Well, it is actually coming together. If you compare this picture to the last one you can actually see some improvements. Notice on the left hand side there is a threshold molding between the new floor and the tile. Fortunately that was an easy one so even till this day it is the only one done. You will also notice on the right side of the picture that there is a new addition to the room. I was careful in my photography not to show to much so you will want to come back for the next edition. One thing I have learned about floors or most other home improvement projects for that matter is that it doesn't end there. A new floor is just an excuse to have a place to hold all of the other things needed to fill a room. Remember the sad picture from the last blog! Out with the old faithful and in with the new. I have not been able to complete the finishing touches to this project because I have been helping to locate all the necessary items required to cover up this floor. For example, the chair [remember the sad picture] just was not going to work, so it had to go. The old sofa was just to nineties and it needed to move to the other room. Well looky here there is only a rocker and TV left; what are we going to do? How about some new furniture. In the picture you can see the corner of our new love seat which goes with our new sofa. Now the TV and stand don't go with the new look so they will need to move to the room where the old sofa went. Well, it looks like I have to look into getting a new wide screen LCD HD TV. Oh the sacrifices we sometimes have to make. I did my part and that will be included in the next blog. With the new sofa and love seat we needed to have matching tables so off we went in search of the perfect match. For the new TV we needed to get the right TV stand and that will be ready to pick up this weekend along with the the new recliner to fill that last hole of emptiness next to the rocker. I have to say that I really am enjoying spending my children's inheritance. Bottom line is that I am so happy that Kim loves what we together have put together in this project. She wanted it to look "pretty" which she has achieved and she wanted me to have a recliner. She has also been patient as far as my getting the finishing touches done and if she lets me stay home for awhile [retirement would even be better] I will hopefully be able to finish this job and move on to another. I will update later how it is all coming together but I have to say that the project in this one room is also creating some comfortable areas in other rooms. We are creating comfortable areas for the family to stay when they come to visit but just remember that the recliner was purchased by a very loving wife for ME! I love you all.

The Floor

Well, I shed a few tears this weekend. I am not sure if it is because of the picture on the right or on the left. I took off time from work on Thursday and Friday to put down a new floor in the living room and hallway. We have talked about this for quite some time and finally picked out what we wanted, purchased twenty three boxes, loaded them in the truck put them in the house and started the process of laying the floor at around 0630 on Thursday April 15. By around 1230 I had the first row of floor almost done. I was tired, hungry and frustrated. This is not a job for an old guy like me. Cutting into the doors and trying to make everything fit perfectly is extremely tedious.I decided to stop for lunch and after enjoying a nice meatloaf and cheese sandwich and glass of sweet tea I was beginning to feel a little bit better. After another twenty minutes of being on my knees and going outside and cutting the pieces and back on my knees to fit them in place I remembered why I didn't want to be doing this job. Kim was working and when she came home, her reaction to seeing the partially completely floor was worth all the pain I was feeling. She absolutely loved it. After about ten hours of working on the floor I wasn't much further than what you see in the picture above, but Kim loved it. The rest of the job went much quicker since there were no more doors to have to cut around. Now for the rest of my tearful saga. The picture on the right is VERY SAD. This is a chair that has provided me with many a Sunday afternoon nap for over thirty years. My darling wife has gently suggested for quite some time now that this wonderful part of the family be put out to pasture. Can you imagine? Well, i finally gave in and said OK so the living room can be set up with new stuff. So with tears rolling down my cheeks Kim and I carried my old friend out to the curb where you see it sitting in the picture above. What is even more sad is that no one has come by to give her a new home. Be gentle when you post your thoughts concerning this very sad moment. On the bright side I acquired two new tools that I absolutely had to have to complete this job. My nephew Michael loaned me a table saw and radial arm saw and numerous hand tools that made the job so much more bearable and I am very thankful for that. I also had to make some cuts that required a sabre saw so I made a quick trip to the local K-Mart and purchased a new Sears Craftsman sabre saw. Saturday I purchased the threshold and quarter moldings and realized that I needed a hammer drill to install the molding to the concrete floor. It just happened that I was able to find one on sale at Lowes. So I guess it is out with the old and in with the new. I hope that doesn't apply to husbands and other old guys. More updates to come as we finish the details and furnish the room. My knees, back and other muscles I didn't even know I had are just starting to return to normal. My love to all.

