Isn’t every kid supposed to have that fireside talk with their Dad about the time you first start noticing that the opposite sex don’t smell?……..Well……..I never had that chat. Now I’m 44 and it’s too late for me, but I’m worried that before I know it I am going to have that chat with our Thingy.
So, I thought I would test my speech here on the blog to see what you all think. So …… here we go and I have chosen to do this as if I was talking to a male thingy just because I would find this just a little easier than if the Thingy is a girl…….besides the fact that if any man touches my daughter before she is 55 years old I shall give their genitals the good news with a cattle prod.
Anyway……….here we go.
“Son, I was meaning, er, to talk to you, if you have a minute. It’s about women. As you may have noticed, they’re different from us. There’s no easy way to tell you this, son – but women don’t like spending money on gadgets.
“As you know from our last little chat, your Mummy and Daddy laid down next to each other a few years ago (for three minutes) and, nine months later, a stork dropped you down the chimney. Well, one day it will be your turn to receive a visit from the stork.
And if you haven’t indulged your enjoyment of gadgets by then, mark my words, my son, you never will. I’m glad we had this little chat.”
There……………what did you think?
I am forced to do this because I was told today in no uncertain terms that any money we spend from now on will be for the Thingy……and I can kiss my 50-inch plasma goodbye.
I wasted my early years trying to get a proper job and trying to date proper girls when, if I’d been given the chat, I would have been happily accumulating gadgets in a studio apartment.
I did manage to buy plasma a few years ago but it wasn’t a Bang & Olufsen because I naively assumed I would be able to get one when I was a little older and a lot richer. I acquired a lap top dancer computer but not the one with the massive screen. I got Raspberry/Blackberry but not one with a built-in video player and cappuccino machine. I never bought a remote-control helicopter or surround-sound cinema or a universal remote control or a Blue Ray DVD player thingy.
By saying “I do” to a beautiful yet tearful girl in a big white dress in Amsterdam, I, like all men before me, kissed goodbye to my chances of acquiring new gadgets until death do us part. I will never know whether beheading a zombie on PlayStation 3 is more enjoyable than doing so on an Xbox 360. They are both banned. Neither will I experience the crystal clarity of high-definition television unless an accident befalls the TV we’ve got.
“There’s nothing wrong with the one we’ve got,” is Heidi’s motto, unless we’re talking about dresses or handbags and now you can add strollers to the list. It will get worse when that bloody stork arrives. Suddenly I will find myself on a showroom forecourt trying to decide which family salon would be least embarrassing, then being informed that the most embarrassing one has the best safety record and having to drive that one home. You are allowed to buy gadgets but they are pushchairs, baby seats and …… breast pumps.
Then, the second the Thingy will start to move on its own no doubt the gadgets I do have will be covered in baby vomit.
Please, unmarried and unthingied men, take my word for it………… enjoy your gadgets while you still can.
Time for today’s questions that have been marked “John, please reply”
missingthesmokefreeparadise Asked:
JOHN – PLEASE REPLY
Upgrades – we’ve had more than a few. Carnival has upgraded us twice to a Cat 12 suite on the Paradise and we have also gotten upgrades on other cruises – all because of the fact that we are willing to accept TBA as our cabin assignment.
But the best story I have about upgrades relates to our fourth cruise on the (now defunct) Smokefree Paradise. We had made our own flight reservations and arrived at the airport to discover we were #3 on the waiting list – the airline had oversold the flight.
Anyway, we waited patiently and finally, the agent called for “MTSFP party of two, please come to the desk”. I went up and we were give our tickets – seats 2D and 2F.
When I got back to the Mrs. and informed her of our seat assignments, she expressed displeasure “because we weren’t sitting together.” I responded with glee “there is no E in First Class.”
We got to board with the Elite and were enjoying the amenities that we were given – one of the stewardesses asked where we were going, so I said, quite tongue in cheek, “on our second honeymoon.” It was a lie, because we never really had a first honeymoon.
Before we deplaned, the stewardess gave us a bottle of champagne to celebrate “our second honeymoon”. Since we knew we weren’t supposed to take alcoholic beverages on board, I was forced to drink it that night in our hotel room.
To make things even better, we arrived at the Ft Lauderdale airport the next morning to take the shuttle down to Miami. Because we were TBA, the Carnival representative gave us our cabin assignment. We had booked a Cat 6C, but were assigned to a wonderful Cat 12 suite – our first experience in a suite.
Upgrades are wonderful and they do help to make the experience better, but, as I have always stated, these issues do not make the cruise experience. You make the cruise experience.
Anyway, I really don’t have anything for you to respond to – except for my idea for a name for Thingy. If it is a boy, I think you should name him WOULDYOULIKETOBE – think of the benefit to him when he gets older. He can introduce himself and ask the pretty ladies “would you like to be Heald” at the same time
JustcausingtroubleJon
John RJohn Says:
Hello Just John
I am glad you posted this because a little later on in the blog you will find me on bended knee apologizing about this very subject.
I loved your story and its proof positive that these little things we do try and get a little bit more for our vacation dollar sometimes work. I hope that if you and Mrs MTSFP ever do have a second honeymoon I get to be the cruise director…….loved the name for the Thingy and best to Mrs Justcausingtrouble.
Cheers
JohnDave Asked:
Hi John! Please reply. First I’d like to say that I really enjoy reading your blog. It’s one of the few I read on a regular basis.
Also, as a Platinum cruiser, I want to add my support for another past guest level. A black Elite level at 25 cruises seems popular on other websites, and I like the sound of that.
But now for my question. I know it might be a long shot, but has Carnival considered, or are they considering for the future, to sail out of Philadelphia? With NYC, and now Baltimore, I realize the chances aren’t too great that Philadelphia will become a home port for Carnival, but it would be so convenient for us. I know a couple other lines have sailed out of Philly before, so it’s not totally out of the question. Is there any chance of this happening?
Thanks again, John!John Says:
Hello Dave
Thanks for the compliments and I am so glad you enjoy reading the blog thingy. I suggested the black elite level a few weeks ago. I know American Express gives people who are tanned and don’t have beards these no limit cards and I think in today’s climate loyalty is everything and so a black elite Carnival card would be brilliant. I will be talking with Jim Berra, our chief marketing officer, about this and other thoughts that bloggers have had regarding our loyalty program soon. Jim was responsible for one of the hotel industry’s most successful loyalty programs and I know he is very keen to take Carnival’s to the top, as well. So, watch this space.
As far as Philadelphia as a homeport is concerned………well never say never. You are correct that we have ships from NYC and Baltimore so we are pretty close but we are looking at new home ports all the time as we continue to try and bring the ships closer to you. So again, let’s see what the future holds.
Thanks again for the kind words and hope you continue to enjoy the blog thingy
Cheers
JohnSheryl Asked:
PLEASE RESPOND
Hi John,
I will be cruising out of Baltimore on the Carnival Pride in August. I was told that it takes quite a while to get into international waters. Can you tell me when the casino and shops will open, if that is the case? Also, when returning, will everything close up early the night before disembarkation?
