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Day 6 – Isla Roatan, Honduras

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The morning started entirely too early, when our room service appeared at 6am. We were to meet our ShoreTrips tour guide at 8am on the pier, so there was no sleeping in. And I have to admit, not being a morning person in the least, there was a brief moment when I honestly wanted to say “Screw ziplining, I want to sleep in.” But man am I glad I didn’t.

Ziplining through the Honduran rainforest was, simply, amazing. It was hot and took some effort—but it was so worth the $57 per person. After our group got off the pier, we had to wait about 15 minutes for the van to come pick us up. Then it was off through tiny winding roads with crazy as hell drivers and pedestrians with a death wish. In about 10 minutes or so, we were on the other side of the island at the South Shore Ziplining Company (I think it was called). There were four guides with us, and they got us all belted, harnessed, cinched, and helmeted up, then there was a quick 3-minute safety brief and we were off!

Oh, they told us we were NOT to take pictures—we were to concentrate on keeping our hands in the positions they told us (so we would keep ourselves headed straight and so we could brake). But, as soon as they said we couldn’t take pictures, they said they would take them for us! So one guide had like four cameras on his arm and around his neck, and he just alternated using each of them for taking pictures throughout the morning. (So we all have to do an email exchange so we can make sure we get the pictures that are on everyone else’s cameras!)

I was the very first one off the platform, and it was sooooooo exhilarating! It went so quickly you had to remember to take time to look down and around (instead of just forward to the next platform)—with the lush greenery whizzing by on all sides. (Well, actually, I didn’t remember to look down until about the third platform.) Some platforms we all fit on, so they waited until we were all there before starting the next line. Others were smaller platforms, so they would start us on the next line while people were still coming in. Between a few of the platforms, we had to walk up flights of stairs (and when I say flights, I mean steps cut into the side of the mountain, braced with pieces of wood—and in a very few instances, real wooden stairs) or up mountain paths—with roots and rocks and trees and all.

The guides were absolutely wonderful, even though there was a bit of a language barrier between us (some more than others). You could tell they did this all day, every day—as they knew exactly what they were doing (a good thing when your life is on the line), when to stop for us to catch our breath, and when to stop for photo ops—and they seemed to move around and up and down like monkeys. We all moved along fairly quickly, and soon we were nearing the end. I didn’t count how many lines we did, but I’d guess it was at least eight or nine. The best one was at the highest point, looking out over the ocean, and it was our photo opportunity:

They also warned us it was the fastest line of them all. All morning long they had pretty much been telling us NOT to brake because we’d end up going too slow and then we’d have to drag ourselves to the platform (not fun, a few of us ended up having to do it) but on this one, they said feel free to brake ALL the way down otherwise you will come in TOO fast. I’m not sure if they didn’t trust me or what, but they sent me down with a guide. I honestly didn’t care why they did it, because it gave me a chance to just look around and not have to worry about keeping myself straight or braking or slamming into a tree at the end of the line. So, I got to go down sideways, and enjoyed a nice view of the ocean as my legs swished a few tiny tree branches on the looooong way down.

Everyone just had an ABSOLUTE blast and it could not have gone better…and everyone in our group was extremely thankful to Tom (and me) for setting it all up. I am sure Costa Rica would have been great as well, but we were very satisfied by the whole experience. I can easily see us doing this again and again, whenever and wherever we get the chance. I highly recommend it to anyone.

Afterwards, they said they could take us to the beach at no extra charge—except most of us didn’t have suits, as the beach hadn’t been on the itinerary. So after some discussion, it was decided those who wanted to get off at the beach would do so, and the rest would continue on to the ship. Of course, there were more language barriers to overcome, and unfortunately, we never really did—as we got to the beach, there were four of our group left in the van, and the driver just disappeared (although the van was still running so we were sure he would come back). Then the other couple decided they would just stay, so it was just me and Tom left in the van.

Neither of us had our suits and I didn’t want to go to the beach if I couldn’t go swimming, so I just wanted to go back to the ship so we could shower and/or change, then we could go back to the beach. I was also feeling kind of non-social so didn’t feel like hanging out at the beach with a group of people. But the driver didn’t come back. And didn’t come back. And didn’t come back. And we saw him wandering around. So Tom was like, “Well, I guess we’re staying.” So I was immediately crabby because I did NOT want to be there, it was NOT what I wanted to do, and I was seemingly being forced to do it anyway.

So I took of my shoes and socks (and ankle braces!) and stomped off to at least go stand in the ocean. After a few minutes it was so hot I said screw it, took off my t-shirt, flung it onto the beach, and waded out farther into the water and dove in. Everyone was like “What the—?” and before I knew it, Heidi was taking her t-shirt off and coming in as well. She said she never would have done it if I hadn’t, so she was glad. So we were out in our shorts and bras just having a good ol’ time. The water was crystal clear and the perfect temperature—just slightly cool but warm enough once you were in it for a bit.

Then the others started heading into the water, and the guys yelled out to us (we were probably 30 yards farther out) some comment about going topless, so I took off my bra and waved it over my head. Again, much laughter from the group—and cameras were coming out of pockets. Heidi quickly followed suit, and then another girl joined in the fray as well. It was hilarious! I can’t wait to see the pics of the three of us waving our bras over our heads!

While we were there, we struck up some conversation with the people in the cabana next to ours—a bunch of really nice people overall, but there was one couple from California that we really clicked with, so we chatted with them quite a bit. Tom said he had actually seen them the night before at the Disco (after I had gone back to the room to preserve my ankles). We were talking about shore excursions for Belize, and ended up inviting them to go cave tubing with us—and we were all really looking forward to it.

A few drinks, a bit of sun, and two hours later, it was back on the van. Some of the guys wanted to buy some rum, so the guide said he would take us to the grocery store—which ended up to be about a 30-minute round trip. (I thought it was somewhat asinine to want to buy alcohol here, when we had been at other ports where alcohol was more easily accessible—plus you could buy it pretty cheaply on the ship, but oh well, what can you do? Apparently we had no say in anything once we booked the trip, LOL.) At least we got a good view of the ship from where we were—and we got to experience even MORE crazy driving (some of us just shut our eyes). Then they dropped us off back at the pier and some went one way to go shopping and we went back to the ship, perusing a few of the booths that were set up in between. There were lots of neat wood bowl sets and intricately hand-carved jewelry box-type things for pretty cheap prices, but we really don’t need any of that, so I bought two tiny carved keychains.

Then it was back on the ship to get out of the wet clothes and grab lunch. Then it was back to the room to shower and watch us debark. As I type, we are on our way to Belize… I wish I had time for a nap, but unfortunately, dinner is in an hour and Tom’s alarm is going off in 10 minutes. So I may just close my eyes for a quick few minutes.

Which I did, and woke up in a frenzy because I had slept for what I thought was way more than 10 minutes, and Tom hadn’t woken me up, so I was thinking we had either missed dinner or were going to be late. Except we weren’t—I had been looking at the time on the laptop, which is not the real time. You see, Daylight Savings took place while we were on the ship but we were instructed to NOT change our time until we were headed away from Belize Wednesday night—apparently it would be easier to just keep the original time as long as possible. We also had to deal with time differences in Roatan today, double- and triple-checking the time to make sure we got back to the boat in time. So anyway, the laptop doesn’t know we weren’t supposed to make the time change, so it changed automatically, so when I awoke with a start and thought it was 5:15 it was only 4:15. I know, damn, I could have slept longer. It’s amazing how tired you feel once you stop moving.

It was our last formal night, so it was dress blues again for Tom and a new dress for me, bought especially for the cruise. We had more photos taken on the way to dinner, just in case we ended up with a good one (although we blew our wad on photos earlier in the week, with the other formal photos). Our dinner table was sparse, as one couple was at the supper club and we aren’t sure where another was, so there were only six of us. Moments after we sat down I realized we hadn’t brought the camera—on the way out of the room I asked if we were going to need it and we both thought no. Duh. I’ve only been taking it to dinner EVERY night to take pictures of the menus (so I can describe the meals) and the actual meals themselves. Oh well.

So for starters, I couldn’t decide between the three soup offerings, so I had a Corn Chowder, a Lobster Bisque, and a Chilled Bing Cherry soup. The best was the Lobster Bisque. Tom had something with shrimp and crawfish in it (yummy). For salads, I went basic with a Caesar and Tom had something with green beans and cherry tomatoes. For dinner, he had grouper and I had Chateaubriand, which was amazingly good. The dessert special for the evening was Baked Alaska, which we both had—then we finished up with a hot chocolate (me) and an espresso (Tom).

After dinner we stopped in the casino and I lost another $2 (getting up to a $5 gain during the process). I just had a $10 left so decided to quit there. I’ve lost track along the way, but I think I am down about $4—not too bad in the grand scheme of things. Then it was back up to the room to get out of the dress duds and relax for a bit before our friends got out of their late dinner and we headed to the comedy show at 10:30. We went downstairs to hang out around the piano bar while I surfed the net a bit and posted to the blog. Jennie (my coworker who is watching Maggie) sent pics of her daughter playing with Maggie—and although we LOVED them, it made us miss her!!

While we were sitting at the piano bar, who do we see walk in but the couple from the beach! I went in to say hi and chat for a few minutes, except it was so loud it was difficult so we said we would see them later at the comedy show. Our other friends then met us outside the bar, where we visited for a bit, then went to the show. The comedian was excellent—much better than the first one earlier this week.

