It’s Saturday and I am enjoying a real weekend for the first time in 6 months. Heidi is pottering about and I am sitting here in the kitchen having just welcomed home my underwear which returned from a vacation in Rome………….and they didn’t even get me a gift.
The British Airways courier arrived with my suitcase about an hour ago and after signing a form I was reunited with my friends. Apart from that I have done very little today. I have watched Heidi continue to eat the strangest of combinations over the last few days but none stranger than her breakfast of thick porridge with strawberries.
So, what to talk about………………………well………………………I can tell you that as I sit here watching my pregnant wife organizing the dishwasher I have realized that yep………..I am about to become a Dad.
On the journey through life we pass through various experiences that shape our lives. I was a boy……..I became a man……………..I got married ……………..and soon I will become a Dad. But I don’t feel any different………….I still laugh when people fall over and a few minutes ago I farted and the smell was reminiscent of Paul Newman’s bottom during the filming of Cool Hand Luke………….I found it funny but my wife…………..well, she didn’t and reminded me that “you can’t do that when the Thingy is born.”
And that’s when the thought of yep………..I am going to be a Dad hit me………..I am going to be a parent.
Whether it’s telling you “if you fall out of a tree and break your leg don’t come running to me” to what my Dad always said when he was mad at me ” I will not repeat myself, I will not repeat myself” it’s parents that decide if we become doctors, cruise directors or serial killers………..it’s all their fault.
Actually, it’s the Dad who sets the tone of what a man becomes and that’s why I am nervous. My Dad was very strict, very loving and installed in me that I could do anything in life if you work hard enough. My Dad is though an eccentric Englishmen and to some may appear to be totally bonkers.
Let me explain by telling you about the death of my sister’s cat. I think I mentioned this devil incarnate before. A lot of thought had gone into naming it and eventually my 6 year old sister came up with the name …………………Biscuit.
And so, Biscuit lived amongst us, purring and cuddly and allowing everyone to stroke, tickle and play with her……………..except me. I look back now and wondered if Biscuit had been grooming me for my teenage years where like the damn cat no girl would allow me to stroke, tickle or play with them.
The cat hated me and any chance it got she would attack. One day I got so pissed off I bought a dozen packets of something called Moon Rocks which was exploding candy and sprinkled all 12 bags in Biscuit’s litter tray. ………………..she wasn’t a happy moggie when she had a pee only to find her litter tray exploding under her bottom.
Anyway, I digress. Well, a few years later Biscuit passed away in her sleep and while I ran around the room singing the theme from “Happy Days” my sister was distraught.
So, Dad assured her that Biscuit was on their way to Cat Heaven. Now, I don’t want you to judge my dad on this incident, but the next day Suzanne came running into the house screaming and crying saying she had just seen Biscuit in the garbage bin. My Dad who spent 33 years as a High School Principal calmed her down and told her that she must have been mistaken…………..while my Mum dried my sister’s tears my dad looked at me and said “We need to move the body.”……………………sorry………………the body? I was only 14 but I will never forget those words. You see my Dad didn’t know what else to do with Biscuit so he had put her in the garbage bin and hadn’t even attempted to wrap it anything. Now, he was getting me involved and I absolutely loved it.
So, we took the rather stiff Biscuit out of the garbage bin and placed her in the trunk of the car. My sister was then invited to the garbage bin where we told her that she had been seeing things.
That was the first time I really bonded with Dad and as we sneaked out in the car and buried Biscuit in a field I had learned a valuable lesson…………men lie to stop girls from crying.
Then there was the time I heard my Dad swear for the first time. As I mentioned yesterday I was not brought up in a household of profanity. However as a young lad I remember the time a cat………….yes……………it’s another cat story. My dad was and still is a very keen gardener and like his furniture making he is absolutely dedicated to perfection.
He had spent days digging out a vast section of our back garden to make a patio. He had just finished poring the concrete and had spent hours smoothing it out ………….he stood back to admire his work and went into the kitchen for a celebratory cup of tea. A few minutes later I wandered into the garden just in time to hear my Dad shout “you little bastard” as a cat ran across his newly laid concrete leaving little cat prints all the way across. Once again………….I bonded with my Dad.
