were from NJ. One of them was much shorter than average so we nicknamed him Mini Bear. His boyfriends voice sounded a lot like that of radio personality Howard Stern, so we referred to the duo as Mini Bear and Howard Stern.

The fake Bobs
Very often we hung out at the pool at the back of the ship, which had 2 balconies that overlooked the pool and sundeck. From there we saw a man who looked very much like our friend Bob K and another man who looked very much like our friend Bob N (aka The Bobs). We referred to these impostors as The fake Bobs.

Fake Honduras
Our port of call in Honduras was a small island adjacent to Roatan where the only buildings were souvenir shops, restaurants, bars, and beach cabanas. No one lived there and the structures were obviously built for cruise ship passengers. For this reason we dubbed the island the fake Honduras.

Waffle
The waffles on the breakfast buffet were not square, but rather, shaped like a flower. The butter served with the bread at dinner was not square either, but rather, shaped like the waffles which looked like a flower. We noticed that when 4 or 5 guys would face each other with their arms on each others' shoulders in the pool, they resembled the flower-shaped waffles so we called those male pool formations waffles.

Selling children
In a children's clothing store on Princess Cay we were startled by life-like, life-size mannequins. These mannequins didn't have the typical same color faces as the bodies, but had faces with eyes, eyebrows, and lips painted on them. They were so real looking that we joked that they were selling children instead of children's clothing. We laughed even harder as we joked about how long it takes to adopt when you can just come to Princess Cay and buy one! This went on and on until we had to leave the store for fear we'd be thrown out.

Oriental spread
One day the lunch buffet had an array of Chinese food. After eating it we were talking about how good it was. Someone who wasn't paying attention to the conversation asked what was so good, to which Spouse replied "The Oriental spread." That sounded funny, as we pictured the other possible uses of that term. Later when Spouse straddled the lounge chair we jokingly asked if he was offering an Italian spread.

Entertainment Tonight
On the last day of the cruise our group had a pool party. One of the activities was to vote on the most friendly passenger. After the competition was over, a passenger who'd been liberally enjoying drinks from the bar all day came up to us in an exaggerated disgust and said that he had been robbed of the title 'Most Friendly'. With slurred words and flailing arms he assured us that the whole story would be on Entertainment Tonight. We referred to HIM as Entertainment Tonight for his 'entertaining' behavior.

Bubbles
While on (fake) Honduras we saw an older woman riding around in one of those scooters with very small wheels, designed for people with mobility issues. As she was enjoying the beach she got a little too close to the softer sand near the surf and her scooter wheels got stuck. We happened to be walking past her when this happened and asked if we could help. Seconds later a young man came running over and said "What's the matter Bubbles, are you stuck?" He pulled her back to the harder sand and she drove off. Back on the ship I saw Bubbles scooting around so I said to her "Well, I'm glad to see you made it back to the ship, safe and sound, Bubbles." She smiled at me and said "I don't want to miss any of the fun."

Beryl & Beryl
Also while on the beach at (fake) Honduras we met an older couple who sat down and began talking to us. When we asked their names we found out they were both named Beryl. Now, Beryl is a rather unusual name, so we found it quite odd that 2 people named Beryl would find each other! The female Beryl later told us she goes by the nickname Billie.

Welcome Wagon Steven
My good friend Steven is known in these parts for being a no-nonsense kind of guy. Despite his teddy bear appearance he tries to portray a gruff exterior. However, on this cruise he did a 360 about face and said hello to everyone he saw! I suggested he could get a job with Welcome Wagon.

Pitter Patter Paper
The cruise ship provided us with a schedule of the next day's activities in the 'Princess Patter', slipped under our stateroom door every evening. One day while trying to figure out something about the next day's itinerary I suggested we could find the answer in the Pitter Patter Paper. The rest of the week we all referred to it as such.

Jason Alexander
A member of the Chumley group bore a real resemblance to the actor Jason Alexander so we referred to him as Jason Alexander for the duration of the cruise.

Harvey Korman
One of the ship's crew (I think he was the dining room manager) bore a striking resemblance to the actor Harvey Korman, so whenever we'd see him (every night in the dining room) we'd say "There's Harvey Korman".