After the show, it was off to the dining room for the midnight Gala Buffet—where the chefs go all out to create these masterpieces…of mostly crap you’d never want to eat, LOL. It was all beautiful and creative and amazing…but after the hour-long photo session (during which we just gabbed away with the couple from the beach), when we all got to eat, most of it we determined was completely inedible. Lots of gelatinous ooze, weird flavors we couldn’t tell were either fishy or fruity (seriously), a plate of sushi-looking items but with that strange jelly holding it all together, etc. In the end, we had a big plate of REJECTED items, and we ended up not eating much at all. By the time we were done eating and ready to go to bed, it was about 1:30am, so it was off to bed as we had to be up at 6am to get ready for our cave-tubing excursion!

Day 5 – Sea Day

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This was supposed to be our Costa Rica day, but instead was another sea day on our way to Isla Roatan, Honduras. The seasick pills make you tired, and I could barely drag myself out of bed when Tom got back from the gym around 9:30. I showered while he was up eating breakfast, and then it was off to meet at the Bacchus dining room, where we were both participating in the On Deck for the Cure one mile walk around the ship.

We had both “donated” $10 to participate, and received a t-shirt and bracelet. I was really surprised at the turnout—there were probably 200 people! The cool part was seeing part of the ship (Gatsby’s Gardens) which we never even knew was there! At the end of our three laps around Deck 3, we got pink lemonade, and then it was immediately off to the Phantom lounge to meet for the Galley Tour! We ran into our friends there, so went through the tour with them. I was tempted to buy the cookbook because it had the recipe for the coconut cake in there, but it looked fairly simple—white cake mix with coconut flavoring, and buttercream frosting with coconut flavoring and real coconut in it. I am sure google will turn up a similar recipe for free, as opposed to the $15 cookbook! They also had the towel-animal instruction booklet for sale, which I was tempted to get—but seriously, when am I EVER going to make towel animals?

Then it was up to Horatio’s (the lido buffet) for a quick lunch, and then back to the room for a nap (for Tom) and journaling (for me). On the way we ran into more of our Cruise Critic group, so chatted in a hallway for a bit with them. And then once we started moving again, we ran into yet another couple so stopped to chat with them. Finally back in the room, a nap sounded very good, but if I don’t keep up with the journal, I will never remember everything. Besides, what better excuse to sit on the balcony and watch the ocean go by? The balcony is shaded but you get a good breeze. Who knows…I may even take a nap out here if the mood strikes!

And a nap I did take, albeit a somewhat short one, or at least it felt that way. Unfortunately, the chaise isn’t terribly comfortable to nap on, but I refuse to be inside the cabin when there is a balcony just sitting there! Tom was totally crashed, and finally dragged his butt out of bed to get ready for dinner.

For starters, I couldn’t decide between the Vine Ripe Beefsteak Tomatoes and Fresh Buffalo Mozzarella (Marinated with Basil Leaves and Virgin Olive Oil) and the South Western Style Egg Roll (with Marinated Baby Lettuce and Sweet & Sour Salsa). Tom wanted the Cream of Fresh Garden Broccoli (Enhanced with Aged Wisconsin Cheddar) and I convinced him he also wanted to try the Penne, Tossed in a Tomato Cream with Vodka (and Freshly Grated Parmesan Cheese) which was a dinner option but also available as a side. It was worth convincing him, LOL.

You know, some nights there is one obvious choice for your main course. And then there are nights like tonight when I seriously wanted everything—or to at least taste everything. We had the penne as a starter so that was one less dish I had to order. Then I finally decided on the Pan Fried Fillet of Red Snapper (with Crispy Fried Vegetables, Black Olives, Cauliflower, and Grilled Tomato, with a Lemon and Caper Sauce and then the Oven Roasted Tom Turkey (with Sage and Onion Stuffing, Orange Glazed yams, Sautéed Scallions, Roasted Cauliflower, and Cranberry Relish) that someone else at the table also wanted to sample. (I also wanted to try the Veal Parmigiana and the Vegetarian Lasagna but refrained.) Tom went with the Grilled Filet Mignon of the Finest Aged American Beef (with Sautéed Young Root Vegetables, Potato Gratin, and a Red Burgundy Wine Sauce). Unfortunately, it was nowhere near as good as the steaks (and filet) we had had at the fine dining restaurant earlier in the week, so that was a bit of a disappointment. (I had predicted that would happen, so I avoided that selection.)

This was also the first meal I forgot to take pictures of everything BEFORE we started eating…and I just realized I forgot to take a picture of the dessert menu. So, I had apple pie a la mode and Tom had the aforementioned Chocolate Melting Cake. I had more hot chocolate because it’s SOOO good and Tom had an espresso. (If you order it in the dining room it’s free—elsewhere on the ship you have to pay like $5 for it.)

We wandered through the casino and I managed to zip through my first $1 in record time (damn nickel slots) so a 1c slot opened up and I was there in a flash. I managed to turn my $1 into $5, and then proceeded to lose it all. I have been trying to keep track overall, and I think I’m still up by at least $1 overall.

Back at our room, we had a stingray towel (very cute). Then it was off to wander the ship a bit, and we ended up back in the casino. I think I blew through another $5, so now I am back to $4 in the hole. Still not too bad, though. Around 9:30 we headed off to Karaoke, at which one of our friends was trying out for the Legends show at the end of the cruise (she was trying out for Britney Spears). Audience voting (i.e. screaming and applause) determines the winner, so we all had to be there for her. Unfortunately, the auditions weren’t until 10:30 so we went to the piano bar to meet some other friends and ended up just sitting outside the bar so we could hear the music but still hear each other—and stay out of the smoke. At 10:30 we all went back to karaoke and got there just in time to see our friend perform. And we voted, and she won. The other Britney Spears wasn’t too thrilled. Oh well.

Then everyone wanted to go to Dr. Frankenstein’s Lab again for Disco Night. So off we went. Unfortunately, it was going to be pretty boring for me since I was not planning on dancing. The 80s night really wreaked havoc on my ankles and I didn’t want to go through that again—so I left Tom down there with our group (and a DW—designated walker) and headed back up to the room, leaving him instructions to not come home too late since we have to be up at oh dark thirty to go ziplining (and as I type, it’s 1am and he’s not back yet, LOL).

It’s hard to believe we still have three full days left before we get back to Fort Lauderdale…and real life. We are NOT looking forward to it at all, other than we miss our animals and our own laundry facilities!

Day 4 – Panama

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I slept in while Tom went to the gym (are you sensing a trend here?). Well, let me backtrack. Our room phone rang at about 7am and I was so dead asleep I didn’t know what it even was, then I thought it was Tom’s alarm. By the time I realized it was the phone, Tom was answering it. Of course I could only hear his side of the conversation, but I couldn’t tell who was on the phone or what was going on.

Long story short, one of the guys in our group, who was part of the group excursion we bought tickets for when Costa Rica fell through, was calling us to tell us he had decided to do the Carnival-sponsored trip instead, he just felt more comfortable, yada yada yada, and Tom somehow convinced him to stay with our group. I mean, HELLO? Was he planning on screwing us out of the money since we had already purchased the tickets? And why call us at 7am? You never call ANYONE on a ship at that ungodly hour. So anyway, we were both pissed—both at being woken up and at him being an asshat. (He has not been our favorite person thus far.)

We both fell back to sleep for a bit, then Tom went to the gym. I got up and showered after he came back and we went up for a late breakfast. Again, nothing much interested me, so I just had a bagel with cream cheese, a few pieces of bacon, and a banana. Tom ate his usual oatmeal with some granola he brought from the room. As I was in line getting my food, Earl (our dinner waiter)s came up behind me and said he missed us last night and I laughed and told him we had eaten at Nick & Nora’s, but that we would surely see him tonight!

The ship was pretty empty since we were docked in Panama. We had not planned any excursions and really had no strong desire to go into town (we were warned it wasn’t a place you really wanted to just walk around). We lazed about a bit, confirmed our ziplining reservations, and then decided we might as well at least walk through the port in Panama. And that was more than enough, LOL.

It was hot and humid and there were tons of people milling about. We walked through some of the local shops in the immediate vicinity of the port, but all of them had the same touristy crap—think Mackinac Island, LOL, except the employees aren’t trying to make deals with you to get you to buy something. We wandered through a grocery store, where we saw quite a few ship employees buying necessities. (We had been looking for some cold sore medicine for me, but there was nothing.) Outside there was a lady with a monkey who was offering to take pictures for $1, but we just felt too badly for the poor little monkey who was all dressed up that we said no thank you. We did stop by a coffee shop and I got a fruit smoothie and Tom got some coffee drink. I was expecting a nice fresh fruit smoothie but was severely disappointed—she took out a carton, unscrewed it, and dumped some anemic-looking pink sludge into the blender with about a gallon of ice. Yuck. Tom said his coffee wasn’t bad (not exactly a ringing endorsement).

The only thing we bought aside from the two mediocre (at best) beverages at that shop was…more alcohol at the duty free store. The prices were better than what was on the ship (for some things we already bought) so we took pictures of the prices so we could get a refund (which Tom did later on that evening—$17 back for two bottles of Appletons Rum). Needless to say the hour we spent in Panama, just to say we visited Panama, was plenty.

Then it was back to the ship, and we decided to hit the pool for the first time (we just aren’t sit-by-the-pool-and-sun-ourselves type of people). We went up to the Adults Only pool and sat in the pool for maybe 15 minutes (were surprised it was saltwater, although now it seems obvious), then laid in the sun and read for maybe 15 minutes, at which point Tom left because he was getting burned. I left shortly thereafter—not because I was getting too much sun, but because it was just too hot and bright. Also, I didn’t want to get too red—I have been tanning for a few months and have no tan lines, but 15 minutes in the equatorial sun usually leaves tan lines you can NEVER get rid of. On the way back to the room I decided to grab some fries, then ran across our friends by another pool, so stopped to chat with them for a few.

