Day 3 - A Pizza Picnic

I may have mentioned this before, but when we're home we are in money-saving mode. No dinners out, no takeout, no cable TV, no going to the movies. We very rarely ever purchase anything new. All the fun stuff is saved for when we cruise. Things like eating out every day. Watching movies out by the pool and on the on-demand TV system. Heck, we even spend money on food and drinks in port. But not at home.

Which made today even more special. With no trips in the immediate future we actually spent money for a change. (A whole $12, including tip!) On a beautiful, sunny, still-a-little-chilly day we had a picnic in the backyard. Everything is still put away for winter but Ed scrounged some things out of the shed.

• A small metal table.
• A couple camp chairs.
• Add in a couple paper plates.
• Throw in a 50% off pizza delivered by Domino's. 

All set up in the grass that's now beginning to look more summer green than winter brown.

Such a nice out of the ordinary treat on a Saturday afternoon. How lucky am I to get to do something new at home?

Day 2 - Another Use for the Ocean Medallion Box

Back for Day 2 of Deb's Pic a Day Part II. Whew, that's a mouthful! Today I found a new use for the Ocean Medallion Boxes I've had sitting around. Typically I would have tossed them but they are nice, sturdy boxes and I knew I'd eventually come up with a way to use them. 

Anytime I have a spool of fabric getting close to being finished, I use it to fill a sewing machine bobbin. Have a spool of thread smaller or larger than the rest in my collection? It goes into bobbins. Thread I've had around for a while and want to use up? It goes into a bobbin. It works great because no matter what project I'm working on, I already have plenty of bobbins ready to go. But bobbin storage can be problematic.

I've been looking for a new way to store my bobbins after I got rid of my storage boxes on one of The Friday 15 days last year. I tried:

• having several little containers, each with their own bobbin color. I found it to be too messy for my taste. 
• a big divided plastic container but didn't like having to open and close it each time I needed a bobbin. 
• cutting cardboard strips and placing them in a drawer to divide the colors. Every time I bumped the drawer, the bobbins jumped the cardboard strips and made another mess. 

I've now found a new option. I took some of my Ocean Medallion boxes from last year and cut off the lids.

Turned the lids upside down, and filled them with the bobbins.

Perfect fit.

Glue sticks are residing in the bottom of one of the boxes. The other two bottoms are empty, waiting for my next idea. Ready, set, GO!

Back to the Beginning - Day 1

It's time to get back to basics.

I started this blog as a personal diary nine years ago during a rough patch in life. Out of work, in pain, without much hopefulness or thankfulness in my system. I knew then I needed something to get out of my rut so I set a goal. A picture goal. A take-a-picture-every-day-to-see-that-you-have-lived kind of goal. My intent was to take a picture each and every day for a year. In the end I wound up with 1000 straight days of pictures and stories. (You can read about the project here.)

Over the course of the last several years the blog has morphed into many different things. Even though I've been writing a lot about cruising lately, I've had this feeling like I needed to get back to the basics. Back to having my eyes wide open. Back to looking for new and interesting and beautiful things around me. Things not related to cruising. (No one wants to touch that topic now anyway so I'm totally okay at pressing pause on it.)

With COVID-19 having closed down our schools and businesses while we sequester in our homes, it seems like the right time to shift the blog's focus again. (At least temporarily.) My picture a day photos may not be nearly as exciting as photos from my travels, but they will again give me proof that I am living a life. A life focused on hopefulness and thankfulness.

First up, a picture from my quick trip to the store. And of course, I have a story to go with it. 

We are people who always keep paper towels and toilet paper on hand. Always. We stock up every few years and then live off our stockpile. (Remember this picture from six years ago in our old house? We're still working on some of those paper towels.) So when our daughter kept telling us about not being able to find toilet paper and paper towels in the store I somewhat dismissed it. How, because of work schedules, she and her husband couldn't get to the store first thing in the morning. Which then meant there would be no product on the shelf when they got off work. She told me stories of people at her work having to buy tissues and wipes because there were no paper products. We rarely ever go down the aisle so we really had no clue.