Roatan and beyond

Well, the bad news is that we are half way through our vacation but the good news is that we aren't going to think about that and enjoy each moment of this wonderful time we are having together. Day five is Roatan Island and since this is an island we have never been to we are looking forward to going ashore. One of the really great things about this island is that the ship could dock at the island and there was no little bobbing boats involved. For an explanation see my previous blog on Belize. Once again I got up and took the short walk to the dining area to get my coffee and and went back to our room to wait for Kim to get ready. Again the weather wasn't the greatest as it was a bit overcast and there was a light rain. We went to the dining room and enjoyed a nice breakfast once again and then gathered our stuff and proceeded to the gangplank to head out to our scheduled tour of the island. The sun was trying to come out but shortly after we got on the island it started to rain. Why didn't I bring the rolled up raincoat my wife had the foresight to pack? Oh well, tropical rain, how bad could it be. We found someone holding up signs for our tour that we had signed up for and figured that maybe that is where we should go. After many people started gathering in the same area the group led by the sign bearers starting marching away from the typical tourist shopping area toward a bunch of waiting buses and cabs. We got into a small bus with about six other people and headed out to tour the island.

On this tour we had a driver and separate tour guide. Our tour guide was very knowledgeable and our driver was rather scary. He was on a mission. The one main road on Roatan that we traveled was very hilly and very curvaceous and our driver appeared to be an ex-Nascar driver. I actually loved it. We made a couple of local stops to see the locals dance, make bread and sell us overpriced goods. Ask Kim about the vanilla; we still get a good laugh about that. Our tour guide gave us a lot of very interesting facts about Roatan and we were able to see a lot of the local culture. After purchasing a few things we certainly didn't need and sampling some of the local food we headed back to the ship. Since it was only shortly after lunch time we returned to the ship and had lunch on board. After all, we are on a cruise. After lunch we returned to the island to check out the local overpriced shopping area. One of the things I enjoy doing is getting a pin for my hat from every island or country we have visited and I hadn't purchased one yet from Roatan, plus the picture I posted here was taken when we went back, since the weather was much improved. After this short excursion we headed back to the ship ready for our nap. Tonight was the second dress up night and we needed to rest up so we could stay up past ten P.M. After our nap it was time to get ready for dinner. As you might have noticed by now, eating is a very big part of cruising. A quick shower ten minutes to get dressed and I was ready. Since I didn't want to go to dinner alone, I turned on the TV and as Brad Paisley's song goes; "waited on a woman". As usual dinner was great, the company was perfect and it was a wonderful evening. We went to the show after dinner and decided to throw some money overboard via the casinos. After checking out some of the nightlife on board we figured it was time to get this old body into bed.

Thursday we docked in Cozumel and since we had been there before we decided that it would be a good day to just relax on board while many others went ashore. The good thing about that is that there are often less people on the ship and therefore more available seating for relaxing. The not so good thing is that it still wasn't the Caribbean weather we were hoping for and working on that vacation tan just wasn't going to happen. After another great breakfast, we walked around the ship and found a great place to park ourselves with a good book and hunkered down for some good old vacation time relaxin'. Oh my it is time for lunch; how time flies when you are having fun. We strolled up to the dining area for lunch and rolled back on deck for a short walk. After the walk and a somewhat sunny place to sit and read we decided it was definitely time for a nap. After the nap guess what we had to do? It was time to get ready for dinner. After dinner we went to the show, enjoyed a little of the nightlife and it was time to end another beautiful cruising day with another beautiful night. Tomorrow was a day at sea when we would head back to port. We tried not to look at it as the last day of the cruise but as another beautiful day together on this wonderful vacation.