I learned another lesson……………..men are funny and Dad’s really do set the tone…………….oh and yes…………I learned another lesson………….don’t bury your cat in the garbage bin…………actually don’t get a cat at all…………unless you live in North Korea and are tired of eating Spaniel.
I hope you all enjoyed Jaime’s first report of the continuing saga of the Carnival Splendor. Well, here is her second “Dear John” letter.
October 17, 2008
Dear John,
Today was quite the adventure! I am sure you are familiar with the common phrase “Rome was not built in a day.” Well, we all know this is well and good… but the common Carnival Splendor crewmember only has but a few short hours to see all the brilliance that is ancient Rome.
In order to see as much of the city as we could, Lawrence and I awoke up at 6 am and headed off to the train station. We were pleasantly greeted into the city of Rome with some sort of boisterous rally! I was not quite sure what the rally was for – since all of the protesting was in Italian — but whatever it was, there was clapping, t-shirts and balloon animals involved!
After asking a few questions I found out that the thousands of people crowding the streets had something to do with a train strike that was occurring. As a result of these people in the street, the bus ride that usually takes about 10 minutes to downtown, took approximately 45. There we were, on our open top city tour bus, eagerly longing to see the great forum, Coliseum and the Vatican.
I was taking pictures of the rally, trying to make the best of everything and then, all of a sudden we feel the first of many drops of rain. After purchasing the crummiest umbrella known to man for a mere 10 euros, Lawrence and I tried to look on the bright side: even though we were partially soaked in water, at least our pictures looked great because they were not crowded with people covering the historic buildings.
After walking around the forum, we finally realized that the forum tour which, last year was complimentary now has a nine Euro charge for admission! We decided to skip the walk through the muddy forum streets, and hop back on the bus to head toward the Vatican.
We made our way to the bus stop, and after three buses zoomed by us because they were full, we managed to beg our way onto the fourth tour bus – they allowed us on under the condition that we agreed to sit on the top, open section, of the bus. This was probably our worst idea of the day, our butts got soaked, the run off from the lady’s umbrella in front of us drenched our legs, and our feet were sopping from the three-inch river that coated the floor of the bus. Eventually, we reached the Vatican; we took our pictures and decided to head to a nice warm lunch in the train station before heading back to the ship.
Once we arrived back on board, we had a full staff meeting to get to know Jen our new cruise director and meet Goose – who will be taking over for the crossing. I already know and love Jen from spending time with her last cruise, and I am confident Goose will be a fantastic leader for our entertainment team in the months to come. After the meeting, we headed strait to boat drill, it was surprising to hear Jen’s voice over the PA system since it has been only John as the voice of the ship for the past several months.
At this time it is early evening, I am heading to sports trivia with the guests and go have a walk around to see what characters will be sailing with us for the next 12 days. We begin tours tomorrow morning at 6:30 am. We will be in Naples tomorrow, with a full crew boat drill to look forward to.
Have a good night =)
The Rally in the Streets
Soilders
The Roman Forum
The Coliseum
The VaticanJaime
Entertainment Staff
Carnival Splendor
Thanks Jaime. I know that we all thank her for another great report. It seems as though everything is going well and my best wishes to Jenny the Cruise Director. I know she is doing a brilliant job. I was remembering how nervous I was when I gave my first-ever travel talk and performed my first-ever welcome aboard show. That was on the Carnivale and my talk was about Nassau, Bahamas and the show was performed in front of 500 people. Her first talk is about Pompeii, Sorrento, Naples and Capri and her first show will have 1500 people watching………………she will be fine and her energy is exactly what the ship needs.
I see from the comments that a lot of you who live in the Dallas and Philadelphia area are wanting to come and watch the big events and are asking how you do this. Well, it will be brilliant to see you there and as soon as we have the information Stephanie will let you know what to do. I truly hope some of you can come down; it will be terrific to see some friendly faces amongst the audience………………….bring food please.
By the way, can someone from Dallas and Philadelphia tell me what the weather will be like so I know what to wear?………….thanks.