Until I had to go grab some disposable plastic cups in the store (trying to stay away from hand washing our glasses right now - there goes my zero waste household) and saw this where the toilet paper and paper towels are usually found. Wow.

A quick apology was offered to our daughter, as was several rolls of paper towels and toilet paper from our home stash. Unfortunately we had to make the transaction outside as she works face-to-face with customers all day and E and I are both high risk. (He with his kidney disease and me with only one working lung.)

Not the positive picture I would have liked to share for the first day back at it, but I have to give my daughter credit for being right - and needed the picture to prove it. 

Crossing my fingers tomorrow's picture will be less stress-inducing! 

A Cruising Update

As a blogger I sometimes write posts and post them right away. Other times I write them and save them to post later when I'm ready. And sometimes I write them and schedule them to be posted on a certain day and time.

Guess I should have been more aware of when yesterday's Ways to Keep Healthy on a Cruise was posting. Bad timing on my part. While I do believe those ways to keep healthy are valid no matter which germs are floating around, the current strain of Coronavirus is a wild card. So much is unknown, and the information out there is changing so fast it's hard to know what to do. Which leads me to an update on how COVID-19 is impacting cruises. Mine included. 

First, we have a dear crew member friend who is on the Grand Princess right now. (He was the one we were supposed to meet up with in Ensenada last month but their ship had to skip the port.) Since we didn't get to see him in Ensenada we were planning on a cruise to see him in May, but that won't be happening now. While the future cruises on the Grand (other than this week's) haven't been cancelled by the cruise line, I wouldn't be surprised if the ship is taken out of circulation for a while. Even if it wasn't, our buddy believes all crew contracts will be cut short and they'll be heading home. After a quarantine, period of course. I've been talking with him every day and I can hear fear in his voice. It's certainly a stressful times for all.

Then today we heard from two other crew members, one on the Royal Princess (the ship we just left) and the Regal Princess. Both ships have crew members who had transferred over from the Grand Princess. (Before anyone knew about COVID-19 on the Grand.) And now both ships are in a holding pattern. The Royal cancelled yesterday's cruise and the Regal cancelled today's. The Royal is empty of passengers and sitting at the dock in San Pedro but the Regal is offshore in Florida with a ship full of passengers needing to disembark. Without knowing what is happening next, it's more stressful times for all.

With everything happening, what did our crew members on those ships and other ships tell us? Again and again, they told us the same thing. Stay away from ships for a while. I gotta say, I trust crew members we've know for years over what I hear on TV or read on the Internet so we're following their advice. 

We're skipping our two cruises on the Star Princess, our two cruises on the Grand Princess, and the one cruise on the Coral Princess. There will be no March-April-May cruises for us this year. Many months ago we had already decided to skip Alaska this season so no June-July-August cruises, either. We're not giving up completely, though. We've gone ahead and booked several cruises for October and November this year. But if when the time comes we have crew members telling us not to go, we won't. 

It's a crazy time in the cruising world right now and things are changing day by day and sometimes hour by hour. We all need to do what we can to reduce risks of exposure, whether we are on a cruise ship or not. Be safe out there, and stay healthy!

Thank you to everyone who has been checking with us to see if we’re okay. We are home now, having left the Royal Princess not too long ago. We’re healthy and happy to be back home for a while.
~D

5 Ways to Keep Healthy on a Cruise Ship

As a frequent cruiser (88 cruises and counting!) I've picked up my share of germs on ships. Most cruises I come away A-OK. Other times it might be a sniffle or a cough or a good ol' cold. And then there are those times I wind up flu sick. Oh so very sick.

If you cruise enough, it's almost inevitable you'll pick up something at one time or another. You're exposed to new people coming from new places who may or may not use the same preventative measures that you do. You will find fellow passengers licking their fingers just before grabbing the tongs in the buffet. In the elevator you might find another choosing not to cover their cough. Any chance of seeing someone walking out of the bathroom without washing hands and then using the handrail as they go down the stairs? Yep.

While the cruise lines do what they can to encourage healthy practices and sanitize ship surfaces, it's really up to us as passengers to protect ourselves. Here are a few practices you may find helpful for keeping healthy on a cruise ship.