For the last day at sea we had earlier signed up for a special tour called the "behind the fun tour". We truly enjoyed the island tours but this tour was the best to us. We got to go everywhere on the ship from the laundry which is below the water level to the bridge where we got to talk with the captain. Talk about the best seat in the house! We toured through the kitchen where we were given samples of desserts to the control room where we got to see how all the ships operations were handled. We went behind the scenes of the theater and saw how the performers prepared for the shows. What an amazing tour. The tour took about three hours and we got a whole different perspective on cruising. Of course after the tour there was lunch and another wonderful day at sea to enjoy the limited sunshine and relaxation. This was a much needed and great vacation. I am back to I guess what we would call normal life now but the memories of this week will live on. It reminded me that I still love cruising and God willing I hope to be able to cruise again. God bless you all!

Day 3 Already?

Day three was to be another day at sea. Sea days are my favorite part of cruising as being on the ship is what I really enjoy. Alot of people would probably say, "what is there to do on the ship all day?". My response to y'all is anything or nothing. Let's face it, what would you be doing at home? Working around the yard or in the house, watching TV or something equally exciting? Remember, I am on vacation and I have been doing all of those things and I am here to do nothing. How much more different could it be than to be on a very large ship out in the ocean [alright the Gulf] with no land in sight and no lawn work to worry about. I am not here to do something but to do nothing, and I am excelling at that endeavor. With that said, lets continue with our vacation story. Most of the day consisted of eating, watching, eating, napping, eating, reading, eating and relaxing. Is there any wonder that I gained five pounds during this cruise.

On the fourth day we were scheduled to arrive at Belize. We got up early in the morning, sort of, and again I walked the short distance to get my coffee. The ship was stopped for our departure to the island of Belize. While I was getting coffee I noticed that there was still no land in sight. Why was the ship stopped in the middle of the ocean when we were supposed to be getting off to visit an island? Wait a minute, there were a bunch of little boats coming toward the ship. With a little straining of the old eyes I could see what looked like land way off in the distance. But the little boats seemed to be bouncing up and down quite a bit. Uh-oh, this was not looking good. I went back to our room with the coffee and proceeded to wait once again for Kim to get ready so we could go for breakfast. We were scheduled for a tour on the island so we needed to be ready to board one of the little bouncing boats at a specific time. We enjoyed a nice breakfast, got everything we needed to go to the island and proceeded to the lower level of the ship where we would leave our beautiful home on the water and enter what to me was a glorified rowboat. Now in case you are wondering, I don't like boats unless it is somewhere in the neighborhood of one hundred thousand tons in size. It is not about getting seasick which has never bothered me, it is just that putting fifty plus people on a piece of wood or fiberglass in five foot seas with no land in sight is not my idea of a good time. But, we were on our way.

As you can tell because you are reading this blog after the fact, we made it to our destination. We once again stepped on solid ground. For me it is either a VERY large ship or God's green earth, the little bouncing boat just doesn't cut it for me. The first order of business was to find a bathroom. We were getting close to our time to start the tour but some things could not wait. Apparently many others had the same idea so by the time we found our tour group we were on the last bus which was kind of an overflow bus into which ten people were crammed in a space reserved for six, or so it seemed. Our tour guide/driver, Robert, was really great. We went to a couple of different places and learned some of the history of Belize. We saw some of the typical tourist rip offs, some local dancers and culture and had a very enjoyable day. We returned to the pier and after a deep breath boarded another little bouncing boat for the return trip to home base, the Triumph. When we finally got back to the ship it was to late for lunch so we settled for a between meal snack. Now it was time for a nap. Hey, we're on vacation. After a short nap it was time to get ready for dinner. After five minutes I was ready and proceeded to watch some TV while I waited for Kim to get ready. Love that Brad Paisley song; "waiting on a woman". Dinner was once again very good and our waiter, Kelik, and his assistant, Ethel, were the best. After dinner we went to a show and then wandered the ship in search of entertainment. As those of you who know me understand, I am not a night person. Maybe it is my farmer roots, but once the sun goes down and the work is done it is time for bed; but I was determined to overcome those roots and see what actually happens when the sun goes down and the lights come on. We watched some karaoke, held hands, walked around the ship and decided nine o'clock was pushing it and headed for our room. Tomorrow we were going to visit Roatan Island off of Honduras. We scheduled another tour and as much as I enjoy being on the ship, we were looking forward to visiting an island we hadn't seen before. Good night and pleasant dreams.