Back in the room, it was naptime for Tom while I sat on the balcony and read. We were on the port side, so I had a view of the city. The port had a bunch of pastel buildings in a row, but beyond that it was sad and pathetic. The nap monster eventually overtook me, and it was nice napping on the balcony with the sun and the breeze…

We relaxed until dinner, and we were pulling out of port on our way to dinner. Unfortunately, there were some high winds, so the ship was ROCKING. It was extremely noticeable, and it was fun watching people walk—they all sidestepped at the same moments when the ship shifted. But it wasn’t fun dealing with the after effects. We were all kind of iffy (oogy) at dinner, and I am sure it was just the power of suggestion, but we all started getting headaches and drinking alcohol was the farthest thing from our minds.

For starters, I couldn’t decide between the Fried Mozzarella on Mixed Greens Served with Mannara Sauce and the Cream of Sun-ripened Tomatoes Enhanced with a Touch of Gin so I had both, followed by the Greek Farmer Salad (Iceberg Lettuce, Cucumbers, Bell Peppers, Tomatoes, Onions, Black Olives and Feta Cheese Tossed with Vinaigrette), and Assorted Seafood, Newburg Style (Black Tiger Prawns, Ocean Scallops and Fish Fillets, Tossed with a Creamy Lobster Sauce, Served with Saffron Pilaf Rice). I have to say I was less than thrilled with the Newburg, but didn’t want to get anything else, even after our head waiter assured me he would bring me anything else. Well, since I had already had two pieces of bread, two appetizers, and a salad, it wasn’t critical to me I have a full dinner (especially since I wanted dessert). And oh, what a dessert—it was coconut cake! Ironically, it was the Diet option, but it was very good and I thoroughly enjoyed it…with some strawberry ice cream and hot chocolate.

Tom had the Duet of Mussels and Shrimps Provencale Sauteed in Virgin Olive Oil, with Tomatoes, Herbs and Garlic for his starter, followed by the Greek Farmer Salad as well, followed by the main course of Tenderloin of Beef Wellington, a Filet of Beef Topped with Mushroom Mousse, Delicately Wrapped in Puff Pastry, Ginger Carrot Puree and Butters Broccoli Florets.

This was entertainment night in the dining room, so after the main course and while waiting for dessert, everyone was invited to join the conga line. Only two people from our table joined in. Again, since the ship was still rocking, you could see everyone kind of hop from side to side as the ship tilted. For dessert, I was geeked about the Coconut Cake (my new favorite obsession), which was actually the Diet Coconut Sponge Cake with a Low Calorie Cream Dessert Prepared with a Sugar Substitute. It was quite yummy. Tom couldn’t decide between the Bitter and Blanc (Warm, Dark and White Chocolate Bread Pudding with Vanilla Sauce) and Tiramisu (A Delicious Creamy Combination of Contrasting Flavors of Mascarpone Cheese with Coffee and Sweet Chocolate). I am not a bread pudding fan, but the Bitter and Blanc was DELICIOUS and definitely won top honors at our table.

After dinner we went back to the room and hung out for a bit, got changed, and decided to run our “errands”—Tom went to get the refund on the alcohol and I went to print out our excursion vouchers. We went to pick up our formal pictures we had ordered earlier in the week but they weren’t ready yet. Then we strolled through the casino and I quickly lost my $4—so much for always doubling my money. By that time, Tom was feeling a little woozy, so he went back up to the room and I just hung around downstairs for a bit. I went back up to the room to catch up on my journaling, and after a bit, Tom was feeling better and I was feeling oogy. I took a seasick pill JUST IN CASE and then it was off to meet our friends for some DVD Movie Trivia—which we almost won, dang it. Afterwards, we had planned on doing something, but I really just wanted to go back and go to bed, and Tom was raring to go (somehow, we always seem to be on opposite OOGY schedules). So we went back to the room, and I read for a bit and then we both went to bed.

Day 3 – Sea Day

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Tom got up to work out at about 6am, and even at that hour, our neighbors were moving their deck chairs around again. I just thought “What the hell are they doing this early?” then managed to go back to sleep. When Tom came back and I got up for good, I finally made the connection (with his help)—we are RIGHT BELOW the lido deck, where the pools are…and where ALL of the deck chairs are, LOL. So last night it was the crew putting the chairs away, and this morning it was the crew setting up the chairs for the day! I felt like an idiot for not making that connection earlier, because we had even commented how cool it was to be below the lido deck, because we got the benefit of the music (live bands) without being blasted out or sitting on the deck with a bunch of people and screaming kids!

So I finally got to sleep in—9:30, woohoo! We went upstairs to breakfast. Fortunately, not much appealed to me so it was a light meal (and if you can believe it, even with unlimited access to bacon, I only had a few slices). The restaurant buffet food just doesn’t seem to be that great on this cruise…which sounds kind of sucky but in reality is a good thing since the last time I ate way too much and always felt stuffed.

After breakfast we just hung around the room for a bit then went to check out our photos from the previous evening. They were all decent, but one was actually quite good…so we splurged and got a canvas print. (The day’s deal was if you bought a canvas print, the 8×10 was free. The 8×10 was expensive anyway, so it wasn’t really THAT much more to get the print. And it is a good picture!)

At noon, it was off to Nick & Nora’s, the high-end dining restaurant for a Food & Wine Pairing event. I am not a big wine drinker (as you probably know) but I was intrigued to see how wines went with different foods. It was very interesting, although somewhat hard to understand the women—one was from Indonesia and the other was from Romania. We learned things about tannins and acidity and if you eat something sweet before drinking a sweet wine, the wine is less sweet. (Yes, that one seems obvious, but it’s one of the few I remember, LOL.) And with a certain red wine, it tasted much smoother if you put lemon and salt on the filet mignon (something about like being like, maybe?) and with a white wine, if you ate something acidic before it, it tasted horrible. I could never possibly remember all the rules, and honestly I am not sure how much we will remember or be able to put what we learned into practice—and that’s why I’m not a sommelier.

Then it was off to the waterslide, where we were to meet our Cruise Critic friends. I am still on my “being vain” kick because we are going to a nice dinner tonight and I am not getting my hair wet…so Tom was the only one of us to go down the slide. Later this week, I definitely will—just not today. Then we ate lunch (again, nothing that really knocked my socks off) and Tom got a drink special that comes in a coconut with a monkey face (yes, you will see a picture). Then it was back to the room where we took a nap and then I sat on the balcony and starting reading one of the four books I brought!

As I got up to head inside, I saw a dolphin swim by! I called into Tom so he could come out and see it, but by the time he got out there, it was gone. So we waited a few more minutes and then a pair of dolphins appeared! It wasn’t until then, of course, that I decided to run and get the camera—and by the time I got back, they had disappeared again. We watched for another five minutes, but never saw them again.

At 5:30 we headed down to the Atrium for drinks with our group—and got a big shock as we saw posters announcing that Costa Rica was cancelled! Apparently there was a massive dock-worker strike scheduled for the day we were to be there, and the authorities thought it best if we skipped that port, since it would likely affect the docking, excursions, and all transportation. We were all immediately upset—we had booked an excellent and highly-recommended ziplining excursion in Costa Rica (outside of Carnival) and now we weren’t going! The only somewhat silver lining was that it wasn’t pre-paid so we didn’t have to worry about getting a refund. Carnival was scrambling to set up new excursions at our new port of call—Isla Roatan, Honduras—and we were all kind of freaking out because we all REALLY wanted to do the ziplining. It was really the ONLY thing I wanted to do, as well. We mentioned we should see if ShoreTrips (the company we used for our dolphin swim the last time) had any excursions, and everyone thought that was a great idea, so Tom ran up and brought the laptop down. They did have one, so we counted off and 10 wanted the tour, so we took a leap of faith and purchased 10 excursions…on OUR credit card (easier than everyone trying to order on their own). It was (is) a bit scary, since we don’t REALLY know these people, but I am sure it will all work out. Unfortunately, you typically have to wait three days for your vouchers to arrive via email, but we would be docking there in two days—and there was no place for notes on the order. I emailed them immediately and told them of our situation (rerouted ports) and asked if they could please rush our order. There was nothing else we could do at that point, so we enjoyed our drinks, ate some sushi (from the sushi cart by the dining room that is only open a few hours a day), then went back to the room to relax a bit before getting changed for appetizers and dinner.

Our appetizers (canapés) arrived a hair before 7:30 and we about fell over when we saw how many there were. We honestly imagined that the canapé order would be a plate of food—so that when they said we had two orders, we figured that would be just right for four people, and had them bring both at the same time (I even asked if that would be sufficient for four people and they said yes). So imagine our surprise when they arrived and we saw it was two PLATTERS—with probably 40 pieces on each one!

HOLY SHIT! It was entirely too much food for four people, but we managed to eat most of one tray. We called room service to at least bring us a few plates so we could divide up the leftovers to put in the fridge (and we sent one plate home with our friends). Everything was delicious—and we enjoyed some wine and conversation for an hour before dinner. Oh, and we didn’t get any announcement of who sent the appetizers, so we either have to ask room service or just ask all our friends and family!

We arrived at Nick & Nora’s promptly at 8:30 and were seated at a table right on the dance floor. There was live music (and singing) and it was actually a little loud—we had to shout a bit to hear each other, and I could not hear one word the sommelier or meat guy said. (Yeah, meat guy, LOL. I can’t be sure of his official title since I couldn’t hear it, but he was the guy who brought out the meat tray to showcase the night’s offerings.) I completely forgot to take a picture of the menu so I have to go from memory…

All of the starters looked amazing to me, and I asked if there was any way to order more than one, or to get a sampler. To my delight, I was able to order three starters if I skipped the salad, which was fine with me since I wasn’t thrilled with any of them. So I had a beef carpaccio which was DIVINE. It was sliced so think that it was almost a mush when you tried to eat it…but I could definitely eat that again. I also had a crab cake and lobster bisque. I stopped taking pictures after the carpaccio because the lighting wasn’t good and the flash was too difficult to get just right. Tom had onion soup, Heidi had escargot, and Geoff also ordered the escargot for us to share, as he is deathly allergic to seafood. We tried each other’s dishes and it was all amazing.