Club Chaos
The venue where several of the Chumley group activities took place was called Club Fusion. Once I made the mistake of calling it Club Chaos and we all decided we liked that name better than Club Fusion, so for the rest of the week we made arrangements to meet at Club Chaos.

Kelly Clarkson
As we were wading into the slightly chilly water in Princess Cay, the cool water lapped up over my crotch and startled me so I tensed up and shouted "Aaaaaah - Kelly Clarkson!!", imitating this scene from the film "40 Year Old Virgin". Thad cracked up, and we continued the imitation but supplied other American Idol winners' names. "Aaaaaaah - Fantasia Borino!!", "Aaaaaah - Ruben Stoddard!!!", etc.

Steve rubs a stranger
Shortly after the Kelly Clarkson incident, we'd gotten used to the water temperature and were enjoying the lagoon. Steve reached behind him to rub up against his partner Thad, then all the sudden saw Thad several feet across from him. He turned around to find that he had rubbed up against a total stranger, who apparently felt no need to notify him!

Sexy by nature
We saw a guy on the ship wearing a t-shirt that read "Naughty By Nature" and Thad decided he should write a blog about how sexy his partner Steven is, which he would entitle "Sexy by Nature".

Self-induced coma
Chris meant to say medically-induced coma but instead said self-induced coma. We all cracked up as we imagined how one would later get one's self OUT of a self-induced coma!

Some of this humor may get lost in the translation, but I'm telling you these things provided us with more than our share of laughs on the cruise! Sometimes even those around us laughed.

Back to reality

We returned from our cruise (plus an extra day in Ft Lauderdale) last night, and after unloading our suitcases, hat boxes and steamer trunks, we met up with Steven & Thad and one of the Bobs for dinner at La Tonalteca. It seemed Mexican food was the only cuisine we didn't have during our vacation.

Jordan was happy to see us when we opened the door, and barked and wagged her tail furiously. This of course made me sad that Pouncer was not behind her, meowing and trying to lick me. Although initially I thought the timing was horrible, saying goodbye to Pouncer the same day we left on our much anticipated cruise vacation, it was actually great because the excitement of the trip kept me from dwelling on my sadness.

I'll share more details of the cruise later, but in summary I'll say that we had a great time. Thurs evening we stopped for dinner on our way to Baltimore where we stayed overnight at a hotel near the airport. We arranged to leave our cars at the hotel for a modest fee and rode a free shuttle to the airport for our early morning flight on Fri. Just over 2 hours later we arrived in Ft Lauderdale and checked into our hotel which was right on the beach. The weather was sunny but uncharacterically cool and windy. Later that afternoon we attended a pool party hosted by the Chumley Bear Cruise group, then had dinner at Tropics in the gay-famous Wilton Manors area of Ft Lauderdale. I saw Terry & Jerry there, whom I knew from back at home. I didn't realize they spent the winter there. Then went to a Bon Voyage party at The Manor nightclub.

Sat afternoon we boarded the ship, the Crown Princess, which was completely overwhelming due to its size. Imagine a 19-story hotel that occupies an entire city block, floating in the harbor! The ship was spotlessly clean and absolutely beautiful throughout. Our group of nearly 500 took over the smallest pool (1 of 4) at the back of the ship for the whole week, and in addition to all of the ship's activities, we had several activities throughout the week reserved just for us. We had a few rounds of 'The Gay Dating Game' and 'The Newlywed Game', a private screening of the new film 'BearCity', a dance, and a pool party.

One activity whose popularity with our group surprised me was the afternoon tea. At 3:30 each day we were treated to an afternoon English tea, finger sandwiches, scones, and assorted pastries by uniformed wait staff in white gloves. It was oh so very proper and fun.

The food on this cruise was delicious and plentiful. In addition to the amazing dinners in the dining room each night, there were several 24-hour buffets, a pizza and soft-serve ice cream station, and a hamburger, hot dog, bratwurst, and french fries station. Our typical routine consisted of a full breakfast about 8:00, lunch at 12:00, a slice of pizza (snack) around 2:00, afternoon tea at 3:30, and dinner at 8:15. I know - ridiculous, right?!?!