As we are talking about the comments let me tell you that I will start replying to comments on Tuesday. Although I am blogging everyday I am going to take two days off from replying just to have a wee rest……………..I promise that I will return to replying to those marked PLEASE REPLY on Tuesday but I also urge you to keep the comments coming……………they are so important to me. Remember, if there is anything else you need from me let me know…………..I am here to serve.
Now, we have the technology to add something new to the blog thingy……………..Polls…………….yep, we can now take polls. I have no idea how they work or what happens but a man with a beard has designed a program to allow us to take blog thingy polls. Later, we can get serious and ask some really in-depth questions but as the weekend is a little quiet I thought we we would start with something light.
Stephanie will tell you how to vote and on Monday she will post the results on a percentage basis.
OK then, here is today’s poll question.
OK, we will release the answers on Monday and I hope as many of you as possible take the time to vote because it will show us how this works ready for when we ask the serious questions which will…………….help shape the future of what we at Carnival will do. Let me explain.
I have been asked to sit on a committee……….well…………….I will be sitting on a chair much to the relief of the poor people in the committee……….but we will be talking about the future…………your future……………as everyone of the 3,100,000 people who have read this thingy all love Carnival so who better to ask what we should do. I hope, therefore, I can rely on you to help me. Have fun with the first poll and we hold the first serious one next week.
You can imagine how many pieces of mail arrive at our house during 6 months away. My Dad sought them out and disposes of the offers of loans and a chance to marry someone called Anna from Latvia and leaves the rest for me to read when I am home. Among the pile I came across something that made me feel quite ill………………an invitation to a High School Reunion.
When I think of school I have flashbacks of itchy school uniform made of something called “surge,“ which is only one step away from sandpaper. In the early days your Mum dresses you but then something called puberty happens………………..you don’t want the big Windsor knot in your tie and then you start looking at girls and at bras trying to work out why Big Brenda was wearing one and Pancake Pam wasn’t.
But it was the sheer hell of Physical Education or PE as we call it in the UK that makes me want to vomit. This was because it was during these lessons that I discovered something that thanks to my mate Alan would follow me through my teens…………….rejection. At school, you want to be part of the gang and not be part of the group that spent the lunch hour on their own in a far corner of the playground …………..more than anything I wanted to be part of the football (soccer) team.
This was a problem because I had the soccer skills of a drunk penguin and therefore at pick up games I was never chosen and would be relegated to the sidelines with Fat Tony who had bigger breasts than Big Brenda……………a young boy called Stinky Pete who smelled of pee ………….and a poor asthmatic kid who had a puffer the size of Coke bottle. I will never forget the pain. I also remember a kid who after seeing him as a naked 14 year old boy in the changing rooms we called him…………….Foot Long Freddie……………lucky sod.
But, it’s because of Shane Ibrahim, David Pattern and Terry “The Butcher” Green that I have my worst memories of my time in uniform.
Mostly, people are bullied for a reason. In interviews, Gwyneth Paltrow has admitted she was bullied because she was tall, Mel Gibson because he had an American accent at an Australian school, Michelle Pfeiffer because of her big lips and me ………..well …………..probably it was because I was boring.
I was bullied at school by the three I have just named and shamed and it’s really not hard to work out why. They were bullies and I was the nearest living being when they felt like a workout.
As I understand it, the latest state initiative from our crazy government here in the UK will force school bullies to wear blue plastic wristbands so the weak and helpless can see them coming and have time to take evasive action.
Already I can see some problems with this. For instance, what happens if the cunning and wily school bully decides to get round the problem by simply leaving his wristband at home? Then you wouldn’t know he was a bully until you found a large piece of dog poo in your school bag and an unusual yellow stain in your English exercise book.
Of course, there is a big difference between teasing and bullying. I tease people for a living ………. for being too short………for being too tall………for having a funny name.. And in return people tease me for looking like I have a beach ball up my shirt and for having bent teeth and a funny accent.
Teasing is a good thing. It sharpens the mind and punctures the ego. Teasing, at its best, is faster than Chinese ping-pong and funnier than a really good skiing crash. Teasing is what separates us from the beasts. You never, for instance, see wildebeest laughing their heads off when one of their numbers falls in the river or gets eaten by a lion.