Disclaimer: I am not a medical professional and am not dispensing medical advice. Instead I am sharing those practices I've found to be helpful in reducing my exposure to germs while cruising. This article was written before COVID really took hold, but whether we're talking pre-COVID times or post-COVID, these guidelines still hold true.

1. Wash your hands.

It should go without saying, but you'd be surprised by the number of people who don't wash them. Don't be one of them. Wash those hands thoroughly with soap and water any chance you get and definitely before eating and after using the restroom. And it certainly wouldn't hurt to wash them before using the restroom, either. Just happen to be walking by a sink on your way to somewhere else? Wash those hands!

2. Use hand sanitizer. A lot.

See one, use one!

Cruise ships have hand sanitizer stations all around the ship. Along with handwashing use these sanitizers after holding the handrails, after touching other surfaces, and before and after eating. Even with the abundance of hand sanitizer stations on the ship we still carry our own. We also take our pocket sized sanitizer in port as handwashing facilities may not be available.

3. Keep your distance.
From other people, that is. Heard of social distancing? Leave space between you and the next person whether you are in the theater,

You'll never find a theater this empty so be particular about where you sit.

in any of the dining locations,

 or even when you're in a line getting on or off the ship.

Walk slower or faster if you need to, but leave some space
between you and the next person.

4. Seek out fresh air.

Choose outside spaces over inside spaces whenever possible. Fresh air is always a good thing and is preferable over enclosed spaces.

5. Assume every surface isn't clean.
You know how they place paper towels by the restroom door so you can use the towel to open the handle instead of opening it with your bare hands? Think about other ways you can protect yourself from surfaces that might not be clean. You most likely won't be able to carry paper towels with you everywhere, but you can be mindful of what you're touching. Hand railings and restaurant menus. Door handles, chair backs, and table tops. Even think about your cabin. The steward cleans the surfaces but sometimes the stewards themselves are coming down with something so think about those light switches, telephone receiver, and the TV remote. By assuming everything is not clean, you will find yourself washing your hands, grabbing the hand sanitizer, and spraying your cabin with some disinfectant spray before ever touching your nose, mouth, or eyes.

While these five ways can't guarantee you won't get sick, I have found them to help me in staying well onboard.

Make Easter Egg Coasters from Fabric Scraps - Tutorial Tuesday

If you're looking for a homemade drink coaster idea for your Easter or spring decor, check out this how-to tutorial. These Easter Egg drink coasters are made from fabric scraps and sew up pretty quick. It's an easy Easter sewing project!

For this project you will need:

• Piece of backing fabric
• Piece of cotton batting
• Contrasting cotton fabric for stripes
• Cotton fabric for top and bottom
• Cotton fabric for middle
• Package of rick rack
• Egg template downloaded from here
• Iron
• Rotary cutter or scissors, optional pinking shears
• Cutting ruler
• Cutting mat
• Sewing machine
• Matching thread
• Glue stick

Disclosure: Deb's Days is a participant in affiliate advertising programs designed to provide a means for me to earn fees by linking to affiliated sites. This means that, at no additional cost to you, I will earn a small commission if you click through and make a purchase. Your purchase helps support my work in bringing you new sewing and crafting content.

Now available in my Etsy store as a digital download with the written directions, step-by-step photos, printable template, and link to the tutorial video. Click to find out more!

Looking for something else? 

Check out some of my other Easter sewing and crafting projects!

Otherwise you can watch the tutorial video for the fabric scrap Easter Egg drink coasters sewing project right here:

Royal Princess February 2020 Wrap-Up

Sometimes I struggle with doing these cruise wrap-ups. I'll usually go back and see what I said on my previous wrap-ups and either try and write something different or new or exciting. Unfortunately, I happened to read my 2018 wrap-up before I started this one. Not the smartest idea.

Back then, on December 1, 2018 I wrote:
We had a great week on the Royal Princess and always love this itinerary. There were so many good things I don’t know where to start so I’ll just jump right in.