Vacation continued

OK so we were on vacation but we were also tired. It was time to turn in and get some sleep. No, we are not much for the night life but we were going to try during this cruise, but not tonight. After a good night sleep I awoke feeling very refreshed. I don't think Kim was feeling quite as refreshed when I tried to wake her up. Because we had an inside cabin it might as well have been midnight instead of 0630. I got out of bed, got dressed and headed toward my morning coffee which fortunately wasn't to far away. We were only a short walk to the stairs, up one flight and around the corner to an endless supply of coffee. I grabbed two cups, filled them up and headed back for the short walk back to the room. Kim was up and getting ready and I sat down and enjoyed my first cup of wake up juice. After coffee, Kim was ready and we headed for one of a cruiser's great delights; breakfast. A short walk down the hall, up one flight of stairs, around the corner and we were looking at a breakfast lovers delight. One of my personal favorites is the omelet station. I enjoy watching them make the omelet almost as much as I enjoy eating it. We got our omelets, fruit and other entrees and sat down to enjoy our first cruise breakfast. I love cruising, and the grin on my face was showing it.

After dinner last night we met up with the other couples we had dinner with and they told us they were unhappy with the service at dinner and were going to change their seating to a different dining room. We thought about the idea of sitting at a table for ten by ourselves and decided it was even worse than sitting at a table for ten with six other people who would probably ignore us because they were cruising together. So after breakfast we went to the dining room and spoke to the head waiter. We explained the situation and asked if there was another table that needed an extra couple or a table for two. There was a table for two in another part of the dining room so we were re-assigned. This was Valentines Day and a dress up night so we would see how it was going to work out. After this we decided to tour the ship and wait for lunch which is another one of a cruisers delights. This was a day at sea so we looked for a place to try and enjoy some sunshine. The pool area was extremely crowded and very noisy since no one had any place to go. We found an out of the way place, drew up a couple of lounge chairs and prepared to sit and read and enjoy some wonderful warm sunshine. Wait a minute, were we heading into the Caribbean or were we in the north Atlantic? It was cold! This was the coldest cruise we had been on since we started cruising. The wind was blowing, the sun was hiding behind the clouds and and we were not warm at all. We found a more protected area near the somewhat inside pool, put on our sweatshirts, picked up our books and settled in for a relaxing day at sea. But wait, it was almost time for lunch.

After a very satisfying lunch we walked around the ship some more and thought about how a nap would probably be a great idea to prepare us for dinner. Should we go back to our room or find a warm cozy place on deck? Oh the dilemmas of cruising. We perused some of the activities on board, went through the shopping areas, found a nice place to sit and read for awhile and then went for a nap before dinner. After a shower and shave, I sat down and watched some TV and proceeded to wait on my woman to get ready for dinner. After a movie and a couple of sitcoms we were ready for dinner. We found our new table for two and met our new waiter. He was delightful. Our table was between a table with a couple and their young daughter and a table for four. It was really great and we had a wonderful Valentines Day dinner. We were all dressed up and after dinner we went to a show and then walked around and checked out some of the nightlife aboard the ship. Now remember that when the sun goes down that is when night life starts for me. It was time to head back to the cabin and put a nightcap on this beautiful first day at sea which also happened to be Valentines Day. Need I say more?

