Friday, June 08, 2007

Seattle May 19th, 2007

Here we are in Seattle after flying from LA to Portland and then finding the next day that our car battery was dead. Don saved the day by charging the battery and getting Becky and I on our way to Seattle. Randy (Becky's friend from work) took us to the ship,
This is a view from our ship to another sailing away, and a shot of a container crane for Mike and everyone at Long Beach Container

Me with beautiful Seattle behind

Becky bidding Seattle Good Bye!

Once underway there is a lot to do, unpack bags, practice disaster drills and eat, the ship was full speed ahead and the sea's got rough, very rough. Becky took a sea sickness pill and went to bed, I decided to walk around, I caught a show, and a movie, walked through the Casino, a lot of bling and lights and money, then I tried a bracing walk on deck. The waves were coming over the railing of the 7th floor deck! The wind and dark angry sea was the back drop for the other cruise ships lights off in the distance, looking like a toys bobbing in the waves, it was marvelous. Arriving back at the Stateroom, found that Becky hadn't really been asleep, wanting to know what time it was I looked (at the cell phone) and found it was 3:13am, WHAT? Mom you should have come back earlier....after being in the room for a time hunting around in the dark for pills, jam's and book I decided that I also needed one of "Becky's pills" . Trying to sleep was like being in a Belly Dancer's Womb. The next morning, or rather later on that morning I was awaken by the cell phone alarm, Becky hadn't slept much and took another pill, there was moaning and "why did we come on this cruise, my vacation sucks, is this ever going to end", with no answers to any of these questions and the fact I had lots of fun planned, the "shopping planning talk" then the Naturalist's slide show and then ? Off I went and by my cell phone it was 8:00am. I hurried to get a good seat for the "Shopping Program and found the door closed, it was then I noticed I was alone, no other passengers about, I walked around following the route I blazed the night before, I wandered a good long time wondering if I had finally slipped into the "Twilight Zone", that when I found a young man hurrying along the passage, shades of Alice in Wonderland, I asked him the time, 5:30am madam, and off he went, gloved hands and all. WHAT?? That's when I noticed the moaning. I looked over the railing into the lobby 3 floors down and saw them.... the overflow from the hospital, the ship pitched, more moaning. I went to the Pursers window to find out why my cell phone was so off, I never found out as the poor gal on duty had two telephones to her ears, yes, yes I know there is vomiting but let me connect you with the hospital, I know the line is busy, I know you've called 911, (to the other phone, yes yes let me connect you to the hospital, yes I can hear the vomiting, please hold) this is when I met Jim... he was another cell phone alarm user, we wandered about together talking about our lives and why we were on the cruise. Finally we said good bye as I needed big cup of tea. There was no waiting at the "anytime" dinning and got not only my hands but my food "sanitized". It was a quiet repast, only the man vacuuming the water from the deck, (not sure if it was from the pool that they had had to drain, as the waves in the pool began to effect the rock of the ship or from the waves that still crashed over the railings) and the window washer. The more hearty of us began to move around the ship and finally the day began to unfold as planned. I met Jim again and we sat together at the shopping show, and then I sat through a wonderful presentation about living alone on an island for two years! Lots of spinning and knitting could have been done I thought, but he was a reader. Then feeling a little guilty about leaving Becky alone for so long I went back to the cabin and forced her up on deck. It wasn't as rough,

This is Becky knitting the rest of the Cashmere yarn (in Newport Rocks) into a scarf for ME!

2 comments:

Sachi said...

*sigh* so lovely!

CHERI! said...

What a "ride"! I've missed your posts. Can't wait to hear about the NwRSA conference. Hope you have pictures.