Tom had prime rib, Heidi and I had surf and turf (6oz lobster tail and 6oz filet mignon), and Geoff had the 9oz filet mignon. The surf and turf came with pumpkin ravioli which was yummy—and almost a dessert—and Heidi and I both chose the wasabi mashed potatoes which came wrapped in a phyllo dough-style crust. Of course everything was presented beautifully—and there was SO much food it was insane. (Here is our surf and turf presentation:

Nothing in the dessert menu really stood out to me, but the Washington Apple Tarte I had was good, and everyone else enjoyed their orders (I think there was a mango cheesecake and a trio platter with a chocolate torte, tiramisu, and a mousse). Oh, we also enjoyed two bottles of a DELICIOUS Riesling (I still have to try to find the name). Overall, the meal was very nice, but I would say I don’t have to do it again (beforehand, we contemplated doing it more than once). If it was a bit lesser surcharge, we might—but at $30pp extra, it wasn’t THAT good. I feel kind of snobby saying that, but it’s the truth. It was very good, just not something I want to spend an extra $60 on again. One of the best parts of the night was getting to dance a few slow songs—I always tell Tom that since we didn’t get to dance at our wedding, we always have to take advantage whenever we can.

After dinner it was back to our room to change for the bar. We were headed back to Dr. Frankenstein’s Lab for 80s night. An Officially-titled 80s Night—none of that “70s & 80s” business from the previous night. And to our delight, there were many more people in attendance, even though there still weren’t nearly as many as we’d thought there would be. We sweated our asses off dancing for maybe two hours. Heidi is a dance fiend and Geoff was drunk so they were a total hoot. Tom was thrilled to finally be dancing—he has been jonesing to go out dancing ever since he got home.

We closed the bar down and went back to our room and CRASHED. But a good time was had by all! We are thrilled to have clicked with Heidi and Geoff—we are the exact same ages (Heidi and I are 34 and graduated in 1991 and Tom and Geoff are 35 and graduated in 1990) and I am sure we will keep in touch!!

Day 2 – Sea Day

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We both slept fairly well—the waters were calm, the ship was quiet, and the bed and pillows were sufficiently comfortable. We had scheduled room service to arrive between 6:30 and 7:00 since the only breakfast available that early anywhere on the ship was coffee and danishes—and they arrived a bit early at 6:25, waking us up. While I was impressed with the prompt service, we were less than impressed with the actual food. Tom’s teeny tiny yogurt was still semi-frozen (and once he ate it, he said it was almost inedible until he added some Splenda). When asking for a bagel and cream cheese, I had hoped for a delicious, big, homemade-style chewy bagel, and instead got something resembling your typical store-bought tiny hard bagel. The cream cheese and banana were hard to mess up, LOL. But, it was okay overall since I didn’t really want a huge breakfast—the past few days we’ve eaten so much food that a light breakfast sounded perfect.

Tom headed to the gym as I headed to the spa. A tiny foreign guy did my hair (I forgot to check his nationality on his name tag, but he was Teodoro), and told him to pick whatever colors he thought were best, but I was thinking red or blonde. He ended up doing some medium blonde and dark red highlights—and it turned out very nice. The major luxury was, of course, having him straighten it. Unfortunately, it was still humid as hell, so I decided to be completely vain and stay inside today—not wanting to ruin the expensive ‘do. (Aside from the humidity, it’s really windy by the pool or at the pool bars, and that wind just snarls my hair something fierce.)

Tom came to check up on me and I was almost done so he waited, then we went back to the room and decided to just go hang out in the lobby area. He read a magazine while I wrote in my journal (i.e. this diary) and surfed a little bit.

Here’s me (and Tom!) with my new ‘do:

Interestingly, I got an email from my coworker saying that one of my bosses screwed something up and had emailed me asking how to fix it. Can you say DON’T CARE? Seriously, he had two tiny jobs of mine while I was gone, and he can’t even manage to do them by following the precise step-by-step instructions I left him? She told me he joked that they should have paid for my internet service so they could ask me questions. I told her that was fine if they still wanted to do it, but I cannot guarantee a timely response and I’m not doing anything other than answering emails. We’ll see what response I get when I check my email tomorrow.

Finally, it was time for lunch…and I was Hungry with a capital H. The lines are hit or miss, so I tend to go for the less crowded stations—which in this case was Asian, so I grabbed a spring roll and some type of beef dish, then went around the corner for the nationality of the day, Mexican, and had some yummy soup, homemade jalapeno tortilla chips with cheese sauce, a shrimp quesadilla, and grilled vegetables. I was sure I was missing a lot of food, but I had a plateful which was plenty, and figured I would check out the other stations on other days. I did finish with a tiny ice cream cone. Tom had a piece of fish, some ham, and dill pickles. Interesting, I know.

Then it was back to the room to relax and nap a bit before our 2:30 Meet & Greet—which I actually bailed on when I realized it was at one of the pool bars. I just could not be out in the wind with the new ‘do. Tom stayed to visit, and I headed to the lobby area again to upload my blog and surf—with a great view of the ocean cruising by. Unfortunately, there are VERY FEW outlets anywhere in the public areas of the ship—and the ones I knew where they were? Already being occupied by the photographers who were setting up for the evening. GRRR. So it wasn’t long before my battery died and I had to head back to the room. As soon as I walked in the door, one of our new friends called to say they wanted to hang out later (after their late-seating dinner) because they wanted to see Tom in his dress blues (tonight is formal night). Oh, and she also won the $500 slot tournament so they wanted to buy us drinks! Then Tom came in and we just sat and watched the ocean.

Then we got a call asking when we wanted our hors d’ oeuvres. Wait, huh? Yep, someone else bought us something! We are making guesses as to who it was, but will not find out until we get them—which we actually scheduled for tomorrow since they couldn’t get them to our room in time for tonight (we had to leave early for the Captain’s Meet & Greet). So we got all gussied up—me in a red ball gown and him in his dress blues. We looked good, damn good, LOL. So then it was off to the Phantom theatre where we had a free drink and some finger food. There was no real hand-shaking meet and greet, but rather the Captain and his crew introduced themselves up on stage. Most were foreign, but one girl was from New Jersey.

We left a little bit early, since we had to get pictures taken. If you’ve been on a cruise before, you know the drill. If you haven’t been on a cruise, every night, there are photographers lined up along the way to dinner and you can get your pictures taken. There is never any charge unless you want to buy the photos—which will be on display the following day. Since we were dressed to the nines, we got a few photos taken with the background of our choice. We kept our fingers crossed they would turn out, as we don’t have too many good photos of us in formal wear. Here is a self-portrait:

Our choices for starters included Black Tiger Shrimp Cocktail Served with American Cocktail Sauce (Tom) and I couldn’t decide between the Strawberry Bisque (a Chilled Creamy Strawberry Soup with Fresh Mint) and Spaghetti Carbonara (Tossed with a Creamy Bacon, Cheese and Garlic Sauce) so I had both (the soup was good, the carbonara not so much)! I forgot to order a salad, and Tom had the Wilted Spinach and Portobello Mushrooms with Fresh Bacon Bits with Walnut and Blue Cheese Dressing.

Since it was Formal Night, the main feature of dinner was the Duet of Broiled Main Lobster Tail and Grilled Jumbo Black Tiger Shrimp (presented with Mushroom Risotto and Broccoli). I went with that, and since Tom isn’t a huge lobster fan, he had the Roaster Prime Rib of Aged American Beef with a Baked Potato, Balsamic Glazed Tomatoes, and Sauteed Green Beans and Roasted Cauliflower. Tom was impressed because they actually managed to cook the steak as rare as he likes it. Tom couldn’t find anything he had to have on the dessert menu, but I indulged in the Caramelized Apples on Puff Pastry, served with Vanilla Cream and Caramel Sauce. It was good, but I was getting full so Tom finished it for me!

Unfortunately, I wasn’t feeling quite up to par—it was actually the roughest seas we had had thus far (the captain said the waves were about six feet) and the ship was rolling more than normal…so while it wasn’t too bad overall, I was feeling it.

Also unfortunately, I have been feeling a bit like a hypochondriac this trip, as I think I am just paranoid that I am going to get sick and waste the cruise. The night before we left, my throat started hurting. It could have been the weather or allergies, but I was sure I was getting strep or something, LOL. So Tom and I started taking Airborne, just as a precaution (who knows if it actually works, some people swear by it, but others think it’s worthless). Then, once on the ship, I became somewhat paranoid about getting seasick. I am not one to generally get seasick (and on the last cruise, only started to feel bad when the seas were REALLY bad) but somehow I felt more predisposed to it this go-round and every time I had a headache or my stomach felt off, I was sure I was getting seasick. Or maybe I was hungry, but I knew I wasn’t. Or maybe it was just a headache. Or maybe I shouldn’t have eaten that cookie. Or maybe I was really getting sick. Of course, our friends joked that maybe I was pregnant (which is definitely NOT the case). So at dinner, while the food was good, it wasn’t great (even the lobster and shrimp main course) and it didn’t seem to be settling too well and I felt bad for not really enjoying it as much as I normally would.

After dinner we headed back up to the room because Tom wanted to get out of his blues. He had thought he’d want to hang out in them, hit a few bars and whatnot, but once he gets them on, he really remembers how uncomfortable they are. We did stop by our friends’ room so they could see him dressed up and they took some pics of us as well. We also invited them to our high end dinner the following night (the dining room you have to pay a surcharge for, but it’s always worth it) and they were geeked about that, so we are looking forward to that.

