Treats for a job well done

Palo sent some treats for making their processes easier!



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Sugar from Savannah?

We noticed that sugar packets in BCN are huge. I made the comment that it probably is sugar from Savannah. Today we board the ship, order an espresso drink and the sugar packet is Dixie Crystal. This ship has been away from the states since May so it can't be leftovers. Small world.



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Pedometer

So here is the deal; I belong to a fantasy fit league at work. A team at DCL provide motivation to eat right, exercise and find a good work/life balance.  So we carry pedometers to track walking which is promoted as the single thing best to increase in your life.  A colleague and I walked to most of our Disney pre-stay hotels on Monday.  32992 steps which the pedometer says is equivalent to 13.6 miles.  My normal day at work is 3300 steps and that seems like an accomplishment. 

Sagrada Familia

Still working on it after 120 years and they think it will need at least a few more decades:)


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Product of Catalunya

Spanish Red Wine is so good




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Only on La Rambla

La Rambla like Bourbon street, crazy things happen here.

we are tourists

Looking for store called campers and the picture of the tiny alley of stores did not turn out. Oh well imagine!


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Arrive in BCN @ Pullman Skipper

Non eventful flight, 1/2 Ambien worked fine :)

The hotel seemed nice and was praised by our port staff. The Shoreside Travel Operations team  make most of the IT departments arrangements so we are the lemmings when it comes to travel and accommodations.  I prefer the St. Moritz, 1909 or AC Diplomat Hotels. My room faces a busy street which is a main thoroughfare for ambulances going to a nearby hospital.  A bus stop out front seems to generates noisy crowds.  I am told I have one of the smallest rooms but for a European hotel it is large. I would take a quite hostel over this room. 

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15-08-2010 Barcelona bound

My luck is running high. Last four International legs I have been seated alone. Since there is only one water I am assuming that once again I have hit the lottery.

This trip has three purposes. Support the Magic's BCN port call on 18th, upgrade the POS system on the 10 day cruise and then support the Port on the 28th. We do not expect to do this level of support next year so this might be my last Med trip.

Gregg


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Dawg tired

After shopping all day in NYC the sweet 16 birthday girl is ready to relax!

Start of my sunday bike ride

Maybe th hottest day I have ever felt.

We will see how far I get and then I will take a dip in the ocean.


You have received a map location.

http://maps.BlackBerry.com?lat=28.25219&lon=-80.60329&z=4&label=You+are+here



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Ride down the coast alone

Dropped off sally so now I am going on a ride down A1A.



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getyouhome.gov

While I no longer attend the Cruise Line International meetings I still get copied on their working group meetings. Below is from one of their summaries.

US citizens  can travel on closed loop cruises from a US port without a passport if you have proper documents to identify you as a US citizen.  But if something goes wrong and you have to fly back, it is much easier to get an airplane ticket and enter the country if you have a passport

b)      The cost of a passport is expected to rise significantly, so get one before the price goes up.

Any questions about US travel requirements please see:  WWW.Getyouhome.gov.  That site will always be kept updated.

If you have any inkling that you want to travel outside the US I highly suggest you get a passport.  A passport card will provide you travel around North America and the Caribbean but the savings are not enough IMO, just get a passport. You never know when you might be fronted with the opportunity to travel and how silly will you feel if you say I can't.

The bow is the end

From the Orlando Sentinel; the last block, the bow is being lowered into place.  For many this is an exciting milestone for some of us the reality of this point in time makes us realize we have a lot of work ahead of us.

She Floats!

Major milestone occurred last week.  The Dr3am was floated back to her final resting place until she floats out.  Below is a picture I pulled from the ship yards webcam.  The front bow sections were attached and all the major blocks are in place.

I will be going to Europe in August but no plans to visit P@penburg until September.  It is going to be a busy Summer.

MS Bike ride 2010 'Team Peace"

Upon my return from Barcelona and Germany I rode in the MS 2010 Citrus tour bike ride. It was a great ride with Chance, Ed and I doing the Century. Team Peace's other participants Jeremy and Debra finished the 75 mile ride. Take note that Jeremy actually did close to 90 miles. The ride is for a great cause as all money donated by sponsors goes toward research for Multiple Sclerosis. As a Team we raised over $2300.00. Chance rode the 2009 Citrus tour solo which motivated Ed and I to start riding again. I am hoping that next year we will pull in other riders and grow Team Peace.

The ride is a great Florida ride which does include a few hills. Seems Chance did not remember them and described the route as flat. Two lessons were gleamed from this ride, do not get caught up in other riders feats and don't stop for a long lunch. Seems that the 100 mile route ran tandem with the 50 and 75 mile routes a couple of places. A large group would fly by and we would chase them going speeds we had previous discussed trying to avoid. Then when the Century route would break off we would realize we were chasing people doing a fraction of the mileage that we had signed up for. Lunch is a catered stop featuring a basic sandwich, chips and a drink. The lunch stop is situated at a location where all the routes converge so hundreds of riders pour in at the same time. We stood in line for 10 minutes then the rest of Team Peace arrived so we sat with them for awhile. Chance who had pulled in first was itching to get back out so I followed him. The pain of the next 14 miles trying to rid our bodies of lactic acid soaked muscles was not pleasant. We came upon Debra and I hung back with her thinking I would catch Chance at the next stop but he blew by it as he was picked up with a large group. In the end we all finished at different times. Next year I hope to not only accomplish the ride in under six hours but to also finish 12 pounds lighter.

A big thanks to those who sponsored me and Team Peace it meant the world to me.

LOST season finale

LOST was the only show that I watched with any passion.  It would seem that it was six year commitment, more on that later. The season finale was a disappointment for me. There are many reasons and while the end did not "do it for me" I am at peace with it being over.  I enjoy the science and religious debates which is what I thought we would have more of. I think it comes down to the different type of LOST viewers and who liked the ending.  I am one who does not get attached with a specific character(s).  The actors persona are extremely important because each character is the medium through which the story is told but the story and timeline is what I analyze.  If the viewer falls in love with the characters and emotionally connects they probably loved the ending because it brought peace to what happened to the most of their friends.  I wanted the answers to so many questions. 

I built up hope that every nuance in six seasons would be reviewed and that I could put the writers on a pedestal. For me I wanted the answers to be based on religious and science principles this expectation is what made my disappointment. 

I hope in a few years someone realizes the writers altered time.  I have read that the pilot episode started in 2004.  I can vividly remember having the first deep LOST discussion at breakfast with friends and pulling into the parking lot at work and sitting there pondering and starting my list of questions.  How six seasons went by is beyond me and I have to believe time was altered.

The blokes at O'Reillys speak my language -

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Das Rathaus und der Marktplatz

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Sally did me right

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