Those still enamored of the 'blood type diet' simply must go read this wiki 'talk' page. Those long disillusioned will enjoy reading it even more!

Good grief! He kept going back and carping, and whining...trying to twist the truth to fit his imaginary crap and nonsensical pseudo-scientific pretensions.

And it didn't work. He got caught. He was called out;

                    with the brutal truth.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Talk:Blood_type_diet

" To date, no such evidence of the value and efficacy of the Blood Type Diet has been published. "

and we will clue you in --- it never will be.

                             :b

Boarded the ship in the early afternoon.  Checked out the cabin. Unpacked. Had a late lunch. Started getting oriented to the many different areas on the ship. There was a big to-do for the sailaway, everyone gathered on the stern deck and we watched San Diego, and the mainland, fade off into the distance as we go forward into the open seas. Exciting.

Not having sailed this route before, I was a little surprised to see how cloudy it was on the way to Hawaii. It was cool for the first couple of days at sea. We were leaving from 32º 42'N (San Diego) heading for about 21º N (Honolulu).  San Diego not much different from my home, Ventura area, at 34º 12'N. It warmed up in a few days as we moved further south.

The captain of the Statendam is Jack van Coevorden.....Captain Jack. Who could have guessed..  At 4:15 we were all engaged in the lifeboat drill. Those life vests are hard and stiff, and uncomfortable on the boobies!  

At 5:15 they were casting off the mooring lines. We were setting sail for Hawaii.  The next stop would be Hilo, on the big island, 5  days away. They said they were traveling at a speed of 20 knots on this leg of the cruise. One knot equals 1 Nautical mile. A nautical mile is 1.15 statute miles, so we were going about 23 statute miles per hour. Doesn't seem very fast, does it?

Our next night at sea is a formal night. There are going to be 7 more formal nights on this cruise. It is fun to dress up, occasionally.  I am not sure what its going to be like to dress up 8 times in a month! Got some great pictures for this first formal night though. Good photographer.

I got right down to business  the next sea day and booked a facial at the spa. The spa has been newly designed/decorated in the last few years, and is a very plush and lovely spot on the ship. I asked my esthetician to figure out what my skin is doing now and how I need to care for it.  The nice little lady who did the facial ( they seem all to be from South Africa on this ship) told me that my skin is  still oily, but dehydrated. This matches my suspicions about my skin, even tho I am almost 60, I think it still oily, and is not dry skin, but something else is going on, so the dehydration sounds very plausible....  so I succumb and purchase the skin care products recommended. The products work and the skin looks 10 or 20  years younger (more about this later).

A few days into the cruise there is a presentation by a guest chef. The ship had a Culinary Arts facility, very nice for these extended sea days.  Chef Mavro from Honolulu is onboard, and he is a founding member of Hawaii Regional Cuisine, and holds the James Beard Foundation award. His lecture, he is hard to understand, but he is cute and excitable, in a French way. He's from Marsielles originally, now lives in Hawaii.  He is almost Italian in his gestures, waving his arms and hands around, getting perturbed at his own comments. We who attend his cooking demonstration all get a bite of the appetizer he prepares, and are very appreciative of the tastes and flavors, regardless of the gesticulations. His restaurant is rated as one of the Top Ten in the World, by Fodor's.  A must do when we reach Honolulu.

Exercising at sea. There is a fantastic gym on the ship. Most of the people go for the treadmills, leaving the weight equipment open.  Funny. On the Promenade deck, it takes 4 laps to equal a mile, so 6 laps or more takes the place of a treadmill, and the alternate days are the weight machines.  The view from the gym is spectacular. Glass front and sides,  looking forward over the bow. Boy, you can't get that at home.

Next, I sucker in for a reflexology treatment at the spa. The girl is nice and sincere about what she believes, but all I'm interested in is the foot massage aspect of this treatment! She explains how foot reflexology will affect different organs and body parts - Yada, yada, yada.  It feels fantastic on the feet and ankles. And I bet that's all its good for, but heck, that's worth it to me. She tells me to drink lots of water over the rest of the day to flush toxins.

Next day I find out I've got a cold or virus going on. I get really sick with a sore throat and congested ears, etc.  A couple days later, I go to the ship's doc and tell him I think I need antibiotics.  He checks everything, asks me questions, and then agrees, antibiotics. I gave him the short version, I am well versed in clinical diagnosis..  Well, whatever it was the antibiotics seemed to kick it back pretty well.  Throughout the rest of the cruise I watched passenger after passenger succumb to this and be sick for quite a few days with upper respiratory problems. I was glad that he listened to me and agreed with me on the treatment. Most of the other folks do not fare so well or recover within a day or so like I did.

We are nearing our first port. Hilo, Hawaii. Tomorrow morning,  Sept. 30. I had the pleasure of vacationing in Hilo a couple of years ago. Stayed for two weeks. Always cloudy and drizzly there, but warm and beautiful.

Arrived back the other night. Was a wonderful trip. I am still feeling a little like the ground is tilting when I walk. (haha)  I wonder how long that will last?  I meant to try to update this in real time during the cruise, but internet time was pretty expensive, plus the connection was sooooo slow it would have been economically prohibitive.  So I will be sorting out photos from the trip and uploading them soon.