We made it back to the room and saw our first towel animal! A dog that happened to be wearing my sunglasses! SOOOO CUTE! We changed out of our fancy clothes and we were both tired, in addition to me feeling oogy (yes, oogy—isn’t that a great word?) so we actually laid in bed and watched some TV shows we had on the laptop. Then there was a phone call…from room service again, telling us they had just received an email ordering us another appetizer tray! Again, we are not sure who ordered this for us, although I swear she said it was courtesy of Abbie—and the only Abbie we know is Jason and Julie’s Boston Terrier puppy (that we just saw in Floriday)…so if that’s the case, Jason and Julie have done too much, LOL. We will find out for sure tomorrow. So anyway, we called our friends to remind them to come to our room early for appetizers before dinner—which is a good thing, since we had to reschedule our dinner for 8:30 instead of 7 (when we changed to four people).

A little while later there was a knock on the door—it was our friends, just getting back from their late-seating dinner, wanting to know if we wanted to go to the dance club later because it was 70s/80s Flashback night. They were a little surprised we were both in bed, but we said we may try to make it. I was still feeling WAY oogy so I didn’t really want to go, but on the other hand, I felt like a schmuck staying in the room when I didn’t really feel THAT bad—guessing it was really just mostly in my head. Also, I had just—seriously, not five minutes earlier—taken out my contacts and taken off all my makeup! So we got dressed, I put makeup on again, and went up to the restaurant to grab a snack, thinking that might make me feel better. I had a Reuben and it was okay, but didn’t make me feel better or worse. We stopped by the front desk to pick up some sea sickness pills (just in case) and then it was off to the bar.

The dance club (Dr. Frankenstein’s Lab) was, well, less than we expected. It had the potential to be a lot of fun, but it was dead in there! You would think that with a ship of—what, 2500 people?—there would be more than 20 people on a Friday night who wanted to enjoy “oldies” music?? The other sucky thing was that other than the two 80s songs they played when they opened the doors (and we were still waiting for our friends), they played a rash of bad 70s music that just wasn’t my thing and I didn’t want to dance to. The husband tried to pull me out on the dance floor—like, literally pull me—but I just didn’t feel in the mood because the music sucked. They all danced a few songs, and we ended up leaving after half an hour to go the comedy show at midnight. The guy was okay, nothing spectacular, and I actually nodded off a few times because I was exhausted (remember, I was up at 6:30 to get to the spa by 8). We went back to the room and crashed. And…maybe it was a self-fulfilling prophecy??? But when I took off my lipstick for the second time that night?? I discovered I am getting another cold sore. UGH. I had one about a week before we left (still have the scar where it was) and now I have another one. And I have no medication or pills for it because, well, I usually get them twice a year, so why would I expect to get two in two weeks? Ugh.

As we were falling asleep, we wondered what the hell our neighbors were doing, moving their deck chairs around so much and making a TON of noise that late at night, but didn’t think much about it… until the next morning…

Day 1 – Debarkation

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It was a dark and stormy…day. We arrived at the port terminal under rain and thunder storms, hoping against hope that it wasn’t a sign of weather to come. The check-in process could not have gone more smoothly (or quickly) and we were very impressed—we were on the ship within a half hour, wandering somewhat aimlessly in the general direction of our room, taking in all the sights.

The ship is actually decorated quite nicely—everything has a literary theme (Frankenstein’s Lab and Phantom of the Opera, for example). This ship is larger than the ship we were on the last time (Holland America’s Zuiderdam) but there are nice (if somewhat gaudy) color-changing “lite brite”-looking signs all over and it’s fairly easy to navigate…although I still get turned around very easily (it will probably be Monday before I know which way to turn once I get off the elevator!).

Our room is just a bit smaller than the last room we had, but the balcony is a bit more private. The bathroom is nice, albeit smaller than our previous one—and we have a tiny shower instead of a tub/shower combo…but it has a detachable shower head and great water pressure!

We also had two completely unexpected surprises waiting for us (well, yes, I guess surprises are generally unexpected, lol). A box of fresh cookies and a plate of chocolate-covered strawberries and fancy chocolates were gifted to us on debarkation from some of our Tivo friends! (Thanks Amy and Julie & Jason! You guys rock!)

Then it was off for more exploration—we wanted to hit the spa and internet café to take advantage of any debarkation specials they might be offering. Unfortunately, they didn’t have a private spa/hot tub offering like the Zuiderdam had that Tom was hoping for, but he was mildly impressed with the gym facilities (which was a big deal, now that he works out at least an hour a day). I had decided against any massages, since my previous one (a hot stone massage) was less than impressive in my opinion—so instead opted for the $99 Crazy for Hair (or some similarly-named) package that included color, cut, and style! Ironically, I just got my hair cut last week (who knew I would want to get my hair cut on the cruise?) but I desperately wanted the color, as I’ve wanted to get my hair colored for quite some time (I threatened to do it the entire time Tom was gone and never did). I scheduled it for 10am so I could sleep in!

A funny side story. Tom was out on the mezzanine while I was in making my spa appointment. It took forever (of course, when I decided to make my reservation, there were about six people in front of me who all wanted like four spa treatments) so he was out there for probably 20 minutes. When I finished, he said one of the spa girls had come up to him and asked what he did for a living. He replied that he was an officer in the Marine Corps and she pumped her hand and said “YES! I WIN!” and then went back to tell her friends that she had been correct. He was flattered.

Then it was off to the internet café where we about choked on the prices—although if you bought a package that day, you also got extra minutes, plus were entered into a contest to win 500 minutes…so we’re keeping our fingers crossed. I hated to spend the money, but that cost plus my salon visit totaled about the same as the stupid hot stone massage the last time so all is well.

Then it was time for the life boat muster—the only necessary evil of cruising. It’s not really that bad, but it just seems like such a fustercluck because people don’t really know where to go, people are freaked out they are in the wrong spot, they are worried they’re not doing something right, and many are late in arriving. Ugh. Here we are as disgruntled yet still happy muster attendees:

Of course, to top it all off, it’s hot and muggy and you look like an idiot in the live vest. But then again, everyone looks like an idiot, lol, so we’re all in good company. After that 45 minutes was over (the actual drill takes 15 minutes, but with all the waiting, it was near 45 minutes) we headed back to the room and unpacked a bit since our luggage had already arrived.

Then it was time for a quick freshening up before heading off to the bar for our first Meet & Greet with the folks from Cruise Critic (a cruising forum where there are forums for each ship, which is further broken down into threads for each cruise date, so people can post and meet others who will be on the same cruise). We have been chatting with them for a few months, and of course, internet forums and meeting people on them is nothing new for us…but I hadn’t refreshed my memory on who was who or what people looked like, so I didn’t recognize anyone. Everyone, however, pretty much recognized us, lol. It was only slightly overwhelming trying to meet and talk to everyone, but there were a few couples we hit it off with. The funniest part was taking the group picture—they wrangled some Japanese man to take it, but then everyone started putting their cameras down and he ended up with about 15 cameras he had to use! He was a very good sport about it.

We had to cut the meet short in order to go to dinner—since we have the early seating. (We were teased by our Atlanta friends about being old people eating so early, but both of us don’t want to eat a full meal that late—but if we did that, we’d both want to go to sleep right after dinner! With the early seating, we have time to go back to the room or wherever and relax before going out for the evening.) We had prearranged to sit with other Cruise Critic board members—we figured we might as well sit with less random strangers if at all possible! (I still would have enjoyed sitting at a table by ourselves a little bit more, however.) The food was quite good and we enjoyed everything…

We started with a 2006 Piesporter Michelsberg Riesling Spatlese—which looked to be a later version of the same Riesling we had back on our 2005 cruise (I’d have to check the pictures to confirm).

For starters, Tom had Hickory Smoked Alaskan Salmon, Garnished with Purple Onion Rings, Fresh Dill, and Baby Capers. I had Asparagus Veloute, an asparagus cream soup.

Tom had a lettuce wedge salad and I had the Caesar salad.

For our main courses, Tom had Grilled, Aged New York Sirloin Steak with Three Peppercorn Sauce, Broccoli Roses, and Roasted Red Bliss Potato Wedges. I had Pan Seared Fillet of Tilapia, Herb Butter Sauce with Tomato, Stewed Shallots, and Eggplant Mash.

For dessert, Tom had a Black Forest Gateau with Cherries (damn, I thought I got a photo of that menu but I didn’t!) and I had the highly-recommended-by-anyone-who-has-ever-been-on-a-Carnival-cruise Warm Chocolate Melting Cake served with Vanilla Ice Cream.

I do have pictures of everything, so stay tuned for all the photos when I get home.

After dinner we crashed in the room for a bit, and then went down for some alcohol tasting in the shops. The guy was putting on quite a show and it was a riot to stand there and drink a few of his inspired recipe shots (“How about pineapple and coconut rum plus Baileys! How about mango and pineapple and coconut rum? Any suggestions?”)—and the alcohol was SO cheap we ended up buying about 10 bottles of various yummy things. (Lest you think we are alcoholics, those 10 bottles will last us about a year.) We hoped to win the 10pm drawing—your day’s alcohol purchase paid—but we didn’t.

Then we were just walking around and stopped by the Phantom Theatre where we caught the Welcome Aboard show, which was entirely cheesy with singers and dancers and the Carnival mascot. The comedian wasn’t too bad, but we hope the shows get better.

Heading back to the room, we had to pass through the casino. It’s great because there is a non-smoking section and plenty of 5c and 1c machines. I just do it for the fun, not the hopes of some grand monetary winnings, so I have all the fun I need with nickels and pennies! Anyway, I managed to double my money! I turned my $2 worth of nickels into $4!! WOOHOO! I felt kinda bad because I wasted $1 on the quarter slots, but oh well—I still came out ahead and the 20 minutes I was there was plenty for the night.