John Says:
Hello Sheryl
What a wonderful question and one I can’t answer today. I have never sailed out of Baltimore except back in 1989 when we were there with the Carnivale in dry dock… wow that was a long time ago. Anyway, let me get the answer for you and I shall post it as soon as I do
Best wishes
JohnElaine Asked:
OK John PLEASE REPLY… I was going to hold out bothering you and wasn’t going to ask any more questions until one week before our upcoming June 13th Liberty “Surprise 80th Birthday Cruise for Poppy” and after Thingy was born BUT… One thing has been bothering me since my March 29th cruise and now this upgrade thing has me thinking…
You know we love Carnival and everything about it (so much so that we have our 18th and my parent’s 23rd cruise booked) but you knew that already!!!) But I have to tell you that we were Platinum when the program started and not one of us has ever been offered an upgrade. I also have to say that there are posts on Cruise Critic where passengers who have never sailed before, are not Platinum etc have gotten the “Upgrade Fairy” phone call… More often than not, I see very few Platinum Members posting that they received the “Upgrade Fairy” call. I also know that most of our cruises were full but not all of them!!! I always ask the Room Steward if he has any “available/open” balcony cabins. Granted, most of the time we do book an inside “cheap” cabin, but after so many cruise, you would have thought we would have been asked at least one time… But, it’s ok because we’re fine as long as we’re on a cruise!!!
NOW, this might really open up a can of worms and if you don’t want to address it, it’s ok…. BUT… for our March 29th cruise out of the Port of Miami I had to sit for 50 minutes in the terminal waiting for Doug to park the car. What I observed really really upset me. The VIP line is supposed to be for Platinum Guests and Suite Passengers. Why do guests with wheelchairs also get to use this line? Now let me tell you why I am asking. My father-in-law is in a wheelchair and has cruised with us a couple of times but did not/would not get on the VIP line. He said he is no different than anyone who can stand; he just sits and waits his turn. Aside from that opinion, what I witnessed really annoyed me so much that I have now decided to address it. Again, while waiting for Doug, I witnessed the VIP line being extremely long. I saw lots of guests in wheelchairs on the line. Upon looking further, I noticed guests WALKING (one of them actually had a race with her grandson) to the rear of the terminal right behind the ladies bathroom where there were wheelchairs lined up. They/she literally sat themselves down in the wheelchair, called out to their family members, and then proceeded to get on the VIP Line!!! So, by the time Doug arrived, the VIP line was about 30 – 40 passengers deep… (Mainly family members with one of them in a wheelchair). Please explain this to me and the reason why anyone other than Platinum/Suite passengers get to be on the VIP line? I have the upmost respect for anyone with any type of “handicap” (besides my father-in-law) both of my parents have each had double knee replacement surgery, but I can’t help but being angry at these other passengers using a wheelchair to get into the VIP line…
Thanks so much for your wonderful, informative and extremely entertaining posts. (and letting us vent once in a while). I truly look forward to reading your blog each day.
Again, my best to you, Heidi and thingy (who will soon have a name!!!)…
John Says:
Hello Elaine
You are never bothering me and I am glad that you decided to get these points across to me so. The upgrade question is one that still hits a nerve with some people and I can understand why. I know that while many Platinum cruisers will tell you that they have received upgrades some will indeed not have been so lucky. Now, I just spoke again to those in charge at Carnival about this and our vice president in this area reminded me that upgrades are not just for Platinum guests but are also offered to high producing travel agents (agents who send a lot of business to Carnival) and to a few guests who may have paid a lot of money say for a cat 11 and are upgraded to a cat 12.
Now, I know that there are many other stories about people who do not fit into these categories who have had a call from the wonderfully named “Upgrade Fairy” and I guess when you consider the many thousands of people that our ships carry each week it’s impossible to say where the upgrades are all going. I was also reminded though that on the whole our ships sail full with every cabin taken so again upgrades may not be as common as people may think.
However……..saying all of that………do I think that people like you who have sailed on 20-plus cruises should be first on the list for an upgrade………absolutely? As I just said to Dave in the posting above, we at Carnival know how important your loyalty is and I promise you that I am on your side and I will do everything I can to make sure that we continue to improve in this area. I will write more about this soon.
I am not sure how to reply about the situation you observed in Miami except to say that we will look into this question and get an answer for you. I will address this with the head of our embarkation team, Milicent Martin, immediately and I thank you for bringing it to my attention.
Don’t forget to remind me a week before you sail and please know I am here if you should need me further
Best wishes to you and the family
JohnJohn Anthony Asked:
Greetings John!
Please Reply
I am seeking a little bit of clarification regarding the policies of the supper clubs. I realize that the supper clubs are not an “all you care to eat” arrangement.
I am a little concerned because I read on the boards that some folks were only allowed to order one appetizer. I was thinking that one would be able to order a “traditional appetizer” such as escargot as well as a soup even though the appetizers and soups are all listed as starters.
Not surprisingly slightly different information appears in various Carnival web pages:
from http://www.carnival.com/cms/fun/obx/dining/formal.aspx
For the charge of $30 per person, you can take in the atmosphere and enjoy the amazing culinary creations of our chefs. It is sure to be one of the most memorable meals you’ll ever have.———–
from an email I received:
The reservation fee is $30 per guest, per entree.
———–
from the reservation form (http://www.carnival.com/CMS/Static_Templates/MyReservation/supper_club.aspx):
The $30 fee includes an appetizer, entrées, desert and the wait staffs’ gratuity; additional gratuities are optional and may be extended in cash or to the guest’s Sail & Sign Account, at the guest’s discretion.
So, what’s the policy? The info from the reservation form seems to indicate that you can order multiple entrées and the “desert” will certainly be arid. Also, I wonder why they are referring to something known as appetizers as there is not a heading of appetizers on the menu.
I would just like to be able to order escargot and lobster bisque, as well as one entree and dessert.
Can you order more than one starter and more than one dessert?
Thanks for your help!John Says:
Hello John
Thanks for allowing me a chance to clarify this as I am sorry to say that some of the posts that I have been seeing on the boards are not correct. This is what is included with your meal in our Supper Clubs
A COMPLIMENTARY TASTER DISH FROM THE CHEF
APPETIZER – I RECOMMEND THE CARIBBEAN CRAB CAKE
SOUP – I RECOMMEND THE FR………THE FRE…………..THE FREN…………..THE ONION SOUP
SALAD – THE CAESAR SALAD IS AWESOME AND PREPARED TABLESIDE
MAIN COURSE – I RECOMMEND THE PORTERHOUSE STEAK
AS MANY SIDE DISHES AS YOU WANT – THE WASABI MASHED POTATOES ARE A MUST
DESSERT – I AM DIABETIC SO I AM BUGGERED HERE BUT THEY TELL ME THE APPLE AND CARAMEL TART IS AMAZING
PETIT FOURS
COFFEE
PRICE – $30………………YEP……………$30This does include the minimum gratuity for the servers but you may tip extra if you think they deserve.
There you go. That’s what’s included and I am sorry if any of our online information (such as the appetizers) is misleading. I will have this corrected. As for the boards …….. well……..maybe they did not realize that this was so and therefore we maybe need to do a better a job communicating this tableside.
There is no doubt about it though……..our supper clubs remain an iconic experience.
Thanks again and bon appetite.
Cheers
John
msqpon – Jo Myerly Asked:
Hi John, Dave and I are doing the December 3 Bloggers cruise on the Dream. We are thinking of doing the November 15 Bloggers cruise as well. I know you usually have special tours for bloggers on these cruises. Are you planning some this time too? Any ideas which ports?