But bullying………….well that’s another story. So, having thought about it I may go to my high school reunion next month for two reasons. I want to see if Sally Poole is as gorgeous as she was when we were in math class together………….she melted my heart. And, I want to see David, Terry and Shane and tell them that they made my school days a living hell and then beat the crap out of them……………however, as they were all the size of Hummers at the age of 14 and because they have probably progressed from shoving heads down toilets and flicking your genitals with a wet towel to using axes to remove fingers ………….I shall probably stay at home…………………..and anyway……………knowing my luck one of them probably married Sally Poole……………bugger.
Goodnight
Your friend
John and Heidi
Filed under: Destinations, Europe, Tales from the Ship, Travel | Tagged: Carnival Splendor, Poll
John,
The solution for a swear box is to make up new words.
icehole, fargin bastich, etc.
Problem solved!
Jamie:
Thanks for those wonderful pictures…it brought back great memories of my honeymoon all those years ago.
DJ still loves the fact that he was “Made in Italy”!
John:
I voted …but I would have preferred to vote for Ronald Reagan. He would have been the PERFECT Cruise Director!!!
Linda (Mom of your friend ~ proud to be Italian~ DJ)
John:
Your Dad sounds exactly like mine. It was like you were describing mine and not yours. Maybe that’s why think so much alike. And yes they still think all that happens to us is their fault. And about this:
But I don’t feel any different………….I still laugh when people fall over and a few minutes ago I farted and the smell was reminiscent of Paul Newman’s bottom during the filming of Cool Hand Luke………….I found it funny but my wife………….
My kids are 19 and 15 as you know .I still feel the same and Eugenio is just like you and he still does this things but don’t worry my kids laugh a lot with him. They think he is a little bit crazy. And me? Vivi and I are best friends. Sometimes I feel her same age. another thing hate and can’t do PE. I used to hide in the gymnasium.
Go to the High School reunion!!!!!!!!!!
Do it!! You are at the top now You have everything!!
Put your best clothes and take your beautiful pregnant wife. You are very successful. You have a job that you love and many people love you because of what you do. Tell them and smile WOUHHH
BTW My sister is one of the many trying to find you in Dallas. I want a pic.
A big huggo to the Heald’s
John…..You want to know what the weather is in Philly and Dallas so you can pack appropriate clothes? Why? They’re likely to wind up in Bangkok or Perth, or even back in Rome before they join you in the correct cities! Pack whatever clothes you think would enjoy those exotic cities while you’re in the USA!
Terri
John -
The weather in Philadelphia on November 2nd will be sunny, unless it is cloudy and rainy. It will be warm, unless a cold front comes through and the temperature plummets (it was in the high 30s this morning [4C to you metric blokes and 277 kelvin to the geeks]). I will be sure to update you as the date gets closer, or you can just visit weather.com to get the information yourself.
As to colors to wear – if the Phillies win the World Series, wear red. If the Iggles (Eagles) are winning, wear midnight green. Or, you can simply wear the orange and black of the Broad Street Bullies (Philadelphia Flyers hockey team).
Now, on the issue of the profanity box – it is my belief that you need to learn to say “farfignuggen” anytime you are tempted to use a word that will cost you two euro. Can’t see how Heidi can argue about that word, since Volkswagen has made it a worldwide warm and fuzzy feeling.
Your friend and comrade in cruising.
Jon
John;
Great blog today. You don’t have to change John. My kids think I’m funny. Just now after reading your blog we were laughing as we remembered our last night of our first Med cruise. We were in Venice overnight and it was almost midnight when we finally made it to bed. We were all almost asleep when I threw a big one. It woke up all of us and I started laughing so hard that everyone joined me. We were laughing so hard (crying)for at least 5 minutes. We still remember that night. On that cruise I also gave Nanette and Vivi a gift but that is to gross to put it here but I can tell you that one sent My wife and daughter out of the cabin. I will tell you that one in person when we have chance.
John, just wanted to say that Jaime is doing a fantastic job. Thank you Jaime!
Jennifer
John, are you going to have any free time when you’re in Boston? Dinner’s on me!
