THE CHAMPIONSHIP OF THE WORLD ...

December 12, 2016

... is tied at 6 games all.  In our spare time we play a few hands of rummy.  Sometimes complete games.  Sometimes just a few hands.  But the Championship of the World stands tied as of this moment, Day 10 of our cruise.  Your humble scribe has come roaring back, down 4 games to 6 to tie the score.  Will my luck stand?  Will she recover and snap back?  Stay tuned!

You might tell from this opening that it was a slow day at sea.  And a smooth day a sea.  Our thanks to the Captain as he found water almost mirror-like today.  Bonnie went up early to get me some coffee and an English muffin covered in peanut butter so I could rehearse for my 9:30 a.m. talk and she said it was one of the most beautiful sunrises at sea she’s ever seen.  The sun played tricks and the clouds looked like islands on top of the water.

Michael, my audience loved your joke.  Kindly send me another.

With the early talk we were able to enjoy the full pleasures of the buffet for lunch instead of just a hot dog outside by the pool.  There were some Chinese offerings today and I enjoyed a particularly tasty spring roll.  The ice cream today was something nasty sounding that I don’t remember, plus espresso, and the espresso ice cream was yummy.

We got in an early nap and then just laid around.  I worked on talks for an upcoming cruise while Bonnie played Scrabble on one of her electronic devices.  Then we went downstairs and played game number 6 (see above) while we waited for the dining room to open.  Charles was back, having recovered from his chocolate induced migraine.  He brought along a bottle of champagne which he won in a lawn bowling tournament, and we toasted each others’ good health and fortune, some with champagne, and some with ice water.  I finished off my roasted cod dinner with a very good creme brulee.

Mark Preston, formerly of the Lettermen, was the headliner tonight and he put on a great show, singing songs that we knew the words to.  He included a couple of Christmas classics: “You’re a Mean One, Mr. Grinch,” and “Grandma Got Run’d Over By a Reindeer.” It really was a fun show by a real professional.

Tomorrow’s talk is at 1 p.m., and “Spice” finishes up the food series.  “Pirates and Sailors” starts Wednesday.  We set our clocks back another hour tonight, so you will only be three hours behind us tomorrow.

And with that, I will say TTFN!