We opted not to purchase any of the excursions, but instead did our own 'exploring' at the ports of call. Our 1st stop was Grand Cayman Island where we walked and shopped our way through the village at George Town. Our 2nd stop was Roatan Honduras where we took a ski lift ride and spent the day at the beach. Our 3rd stop was Cozumel Mexico where we paid a native taxi driver $40. to drive 4 of us around the city for an hour, showing us the highlights and lowlights. Our 4th and final stop was Princess Cay, a private island owned by Princess Cruise Lines in the Bahamas. We spent the day on the beach and enjoyed a buffet lunch on the island.

The one area that didn't seem on the same par with everything else was the entertainment. There was a 'show' the 1st night that basically consisted of the cruise director welcoming everyone onboard with a canned, semi-comical schtick followed by a 15 minute routine by a comedian who'd been on the Tonight Show. Yawn. Later in the week was the 'Motor City' show which paid tribute to music that originated out of Detroit. We found it ironic that there was only 1 African American in the entire cast. The 3rd show was a crew talent show which was probably my favorite of the 3. Waiters, engineers, and cabin crew members sang, played instruments and danced.

The weather was great the entire time. We had a brief shower once or twice but nothing that altered our plans. We went to the beach or hung out by the pool everyday. In anticipation of possible rough seas I wore a small anti-seasickness patch behind my ear. It hardly seemed necessary since the ship was so smooth... until the last night. The captain announced we'd be entering choppy water between 6-10pm and sure enough, the enormous ship rocked and bounced enough to send me and some others to bed. They closed the outdoor portion of the Promenade deck to make sure no one fell overboard. But once through the rough area the ship stabilized and everything continued as before.

The group of nearly 500 bear men with whom we spent this cruise were great! We found everyone to be fun, friendly and unassuming. I didn't see any attitudes or cattiness. And although I'm not a bear myself, no one acted like I didn't belong. But that could have been because Spouse was such a star among the bears! We would definitely go on this cruise again. We met a great new friend from TX named Eddy, as well as a couple who live very close to where we used to live in VA. In fact, upon becoming Facebook friends with them we discovered several mutual friends.

And our enjoyment was certainly due in part to the great friends who went with us from DE, Steven & Thad, The Bobs, and Chris & Jason. We shared a LOT of fun and laughs! Look for details of the fun and laughs tomorrow.

We disembarked on Sat and returned to the beachfront hotel in Ft Lauderdale where we relaxed in lounge chairs and swam in the pool. Later we walked to a French restaurant and had a lovely dinner on their patio. Sun we flew home and faced the reality of life off of the cruise ship, where we'd have to cook and clean up after ourselves. We all agreed that reality SUCKS!

New Year's weekend highlights

We had a terrific New Year's weekend! Although we hadn't planned a lot of activities in advance, our 3-day weekend was full of fun stuff!

For New Year's Eve we went to a potluck dinner at Chris & Jason's house. Many of our friends were there, including Steven & Thad, the Bobs, Rusty, Joe, and Art. I had simmered a crockpot full of meatballs all day long and took them to the party. We had a ham, potato salad, spinach balls, chicken balls, chips and dips, hot wings, my saucy meatballs, and everything was delicious. I had a mimosa and a glass of Prosecco at the party. Then around 10:00 the group went to a local watering hole where we hung out until the final countdown to the new year. We raised our clear plastic champagne glasses and at midnight we toasted and wished each other a happy new year. Earlier in the day I got a text message from my old friend David, indicating he was on his way into town so we arranged to meet up at the watering hole. The last time we'd seen each other was at my grandparents' funeral in Jan 1990, 20 years ago! I introduced him to Spouse and we had fun chatting and reminiscing.