Jeff
Hi John and Heidi,
First I would like to congratulate you both on the impending addition to your family. You are in for a life altering experience, but well worth the change.
We had the pleasure of sailing with you on the Freedom last March (your last stint as CD). We never got to meet you face to face but we were on your morning show via mail. We were the family that drove from New Jersey to Miami. At the time you had the drooping face and one eye.
Now we hear you are going to be in Philly in Nov. We are but an hour from there and hope to get the chance to meet you there. Keep us posted on the details and we will keep you posted on the “predicted” weather. Enjoy your weekend and relax a while.
Margie
John,
The polls are not too bad, but on this one I am missing the “none of the above button”.
Please:
As you are English you should never ever use the no go word for football again. The game was invented in England. The international organisation even having more members than the United Nations is called FIFA but not FISA.
Jaime, great fotos. Sorry, but please do let all the rain come down next week me arriving in Rome on Sunday 26. 11 days until TA.
Your luggage has arrived, you have clean underwear and all is right with your world at this moment John, what a lucky guy LOL.
Poor Muffin, laying dead in a garbage can for a little girl to see. At least you now know what to NOT do when a pet has died. That goes for gold fish too, do not put them in the toilet.
Loved Jaime’s report of the Splendor and her day in Rome. Jaime has such a funny witty way of telling a story, wonder who she has been hanging around with
. I could have told her about the umbrellas that the street vendors sell. When we were in Rome it started to rain and at least 50 vendors came out of the woodwork selling their crummy umbrellas at a cost that would feed a small country. I refused to buy one. I had one but of course left it at the hotel. I am sorry that her and Lawrence did not get to see as much of Rome as they could have.
Have a good flight, looking forward to your blog on the states. Florida and Texas, here comes John.
Keep smiling John, my best to Heidi.
Hi John and Heidi!
Glad the suitcase arrived, John. You actually got it pretty quickly. My experiences with lost luggage have lasted much longer.
Loved the pictures from Rome. They brought back memories of our cruise on the Freedom.
Bullies…..they are always going to be a problem.
Not only are there bullies, but there are really snobby children in all schools. They are too good to associate with other people. I think you probably see more of them in smaller schools. Both groups can leave emotional scars.
Thanks for trying to find a way to get input from the loyal bloggers for your committee. That is certainly one way to get input from the loyal Carnival passengers.
Gotta run! Take care!
Ruth
John how does it make you feel to say, “I’m going to be a Dad?” I can just see the smile on your face.
giggle
Go to the reunion and make all of those dudes jealous. Bet none of them have a beautiful wife that is pregnant and none of them are successful like you are. Go for it.
Now go find the cursing jar and deposit money cause I’m going to tell.
Heidi, he used the d and the b word, make him pay up…….
Countess Carolyn . the snitch.
Hey John,
I loved the blog thingy today, thanks for the laughs. Hope Heide is feeling ok.
Jan
Ralf–I agree, we needed a “None of the Above” button on the poll!
See, I told you you would make breakfast funny. I’m glad that you were reunited with your underwear and its wonderful they had such a nice time in Roma!
Poor Jamie to get in the middle of a protest and then get rained on but she still got some great shots. I’ll bet its really different for the crew since you and Heidi are gone.
I just spoke with my sister who lives near Philly and its cold there today so bring warm clothes and I’m sure Heidi tells you all the time–layers.
I did send you a reply email but I also knew that you would be taking a few days off. Enjoy your time as I know you are the only one who will be able to get an answer to my question. Enjoy your time at home watching Heidi eat.
Please reply, why are the webcams on the ships not working? Great Blog by the way!
If my calculations are correct this would be your 25th class reunion right? GO to it John, you have so much to be proud of, you are very successful, have a beautiful wife, and soon to be a papa. You will be the envy of the rest of that graduation class. Glad you got your suitcase back, have a safe trip coming to the U.S. By the way we call Physical Education PE too in the states. I hated it! Especially swimming, I tried to hide out during swimming classes. The pool was not heated and in Bklyn, N.Y. where I am from it was freezing in the winter in the pool! Hi Heidi, checking out baby furniture yet? Isn’t it FUN! Ciao, Linda
Hi John, I can tell you what the weather in Philly is going to be. It will be chilly in the morning, warm and sunny in the afternoon and as soon as the sun goes down it will be chilly and breezy. Dress in layers that you can take off and then put back on. Hope I have helped.