Thanks,
JoJohn Says:
Hello Jo
You know, I am embarrassed to say that as of yet I have given this bugger all consideration and you have though inspired me to do so. Stephanie will be arranging a conference call next week for all of us involved starting planning the dining, tours, shows, gifts and events for both cruises and no decisions will be made until we have everybody’s thoughts as well. So, thanks for the kick up the bottom and we shall get right on this…………….it’s going to be here before we know it
Best you and Dave
JohnNancy Asked:
Hi John, (please reply)
Thank you for replying to my comments about our cruise on the Valor. You mentioned that you had forwarded the letter to Carnival and wanted to know about follow-up. Actually, a Martha, from Carnival attempted to get in touch with me, however, for some reason my email or name is associated with the telephone number for my daughter’s friend who travelled with us. Katie gave me the phone number for Martha. I called and left messages for Martha but haven’t heard back from her yet.
I read about your exercise dilemma. I have actually worked out on a power plate. It is absolutely amazing. I had a session with a personal trainer who uses this piece of equipment. In 30 minutes I had a work-out similar to working out for and hour. I wish I had one. The only problem is you have to have a place that can withstand the heavy duty pulsating that the machine does. (No crazy ideas with that idea!)
Hope all is well with Heidi and Thingy! I am sure you are all getting excited.
Thanks for your help and concern,
NancyJohn Says:
Hello Nancy
Thanks for the follow up. I checked and Nancy was looking to get in touch with you. I hope by now she has done so please would you let me know so I know you are being helped. Thanks for the exercise machine information and I will be talking more about this at the end of today’s blog.
Best wishes
JohnCheri Bolchoz Asked:
John
Please Reply!!
Not sure if you got the email I sent you with the copy of eSeaview I sent you.
Wanted to thank you again for the bottle of wine & basket of fruit on our last trip on Carnival Fascination. We had a blast, even though it was over powered with spring breakers. There was 1200 guest that were under the age of 18 on board.
We are cruising again on Carnival Fascination on July 2nd 2009. My birthday is July 4th. I will be 50
We are in Nassau on the 4th.
Does Carnival do anything special for the 4th of July??
Also would like to get in touch with Josh. He was the Assistant CD on the Freedom. I heard that he might have is own ship now.
Hope all is well with Heidi & Thingy
Love to all
Cheri & MichaelJohn Says:
Hello Cheri
No need to thank me – it was the least I could do after the kindness you showed Heidi and I. The Fourth of July is a great time to be onboard and yes there always big celebrations and a wonderful atmosphere. Unfortunately the only thing missing are the fireworks which as you can imagine are not allowed to be used onboard. Now is the Josh you are referring to known as Big Sexy? If it is he is currently onboard the Carnival Miracle serving as cruise director following Malcolm Burn having to leave suddenly………more on him in a moment. Please send me the message for Josh and I will send it along to him. I am so glad you had fun on the ship and I did not see the Esaview……can you send again please?
My best to you and the family
JohnMark Asked:
Please Reply
John, carnival.com has many ways to pay for our cruise; however, from the information I have received from my PVP and the FAQ on the web page, there is no way to pay through PC Banking. For those that don’t know, this is where you can log into your bank. You sign into your account and make a payment directly to your payee of choice from your account of choice.
I would prefer to do this than paying by Credit Card. I like the debit card idea, but the Canadian Debit Card system is different that the US system. Our Debit Card is tied to our chequing (checking) or Savings account and I believe it does not work on Carnival.com.
Perhaps, I have it all wrong, can you please let me know if any of the options I described are possible? And if not available, why not? I am really hopeful. Someone told my wife that another cruise line does allow PC Banking so I’d imagine that this is doable. Thanks John! You and Heidi must be very excited…wishing you both joy, health and happiness.John Says:
Hello Mark
You have educated me today so thank you for that. I was not aware that we did not do this and it seems that maybe we should. So, I have sent this up the line and I will let you know what they say. I am sure as you mentioned it is something that we could easily set up. I will get back to you soon.
Meanwhile please send your money payable to John S Heald at Barclays Bank…….my account number is 0.
Cheers
John
That’s all for today and as always at this point of the blog I thank you for all your comments and remain at your service should you need me.
I want to take a moment to apologize about a blog I wrote last week which among other topics covered upgrades and how Carnival is sometimes able to pass these to certain guests. Well, after the serious explanation of how Platinum guests and those that may have paid a higher price for the cost of the cruise are usually the first to be considered should an upgrade arrive I also had a bit of fun with some of the things we hear at the guest relations desk. I then went on to talk about some of the ways people try and get an upgrade on the airlines.
It seems that this upset one blogger who was one of the people who had originally asked how upgrades are given. He or she felt that that I had been flippant in suggesting that they were trying to get something for nothing. I have written a personal apology to this blogger but just in case anyone else out there thought the same please know that as always I was just having fun and certainly wasn’t trying to allude to anything else ………………once again my apologies.
OK, let’s move on.
I mentioned Malcolm who remains in ICU. His mother wrote me a long e-mail yesterday and there has been some improvement. This was a sudden and serious situation but she tells me Malcolm is being brave and how much she appreciates your kind words here on the blog. If any of you would like to send a personal message to Malcolm and his Mum please title your post FOR MALCOLM and I will make sure she sees them………. many thanks in advance and please keep him in your thoughts and prayers.
Chris Prideaux is home as I mentioned but he has a long road of convalescence ahead of him so please continue to think of Chris.
Now, it seems people continue to Twitter and now our friends at Princess seem to have become Twits as well as you are about to see.
Golden Princess Enters Drydock for Dramatic Makeover; Transformation Chronicled Daily With Twitter Updates
Online Photo Journal Features Exclusive Behind-the-Scenes Look at Princess’ Most Extensive Ship Remodel to Date
SANTA CLARITA, Calif. (April 21, 2009) – As Golden Princess begins the most extensive makeover ever undertaken by the company, Princess Cruises is inviting cruise fans to follow the progress through Twitter updates that will showcase a daily photo journal of the ship’s transformation. A first for Princess, the online posts will chronicle the dramatic changes throughout the ship during its nearly three-week drydock at Victoria Shipyards in British Columbia.
The journal has launched at princess.com/goldendrydock and will run through May 5, when the ship sets sail again with its new features, including a new piazza-style atrium, an adults-only Sanctuary, a Movies Under the Stars poolside movie screen, a new Crown Grill steak and seafood restaurant, and a variety of other enhancements.
Twitter users will receive a daily “tweet” about the latest construction progress after they follow an easy sign up process and elect to follow Princess at http://twitter.com/PrincessCruises.
“We know there’s a great deal of interest in a ship transformation such as this, so we’re inviting cruise enthusiasts to get a unique glimpse of the ship’s progress through this drydock,” said Jan Swartz, Princess Cruises executive vice president. “None of our other vessels have ever had this many new features added in a single drydock, so our online journal will offer a fascinating behind-the-scenes look at the amount of work required for such a huge undertaking.”
The amenities being added during the drydock are the Princess signature features already aboard the line’s newest ships, Crown Princess, Emerald Princess and Ruby Princess. Many have also been introduced aboard on Caribbean Princess, Star Princess and Grand Princess during earlier drydock periods.