Well, since there were actually two people that responded to my last blog I will put off for a short while going to bed and write a bit about my recent vacation. The vacation was absolutely WONDERFUL. I will have to admit that it was a bit cooler than we would have liked but what a great time we had just being away. As i have mentioned before it has been unusually cold down here. If you look at one of my earlier blogs you will see a picture of ice on my pool. Excuse me but this is Florida! If I wanted ice on my pool i would have stayed up north; but i digress.
We started our vacation on Friday even though the ship wasn't leaving till Saturday. We booked a motel room for Friday in Slidell, just outside of New Orleans. We had a leisurely start Friday morning, dropped Fozzy off with Kathy and had lunch in Crestview. We were on our way and I could feel the tension starting to fall away just a bit. We got to the motel, checked in, went out for dinner and just had a nice quiet time together. Our vacation was starting.

The next morning we got up, had a cheesy breakfast at the hotel and prepared to head out to the pier. Well, were we in for a bit of a surprise. We gave ourselves plenty of time but this was not only mardi gras weekend but the Saints just recently won the super bowl. As soon as we got near New Orleans it appeared that everyone east of the Mississippi was headed into New Orleans. Mind you, i had been wound tighter than a thin rubber band and this wasn't helping. It took us about an hour and a half to go a distance that should have taken about ten minutes. Deep breath, it is going to be alright. Finally the majority of the traffic split off and headed toward the French Quarters and we headed toward the pier. There it was; OUR SHIP. We turned into the parking garage, but what was with the long line of cars in front of us. People were getting out and handing their luggage to unknown persons who promised to get the bags to the ship. Now I was feeling better but Kim was starting to get nervous. What if our bags didn't make it to the ship. We would have our pictures taken in the same outfit for a whole week. Now you know Kim was getting REAL nervous. I gave the guy with the luggage cart five dollars hoping that would help him remember our room number on the ship since he didn't have and tags to put on the bags. Now Kim was REALLY getting nervous.

We drove up a couple more levels in the garage after leaving our luggage with some dude we never saw before and found a parking space. After parking the car and breathing a sigh of relief we headed for the elevator. I was hoping we could remember where we parked when we got back but I wasn't going to worry about that to much right now. We walked into the building and were shown where we needed to go; back outside the building around to the other side and through some long corridor. Has anyone seen a bathroom? You have to remember that we just spent a whole lot more time than expected traveling and were now standing in what appeared to be an endless line. Have you ever seen the Detrol commercials? That was me! Think desert thoughts. We were herded down a hall, up an escalator, down another hall, through those rope mazes they set up and finally through a baggage scanner. All this took almost as long as the trip to get here; and still no bathroom, which was starting to become a real problem. Finally we got through the scanner, gathered our belongings, put our shoes on and headed for the next line. There was not going to be any more line without a bathroom break.

Kim stood on the next line while i very quickly headed for the nearest available bathroom. Doesn't cruising sound like a lot of fun? There were people everywhere wanting to take my picture. Apparently they did not understand, that would not be a good idea right now. After returning to join Kim in line I was feeling so much better. This was the line that would really start our vacation. We would be verifying our cruise statue, dinner seating, and receive Kim's favorite cruising item; the on board charge card. After all of this we started heading toward the gangplank and boarded the ship. Now i was on vacation! I could literally feel the weight drop overboard and i was in another world, even if it was only for a week. I quickly threw off that thought and said this is day one and i am on vacation. OK, point me toward the food. After finding our room, sans luggage, we looked for something to eat since all we had to eat today was the cheesy hotel breakfast. Let the eating begin, and it did. Our first day on the cruise is usually just getting to know the ship. After all this was going to be our home for the next week and we wanted to know our way around. After a tour of the ship we headed back to our room to see about getting ready for dinner. It is a good thing that there is no dress code for dinner on the first night because we were still luggage-less. Need i say that Kim was getting more nervous.