Then it was back to the room where we crashed and were in bed by midnight—I had to be up early to get to the spa (they called to reschedule me for 8am in order to give me a free foot and ankle massage—YES, PLEASE!) and Tom always gets up early to work out!

Other than the rain storm upon arrival and the resulting humidity wreaking havoc on my just-straightened hair (I went from sleek and shiny to poufy and wavy by dinner), overall it was a great first day!!

So I made an apple pie today.

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And I now know why I am not a baker—I apparently have no instinct and can’t follow directions.

I had been craving apple pie lately, and had no idea where to buy a “good” one in town, so thought it wouldn’t be that hard to make my own… Ha.

I didn’t want to wait the 15 minutes to bring the pre-made crust (yes, I was cheating!) to room temperature, so microwaved it on defrost like the directions said, but overcooked it so it was melty and soft and wasn’t that nice.

Then I decided to pre-bake it…following the directions for a one-crust pie instead of the two-crust pie. 🙄

I had too many apples, so had to quickly come up with a streusel topping for the leftovers, but we didn’t have enough butter so that was a crapshoot as well.

The three recipes I was looking at all had EXTREMELY varying amounts of sugar and flour, so I winged it. Completely forgetting that someone said to just use the recipe on the dough box.

That said, both of them smelled and looked good…and they passed the taste test, so all was well.

The best thing, though, was that I took the leftovers to our neighbors, the ones who were awesome to me when I sprained my ankles, and he just called to say it was “killer” so I guess I did well. :>>

New Year’s Weekend in Raleigh

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https://www.hudson2001.com/scrapbook/2007/rrnye2/

I spent New Years in Raleigh again this year, with the same people we spent it with last year. Of course it really stunk not having Tom there—and everyone REALLY missed him—but I did manage to have a good time! Tom was also able to call at his normal times, so he got to talk to probably 10 different people over the course of the weekend!

One of the first highlights of the trip was finally making it to a Trader Joe’s—if you haven’t heard of it, it’s a very cool grocery store. Andrew was kind enough to tag along and give me his recommendations. I was limited to non-perishable items, so I only spent $50, and when I told Tom, he said “ONLY $50?!” I didn’t have time for a return trip, but I do know that when we make the pilgrimage when he returns, we are taking two coolers. So far, I give thumbs up to the Dark Chocolate Edamame, Buttermilk Garlic Mashed Potato Chips, and some sort of spicy/jalapeno Flatbread that went wonderfully with the horseradish cheese dip. Those things didn’t make it out of Raleigh. The Dark Chocolate Pistachio Toffee gets a major thumbs up and the Asiago Peppercorn bread was okay plain–but much better toasted with a dab of butter and a sprinkle of fresh romano. The sweet potato chips were MEH (I keep thinking I will love them, but they are just okay). On tap (read: not sure if it it will survive until hubby gets home) are Sweet Potato Bisque, Rich Onion Soup, Mint Hot Chocolate, Dark Chocolate Covered Mints, Chocolate Covered Peanut Butter Filled Pretzels, Piccata Simmering Sauce, and Wasabi & Tamari Almonds. Sorry to blab so much about food, but you KNOW how I am about great grocery stores!!

A second highlight was our “high end dinner” Saturday night at Nana’s—a five course chef’s tasting menu with wine pairings. I knew I wouldn’t be thrilled with the wine, but I wanted to try it. Needless to say I would do the chef’s tasting again in a heartbeat, but would skip the wine completely. The interesting thing was that just reading the menu wasn’t that appealing to me—foie gras, escargot, root vegetables, grouper, cabbage, etc… But OH MY GOD was everything DELICIOUS! Aside from the venison dish, I actually think my favorite was the cold foie gras appetizer! Who would have ever guessed? (If you want to skip right to those photos, click here.)

We had a great dinner at Brasa, a Brazilian Steakhouse that serves you meat on a stick (so very YUMMILICIOUS with just as yummilicious waiters), another fun putt putt outing at Frankie’s (I had two holes in one and still only won by the skin of my teeth!), and a fun girls-only expedition to some, ahem, adult stores for some belated Christmas presents and some Welcome Home gifts. :>

The actual New Years Eve party wasn’t quite as crazy this year, as we only had about 30 people as compared to the 60 last year, but we still had a ball! I managed to stay sober this year, so was able to drive us all home when the party finally broke up about 1am.

Of course, checkout and the goodbye breakfast came too soon—no one ever wants to have to leave! And we’re already all talking about NEXT New Year’s Eve!

Christmas Eve Dinner

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So, funny story.

I am eating my Christmas Eve dinner at the computer. Exciting, right? |-|

It’s frozen crab rangoon, from Sam’s, totally nothing to write home about, but it’s somewhat tradition to eat hors d’ ouevres on Christmas Eve (mom and I started it a long time ago), and this was all I had in the freezer. (Tradition also includes a bottle of Tosti d’ Asti, which I forgot to chill, so I am drinking the next best, our favorite Moscato d’ Asti.)

So, I have eaten one or two rangoons with no issue. Then I bite into one and the thing splits open and crab rangoon innards go shooting across the desk and land—are you ready?—ON THE CAT. Oh my god, I thought I was going to die laughing between the actual sight of innards shooting out of the rangoon and the look of surprise? terror? on the cat’s face. Of course she didn’t want to lick it off, and made to leap away to try and run from it, so I had to grab her and clean her (okay, wipe most if it off and then let her do the rest).

There’s nothing like crab catgoon? cat rangoon? crab rangcat? for Christmas. 😀

Two delicious salads!

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I forgot to post this picture earlier! After my bountiful trip to the produce market last weekend, I made not one but TWO tomato/cucumber salads because I couldn’t decide which type to make!! On the left is the tastes-like-home favorite made with sour cream and vinegar—and on the right is an olive oil/balsamic vinegar/feta concoction. Mmmmm, both were yummilicious! Yes, that was my entire dinner!!!

A Busy Day

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So I was finally able to sleep in today—I never seem to be able to sleep in, but I had stayed up later than normal, so woke up when Tom called me at 10am!! 88|

My actual agenda for the day started with a quick pass through the pantry to check for the necessary ingredients for a double batch of Lin’s spaghetti sauce, as well as premeasuring all the spices for two double batches (I like to have one set done ahead of time). But my day actually started by cleaning up nasty piles of Maggie vomit. She apparently found some eggs in the yard and either ate one or it was already broken and she was rolling in it. (I also tried to get a grooming appointment but they were booked.) I am not sure where the eggs came from—there are some birds that are always in our yard, which made me think maybe there was a nest somewhere (our neighbors had a nest in their grass!) but I didn’t see one.

After my spices and pantry-perusing was done, I made my shopping list, and off I went! Since I had to go to Sam’s anyway I decided to get the tires balanced again—I just had it done in April because the car was shaking when braking from a medium speed, but it was doing it again and when I picked it up, they said, yes they were off again. That concerns me somewhat because I am not doing any off-roading or anything that would skew the balance. (I have an appointment Monday morning for the 65,000 mile checkup, so will have them take a look at it, as well.) I also had a stop at Petsmart and Food Lion (for the odds and ends I couldn’t get at Sam’s).

On the way home I stopped at Bryant’s Farm, a roadside fruit/veggie market up the road about a mile. I always forget about it, but our neighbors reminded me of it (I went to dinner there the other night and raved about the strawberries—they were from Bryant’s). There was SO much good stuff there, I spent $25!! 88| The only thing missing from this picture is the watermelon and the piece of strawberry bread that disappeared 10 seconds after getting home!! Everything is soooo good, but the best? Fresh-shucked garden peas…and pickled beets! When I picked up the jar to look at them, the lady told me they were pickled beets—I told her I knew, I was hoping they were, and I hoped they tasted like my family’s beets! (I am sure no one here knows what they are. I can’t wait to try them!) I also can’t wait to have a toasted tomato sandwich, make a tomato/cucumber salad, make a tomato/basil/feta salad, and make a fruit salad!!!

Then it was time to make the sauce! Again, our kitchen is just too small for any real cooking…every counter was filled, the sink was full, and almost every cupboard door was open by the time I was done! I had decided to make lasagna, and of course, my eyes were bigger than my stomach (I wanted leftovers, but I make SUCH a huge vat of it, there is plenty for dinner for four PLUS leftovers for everyone), so I actually put the lasagna in the frig and invited neighbors for dinner tomorrow. 😀

Then it was up to the office to do some work to make up time from my Charleston vacation. I worked on the website, which is something I just don’t have time to do at work. Well, I sorta do have time at work, but I get interrupted so much it’s nice to just be able to do it on my own, at my leisure, without interruptions—it would probably take me twice as long to get the same amount accomplished.

Then I cleaned up the house a bit and finished unpacking from Charleston (I’ve been slowly using things out of the suitcase—I hate unpacking), watched some TV, and went to bed!

Welcome to Dallas!

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https://www.hudson2001.com…007/dallas0507/

This past weekend I was off to Dallas, Texas, for a birthday party!

The strange part is whose birthday it was—someone I had never even met! It was the mother of one of my new Tivo friends, and it was a surprise 50th party!

To be completely honest, I was actually going more for the abundance of other Tivo peeps that were going to be there—ones I hadn’t met yet, since there is a LARGE Texas contingent that don’t often make it to the east coast meets.

I was picked up at the airport by a new (CJ)) and old (Jeff) friend, where it was off to a yummy Thai lunch. Then it was off to a gaming place where we met up with a bunch of others to hang out, chat, and play games. (While I was there, our friends from home who were watching Maggie, called to say that our garage door keypad died so he couldn’t get Maggie right away—he had to go to the store for batteries!)