My, how times have changed. The itinerary is different (Caribbean then and Mexican Riviera now) and so is the experience on the ship. I guess that's what happens when you spend 72 days on the same ship within nine months time. The novelty wears off and the warts start to show.

Heck, we're not even done with this cruise yet and I'm ready to put it behind me. But as several of you have been asking how the new Medallion wrist band is working out, I need to you give an honest answer. First, I love the wrist band. It's flexible, it's stylish looking, lightweight, and much more comfortable than the sports band. Big plus there.

As for how well it's working? I still don't know what the deal is, but it took several tries to get it to scan as I was going on and off the ship today. And getting into the cabin? Well, after multiple trips to the Passenger Services Desk (I'm calling it what it is - a huge waste of my vacation time) and a Medallion reprint and hearing more than once there is nothing wrong with it, I still can't get into my cabin without waving my arms around the sensor. When I'm at the door I'm starting to look like a big ole' goose flapping some big ole' wings on takeoff.

Do you ever have one of those conversations where you feel like the person really isn't listening to what you are saying? I've had several of those conversations over these last three cruises, and obviously I'm not getting through to anyone because the most recent response from them was this:

Seriously, a cruise card? I don’t want a stinkin' cruise card. After 14 Medallion cruises and you're telling me I have to put my pretty new wristband away and stick a cruise card in my pocket instead? What the heck? Do you not know how much I really want the Medallion to work? How much time I've invested in making videos for other passengers, showing them how great it is? How I really believed it had great potential? (For everyone but me it seems. Mr. E, the anti-tech guy gets to breeze into the cabin just fine. No flapping wings required.)

It's not the Medallion update I wanted to give, but I guess it is what it is. I have three more days on the ship and while I'm crossing my fingers for a miraculous Medallion recovery, I'm not holding out much hope. 

Update: Finally after many more trips down to Guest Services over the past several days and begging and pleading and more begging and pleading they finally sent someone to the cabin last night. More Medallion reprints, the sensor panel taken apart, batteries checked in the door itself, and multiple system resets (I think it is what he called them) I can finally get into the cabin this morning. 

Except I no longer exist. Beggars can't be choosers, I guess. (And believe me, I was a beggar!)

Update to an update...

Now that I have a few days off the ship, my frustration and disappointed from the cruise is beginning to wane. (Sort of.) So let me share some of the better things we found happening around the ship.

Since one of the cruises occurred over Valentine's Day, our door panel was prettied up as was our TV screen.

 
You can now watch some of the on demand movies under the OceanView section of the MedallionClass app. I could only find a few and only on the app on my iPhone, not on my iPad app.

There is now a "deals" section in the OceanNow portion of the app. We found both drink and retail specials. The special drinks changed daily and were only $7 when ordered through the app. As the app gave me fits most of the cruise I hardly ever opened it so I didn't discover these until late in the cruise.

Other good stuff? We still had a good time, I pretty much finished the presentation for my upcoming Cruising with Confidence class, and we got ourselves a bit of a tan in the warmer-than-Idaho weather. And most importantly, we stayed healthy. 

We do have some other cruises coming up next month. (Not on the Royal Princess.) Not sure if I'll be blogging or not. If I do, I promise I'll work on keeping a positive attitude!

An Exciting New Ocean Medallion™ Accessory

I said if anything positive came up, I'd be back to share it. Well, something has.

If you remember when I was in Port Kelang, Malaysia back in December, there was a weird smoke smell in the air. With the number of factories nearby it wasn't too surprising.

Once we got home I started researching the area and found Port Kelang had a significant number of illegal plastic recycling factories - factories that many times just burned the plastic instead of recycling it. As I continued to find out more about the difficulties in recycling plastics, E and I made a decision to start working our way towards a zero waste household. We have oh-so-far to go, but we have made some changes in the right direction.

So when a special little package from Princess Cruises made its way to me on the Royal Princess today, I was quite excited.

You know I like my Ocean Medallion™ accessories. I've used the metal clip and the plastic clip. I've used the sports band. And now I'm using a brand-spankin' new band for my Medallion.