Jo
Dear John–the weather in Dallas is at its best–cool at night–mid sixties and slightly warmer during the day–mid seventies to low eighties. That said, we have a saying in Texas: if you don’t like the weather now, just wait a few minutes for it to change. We look forward to your visit. Love to you, Heidi, and the baby.
Hi John,
First I want to say that your blog is brilliant, I always get a good laugh as well as interesting insight into life aboard.
I took my first (and only so far) cruise two years ago on Carnival Triumph. It was the week of halloween. I must say that I was pleasantly surprised, it greatly exceeded my expectations.
This is my first time posting here and it is concerning your high school reunion, I say you should definitely go. I was not part of the ‘in’ crowd in high school and I had very few friends. I debated, like you on whether to go or not. Finally I decided to go and I do not regret it for a second.
Here’s the thing, finding out how all those people turned out was worth much more to me than any downside there could be. It was only spending one evening there and if it was boring I could always leave early.
People all grow up and I had many interesting conversations with people that I hardly spoke to 25 years earlier. Also, I wouldn’t be surprised if the bullies don’t even show up, of if they do they probably haven’t had anywhere near as interesting life as you have. As you said yourself, you have one of the best jobs in the world, I am sure that many of your old school mates would love to hear a bit about it.
I hope you read this and I have managed to at least make you re-consider attending.
all the best,
Chris
John -
Wait until you hold that little one in your arms for the first time. Your whole world will change in the matter of seconds.
Oh- and we voted. Lynn and Mike Sagara
Hey Heidi,
If you add John’s farts to the cuss box (things to get fined for) you’ll have the baby’s college education paid for before it’s born, and remember,
JULIE is a really pretty girl name. I am keeping you in my thoughts and prayers for an uneventful pregnancy and safe delivery.
John, I just got home from celebrating my high school’s 50th anniversary and I had a great time. We had classmates that traveled half-way around the world to attend.
I was involved in athletics, and it was wonderful to see almost the entire old track team, swim team, and football team again. Most of us have aged well, a few have just aged, but we all understand and feel that we are still teenagers on the inside.
The only time we feel old is when we note the age of our children and grand-children. There is a time as well when we put down our bifocals and then can’t remember where – but that is another story.
As for old girlfriends – they are still beautiful after all these years. The sight of them brought back memories of exciting times and embarrassing moments; it was wonderful.
So John, if you can attend your high school reunion – GO. It was only a very short few years of your life but it helped make you who you are today.
John,
We live about 75 miles north of Dallas. In my opinion this is about the best time to visit this area. The days are pleasant and the nights are cool. Most of the things in the air that cause terrible allergies are gone – thank goodness! The days usually range from 73-78 degrees and nights are 50-55 degrees. Let us know where you are going to be in Dallas and maybe we can make a road trip. Thanks for replying to my questions last week. Have a safe trip, but most of all enjoy your time off with Heidi and the thingy.
Brandy
Hi John,
Just want to say what a fabulous cruise we had,
and we are priviledged to have been on your last
voyage. Congratulations to you and Heidi on your
impending parenthood. Is Willie Banger on the
shortlist for godparent?
Hi John,
I’m so looking forward to the polls. What a wonderful idea to get passenger input for the future of Carnival! I’ve been on 5 Carnival cruises and my daughter (age 13) has been on 4. (My first was my honeymoon so no kid allowed lol) We’ve both had a great time with only one exception.
The activities for her age group seem just a little too close to the 9-11 group and not close enough to the 15+ group. Her complaint was that many of the kids in her age group will be high schoolers soon and they felt like their activities/parties should be a bit more “grown up”. For instance, when they have a dance, the bar could at least serve sodas and chips or something. Every one she went to on the Ecstasy and the Conquest, they had to go out of the club to get something to drink and in most cases, they weren’t told that.