Then it was back to the hotel to rest and relax a bit before dinner—everyone was splitting into smaller groups for different restaurants, and our group was going to a mexican place—which was perfect since it was Cinco de Mayo! I was sharing a room with Jennifer, who I had never met. Luckily we got along SMASHINGLY!

The next day was lunch at Mia’s where I was [easily] coerced into trying their famous Brisket Tacos. OMG. TO DIE FOR. Then it was back to the hotel where Jen and I offered our room as Party Central—for peeps to gather and drink between party events (basically to drink cheap drinks instead of paying bar prices) and then watch the Kentucky Derby (complete with mint juleps, courtesy of Jeff #2, aka Smeek, our resident foodie). Here I am with two of the cute boys in attendance, David and Scott. ;D

Then it was time for the birthday party downstairs! During the latter hours of the party, it was off to the Pudding Shack—or, technically, OUR ROOM. :>> You see, a local peep is famous for banana pudding, and since we were all staying at the hotel, they needed a place to keep it cold…so we kept the Party Central and turned in into the Pudding Shack, since the pudding ended up in our tub:

Sunday morning it was time for people to start leaving—the worst part of any meet weekend. Those of us with later flights went to a game park and played mini golf (I beat the guys, YAY!) and rode go-karts.

Comedy of Errors

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So I got off work early (due to construction going on in our office) and figured it would be a good night to take dinner down to Rob and Cindy’s since I had extra time to fuss with it. (I have offered to have them down for dinner, but with their little one, it’s easier to eat down there. So sometimes, we take a meal down there.) So I called and left a message that I could bring down steak or chicken to grill, along with a side.

They called about 5pm and said that sounds good, but they have stuff to grill (brats and burgers), so just bring the side! And that’s where the comedy of errors really starts.

I had been planning on making candied yams to go with the steak/chicken, but that didn’t really seem like a suitable side for brats/burgers, so I went to the pantry to find something that would go better with that meal.

I thought “Oh, green bean casserole sounds good!” but of course I didn’t have all the ingredients (only one can of soup).

So then I thought “Oh, I will just take green beans and put cheese and bacon in them.” Except that the frozen green beans were a little freezer burnt and I won’t do that to friends.

So then I thought “Oh, I will make rice!” but by then I had wasted like 10 minutes trying to decide what I was making—and I was supposed to be there at 5:30—so I didn’t have time to make rice.

So it was back to the candied yams. I turned the oven on to preheat while I started reducing the sauce. I thought I smelled something burning/cooking, but there was nothing on the burner, so I didn’t think much about it. So five minutes later the oven beeps and I open the door and—OH. MY. GOD. I had left a cardboard box in there from my spa party the day before…and the edges were turning black and the plastic covering on the box was melting and there was a bit of smoke pouring out. So I grabbed it and threw it on the floor, had to grab tongs to get out a small piece of cardboard that was actually on the heating element, and then hurried to turn on all the fans and open the doors and windows—the last thing I needed was all the smoke detectors to go off! 88|

It all turned out okay, but it was not the experience I had anticipated!

Expired goods.

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So the other day, I pulled out a bag of dry soup mix (Asiago Asparagus something or other) that I know has been in the pantry quite some time. As in, I know I’ve moved it from one house to another, so it’s been in our pantry at least 1.5 years. I started to make it and although it smelled okay, it didn’t look quite right. Then I tasted it—and it was horrible. I checked the expiration—and it was 2002. Yes, 2002. Which means it came with us from Virginia 3.5 years ago when we first moved here! Needless to say I dumped it all out.

Then last night, I was going through the pantry for the Boy Scout food drive, and realized quite a bit of the stuff was expired. Now, I’m not talking years old or anything (like the soup!), but like a cake mix and frosting (10/06), salad dressing (8/06), cans of V8 (2/06), and canned chicken (6/06). Of course, I would still eat these things after expiration (hell, some times long after expiration) but it hit me—should I donate these things? Is something better than nothing? Honestly, some of the things are items I don’t make often (like the cake and frosting, obviously) so if I don’t donate them, they’re going to sit in my pantry even longer. The short version is I am not donating anything expired, but…

That story, combined with the soup incident…take one guess what I’m doing this weekend? Yep, I’m going through everything and tossing like crazy. 🙂 And then NOT buying more stuff until we need it!!

Better Rice-A-Roni

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So last night we were making dinner and I was going to make plain rice. I already had the 1 cup of rice in the pan when I thought “You know, I should really use one of the 10 Rice-A-Roni boxes we just bought…” so thought I would just wing it and combine the two, and just added a bit more butter to saute the rice/vermicelli bits in, and then just added an extra cup of water. And you know what? It was perfect!!! Regular Rice-A-Roni is always too salty and there never seems to be enough. But, with the addition of the extra rice and water, it was really yummy! Perfectly seasoned, plus you got a lot more!! I love it when spur of the moment things like that actually turn out!

Our Office Christmas Dinner

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Our Christmas dinner this year was at Port City Chop House—a premier steak house in neighboring Wilmington. I had actually been there once before, in 2004, for a Builder Appreciation dinner when Tom was deployed…and was eagerly anticipating returning with him. The food there is TO DIE FOR.

We started with a few bottles of wine and (I think) five appetizers, including two orders of Oysters Rockefeller, Baked Crab Dip, Sashimi Tuna, and a Crabmeat Cocktail. And more wine. And soups and salads (I had Fresh Mozzarella and Tomato). And more wine. I think everyone got some form of steak, and a few of us got Tide & Tundra, which included a Tristan lobster tail (I think the waiter said it was Australian), and it was the biggest lobster tail I have ever seen in my life!! I also got an Oscar accompaniment. And then we had more wine. And then four “desserts for two” including the Mile High Chocolate Suicide Cake, Colossal Carrot Cake, New York Style Cheesecake, and White Chocolate Créme Brulee. And more wine. 88| (At one point, I asked the waiter just how much wine they stocked, as we were on our [I think] fourth bottle of a particular Reisling and the waiter said they had one bottle left!)

Let’s just say the bill for our table of eight, with tip, was a hair over $800. We would go back by ourselves for dinner (chicken or pasta only) with no appetizers, drinks, or desserts!!

We had a great time, though—we exchanged our gifts and shared a lot of laughs. There are some pictures, too…but we won’t go there. Thankfully Jennie was our designated driver so the ride home was fairly uneventful (except when her husband gave Sue and John a bare moon doing 75 down the highway).

Not a good weekend for food.

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We invited our friends, Tom and Karen, out for dinner Saturday night. We were going to Freddy’s, a local sports bar that has prime rib TO DIE FOR—Saturdays after 5pm only. Tom had previously had it there and said it was the best he’d ever eaten—plus the boys REALLY REALLY love steak—so they were really looking forward to it.

So we get there around 6:15 and when the guys ordered their steak, the waitress said “We’re actually out at the moment. It’s going to be about a half hour.” We asked how they could be out of the special barely an hour after it started, and she said they had had a run on it earlier. Okay… well, we had ordered an appetizer anyway, so we didn’t think a half hour was TOO long to wait—especially since it was going to be SOOOOO good. Both guys ordered it medium rare (this is important for the rest of the story). I then tried to order a sandwich and asked for texas toast instead of the regular bread. She said they were out. Oooookay—half their sandwiches are on texas toast, but whatever. So I said “Just give it to me on the regular bread then.” Oh, no, she says, they were ENTIRELY out of bread! After the issues with the steak, we just had to laugh at them being out of bread as well.

Fast forward AN HOUR, and we finally get our meals—the guy’s steaks were finally (apparently) done. Except that they were too done—meaning both of the steaks were medium to medium well, almost bordering on well done! Tom said it tasted horrible, probably the worst he’s had. Our friend Tom agreed that it was horrible. When the waitress came over to see how everything was, they both complained, said the steak was completely overdone and ruined, and they wanted two more. She said they had gotten the last ones! WHAT? 88| They were out when we got there at 6:15, and then an hour later they were out again? The waitress did say that a bunch of steaks had been sent back earlier because they were cooked wrong…which we’re guessing is why they ran out! The boys ate them anyway, since by that time we were all very hungry.

We just kept talking about it and sorta laughing about it, but the more I thought about it, the more pissed off I got—so I went to get a manager. And guess what? He wasn’t there! Ironically, he had gone to their sister restaurant/bar to get…bread! And no one on the premisis had any authority to take care of us—we had to wait until the manager got back! Thankfully, it was only a matter of minutes before he was back and over to our table. I told him how horrible the steaks were—aside from having to wait an hour, they were completely overcooked and a complete waste. And it was even worse because we had had the prime rib there before and it was absolutely fabulous. He apologized and basically said he would talk to the kitchen so it wouldn’t happen again—and that he hoped we’d give them another chance. He didn’t appear to be saying anything else, so I said “You WILL be taking care of the bill, right?” Oh, yes, of course he was. And of he went.

About five minutes later, the waitress brought our checks and said that the manager had taken….30% off our bills. Wait, excuse me, WHAT? For the steaks to be completely horrible, he only took 30% off our bill? I wasn’t too happy, but figured I just wanted to be done with it and get out of there. Until we saw that he didn’t take 30% off the entire bill, but rather just took 30% off the price of the steak! OH NO NO NO, that was NOT going to fly. And by that point, I was so pissed off that I was not going to accept anything less than a full comp for the two steaks.

Now, let me just say a quick word about our waitress… She was a cute little thing, and she felt HORRIBLE when she had to tell us the steaks would be late, then when we told her they were overcooked, then when we complained about the bill. One time, she looked like she was about to cry. She felt so bad about everything—but as a waitress, what can you do when the kitchen screws up? We made sure to tell her it was not her fault and we knew that—and that she was doing just fine. We also made sure to tell her that we’d be letting the owner know about the whole thing (she’s a fellow realtor and we used to work in the same office) and that she [the waitress] was great!

