Author Archives: Sparky
MSC1 Day 6: At sea
This was a card day. A windy card day – the ship was rocking enough for me to wear my wrist bands for the first time. But I never felt seasick. After a late breakfast, we started playing Hand, Knee and Foot at 11am and didn’t stop until it was time for trivia (4pm). Again, … Continue reading
MSC1 Day 5: Roatan Island, Honduras
We have been to Roatan Island before and we like it. The people are laid-back and friendly and the island, though not exotic, has some beautiful beaches and fine houses. It also has a distressing number of shacks. But it still ranks higher, in our eyes, than either Costa Maya or Belize City. And it … Continue reading
MSC1 Day 4: Belize City, Belize
Another day, another port that we don’t like all that much. Belize has some wonderful places to visit, but Belize City is not one of them. It is like Detroit which, as a friend once put it: “You have to get out of the city to find something to do.” We didn’t really want to … Continue reading
MSC1 Day 3: Costa Maya, Mexico
Our first port of call was Costa Maya, Mexico. We have visited Costa Maya twice before and we still don’t like it. It is fine as a place to embark on an excursion, to a Mayan site or a snorkeling adventure, but it useless as a destination. There is nothing there but souvenir shops and … Continue reading
MSC1 Day 2: At sea
The first day was spent entirely at sea, cruising along the north coast of Cuba. The weather was considerably warmer – in the high 70s – and mostly sunny, so it was a lovely, smooth day to cruise the Caribbean Sea. We slept in until after 8, then I embarked on a search for cappuccino. … Continue reading
MSC1 Day 1: Embarkation
The day began with final chores: finishing the packing, loading the bags into the truck, shutting windows, turning on the air conditioning, turning off the water and hot water heater, locking up. Then a short drive to the hotel to fetch Jett’s sisters and their luggage. It all fit. Barely. A stop at Starbucks then … Continue reading
Pre-cruise prep
As I write this we are sailing away to Mexico. I will write about the boarding process shortly. But this post is about the final pre-cruise preparations. Most important among those preparations was arranging care for Rusty. Most honored stepson Joshua once more rose to the occasion, driving all the way from VA in 2 … Continue reading
“One False Move” by Harlan Coben
Copyright 1998 by Harlan Coben. Published by Dell, a division of Random House, Inc., New York. Some (a few?) of you may recall that I reviewed another Harlan Coben book, The Woods, back in August and raved about it. One of the best mysteries that I have read in many years. Well, this is the … Continue reading
Another try at a cruise
We like cruises. They are, in our view, very relaxing and generally a good value. We have always had a good time. Even our aborted attempt at a 27-night transatlantic/Mediterranean cruse last April, interrupted halfway through by Jett’s hemoglobin problem, was fun until it wasn’t. So we are going to try again. This time it … Continue reading
Earrings
This may not seem like a big deal, but it is. Jett got her ears pierced a few days ago and is now wearing earrings again. It is a big deal because she had to remove her earrings back in May when radiation treatments began and has had to keep them out due to CT … Continue reading