On New Year's day most of the guys from the potluck reconvened for brunch at The Buttery, a beautiful restaurant in an old Victorian house. The food and mimosas were good, the homemade baked goods were great, but the company was the best. We ate, drank, and laughed for 2 1/2 hours. A great start to the new year in my opinion. Spouse & I stopped at a few stores to do some comparison shopping, then walked over to Jared & Merle's house. They'd invited us to come over for a little new year's nosh (we didn't tell them we'd just finished brunch an hour earlier) and we had a great time. Jared made a homemade cheese cake and homemade eggnog with spiced rum, both of which were out of this world. We visited with them in their parlor and I sat in the chair closest to the fireplace which added that extra umph to a warm and cozy afternoon. Jared sent us home with 2 huge slices of cheese cake, too!

Once home, Spouse took a nap and I watched some TV until it was time for our regular Fri Night Dinner with 'the usual suspects'. 12 of us ate at Miltonian Pizzeria and Wing House, and Spouse & I shared our favorite: Bodacious buffalo chicken pizza. (Its hard to believe we could possibly eat again after all we'd eaten earlier that day.) Afterward, several of the guys came back to our house for a little while before we all headed out to the MANDance, a monthly dance party at a local watering hole. Since Spouse doesn't really like going to bars, it was a real surprise to me that he agreed to go out 2 nights in a row! I only had 1 cocktail because the MANDance quickly got very crowded and hot. Simply getting to the bar was an ordeal, so we just danced and had a great time. We saw lots of friends there, including our old friend Kevin who moved to FL several years ago, then moved to MD last year, then moved back home to DC a few months ago. What a nice surprise to catch up with him again!

Sat Spouse & I had breakfast out, then did a little more comparison shopping. (He was looking for 1/2 sheet cake size pans and we are looking for a small chest freezer.) Once home again Spouse took a nap and I watched TV and played around on Facebook. We had dinner at Irish Eyes Pub with Steven & Thad. I had a tasty sandwich of turkey, cole slaw, and thousand island dressing on pumpernickel bread, with fries. Spouse had cajun chicken pasta. The 4 of us returned to our house and watched "Bruno". Like everyone else, we found it to be funny in parts but not as good as "Borat". Afterward we split the 2 huge pieces of Jared's cheese cake between the 4 of us.

Sun we had brunch with our friends Koset & Jim. I had french toast with a side of scrapple. Mmmm, good! We met them at the car club dinner and awards banquet last Sept, and learned that they live 1 block from where Spouse & I 1st lived together in VA. They also have a house in Rehoboth Beach and spent the New Year's weekend there. We had a great time getting to know them better and the time just flew by. Later Spouse (finally) found is 1/2 sheet cake pans at a good price, and then picked up some groceries for our new healthy eating plan. He roasted yellow, zucchini, and acorn squash, eggplant, mushrooms, and grape tomatoes with a little olive oil, salt, pepper, and balsamic vinegar. He also roasted 6 boneless chicken breasts and a steak. Now that the cooking has mostly been done, for dinner this week we'll just need to heat up the meat and vegetables and season (if necessary).

We capped off our long weekend by indulging in some soon-to-be forbidden flavors, as our diet begins on Mon. We met Steven & Thad at Purple Parrot where I had an absurdly large platter of nachos and beer. And as if that pig-out wasn't enough, we stopped at Cold Stone Creamery for ice cream on the way home! I was so full from dinner that I barely managed to eat my delicious combination of dark chocolate and peanut butter flavored ice cream. I felt as if I were going to explode.

Now, I will go ahead and say what I know you're all thinking: "It sounds like you ate the entire weekend!" I don't blame you; its basically true. We over-indulged the entire weekend because we felt like it was our last chance (for a while, at least) to enjoy these decadent foods and treats. See, Steven & Thad and Spouse & I all 4 started new eating plans today. Although using somewhat different methods, our shared goal is to reduce our portion sizes, reduce our consumption of processed foods, and increase our consumption of fresh, natural veggies and fruit. Along with increased exercise, we anticipate our healthy eating plans will result in weight loss and a better overall feeling about ourselves. So this past weekend - a holiday weekend - was our last chance to indulge our love for tasty, fatty, sweet, fried foods.

I'd say we took full advantage of that opportunity.

Crush du Jour: Ian Somerhalder