So when the poor waitress came back over and asked if we were ready with our bills, I said, “Unfortunately, no. I don’t mean to be a bitch about this, but he only took 30% off the steak. That is ridiculous! For two meals that were late in arriving, not cooked as ordered, and not able to be reordered…” She said she’d talk to the manager again. She was back in a few minutes with new bills, with the prime rib completely comped. Thank goodness.

So then we decided to go out for dessert, and we went to our little ice cream place up the street. Our friend, poor guy, ordered his favorite ice cream—and they were out! We had a good laugh about that.

So today Tom and I went out for lunch because we had a coupon for a “buy one get one free” sub at another sports bar. After taking probably 10 minutes to decide what we wanted (they have a huge sandwich menu), we ordered. And within a few minutes, the waitress was back to tell Tom that they didn’t even make his sandwich anymore and she wasn’t even sure why it was still on the menu! 88|

So, overall, not a good weekend for food!

Happy Thanksgiving!

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There are waaaaay too many good smells coming from our kitchen today—and we’re not even having Thanksgiving at our house!

I decided to make another loaf of Spaghetti Bread this morning, so we were smelling italian seasoning, garlic, and parmesean…

Then I made a new cornbread recipe (Tomatillo Cheddar Cornbread) for our breakfast—delish!—so we were smelling spicy-ish mexican.

Then, while both of those things were going, I toasted some pecans and coconut for the Sweet Potato casserole I’m making for dinner at our neighbor’s this afternoon!

I love cooking and baking!!!!!

What a cool surprise!

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So I got the mail tonight and there was a small box from my mom. I knew just from the size and shape that it was a “check box” but I knew she wouldn’t be sending me checks! :)) So, imagine my complete and total surprise to open it and find…….pumpkin seeds!! 😀 I had mentioned when they were here visiting that I loved pumpkin seeds but never made them—but that I loved hers! She remembered…and sent me some!

FRANKS, MOM!!! 😉

Not quite as crazy as last time…

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We had decided a few weeks ago that we wanted to have another party—this time, because a bunch of guys on our street are all deploying around the same time and we wanted to get everyone together before they all left (and before the holiday season occupied everyone’s schedules). We decided to have deep-fried turkey and make it into a potluck.

Of course, we were totally paranoid about throwing the party. I mean, we knew we had had a successful party in the past, but we are always scared that no one will show up and/or people will not have a good time.

Of course, we had nothing to worry about…we ended up with (I think) 22 adults and 14 kids! It didn’t get nearly as crazy as it did before, but everyone had a smashing time. And the turkey was a HUUUUUGE hit—I was surprised at how many people were trying it for the first time!

Oh, and Maggie? She was in pure doggie heaven—all those kids running around and wanting to play with her! Every time I looked around, someone was carrying her or chasing her or playing with her. One time, the kids were playing tag and were scattered, running all over—and she didn’t even know which way to run!! Towards the end of the evening, you could tell she was getting tired, so we put her to bed a little early and she slept straight through the night and didn’t even BUDGE in the morning!!

Way short version of mom and David’s visit.

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As you will read on the 10/28 entry, I lost my entire well-constructed thread with links and pictures…and there is NO WAY IN HELL I’m in any mood to even try to recreate it, so…without further ado, here’s the short version of their visit.

  1. They brought my old dresser and my old toybox because they were cleaning out the basement and I had to take my old stuff. They filled the toybox with Tom’s beer he requested, which I found funny.
  2. We cooked some great meals, as usual, plus ate at our favorite Thai restaurant. David made some yummy soup from leftovers and mom made Tom his favorite scones.
  3. Maggie LOVED grandma and I think grandma was surprised that she liked Maggie more than she thought she would.
  4. We went to our annual Halloween party/oyster feast at our friend’s house. We wore our new costumes and mom and David wore the scrubs that we had been banned from wearing again. My costume still needs some work, as it’s way too big and not slutty enough for what the costume should be (I couldn’t get enough cleavage).

The end.

P.S. You WON’T believe this, but I lost this post as well…another stupid error in the code. GRRRRR. There has to be something wrong with my cookies because this does NOT happen when I write in my blog at work. >:(

Birthday Coldstone

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So if you sign up at Coldstone Creamery, you can get a free Original Creations Love It ice cream concoction on your birthday. Tom and I went tonight to redeem my coupon.

To start, let me just say that I am not overly thrilled with Coldstone. I’ve been there a handful of times over the years, and no matter what I order, it never knocks my socks off. I know people LOVE it (Tom is one—he will kill for a Founders Favorite) so I keep thinking I must be missing something…so I keep trying it. I mean, what’s not to like? Great toppings mixed in with yummy ice cream…how bad can it be?

Of course, there are so many yummy-looking options on the menu that I always have a hard time deciding. While we were in line, I changed my mind back and forth probably 10 times, trying to decide between four or five different mixes. So I had FINALLY decided on Oreo Overload with one small modification (dark chocolate mint ice cream instead of sweet cream)…and the stupid lady in front of me took the last of the dark chocolate mint ice cream—and the next batch wasn’t ready yet! GRRRR! >:( So I just ordered it as is. And it was…less than thrilling. Again.

I jinxed myself.

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awesome egg slicerThe other day I was looking at my egg slicer and thought…

Wow, this is getting old. It was a hand-me-down from mom back when I had my first apartment in college…and I know she had it quite some time before that. I wonder if I shouldn’t get a fancy new one?

Then I saw one at Bed Bath & Beyond for $8 (!!!) and decided I could stick with my old-fashioned one (plastic, not stainless or aluminum).

So guess what happened a day or so later? Yep. I was slicing an egg and…a piece broke off! So, I can still use it, I will just have one double-width piece. But, I am going to look elsewhere for a new, cheaper model than the pretty one at BB&B. It just needs to slice eggs, it doesn’t need to be aesthetically pleasing.

EDITED TO ADD: Crap, I just found the one I really want—it’s $16, but it’s a 3-in-1 that slices, cuts wedges, OR uses both screens to cut teeny pieces for salads! I must have this egg slicer!

Chinese for five years in a row!

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So, as I’m sure I’ve mentioned before… after our wedding, we crashed at the hotel and then took a four-hour nap. When we woke up at 9pm, we were starving and didn’t want to eat at the Trillium (we would have had to get dressed up), so we went into town and Chinese sounded good, so we ate there.

Fast forward to our one year anniversary and without thinking we said “Let’s order from our favorite chinese place” — and only afterwards did we realize/remember we ate chinese the night of our wedding as well.

Ironically, about the same thing happened the third year — we couldn’t decide where to eat, so we picked our favorite chinese place — and again said “OH MY GOD! We did it again!”

The fourth year was planned, to keep with tradition.

This year, Tom planned to take me somewhere else we would LOVE to go, but I decided we really shouldn’t spend that much (it would have been probably $100—well worth it, but just so much money) so I said “Well, we might as well make it chinese!” and went to a chinese buffet place in town we’ve wanted to go to since we’ve lived here but haven’t made it.

So, after five years in a row, I’m pretty sure we have to do it now until we die. It’s a good thing we like chinese!

Harris Teeter rocked our world!!

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We live in a fairly small town. Yes, there’s a major military installation here, but still, it’s a small town—as evidenced by the fact that we have CRAP for grocery stores around here. We’d kill for a Meijers—or hell, even a Krogers. Here, we have Food Lion, Piggly Wiggly, and the commissary.

Um, blech.

Today, we went to Wilmington (big city an hour south) and decided to stop by Harris Teeter to grab some sushi. And oh…my…goodness. We fell in love with everything—there was so much selection of everything…an entire organic section, about 5 varieties each of nectarines and apples, two types of asparagus (they have white asparagus?), a whole section (!) of fresh mushrooms (not that I want any of them, but just the fact that they have a whole secion!), fresh herbs, homemade breads, an enormous deli, fancy schmancy bakery items, pre-made ice cream cakes, and fresh meat and seafood to die for…

We felt like we were hicks from the country ‘oohing’ and ‘ahhing’ over everything, like we’d never been to the big city before!

We filled our cart with stuff like alaskan salmon, smelt (!), jalapeno monterey jack hamburgers, crabmeat, and fresh shrimp (stuff no one in Jacksonville even carries), as well as two of the varieties of nectarines. 🙂

If you can believe it, we are actually discussing the possibility of driving the two-hour round trip to shop at this store for our groceries… as it is MILES (okay, more like LIGHT YEARS) ahead of what we have available to us locally. (Oh, and gas is cheaper there, as well!) We probably won’t end up doing it, but we will surely make it a point to go at least once a month.

Wherever we move next better have a KILLER grocery store. KILLER.

Evil Lemonade

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Oh my god.

So we had some “diet” Tropicana lemonade in the work refrigerator. I was there when it was purchased, so I knew it was diet (i.e. low-carb) so I could drink it. We actually bought two kinds, including Minute Maid 2-liters, but the Tropicana is BY FAR the better of the two. So I’ve been drinking the Tropicana all along and today, just out of coincidence, I happened to set the bottle down with the nutritional information facing me and…27 carbs per serving. WTF??? WTF??? WTF???

Turns out another employee bought some more Tropicana that WASN’T diet—and didn’t mention it—so with one lemonade I’ve been drinking TWICE THE AMOUNT OF MY ENTIRE DAILY LIMIT of carbs!!! Yes, I should have paid more attention, but if that was all that was in there, why would I even think the bottles would suddenly be something else?

The girl who bought them said “I saw you drinking one the other day and I was going to ask you if you were still on the diet but didn’t want you to get mad.” I told her she definitely should have said something!!! So, it’s been one per day each day this week. That’s 54 carbs a day x 4 days… and my limit is 30/day.

This is soooooo disheartening…