When Golden Princess emerges from drydock, its atrium will feature a new Piazza with an inviting street café atmosphere featuring roving entertainers and two new dining options. The International Café will serve up specialty coffees, fresh baked cookies, pastries, panini sandwiches and tapas. Vines, a wine bar, will offer a selection of more than 30 wines by the glass, plus a selection of seafood, artisan meats and cheeses, and a wine shop where passengers can purchase their favorite bottle.
A new restaurant, the Crown Grill, will offer an open kitchen where passengers can enjoy watching as chefs prepare chops, steaks and seafood, including live lobsters.
And adult passengers looking to get away from it all will be able to relax in the tranquility of The Sanctuary, Princess’ signature retreat featuring plush padded lounge chairs and the services of dedicated Serenity Stewards. Visitors to this exclusive space can enjoy refreshing beverages and light snacks, or receive a massage in one of two private cabanas.Above one of the ship’s pools, Movies Under the Stars will debut onboard with a state-of-the-art Times Square-style LED screen, offering evening movies and a variety of daytime programming. The 300- square-foot screen offers passengers a movie experience comparable to the best shoreside movie theater. In addition to family cinema and first run hits, Movies Under the Stars also features major sporting events, concerts and other can’t-miss programming – up to 50 different offerings per week.
As part of the renovation, Golden Princess will also be fitted with seven new window suites with ocean-view picture windows, and a relocated casino on deck 7, bringing it into the ship’s central entertainment area. In addition, 10 new balcony suites and two ocean view cabins will be added in the aft of the ship, replacing the former video arcade. Other changes include new locations for the sports court, a new Limelight boutique, new shore excursions and Captain’s Circle desks, new Internet café and library, and the addition of new gym equipment in the fitness center.
Additional information about Princess Cruises is available through a professional travel agent, by calling 1-800-PRINCESS, or by visiting the company’s website at www.princess.com.
That is great news for the many fans of Princess and for all of us here who love to go behind the scenes and see just what happens in these spectacular shipyards. So, start Twittering everyone and check in when you can as the Golden Princess shines even more brightly………….oh God that was so corny…….I can’t believe I wrote that ……….. what a load of bollocks. Let’s try again. So, make sure you check in on the Golden Princess Twitter page and watch this ship be rejuvenated…….there, much better…………shine brightly my arse.
People who live in hurricane zones are I am sure anxious to see what this year will bring and let’s hope we don’t get to far down the alphabet and that any winds that do head toward land will be no more dangerous than my bottom after eating a can of beans.
However, we as a company need to be prepared and we need to keep our reservations open and our guest services flowing should our HQ in Miami be affected by adverse weather or other emergencies. And so, with that in mind I thought you might like to see this.
“As part of Carnival’s comprehensive emergency preparedness plan, the company last week trained nearly 400 employees on various reservations and IT technology housed within a Mobile Recovery Unit situated adjacent to its Miami headquarters.” Read full article here
That’s good to know but lets us all hope that we will never need to put this practice into actual use.
I was talking about cruising yesterday with my mate Alan who continues to be ugly and to be healthy. Actually, we were not talking about the cruising we all love but cruising of a different kind. I don’t even know if this translates but let me explain. Cruises were an interesting way to meet girls. This sounds so stupid now, but we used to take Alan’s Ford Capri and just drive round and round on the seafront here in my hometown……….we used to call it “cruisin.”
Funny isn’t it that we just remembered that was the word we used. Anyway, we would drive around and say “Hi girls, wanna get in?” And when they did they would they would get in………take a good look at us……….and run away. I don’t know what we thought we were trying to accomplish, but at least we got some girls to almost get in our car.
Did you have “cruisin” in North America? Did you cruise? I would love to hear about it.
Well, these days it seems the blog is rather popular having been written about in the Sun Sentinel Newspaper, spoken about by Gerry Cahill in front of the five families and of course written about online in various publications by esteemed writers such as Gene Sloan and Anita Dunham Potter. I wanted to share one with you now because most importantly it talks about you. It was written by the incomparable Carolyn Spencer Brown for a British newspaper. She was talking about cruise ship blogs and this is what she had to say about ours.
“There’s one cruise-related blog I think is a definite must-read every day, it’s, hands down, one that’s written by Carnival Cruise Lines’ John Heald. A Brit who’s the fleet’s senior cruise director, his blog was launched as a corporate endeavor but his warmth, passion, eye for the offbeat, and unorthodox but absolutely entertaining writing style has made him a superstar in the blogging world.
And it doesn’t matter if you’re a Carnival fan or not – it’s fun, there’s great information in there. What makes it stand out beyond that is the fact that John’s readers are as active about sharing comments and responses as he is – and there’s always a lively conversation going on there.
In fact, he’s developed such a loyal following that he actually hosts bloggers’ cruises for his fans on Carnival (he’s done three now!) which in essence takes the concept off the Internet and personalizes it onboard.”
That’s just wonderful and she is absolutely correct you the readers being active in your comments. As I have said many times here that is so important and long may it continue? Oh by the way, I just did a radio interview with a Baltimore morning show on WWMX.
They are so excited about the Carnival Baltimore event and just in case you have been living in a cave and don’t know what I am talking about here is Stephanie once again to tell you all about the big day and to remind you about the Bloggers Breakfast hosted by our Chief Marketing Officer Jim Berra.
Hi Everyone,
Hope everyone is excited for Saturday! We have fun activities planned for everyone. The blogger’s breakfast starts at 9:30 am and I’ve emailed information to everyone that’s rsvped. For more information and a map of the event visit: www.carnival.com/funcity.
Don’t forget to send us pictures from the event!
Stephanie
Once again I am awash with guilt that I cannot be there with you but with the Thingy imminent I am sure you understand.
Oh, by the way. I was doing the interview with the morning show hosts and this is how the interview started
HOSTS – JOHN YOU SOUND LIKE YOU ARE FROM THE UK
JOHN - YES I AM INDEED
HOSTS - YOU KNOW WHAT THE FIRST THING WE ALL THINK ABOUT WHEN YOU SAY THE UK DON’T YOU?
JOHN- UMMMM…….THE QUEEN…………LONDON……………OUR IDIOT PRIME MINISTER
HOSTS – NO…………….SUSAN BOYLE………………WHAT DO YOU THINK OF HER
Amazing!
Somebody mentioned the other day on the blog in jest that because we no longer serve the fruit punch due to the fact that it leaves awful stains on the carpeting that “he should bring his own packets of punch with him.” That made me smile. He wouldn’t be the first to do that. Obviously we all know that the industry does not allow people to bring their own alcohol (aside from a bottle of wine or champagne for a special occasion) with them yet we do allow sodas and other beverages.
Now the most popular of course is for people to bring their own cans of Pepsi products with them. They have obviously done their research and they know that Carnival serves Coke and its family of drinks. However, it was as I read the comment about the fruit punch that something stirred in the back of my mind…………..I could see someone with a huge can of powdered milk but for the life of me I could not remember where this memory was coming from……….then just this morning……..I remembered ……. yep …………..Fred and Ginger back on the good ship Carnival Splendor. Now, this may be before your time here on the blog thingy and with apologies for being repetitive but I have to tell those who came late to the blog about my adventure with Fred and Ginger
Guest: Mr________ Ref: 002803189A
Cabin: ____ Booking#: ________ Added-Changed: 08/20/08 – 08/20/08
____ – WANTS MORE HISTORY ON PORTS
Mr__________ called the Pursers Office from his cabin to say that he had just attended the cruise director’s talk about Berlin. Guest said he was disappointed that the cruise director did not talk more about America’s history with Germany as many guests have German relatives. Guest said he wanted to talk to cruise director and would wait all day in his cabin until he called. Purser explained that the cruise director was very busy but the message would be passed for him to contact guest. Called CD at 2:05pm who stated would call guest.