Made from ocean recycled plastics.

Yep, you heard me right. Princess has created the first wearable accessory in the world made from 100% ocean plastics.

100% recycled from all kinds of plastics collected from the coastlines and oceans. The plastic casing holding the Medallion is made from hard plastics like shampoo bottles and plastic containers.

And the wrist band? Two water bottles removed from the ocean are combined into fabrics to make one wrist band.

Can't tell it's from recycled water bottles, can you?

The bands are even numbered in increments of two to represent their impact. With a number of 0084 it looks like I'm an early adopter.

Thanks to Princess, I'm the first guest on a ship outside of Australia to get to try it out. There's so much more to tell you about it, but here's the shortened version:

I'll be using it for this seven day cruise and will let you know how it works out. I'll also work on finding out more details of when we can find these showing up for purchase on the MedallionClass™ ships in the US.

Such an exciting development for Ocean Medallion accessories!

If you have any questions about it, let me know and I’ll work on finding the answers. (I’m still learning about this new product myself!)

Royal Princess in Ensenada

Hello from a cloudy, windy, and chilly day in Ensenada. 

I wound up leaving E on the ship and went out by myself for a little bit. We have a favorite taco place ashore, but it was too cold to walk too far so I was back to the ship pretty darn soon. I was really looking forward to some great conversation with our crew member buddy from the Grand, but since they couldn't make the port I think I'm feeling a bit mopey.

Plus I knew I was going to have to give the Medallion update many of you have been asking for. I've not said much because I've been hoping things would improve. This was my 13th Medallion cruise over the last year and a half and some of the same issues keep popping up for me. Clearly 13 is not a lucky number for me.

Like most of the Medallion cruises I've been on, it doesn't want me to get into the cabin. Others can walk towards their doors and it clicks and unlocks, but not for me. I have to stand there and stand there and stand there while it keeps telling me it's verifying me. I'm eventually able to get in, but not without some delay.

Access being verified...being verified...being verified...being verified...

Not sure why, but starting last night it became even harder to get into the cabin. Now it won't even attempt to verify me. No matter how long I stand there, I have to take my Medallion out and place it onto the sensor and hold it there and then move it around and around and around. It must really be mad at me now. Believe me, the feeling is mutual.

Approach for entry?
Uh, I can't get much closer than this.

What can the OceanFront folks do for you? Tell you the battery might be dying and reprint you a new one. No thanks, not again. I'm hoping it's just a cabin sensor issue. I'll find out tomorrow as we change cabins again.

I wish it was the only sensor issue I'm having, but nope. While I was able to go on and off the ship in Ensenada today with no issue, at Muster Drill there most definitely was an issue. The gal scanning Medallions had to scan mine and rescan and rescan and rescan again. She finally decided to manually enter my cabin number but thankfully at that same moment I popped up.

And the new MedallionClass app? I still can't get the shipmates section to find E. Quits every single time I try. It happened in October and it's still happening now. I've updated both the app and the phone, restarted, deleted and reinstalled. If I want to find E I go to the elevator bank and use one of the portals there. But I can't get too excited about that, either. The location finder isn't really in real time. It'll show me where he was five minutes ago, but not necessarily where he is currently. But a good thing with the app is the first drink is free. At least that's what the cruise director keeps telling us. But for me? Nope, not on my app. Grr.

Speaking of drink orders... around the ship you'll find the crew asking for your cabin number instead of using your Medallion and their devices to place the order. Some crew members do attempt to scan the Medallions but some don't even waste their time and just ask for cabin numbers right up front. 

I am so over it.

Actually, I'm over a few things right now so I think it will be best if I stop blogging this trip. There are too many of those everything isn't perfect in the cruise world things impacting my life of joy. (Some days it's hard work to be honest, yet positive, ya know?) So it's probably best I just stop. A new cruise starts tomorrow, and another one five days later. If anything positive and pleasant and joyful worth reporting comes up in those two cruises, I'll be back to let you know. 

See you sooner or later. Of course, if you have any questions, feel free to ask. You know where to find me!