Came down here from home today to make sure there was no last minute problem with getting to the ship tomorrow for boarding. Spent the afternoon sightseeing in San Diego.

Late in the day went to the Hotel del Coronado, a beautiful old and restored building here in San Diego. Very nice grounds, right on the water. It retains much of its Victorian beauty and intricacy of design, even though it has been redone to accomodate current or modern requirements.  The building itself contains much of its handmade craftsmanship in woodwork, the ceilings are spectacular, wood columns, huge crystal chandeliers, etc. The exterior is very much the same as it was when it was originally built.  I'll upload photos tomorrow morning to attach here.

Had 'dinner' at a little wine bar at the Coronado. A charcuterie plate with a selection of Rhone wines. Delicious combination, except perhaps for the lone California wine which was slightly harsh next to its two French companion Rhones.

Can hardly believe I'm here, one day away from the cruise. It's been something I've wanted to do for the last 5 years at least, perhaps even longer. I'm at the Westin, on the top floor. The view over the city is bright, but not obnoxiously so. I think I'll leave the curtains open, I can easily sleep thru most light, noise, the only thing that really disturb me is the shaking of earthquakes and I am expecting none.  Tomorrow the slight movement and rocking of the ship will be pure bliss!  :D

Website for the Hotel del Coronado.

History of the del Coronado.

that you can download for Free.  From Stellarium.org,  a planetarium for your computer! This software is downloadable for Windows, Mac OSX, and Linux, at the link highlighted in the first sentence. 

In the Configuration window, you select your location. Move the cursor until it lights up a town near you where there is an observatory location, then fill in that location name (town, state or country)  in your Config window and 'Save' it.  My only complaint is that they need to add an input for Lat/Long as it is more precise a locator than trying to hit a spot on the tiny map. But the map method is close enough for most of us..

There are numerous options available for viewing the sky in Stellarium. You can select linear drawings of the stars in constellations, or the names of these constellations, or drawings of the constellations as they have appeared in art in Western civilization.  You can display azimuthal or equatorial grids of the sky, nebulae, or search for specific objects, among some of the other options.

The program also  displays information in many different languages, as well as showing astronomical information and naming of stars/constellations in other  extant and extinct cultures.  Some of these are Chinese, Egyptian, Inuit, Lakota, and Polynesian, as well as Western. Look for this setting in the "Configuration" window, under the "Language" tab at the top.

I think if you try it, you will really like it. At least if you are a skywatcher to start with.  :)       I plan to make use of it on my cruise next month; it should be very helpful in viewing the southern sky.

Is there such a term?   On the cruise, we cross the equator on our way to French Polynesia. I have heard that was a special occasion for sailors of old, and was accompanied by some ceremony or rite of passage.  Crossing the Equator is noted specifically in the cruise documents, so I guess whatever it is related to is still celebrated in some manner, perhaps like our modern day Halloween, or Valentine’s day.   I thought I should check up on what exactly to expect.   :)

WHOA, it looks bigger than imagined, with all sorts of levels of participant hazing, ordeals, men dressing as women, and  ‘torture’ of ‘wogs’.....Wogs being those who have never crossed the equator before. The full name is Pollywog, and they represent the new outsiders - the lowest form of sea life; while the experienced seamen who are veterans of previous equator crossings are known as Shellbacks.  The whole thing boils down to an event where there is a reversal of order and the crew takes over the ship from the officers.  Lucky we are in the situation of this being a profit making venture where all of us paying passenger pollywogs will not have to undergo the full treatment.  I see all sorts of punishment mentioned – stocks and pillories, having to crawl through vats of rotting garbage, chopping off of hair.  In earlier times (19th century or before) the treatment of the Pollywogs could be quite brutal, with beatings, and accidental drownings by dragging in water.  ..  Not at these rates we are all paying!   :D

After the crossing, the Pollywogs are now called ‘Shellbacks’ , denoting they are now capable seamen, after having been initiated into the ranks.  

Crossing the equator at the 180th meridian (the International Dateline) results in the Pollywogs achieving an even higher and more rare status, as they are now known as “Golden Shellbacks.”  Unfortunately , it looks like we are too far from the 180th for our captain to take a small detour and arrange this particular crossing. We’d have to be headed for the Marshall Islands, or Kiribati instead. Oh well..

 Hopefully there will be occasion for some funny photos of this upcoming event!

 

The other evening I was going around the house, closing windows for the night. I was a bit startled to see a large shape outside, sitting on the wrought iron fence. It was only visible because where I was standing the deepening sky was behind it, highlighting it. It looked about 2 feet tall at first glance. Was it a hawk? Not that late, I was fairly certain.

(click on any photo to see a larger picture)

When I realized it was an owl I was pretty excited. We can hear them frequently around here at night, but I've never seen one close up like this. I ran to get my camera, even though I was afraid it would be long gone by the time I got back.

But it was still there!  And I was able to open the sliding door and screen and go outside. I started trying to make hooting sounds, but know I was missing at the outset....sounded more like the doves we have here. But as I continued I could tell I had gotten quite close to the correct call, and had his attention now.