We went for dinner and found our table. It was a table for ten but we were the only ones sitting there. Can you say awkward. OK we didn't have our luggage so deodorant and fresh clothes were not an option but just us at a table for ten tucked away in the corner. After the waiter took our order six people showed up and sat at our table. They were all acquainted and cruising together and after the obligatory introductions they talked among themselves and Kim and I stared at each other. I love cruising, always something different. After dinner we went back to our room and what do you think we saw? Nothing. Now Kim was wondering how we could make our two outfits work for the whole week. We sat in the room for awhile and heard some noise outside in the hall. Kim opened the door to look and there it was; my suitcase. OK maybe she could accessorize with some of my stuff. Alright her suitcase finally showed up later and she was a very happy camper. It took a little longer to get there because they had to go find a very large dock hand to help move it. We are on vacation!!

As usual it has been a long time since my last blog. I am going to write just a short blog to see if any one is reading it. If you are reading this, respond to let me know if I should continue. We recently returned from a REALLY GREAT vacation cruise but i have spent the last two weeks at work catching up from being away. Now Don is going away for the next week and i will spend that time being very busy! I will post more on our WONDERFUL vacation on the next post. I am also thankful to my nephew Michael that i am getting back into a regular workout routine. Want to know more about how that is working, please respond to this blog. At my age I figure that if no one is reading this blog i might as well just go to bed, which is what i am going to do right now. Look forward to hearing from ya'll.

Wow, it has been a long time since my last post. I just read the wonderful post my daughter recently did and she inspired me to write again. Let me start by saying look at the picture i have here. That is a picture of the pool in my backyard. I'm not sure if you can tell but that is a layer of ice on top. Excuse me but this is Florida. If I wanted to see ice on my pool I would have stayed up north. Global Warming is hard at work keeping the entire country covered in snow and ice including Florida. There should be a law against that. Alright enough whining. As Michele said in her blog, a new year and a new decade. It seems like it wasn't that long ago we were saying "welcome to the year 2000"; a new year, a new decade, a new century and here we are a decade from there. Alot has changed in the last decade.

You'll have to read earlier blogs and read history books to see many of the changes over the past decade, but as for this blog just read on. If you are following this blog at all you will remember that my last riting was about our trip to Calloway Gardens for our 42nd anniversary. In Sept. Kim's sister Kathy had heart surgery at UAB and wound up having a stroke. She is home now but the effects are still there. Our great grandson Jayden turned three in Oct. but he definitely looks like he is six. Kim had surgery [they call it female surgery] in Oct. and thankfully had a really good recovery. I got to be caregiver [which I don't do well] for a while and learned how to work the stove and washing machine and all kind of neat new things. November marked one year that we have had Fozzy living with us. He has been such a joy! He cheers us when we are sad, makes us laugh all the time and everyone absolutely adores him. Just look at that face; need I say more. We also had the opportunity in November to see our very dear friends Ray and Grace who live in North Carolina. We had a really great visit. It was so nice to be able to reconnect with such good friends. What a great time we had.

The holidays came and went so fast I barely remember what happened. We didn't go anywhere but had a great time with family right here in sunny Florida [see picture at beginning of this blog]. As usual we had to much food, but a really good time being with the family. At Christmas time Sandie came down from Georgia and stayed with us for awhile. I don't think she was prepared for the cold but then neither was I. The first few days of this new year and new decade have been very busy. Last week I was not feeling well but there was so much that had to be done it all seemed like a blur. This week the temps are supposed to get back up in the fifties like they should be, it is going to be another very busy week and I am just looking forward to our vacation/cruise in February.

I have so much to be thankful for. I have been married to the most wonderful wife for 42+ years, I have two beautiful daughters and two great sons in law, nine awesome grandchildren and one bigger than life great grandson. I have a good job in these difficult economic times, a home, food, clothing, friends and my cancer is in remission. Whether I have all of these things or not God is still awesome and in control.