I did. My travel talks are not historical talks. I certainly try and give as many facts as I can about each site we visit but with limited time and the fact that I am as intelligent as a root vegetable this is not always enough and occasionally I get comments about not mentioning the tours but that I should be talking more about the history…..maybe they are right.
This guest was a little different though because he firstly he refused to talk on the phone and second he told me “I hope you speak clearer in person than you do on stage.” ….. oh joy.
And so we met 15 minutes later in the lobby, found a quiet corner and sat down. I knew I was in trouble straight away……..firstly ……..he had a beard …………… secondly ……….he was wearing open toe sandals with long knee high black socks …………….. thirdly …….. he produced a piece of A4 paper with writing on both sides ………… double sided bugger.
However, what astounded me was that at his feet was a suitcase made out of something that looked like old carpet………….what the $#@!
He was joined by his wife who I shall only mention now because she sat with us the whole 55 minutes and never once said a word …. not one……..she just sat there looking at her husband as though she was either too scared to talk or because she had been married for so long to a man with open toe sandals, knee high socks and a beard that she had lost the will to communicate.
They were from a place called “Cokeburg,” Pennsylvania …….. population … 1,000. I know this because the first thing that was produced from the carpet sided suitcase was a map, showing where his town was and I listened to him tell me how small town USA was the safest place to live. I tried to look interested but I seemed to be stuck in time and I am sure I saw his beard grow in front of my eyes.
Eventually, we got down to business. This was his first cruise and he had decided to tour Germany today without taking a tour and if you thought the beginning of this story was bizarre………well as the saying goes “you ain’t seen nothing yet.”
For the sake of the story lets call our small town couple Fred and Ginger…….only because he looked like a Fred and you can guess what color hair his wife had ………. yep……..she was blonde ……….kidding.
OK, before I continue this is one of those moments where I have to promise that the following is the truth……the whole truth and nothing but the truth………….in fact if I was sitting on the other end of the cyber thingy I would probably say “what a load of bollocks.”…………
But, you can’t make stuff like this up. So, Fred started by telling me how disappointed he was that I did not talk about the history of Germany from 1940 to the present day and in particular Germany’s close ties with the USA. I wanted to say that it was difficult enough to cram 14 different bits of information on getting ashore, passport control, how to go ashore on your own, currency and 14 different excursions into 45 minutes without 68 years of history…………..
However, before I could say a word he then consulted his fact sheet……bugger. He told me that 25% of Americans come from German stock telling me that upon gaining independence from the murderous British Empire that there was thought given to having German as the official language. At this point I had two choices ……..beat him to death with his suitcase or try some humor……I went with choice number two and said that I could see that Americans and Germans had a lot in common because both countries like Mr, Bean and Baywatch………he looked at me, paused and without even attempting a smile he moved on.
Next, came his plan. He had organized a car rental and intended to drive to Berlin because he had ancestors there…his great grandfather no less…………and could I show him the way on the map………….to Berlin……….at this point I thought he was joking and I was about to laugh when I suddenly realized he was serious……….he wanted me to show him on the map how to drive from Warnemunde to Berlin ………. Me. …………. someone who can’t even find the space between the two sides of the toilet lid.
Now again, I had two choices, I could have bluffed my way through it and hoped he and Ginger didn’t end up in Austria or just say that I had no bloody clue. I went with the second option………and when I said that I had never driven to Berlin he looked at me as though I had just told him I had discovered his wife in bed with Bill Clinton ………… “But, you’re the cruise director,” was his reply……….again, I could have said “Yes, I am the cruise director not a human GPS system”…………..but I didn’t, I apologized and arranged for him to meet Heidi tomorrow on the pier who would speak to the German tour operator who would show them how to get there……..he didn’t exactly jump for joy but I could tell he was OK with that.
He then spoke again in detail about his ancestors and how Germany is so similar to America. It was as he continued to talk I noticed a big jar of powder in his carpet bag………….I asked,
JOHN WHAT’S THAT BIG JAR OF POWDER
FRED POWDERED MILK. WE READ THAT EUROPE HAS
LOTS OF PROBLEMS WITH MAD COW DISEASE AND WE
DON’T WANT TO GET FOOT AND MOUTH FROM THE MILK
IN EUROPE ………SO WE BROUGHT OUR OWN
How I did not just end up on the floor rolling around laughing in hysterics is a bloody miracle………not only had he carried a huge jar of powdered milk from Cokeburgsville but he had combined both mad cow and foot and mouth disease together making it mad foot and cow mouth disease.
So, I said there was nothing to worry about and shook his hand and walked away …………I really wanted to laugh but I didn’t because I suddenly thought who the couple had reminded me off……the two people from the Wicker Man movie……….or was it a painting? ……standing there holding a pitchfork…………except the pitchfork had been replaced by a carpet sided suitcase and a large jar of powdered milk.
There you go, a trip back in time and a memory awoken by all the talk of fruit punch. One day I will go to Cokesburg, Pennsylvania……………….but I am taking my own milk.
Goodnight
Your friends
John, Heidi and the Thingy
Filed under: Caribbean, Destinations, Tales from the Ship, Travel | Tagged: Baltimore, Carnival Pride, Carnival Splendor, Fun City Takeover, John's Replies
Hi John!
I remember the Fred story. It is still just as great.
Sorry about your lack of gadgets going forward.
Great blog today and my thoughts arewith Chris and Malcolm.
I saw a story in today’s USA Today regarding Cunard assisting a lady for her kidney transplant. What a great story and hats off to Cunard!
Take care!
David
Please reply
John
1st prayers to Malcom & his Mum.
I sent the eSeaview to your other email hope you get it. It is the April 14th Vol 9 eSeaview, was told it ges to some 60,000 employees. I also sent a copy to Currents. By the way Michael is also getting The Funnel tattoo right now on the other arm.
Yes “Big Sexy” is the Josh I am speaking of. Just wanted to drop him a line & say that Michael & I are thinking of him & want to keep up with what ship he is on. I believe he still has my email, ask him to drop us a line
Take care
Cheri & Michael
Ah John, I remember you talking about Fred and Ginger. What a guy
. Did you also remember that, I think on the last night of the cruise, he invited you to come and visit him in the US? I think if I remember right, even though Fred was a bit odd to say the least, you came to like the man. Poor Ginger, she never spoke a word guess she did not have a chance.
You are so right, you just can not make up this stuff. That is why even though Heidi needs you so much now, I miss you being on board a ship as the CD. Nobody has stories like you do. And of course nobody tells them the way you do
.
You are one of the good guys John, my best to Heidi and the baby.
For Malcolm – very sorry to hear you are ill. You are a special CD (WHO HOO) who gave me and my family a special cruise experience last fall on the Victory.
