Three and a WU…
Jan 14th, 2010 by maat45
That would be three days and a wake-up in Navy terminology. Well...probably military, no doubt, but I have no familiarity with other branches of service. And too boot, yours truly is suffering channel fever. Hey, I never called it that...all I know is about a week before we travelled across country to a new duty station (regardless of which one), went on leave or even a weekend away, prior to the big leaving day I found sleep impossible. So, for three nights (I did sleep the sleep of exhaustion last night) I've gone to bed at my usual late hour, watched a sit-com, shut everything down exce[t for my thoughts, and lay awake...toss this way, then that, up, down...and finally would get up for the cure-all. Hot milk and honey. Then I would check email, play games on Facebook, drum fingers on the desk, back off to bed and lie there...willing sleep to come. But not for another half-hour when KW's alarm would go off..that would be an exercise in futility!
Anyway, organizational skills to the fore...the packing is done (I think!), except for....ummm...well, check the list. Dogs blankies and beds get washed Friday, cages cleaned Saturday. Mark which bird gets what food...now there's a thing for a pet-sitter-friend. The African Grey gets specific seed to his species; the Ring-neck gets a some Conure and the Grey's food. Tiels get tiel food, the parakeet is the easiest...smallest bird, smallest seeds. Henry, the big guy...he doesn't like Cockatoo food and will not eat it but chucks it out of his dish to the floor...where Buddy the Pug is happy to pull second duty as a vacuum cleaner. A big No-no. Henry doesn't much take to the Grey's food, either so he gets only a little of that, a smutch of the tiel's and for the most part, Conure. Our friend...bless her...loves all our 'kids' as they love her but she has seen Henry's handy work on my knuckle, KW's foot (through a shoe!) and his beak can be intimidating but she has devised a way of ensuring he doesn't go hungry...makes a funnel over his seed dish and pours from the outside of the cage, in. Cats are fine...they are cats...except one of the brood has this curiosity for the outdoors and tries to blend in with the dogs when they head out the door. This poor woman...not only am I amazed and grateful that she doesn't even wait to be begged to pet sit...(she actually volunteers), especially am I amazed and grateful that she has remained our dearest friend!
And then we heard the news of poor Haiti last night. First concern was, of course, for the poor people of the island...like their lives weren't hard enough. Then crept in the thought that "I hope after shocks etc. are over before next week!" When I fly...which is as seldom as I can possibly make it...my eagle eye is on the global skies for weeks before my flight and heaven forbid there is an accident or something else worrisome. Didn't think such a thought would ever cross my mind before hitting the high seas. Then there is the weather...I packed my ice skates just in the event the pools ice over before we get back.
But packing...well, I thought that was a fait accompli just before dinner this evening. Not so fast. While we were debating going to get another suitcase from our storage I first decided to go through that which was already packed and whittle down the attire. I've said before I'm not a clotheshorse by any stretch of the imagination BUT...leaving my comfort zone, away from my closet where I have choices...tend to pack let's say eight days x three or four choices, plus 'dress up'...just in case and, of course, appropriate shoes for casual, comfort, dress up. That's capris, jeans, shorts (which I rarely wear anyway so why now...????), swimsuit (Eh? last time I wore one of those was...ummmm...maybe twenty years ago? But it's packed!); I have the driving up clothes I'll be wearing on Sunday but...what if that's a little too much later...we're talking heavy corduroys, sweater, polo neck under sweater and heavy leather bomber jacket....? Fine...take a heavy hoodie for evening on-deck strolls. Okay...but maybe that will be a little much once in Nassau and...what if it rains? Throw in a rainproof windbreaker. With me it's not a simple case of "this or that?". It's "This...but what if...okay, that too...then again maybe...something else". Quick question here...whatever happened to the steamer trunks of yore? They surely would be big enough. At any rate, figured I'd better check on baggage regulations again...Whoops! Now I see that we can't take an iron. We had planned to take a travel iron...summer clothes were laundered to refresh them, KW said "Iron?", I said "Nahhhh...lolol..." Well...besides the fact that I detest ironing of all household chores...you know what packing clothes into a suitcase does for them. Nothing. They come out looking like rags and far from wrinkle free. And when we've gone on business trips there is always an iron in the room, these days so why wouldn't I assume a cabin would be no different? But I didn't see irons listed, hence the travel iron going with...except not now. Unpack again, get the shirts that would need ironing (thank God for my polos and her Tees!..which don't!), set up the board and make them pretty, fold them delicately, pack them carefully and fingers crossed. Of course we laughed about it...albeit rather cynically. KW says she wonders what they thought we would do with the irons...smack someone upside the head? Me, I'm a bit more cynical...they want to keep their laundry in business. Bring on the irons and that means you won't have the need to pay $1.25 to have a handkerchief ironed. Or $3.50 for a blouse. And horror of horrors...they don't even iron bras and undies!!! ROFL! Well, that doesn't worry me...that's akin to ironing the bath towels...hahahaha. Yes, I do know some folk do this...not I. Ironing, for me, is akin to going to the dentist or delivering a baby...under duress, kicking and screaming and, ultimately, not without drugs. But we ironed...KW most of it and I, last couple of pieces due to guilt. So now we are all packed again...this time cases zipped shut (although I still have clothes in the laundry that I MIGHT want...). Last minute stashing will be my Kindle, Flip vid-cam and MP3 player....want to ensure all have a full charge before we leave so that's a last minute thing.
We did already sign up for one excursion...frankly, the only one to catch our interest. Sure...at our first port of call...Port Canaveral...there are choices of any of the Disney theme parks. We nixed those...some I wouldn't even attempt the rides and the rest, I'm probably under the height requirement. Actually, none of them excite us much. There is the Kennedy Space Centre/NASA...not all interested. There is an all day Space Camp...kidding, right? My head is a space camp...no need to confuse. No! The most exciting thing we saw...and trust me, for us it IS exciting (or will be) is an airboat ride through the Everglades...alligator and other wild life spotting and shooting...with a camera, of course. I think we will probably find a few more "friends" for KW on her FB page. I had suggested the other day I should try to find a couple of mouth-guards and she wanted to know why. Why? I should have thought that obvious since I'd told her the airboats are said to drive us at 40mph through insect infested swampland!! Still...having dentures should make it a lot easier to get them out of one's teeth, wouldn't you think? Or else just don't smile. Joking aside, we fully expect that to be a great way to spend a few hours ashore. They say you get to sample alligator tail...I'll try it. Bet it tastes "like chicken".
Oh, let me just give a shout out to Cool 101.9 in Milford/Eagle and Mike Butts. He announced this cruise early last year which is how KW came to learn about it and, I gather, about 100 of we locals signed up for it. Mike and his wife, Beth are going..of course...and no doubt a few known faces to KW. Should be fun!
So...speaking of chickens, time this went to roost for the night and hope to be successful.