Royal Princess Sea Day

Yet another beautiful day, albeit one with some marine layer clouds floating around.

Unfortunately we thought our plan of spending the day basking in the sunshine on our balcony wasn't going pan out like we'd thought. Today was balcony maintenance so we wouldn't have access for a chunk of the day. We were instructed to keep our curtains drawn and our doors locked, and the dividers between all the balconies were opened. 

When someone tells you the Royal Class ships
have narrow balconies you can believe them. 

So we spent extra time on the Horizon Court Terrace. You know we loved this quiet outside spot in Alaska and we love it here off the coast of California. Fresh air, ocean views, and very few other people.

But step through the doors and you'll be confronted with this kind of crowd.

These two pictures were taken at the same time today. Huge difference, right? If you're looking for peace and quiet, head outside instead. (But shh...don't tell anyone else about it.)

We also wandered the halls looking at the 49ers decors. E liked this one the best. Being a big time sports guy, I think he probably wishes we had a door looking like this one.

I was pleasantly surprised to find the balcony was washed down and the dividers put back in place by 10:30 am. Woo hoo. Sunshine on my shoulders, here I come! But brr, was it cold. Since I couldn't shirk responsibilities like I did yesterday (which, by the way, felt so darn awesome) I stayed in the warmer cabin and spent a chunk of the day on the computer. I have my next Cruising with Confidence class coming up on March 2 and needed to get moving on revamping it. 

Only four spots left! Class is full. Waiting list is available.

Tomorrow we're off to Ensenada, Mexico. We were supposed to be in port with the Grand Princess and treat one of our dearest crew member friends to some food and drink and have some great conversation. But the Grand had to turn around and go back to Honolulu to disembark a sick passenger so they are now heading straight to San Francisco instead of making the way to Ensenada. We're so totally bummed.

We may instead take a walk down to the fish market and grabs some tacos at one of the places nearby. Or we might not. One thing to rule out is the balcony. We got yet another notice telling us tomorrow the balcony will again be unavailable because of another round of maintenance. Two balcony maintenance days in a four day cruise? Seems weird to me.

Flexibility might just have to be my middle name.

Royal Princess in Catalina

As we saw it, we had two choices today.

A.
Take a tender AKA water shuttle into the town of Avalon on the island of Catalina.
Walk a ways to the Mexican restaurant.
Spend 60 or so dollars for some food and a couple drinks.
Do some people watching.
Walk back to the dock.
Take a tender AKA water shuttle back to the ship.

Or

B.
Sit on the balcony where one of us gets this view from a chair.

 And the other person gets this view from their chair.

With both people sitting in the warm sunshine, out of the wind, getting a nice big dose of Vitamin D. Since it is winter, the sun was in the southern part of the sky and was shining on the balcony all day long.

Where we could grab a taco salad and chips and beans for lunch. Add that to a quesadilla off the kids room service menu and we had free Mexican food.

Couple it with free drinks. No Captain's Circle parties on short cruises = one free drink voucher per person.

Instead of people watching, throw in some people listening. You'd be surprised the conversations you overhear from surrounding balconies when you sit quietly in the warm California sunshine. 

Then take a little nap with the sunshine splashing across the foot of your bed as you breathe fresh air and doze off to the sound of the water lapping against the side of the ship.

We've been to Catalina many times before and really have done all we need to do there. (Other than eat.) So of course, we chose B.

It was absolutely blissful. Couldn't have asked for a better day on a cruise ship, for sure. It's the great thing about cruising - you can do as little or as much as you want. And boy, did we do little today.

Tomorrow is a sea day and I have no idea what our plans are yet. If we had a repeat of today I'd be just fine with it. 

Embarkation Day - Royal Princess Cruise to Catalina

Our first cruise is a short one. Off to Catalina, throw in a sea day, find our way to Ensenada, and back to San Pedro.

I realized last night I really am ready for this. Ready to leave the crap on TV behind. The junk on the Internet behind. Leave the world behind and live a joyous life, free of negative distractions. 

But not so fast getting away from the Coronavirus concern. For the first time in many years, at embarkation we had to fill out a health questionnaire. This one is specific to the new virus. 