God Speed – you and your family are in our thoughts and prayers.
Hi John! Your stories always make me laugh. I admire your ability to hold the laughs in when encountering the Fred and Gingers of the world! How do you do it?
I can tell you we “cruised” in Texas. In rural Texas it’s about all the excitement you have. I was furious when my parents moved me to this enormous city known as San Antonio, but was pleased to learn that city folks knew about cruisin’ the streets as well. Go figure.
Now, I have to tell you, I believe you have convinced every blogger out here that is not married, man or woman, DON’T DO IT!!!!
Best wishes to you, Heidi and Thingy!
Stitch
FOR MALCOLM:
I can not express what a joy it was to sail with you on the Victory September 2007. It was the last 7 day cruise of the season to Canada.
As with all of our cruises, the first thing we do is contact the Cruise Director about our son DJ who has Autism. He has panic attacks around Funship Freddie and we always get Freddie’s schedule from the CD before we sail….so that we can avoid where Freddie is going to be.
You, Malcolm, went above and beyond. You emailed every department to make sure they knew that DJ was going to be onboard and that he was to be protected.
I can not tell you the number of staff and crew that we talked with during the week and that said “oh, you are DJ’s Mom. Is he doing ok?”
Ria Bennett was the Club O2 Director for that cruise and she was the best director we have ever had. (and we have had some fabulous ones) She is now back in England and expecting her first child. We stay in touch on Facebook.
Kyle (usually the DJ in the disco) was pitch hitting as karaoke host and he was delightful. We had soooo much fun. The Legend Show was off the charts. I am sad to say that we have lost touch with him, but I do hope we run across him again.
DJ still remembers the chocolate strawberries you sent to him. These are his absolute favorite!!
Because of the excellent job you and others at Carnival have done, DJ will be sailing on his 31st cruise next month. Carnival has let us know that he is one of six guests under 18 that are Milestone Reward Members. Since we don’t work for Carnival and are not travel agents, we think he is doing pretty well for his tender age of 17.
We saw you on the video of the Philadelphia event and you looked wonderful.
We hope that your bright smile and quick wit will be gracing the ships again very soon.
Please know that we are keeping you and your family in our prayers.
Linda
(Mom of DJ)
It was nice to relive some of the earlier blogs especially the Fred & Ginger story.
Good evening John. It must be exciting for the two of you that at any moment a new young baby will enter into your lives and man will things suddenly change my friend. The love of holding a new life of your own, being a new parent, having new grandparents and all the great things that occur with the birth. Just to let you know John, I didn’t get my 65 inch TV screen until I became a grandfather. Have fun my friend.
Paul F. Pietrangelo
John: Better not give the Thingy anything but powdered milk, don’t want him/her to get foot and mouth disease! Listen to Fred he knows what he is talking about! HA! HA! I can just see you, if I were there I would’ve been on the floor laughing hysterically too. Today’s blog was wonderful! Especially practicing for your talk with thingy in about 10 years! Yes, kids are a lot smarter than past generations, and No, 10 is not too young for the birds and the bees talk! In fact he will probably teach you a thing or two! You might just LEARN something interesting! Won’t be long now till the BIG day, 2-3 weeks away! Hi to Heidi and Thingy! Your friends, Linda & Mike
John:
Your Fred and Ginger story was great even though it was the second time I read it. I do miss your tales from the ship. I know Heidi and Thingie will be missing you, but, I can’t wait to hear more of your stories about the strange passengers. Speaking of strangeness, I have two names to suggest for your little angel to be, I used common names for my babies, Michael and Lauren, I really should have named them Ineeda or Iwanna. You already know that your tool and toy days are gone.
Regards to the lovely Heidi. I can’t wait to see pictures of the little thingie.
Marie
For Malcolm –
I’m so sorry you’re in the hospital, and our thoughts and prayers are with you. We’ve sailed with you a few times (Conquest and Victory), and hope you’ll be back for our cruise on Miracle in July.
Hi John,
In response to one of your prior blogs concerning the port of Tampa, your guests may want to check these out as well as the Lowry Park Zoo.
Things to do in Tampa prior or post cruising and I would suggest the brand new Tampa Bay History Center (http://www.tampabayhistorycenter.org/) which is within walking distance of the port. Just across Tampa Bay in St. Petersburg you can find one of the largest collections of works by Salvadore Dali (http://www.salvadordalimuseum.org/home.html) as well as the fine Florida Holocaust Museum (http://www.flhm2.org/) and the Museum of Fine Arts (http://www.fine-arts.org/) . There are of course the splendid beaches including sparkling Clearwater Beach and Spring Training home of the Yankees, Phillies and Blue Jays. Here is a link for all of the Tampa Bay Area (http://www.visittampabay.com/static/index.cfm?action=group&contentID=4)
Bruce and Debbie
I just love reading this stuff every day. I don’t recall reading about the blog in the paper this Sunday but I had a change this week and bought the People since they seemed to have excellent coverage of Wolves gaining promotion to the Premiership. Didn’t bother reading about anything else.
I also have to say that having worked with the general public for many years “There’s nowt so queer as folk”
John:
Yes, indeed, we used to “cruise” when I was growing up. I can remember that gas was 33 cents a gallon back then. We would put a dollar’s worth in and “cruise around”.
So I guess I was “introduced to cruising” a lot younger than I thought! LOL (just a different kind of cruising)
I had to laugh about “no more gadgets”….
DJ just came in and said he wasn’t ever getting married….he was going to spend his money on himself. Looks like you have a believer!!!
As for the upgrades, I understood your joke and took no offense. David flies every week and is routinely upgraded to First Class due to his Mileage Senority. He is in North Carolina this week and yes, he got upgraded to First Class.
We would love to see Carnival operate in a similiar way.
Three members of our family are Milestone Reward Members and our other son in college has 16 cruises under his belt…. so we are certainly would not be bashful about wanting “upgrades”.
As you said, we have earned it.
I would also like to say that I can understand Elaine’s frustration on Embarkation. The number of VIP do seem to be “growing”. Since our family of four were all Platinum before the program started….I can remember there only being 8 Platinum folks on a cruise (4 of which were us).
Now there can be as many as 50 Platinum members on a cruise. I think that Carnival is simply going to have to “adjust” the number of VIP Representatives as the Platinum number grows.
Certainly the Carnival Reps in a port should “review” the number of VIPs they are going to have that day and set up accordingly to handle any “heavy days”.
In the past, those individuals in wheelchairs went through the regular line and only got “priority” when actually getting on the ship. The ships (in the past) have boarded weddings first, VIP second, handicapped (wheelchairs walkers etc) third and then the general population. I don’t know if that has changed.
We have never witnessed someone in the VIP office just because they were in a wheelchair. That would not make much sense, because their cards would not be pulled and placed in the VIP office ahead of time. Perhaps this was an unfortunate fluke.
In any event, Elaine is expressing similiar chat on the cruise boards where the increase in VIPs are concerned. Not so much about wheelchairs, as just about how to handle the natural increase number of VIP members as the Platinum numbers grow.
Boy, an increasing number of Platinum cruisers is certainly not a bad problem for Carnival to have!! LOL I am certain that Carnival will find the solution.
In the meantime…. any time that the ole “upgrade fairy” wants to visit us…..our door is open!!!