Also she said maybe they could have their own hang-out like the 15+ kids. (I’ve heard that some of the ships do, but not certain)
Of course, our next cruise will be on the Splendor over New Years Eve because she thinks Greg Gallello in the Piano Bar is the best. Since he facebooked us that he’ll be on that ship during her Christmas break we booked right away and we’ll probably spend most evenings in there!
By the way, I hate to break it to you, but the whole hormone thing with Heidi and the Thingy is just getting started. Hang on, Dad! Remember, you’ve got a huge support group to talk to here and get your questions (fears) answered!
John,
There was one more thing I want to tell you. You said you are going to become a dad and you don’t feel any different. Well, when you hold YOUR baby (not thingy) in your arms for the first time, your life will never be the same. You will discover love you never knew you had inside you, you will learn you are not nearly as smart as you think you are, and you will discover such joy and pride that you think you are going to burst.
Heidi and John enjoy every minute, every laugh, every hug, and yes, every dirty diaper because it will be over before you know it. The years will fly by.
Princess Susan
Dear John, as a prospective parent, please check ourt Aninta Renfroe’s “Momisms”, also found under William Tell Overture”. She has condensed all the things a parent says to a child in a 24 hour period into 2 1/2 minutes and sung to the tune of the William Tell Overture. All the things I vowed never to say to my children, but did anyway-stop crying or I’ll give you something real to cry about-don’t make me come down there- are you wearing that? and more.
Hawaii was delightful, Bubba was amazing, the Spirit exceeded every anticipated desire, and I want to go back straight away. But it’s good to be home, where I can make a huge pot of vegetable soup with veggies we canned from our garden, and have all the diet Coke I want! Patricia
John–I too was bullied as a child. I empathize with you–even the memory of it, at age 51, still disturbs me. I was little, developed late for my age, and was educationally smarter than everyone else–which made me a huge target.
On the other had, regarding the cursing–I could teach you some good Yiddish ones I heard while growing up. However, if Heidi has any knowledge of German, they might be too close to that that they would be understood!
Hi John,
Please reply.
I know this sounds silly (my husband thinks it is), but…when you stated that a lot of the management team was leaving it made me nervous as we are doing the transatlantic crossing. I know from your interviews with several of these people that they were senior level and I felt comfortable that they would be there during the crossing. We’ve never been to Europe and I must admit I’m a little nervous about that, plus the actual crossing (especially after hearing about Heidi’s rough crossing to New York). Do you know the people that are replacing those leaving on vacation?
Do you happen to know if the major US credit cards (Visa, MasterCard, Discover, and American Express) are accepted there?
I’m disappointed that you will not be with us, but I hope that you enjoy your new position. You deserve a rest from all the complaining passengers I’ve been reading about for months!
Lynn
Sorry if this is a repeat. I’m resubmitting this because my original comment (I submitted it in Freedom and Splendor in Bella Napoli) is still sitting in moderation (it’s been over 24 hours) and more recent comments have been posted. I’m guessing mine fell into a technical glitch!?
Congratulations on baby Thingy!!
Hi John,
Your sister’s cat shares the same exact name as my dog. Crazy coincidence; now I miss my dog, haha…
Anyway, your government’s attempt to stop bullying seems half-hearted. Won’t solve anything with the way kids think; there’s always a way to bend the rules. Either way, hope you’ve enjoyed your weekend.
John, Yes being a Dad is a wonderful thing. Like many Dad’s I have a cat story. My eldest daughter when she was in her early teens had a kitten. She played with the kitten and trained the kitten to chase her around. Now this training became her absolute problem. You see when she was older she would quietly sneak into the house and while trying to get to her bedroom without wakeing my wife and I. Almost immediately we would hear her saying “no, no, stop it”. Of course this awakened us! Well the cat was doing exactly what she trained it to do. What a security cat.
Jim
Hi John/Heidi:
Your bullying stories bring up some unpleasant memories from my youth. We’ve all been there.
Still can’t believe you’re going to be in my city this coming weekend. Haven’t heard anything about the weather report quite yet, but its currently in the mid-7os here.
Great pictures from Rome. Brings back a lot of memories.
Its pretty exciting that you (and Heidi) are finally able to spend some time at your house in England since you have been away for quite some time.
Thanks again for another great blog.
Take care!
David