Other than the extra paperwork, so far we haven't heard or seen anything any different than the typical precautions. 

Now let's talk about that joyous life onboard. 

I tried a little experiment at embarkation this time. If you remember, each time when we checked in with our Medallions in Vancouver, Canada and Whittier, Alaska, and even here in San Pedro, California I wrote about how long the lines were for the passengers who already had their Medallions. I think each time I even swore I would never pre-order my Medallion again. Finally this time I did it. (Or, should I say, didn't do it?) We showed up at port with our boarding passes instead of Medallions in hand. And the result of the experiment? A joyous success! It was super easy and super quick to get our Medallions at the port - with no lines whatsoever. In fact, the person at the check in counter told us he tells his family and friends not to order theirs either. That it's faster to wait and get them at the port. And he was right. So from now on in San Pedro I will not be ordering those Medallions ahead of time. (Boy, I like being right.)

Just as fast as picking up our Medallions was our wait in the Elite boarding lounge. The seating area was practically empty. Boarding started just a few minutes after 11 and was so quiet and calm with so few Elites boarding. I don't know how it turned out later, but our group was just AWESOME and so different than we've seen it here before.

Some options upon boarding:

Need to drop your carry-ons? They've got a place for that.

The best part of today's joyous life came right after boarding when I was in my swimsuit and in the Retreat Pool before 11:30. I am not passing up a chance to swim on a cruise ship in a deserted pool. While the water was quite chilly, I did enough laps to get my blood pumping and warm me up a bit. 

Mine. All mine.

After a chunk of swimming and sunning we decided to grab a bite to eat in the dining room. Scored a table for two right before they closed. Yay us.

Decided to head to our cabin for a bit to check on our luggage. 

Couldn't get an elevator up or down as they were so very packed. (Sapphire Princess, where are you when we need you?) 

Walked down the stairs to deck five so we could get an elevator going up from there. Ran into this crazy line at the Internet Cafe. Oh my. Glad I'm not in it.

Received a letter congratulating us on being one of the Most Traveled Passengers on this voyage. As there is no Most Traveled Guest party of this trip we are receiving a meal in one of the specialty dining restaurants. Sabatini's, we're happily coming for you tomorrow night.

Couldn't figure out why there were so many people dressed in San Francisco 49ers gear. 

Found out this is a 49ers fan cruise. They have players on board, autograph signings, special shows and dinners. Only those purchasing the special group cruise package are participating so we'll miss out. They sure are a happy bunch of 300+. 

Lots and lots of these signs on doors. I think it's the 49ers group.

Tonight we went to the Elite Lounge for the first time in forever. Our bar steward buddy is working there this cruise so it's about the only time we'll get to see him. 

Deep Sea Martini. Pretty and yummy. Happy, happy, joy, joy.

Platinum/Elite/Suite Drink Menu

Dinner was the buffet, as usual. The nice thing about these short cruises is folks typically go to the dining room instead. It held true for this cruise, too. The buffet was empty. Love it.

Mongolian Buffet anyone? No lines tonight.

But it wouldn't be a cruise without one non-pleasant thing happening. During Muster Drill we had two little kids from the same family throwing tantrums. Screaming and crying and more screaming and crying. It lasted most of the drill with no parent or staff intervention. So on this ship we now have a whole slew of cruisers who have no idea what to do in case of an emergency because they couldn't hear a thing. Please - if your children are disrupting others from listening to something super-important like Muster Drill, please remove them. Somebody - or a whole bunch of somebody's - lives could depend on it.

Tomorrow we'll be in Catalina, a whole 26 miles from San Pedro. We'll be meandering our way there. May even get some circling in. Our plan was to go ashore and grab some Mexican food and drinks at the restaurant we always go to. But E's just as happy staying onboard. Plus, we're on the Royal Princess who has Mexican food onboard every day. And we have our bar steward buddy working the Elite Lounge where the drinks on the list are only $6.50 during the lounge hours. So it looks like we'll be staying onboard, saving our money, and hopefully spending the day at the Retreat pool. We shall see.