Linda (Mom of your friend DJ)
John -
1. Just remember, it is better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission. Of course, buying her a new gadget (or whatever she wants at the same time) doesn’t hurt.
2. Cruisin’ – here in America, the so-called car that you refer to was sold by Mercury and affectionally know as the Debris for it’s ability to fall apart. But, yes, we did have cruisin’ in this country – IN THE FIFTIES!!!
Jon
I remember Fred & Ginger–wasn’t he also the one that was a funeral director in this small town in PA where they lived? And Ginger we were afraid had passed on and he hadn’t noticed?
Now speaking of thingys past, what has become of Mrs. Nob? I seem to remember that last you spoke of her, you were going to have to pay a tax for sponsoring this ass. I do hope you will continue to support her when the thingy is born.
My thoughts and prayers are with Malcolm and Chris for a speedy recovery for both.
Yes, we cruised here in the US and there was only one place at first and it was the first McDonald’s in town. Traffic was backed up in both directions of cars waiting to get into the parking lot every Friday and Saturday night–this was so silly since everyone was in cars, there was no one standing outside for us to look at except that one girl who was like your “Sally” and had to walk in to get a coke so that all the guys in the cars could see her.
It was fun at the time and looking back it was harmless fun at that.
We are sailing the Miracle on May 8th and I contacted him via an employee on Facebook. Having just arrived to his new ship, he was kind enough to respond.
Wishing Malcolm a speedy recovery and well wishes to his family.
for Malcolm
We were on the Miracle with you when you got sick and we could tell you wern’t yourself. We so hope you get better. We loved you on the miracle cruise on April 6th before you got sick. we had hopped to talk to you but we saw you were busy we wanted to add a little note that being our third cruise with you we still like you just as much as our honeymoon cruise on the paradise out of miami with that crazy social host named malcolm really helped us to remember that cruise. The when we ran into you on the pride several years later in the stairs of the life boat drill we we estatic to see you the blond hair through us off at first but we new that was you. We rememebr the pride and you calling bingo it was so funny a Lady called you out on a number saying you hadn’t called that number. So what did you do (seeing carnival still havd the overhead bingo sign before computers) you took he whole sing and turned it towards her. walked around to the front and pointed to the number. We still laugh about that to this day! So seeing we expected to see the blond hair again we were shocked to see that once again you had almost no hair. We can’t wait to see next time what your hair will hold.!!!!! Thank for the memories malcolm and we do so hope you get better!!!! So we can see you again on another cruise!!!
Big Fans,
Frank and Bridie
Hey john I think carnival should have cruise director paint ball or something!!! Survival of the strongest cruise director!!!
hello john and heidi!
first all the best to chris and malcolm and their families as well. health is number one priority as it is needed for all the rest, as i well know!
won’t be long now heidi! i know you must be so excited! don’t let the thingy get his foot in his mouth or something like that, you’ll have to breast feed so that doesn’t happen! ha ha
smiles, bonnie and prince charlie
John, just a piece of advice from a mother of 2 grown kids. If you’re going to give the wee little one the talk about the stork , you best give it to him while he is still a wee little one. If you wait until he gets a little older he may be taking you aside and telling you that this bit about the stork is far fetched and proceed to tell you about the birds and bees.
My thoughts and prayers are going out for Malcomb and Chris.
While everyone is saying a prayer for them, would you please add Larry, Gloria aka Sue’s hubby
to the list. Larry apparently had a heart attack while we were on the Valor 3/29
but she couldn’t get him to go to the infirmary. He was still complaining of chest pains and she
finally got him to go to the ER where they confirmed he definitely had suffered a heart attack He is still in the hospital where they are doing tests. Hopefully it will be something that can be controlled with meds. Saying a prayer………….
Countess Carolyn
Hi John,
While I am still allowed gadgets it comes at an expense. My last radio controlled airplane cost me a living room suite.
For the guys out there, never use the excuse that since the wife had more cruises than you, that you need to take one by myself to even the count. That has come back to haunt me ($$) several times now when I wanted to get away and she couldnt.
Dave
We have never been much on gadgets. I think be bought the first and last the VCR ever built. Of course it was 25 years between them. My car radio would still be push button if they made them. My old truck still play’s the cassett tapes. Sadly the 8 track player gave up the ghost a few years ago. The less we spend on gadgets the more I can cruise. Its a simple thing to live cheap and travel well.
Hi John, “cruising” is how Danny and I met and 6 months later we were married. That was 44 years ago. Now days the kids are not allowed to cruise in Hagerstown, MD. where we met. Things sure change.
Hope you soon se Thingy in real life.
My best to you and Heidi.
Jennifer
Love the story about Fred and Ginger again! It is why I refuse to let my husband have a pair of sandals! He would try to wear black socks with them too!
And I know you are going to miss your gadgets. But just think of all the new things…. Bob the Builder toys….. Fireman Sam videos…..Smartie Containers laying all over the house, with rocks, dirt and marbles shoved in them, etc. (I do miss Smarties — they have a different taste than M&Ms!)
Hi John
I have a beautiful name if the thingy is a girl.
Miriam Mathilda Heald. My best to you Heidi and the thingy.
Jeanette
My sister is in a wheelchair and neither of us have ever understood why she is escorted to the front of the line. She is sitting and the rest of the line is standing.
On the airplane it does take her longer to get in her seat but she gets on the ship just like anybody else.
John,
I just want to thank you for your quick response in having someone from Carnival contact us regarding my husband’s boss’s desire to conduct a series of classes on board a cruise ship.
I know you are so busy, and I really appreciate the time you take out of your day to take care of our requests.
Thank you VERY much.
Brenda
Malcolm, praying for your recovery. You are loved by God. thankyou for making us and so many others so happy. Sailed with you aug 08, as we where in the newly wed game for our 40th anniversary.
For malcolm, our prayers for your quick recovery. You are a special great person, that God loves.You made our cruise in Aug 08 so special. we where in the newly wed game celebrating our 40th anniversary. Again, get well real soon.
For malcolm,our prayers are for your recovery.
To Malcolm,
We were lucky enough to cruise with you last year and got to enjoy personal conversations with you as well. You have the patience of a saint, having answered many many questions that my 15 year old nephew kept asking you. Not once did you get annoyed with him. (and trust me, he asked lots of questions!!)
Your WOO HOO kept us going all week long. You are outgoing, friendly and extremely entertaining, which are the perfect characters for a CD. Please get well and continue doing what you do so well. With Mum by your side, all will be ok.
John Please Respond.
Hi John we had a question in reguards to the Dream. We have booked for May of next year in a 11 Suite. We always travel in a 11 suite on our cruises. We most recently were on the Miracle and our suite had a single convertable sofa. Now we noticed that our cabin on the Dream has a Double convertable sofa……?? How does this work john? We are thinking of our sofa on the miracle and can’t see how this would become a double convertable sofa??
Thanks
Frank And Bridie
For Malcolm…
John, please tell Malcolm’s mom that I’ll be praying for Malcolm and the entire family.
I’ve not had the pleasure of sailing with Malcolm but I’ve never heard a bad word about him.
Here’s hoping that he’s back with us soon.