The owl seemed very calm, and I moved slowly as I got closer. It allowed me to take quite a few photos, and only was surprised when it heard the camera noise. The closest I got was 10 feet away from it, and I thought I was doing pretty well! Finally it flew off but my last photo of it flying had a dark background of brush and trees so the owl is not visible. In this shot, I have lightened the sky/background a bit to make him more visible.

All in all, a treat to encounter.  In the photos, there are bird feeders to the right side of the photos. These are slightly in front of the fence where the owl was sitting. Perhaps he thought it would be a good hunting spot?

Looking at a favorite bird site, it turns up Great Horned Owl as the only one in my area which matches this fellow. The two tufted ears. The color description matches too - dark brown, gray-brown mottled upperparts and dark barred underparts; head has distinct ear tufts and rufous facial disk (which I could barely make out on the lightened photo).

Great Horned Owl on 'whatbird.com'

as in 'It's raining crab!' 

My daughter was going to the grocery store to pick up something to take over to her dad's house tonight for dinner with his family. She asked me if there was anything I needed while she was going. I had a rather short list, and added 1- King crab leg, a small one, just for me to make my favorite Vietnamese crab soup with.

When she got to the store, she had forgotten the list, and phoned me to get a refresher on what was it I'd  asked for. I mentioned the couple things, then asked if she had found the crab. She replied yes, she had a good 'crab story' to tell me when she got back to the house.

She started bringing the groceries in from her car, and I saw she was carrying a HUGE bundle wrapped from the meat market section.  Puzzled, I asked her how much had she bought? It looked easily like $75 or more worth of King crab legs....  Had she gotten some 'crab mania' while she was there? She does like crab with melted butter, likes it a lot.

Then she told me to unwrap it and look. She said she had asked for one leg, and the fellow at the counter went and got her some legs out of the back and wrapped them for her. He told her he was giving her some 'extra' and wanted to get it wrapped and labeled quickly. 

Luckily the crab was still frozen, and I cut up the legs to freeze most of it to use later. I weighed the pieces and there was more than 4 1/2 pounds of crab!  He charged her for 1 1/3 at $15 a pound..  She doesn't shop for groceries that often; she didn't even realize he had given her several pounds over what he charged her for.

Suspicious of it all, I asked her if he was a young fellow?  She says yes, and friendly too!  HAHAHAAAAAA

Next time I want some crab, or even Lobster, I'm sending this girl to shop for me.  :)

August 23rd, my sweet little daughter surprised me this weekend. She told me when to be ready to leave, what to wear, I should eat something before we leave the house.  I woke up to find her making fresh flower arrangements, there were half a dozen of them around the house, all in the same color scheme.  She bought bunches of Oriental lilies in pink and white, deep pink roses, pale pink alstroemeria. Then an unusual touch, she mixed in some bright greens - spider mums, long stalks of blooming Bells of Ireland, other green flowers.  I might have caught on, if I had paid more attention to the color..

We left for L.A. She was enjoying keeping me in the dark. Told me there was no use asking where we were going. So I sat back and enjoyed the ride, traffic was easy on Saturday.

As we neared our destination, I noticed places and buildings I had seen before. (I am the kind of person who gets lost easily, and I don't drive to L.A.!) So I made a quick connection to a place she and I had been before, last December. To see a musical performance.

[Click on any of these to see a full-sized picture]

As we drove up, I saw it was the Pantages Theater in Hollywood. And the banner across the front was still the same. Wicked was playing. I loved it the first time I saw it with her and friends from her school. We all went down there a couple days before Christmas. Eden Espinosa and Emily Rozek playing the leads. If you've never seen the theater check it out online. Its a beauty, built in 1930 in the Art Deco style. Very decorative, it just continues getting more ornate as you go further inside.

My daughter got in line to pick up the tickets she had ordered. She had gotten orchestra seating for us! This was exciting! When we got to our seats, we were just a few rows from the stage!! (something we had promised ourselves we would do after we saw it the first time) What a sweetheart she is! She remembered that, and of course, how much I loved the show.

It was as good as ever, as enjoyable as before if not even more so, Alive, the music and the message is so powerful, and to be seated right close to the stage was fantastic! The leads had changed with Teal Wicks playing Elphaba, and Erin Mackey as Glinda. What a team, they were perfect together. A surprise addition was Jo Anne Worley as Madame Morrible taking over from Karen Kane in the previous production we had seen.

After the show, daughter took me to dinner. Yamashiro in the center of Hollywood, high over the city. The view was spectacular and we had a table at the window. It was still light so we got to watch the sky darken over the city as we had our meal. Sushi -  Several new types for us to try. 

Afterwards we walked around the grounds. Yamashiro is built on the top of a hill and has Japanese gardens surrounding it on all sides with paths to stroll along.

It was a fabulous birthday. One I will remember warmly, and with happiness, for the rest of my life.  Thank you Jenny!

From Defying Gravity, end of first act:

And nobody in, all of Oz.
No Wizard that there is or was.
Is ever gonna bring me down!