Regards,
Mach
Did we cruise when I was young? We sure did, but in the very small town I grew up in (Northern California) we called it “draggin’ Main”…it took all of 10-15 minutes, driving very slowly up and down Main Street so we could check out all the other cars draggin’ Main. Our turn-around points were the High School driveway and the John Deere tractor store driveway. Those were some great, carefree days! At the time I complained a lot about living in such a small town (one stop light). Now I realize how lucky I was to be able to grow up in such a great place. Can’t wait for the happy news when the Thingy/Thingette arrives. Heidi looks absolutely amazing!
Hi John & Heidi,
Ah yes – Fred & Ginger – I remember them so well. What a pair!
FOR MALCOLM: Get well. I want to cruise with you again. I first cruised with you when you were on the Imagination. My sister and brother-in-law cruised with you last year on the Victory. Now you’re on one of my favorite ships – the Miracle. I hope to be back on her next year, so please get well and come back on board. Us Bronx people are tough & strong Malcolm!
About the VIP line & wheelchairs: I didn’t see this the last time I was in Miami, but that was in 2007. The last cruise in NY had 2 separate lines before you get to check-in. The one on the far left was for VIPs. While I was waiting (security had stopped the lines because there was a lot of people already waiting), those people in wheelchairs on the regular line were all let in past security. And there was an exceptional amount of people in wheelchairs on this cruise. Why they were let in first, and those on the VIP line still had to wait, is beyond me. I guess I’ll find out if it’s the same in November.
Hugs,
Carol
To Malcolm:
Good wishes for a speedy recovery are heading your way. I have not had the chance to sail with you yet since you were on vacation when I sailed the Victory last July. But I did enjoy meeting you at the Carnival event in Philly in November. You were very entertaining. I was the one who asked you to convey my regards to Peter Rossetti the piano bar entertainer on the Victory last summer/fall. Thank you very much for doing so, I got a nice note from Peter shortly afterward.
Get well soon! Know that there is a whole cruising web-verse out there send you good vibes.
Take Care,
Laura (aka divetrash)
Dear John, First of all our prayers and thoughts are with Malcolm and Chris. We had the pleasure of sailing with Malcolm on the Victory and he was a joy to have as CD. I certainly do remember cruisin’ when I was a teenager. However, it still happens every Friday and Saturday night on Long Island. My husband and I have 1957 cars and we still go to car cruise night hangouts. My car is a Thunderbird and Dave’s is a Chevy BelAir. Best wishes to Heidi and Thingy. Love to you also John.
Florence
FOR MALCOLM:
Best wishes to you for a quick and complete recovery. We sailed with you twice (both on Victory) and you seem like a great guy – and are a fellow New Yorker! You’re in our thoughts and prayers.
John (please reply),
A few weeks ago you mentioned the possibility that you would be the CD on the Carnival Freedom sailing on 6/28/09. We are on the cruise just before that (6/20), so is there a chance you might be on that sailing as well? If not, is Todd staying on as CD until you arrive?
Speaking of CD’s in general, I sincerely hope that you are encouraging them to come up with their own original material. They have a tough job– I could never do what they do week in and week out– but it does get a bit old hearing the same old jokes every single cruise!
Thanks!
When I was growing up in Davis, OK we called it draggin’ main. You would start at the Ez-Mart go down main street (speed limit 25 mph) wave at people you know…windows down, rock music blasting loud…then turn around at Ballards Drive-In and go back the other way. During football season when we would play our rivals… we would go drag their main street and throw eggs and toliet paper at the other kids…(they would be doing the same thing). This was like a right of passage for everybody that owned a car or got their parents car to go drag main. Even after school if you didn’t have anything else better to do…you would drag main for like an hour or two. My mom claims that they did the same thing when she was growing up in the 30’s only they didn’t do the eggs and toliet paper like we did!! She called it cruisin’ then too! I do have to make a comment about upgrades. The first time I ever cruised with Carnival was on the Destiny out of SJU. My friend and I booked a 6a(ocean view) and got upgraded to an 8a (balcony)! I knew that she had cruised with Carnival many, many times…but to have that happen…I was so shocked…and so was she. After that I was hooked…whatever cruise we went on I would pay the extra money to for the 8a; because I had to have my balcony. Each time we cruised we would book a 8a and get upgraded to a better balcony cabin. Now we never told Carnival that we were travel agents nor did we ask for any special upgrades…it just happened. I was just happy I got my balcony. Now the last cruise that she went on…she didn’t get upgraded…nor did she care…and she was platinum status too. I read alot on your blog about the different status levels and the VIP line and stuff. I personally think that Carnival should really tweak it’s status levels and offer something for those people who have cruised with CCL for like the 20th-30th time. When I would attend the talks that the CD would give they would acknowledge the past guest and how many times they have cruised…but surely CCL could do something “really special” for those people who have made it to the 20th-30th time call their level the “black” level or something really off the wall like the “tanzanite level”. Maybe when it comes to the whole VIP line CCL could be pickyer about who exactly is a VIP? I just think that surely something could be done about that to satisfy both the VIP’s and the people who are in wheelchairs that require extra help in boarding. As for the whole gadget thing…and not being able to get any cool gadgets because of “the thingy”. Just wait until he or she get’s older and discovers all those cool gadgets…the it will “daddy buy me this…daddy buy me that…” then you could use that as your excuse as to why you had to have a 52 inch plasma HDTV. I can just hear you know telling Heidi “Honey I couldn’t help it…thingy needed it to watch 101 Dalmations” All my best to Heidi and thingy…and of course to you John…Rock on.
[...] A Fruit Punch Memory Isn’t every kid supposed to have that fireside talk with their Dad about the time you first start noticing that [...] [...]
John,
You silly, inexperienced dad! I say that filled with love and appreciation and actually as a mom who is going to fill you in… You child is your “Get any electronic gadget you want free” card. All you have to do is say,’ I heard this is essential for hand / eye co-ordination’ or “it’s all the rage in physical fitness’ when you want a new video game system (Like Wii fit).
When you want a surround sound theatre in your home (which now resides in our finished basement) all you have to do is say, “Wouldn’t you feel more comfortable if the kids were here with their friends rather than who-knows-where unsupervised?
Or, when you want that really flashy car, pray you have a girl and say, “I read this has the highest safety ratings, and are you really willing to risk our daughter’s safety in a Smart Car?
I tell you this because we had four wonderful thinies before we turned thirty, and our oldest is graduating from High School and moving out this summer. My home is filled with more electronic gadgets than I will ever have time, much less any desire, to figure out. However, in the name of father/child bonding, my husband has always swayed me when he puts the argument in terms of how it effects the mental or emotional well being of our children. He knows it’s the one way to stop my train of questioning that ends with, “Honey, I don’t really think we need that.”
I will also admit to using this myself. It’s the plausible deniability all parents learn- doing what’s best for your children is an unquestionable trump card. If you play ignorant occasionally and let your spouse think you bought their sincere dedication to your thingy, there is no harm, especially when you can use it to your own advantage later. As for whether the thingies really need any of it? Well, maybe not. However, ours relish it and it does mean that they and their friends spend time at our house where I can stop in frequently with snacks and get an idea of what is going on.
So, take heart. Your chance is only two years away. As soon as your thingy can say “Please Mummy!” you are ready for shopping. Mind you, this only lasts until they are old enough to have desires of their own (Around age five) and then you will be too short to consider anything you want. Enjoy it while it lasts.
Savor every second- they pass more quickly than you will believe.