Do you have anything planned or are you planning anything for when this Covid insanity ends?

@mike808 I think it is a given that those of us who have been wearing masks will continue to wear them for some time just to make sure.

@Felton10 Sorry about the complete rewrite.

@Felton10 I bet you are old enough to know first-hand where and why the phrase “Spring chicken” comes from (and why it is a good thing). Same for “tough old bird” and “old hen”. And when you could ask the butcher for a capon. And the butcher/person behind the counter didn’t give you a WTF look.

@mike808 Yeh-thinking about it only makes me feel old.

@Felton10 @mike808
For sure we’ll be wearing masks for a long time to come. This IS now our new normal!
Where are you cruising to and where are you leaving from? I always wanted to do a cruise for my honeymoon, then I realized I couldn’t get married. (Insurance reasons or the lack of it ) We’ll be celebrating 31 years together April 1st.
Congradulations to you & the Mrs., 50 years is a long run!!

@Felton10 @mike808 capon? And Mike, since you know, well what does that say about your age lol

@Lynnerizer @mike808 We are going on a 15 day cruise to Hawaii leaving out of San Francisco-5 days to get there, 5 days around the Islands and 5 days back.

We went on a belated honeymoon 49 years ago on our first cruise-had bunk beds on a level you had to walk down (no elevator) on a narrow stairway to get to our cabin which with the bunks down was no bigger than the bathroom. My top bunk was so close to the ceiling and the casino was right above us so I could hear lots of noise all day and night.

@Felton10 @mike808 That sounds fantastic! Should be WAY more enjoyable than the first time around! I’m excited for you guys just reading about it!! I’ve been to a Mexico and a few of the islands, like Bahamas, Jamaica, Aruba but never Hawaii! Sure hope to make it someday, cruising sounds like the optimal way to go. Again, ENJOY yourselves!!

@Lynnerizer @mike808 It is an easy way to see parts of the world you have never seen before. We are kind of getting to the end of exotic cruising, but we think we have gone to most of the places that were on our bucket list. Cheapest cruises are the repositioning ones where they are moving a ship from one area to another. Two of those were our best cruises-the one where we went across the Atlantic after a few stops in Spain and Portugal ending up in Fort Lauderdale. And our most recent one was a transpacific cruise which left from Vancouver, stopped in Sitka Alaska and then made it was across the Pacific to Tokyo.

And then the other one we really like was the one around Australia and New Zealand but the plane trip there was a killer.

@Felton10 @tinamarie1974
Well, it seems you are old enough to know what a capon is as well, TM. LOL.

/giphy “Yeah, I’m that old” meme

@Felton10 @mike808 @tinamarie1974
Lol I’ll admit, nothing to do with age, i’m sure as heck no teeny bopper but I DID have to Google “what’s a capon”? Sounds delicious!

@Felton10 @mike808
I hadn’t heard of those kinds of money saving cruises, definitely something i’d take advantage of! At what capacity do they book the ship and do they only have a skeleton crew?

@Felton10 Nice. My wife and I went on a Hawaiian Island cruise for our 20th - we really enjoyed it.
My first cruise was from Auckland, NZ to LA, with stops in Fiji, Hawaii, assorted other islands and Vancouver BC. Unfortunately I was 5, so most of my memories are of the swimming pool and playground on the ship, and the visit to Disneyland at the end.

@Lynnerizer @mike808 Those repositioning cruises are usually full with a full crew-no real difference from a regular cruise except the port you sale from is not the one you return to. Alot of times half the cost of regular cruise.

@Felton10 @mike808 not me, I had to Google it! Maybe I am old and uninformed?!?

@macromeh We cruised around Hawaii about 20 years ago (still have my red dirt tee shirt) and the one thing I still remember was the name of this store that I saw in a strip mall “The Affordable Casket Outlet”. Bet that would be a success where I live in Florida.

@cbilyak Over what period of time were those 5 cruises scheduled. Our last cruise was a family cruise in December of 2019.

I booked our 50th wedding anniversary cruise the first day I could and the cost has gone up several hundred dollars pp since then. Plus Princess offered me a 10% refund if I would pay in advance and figured why not with also having taken out travel insurance.

PS-are you taking your PS5 on your cruise with you?

@Felton10 a full 12 months, however, one of them was a rebook. March 2020 family cruise was canceled so we rebooked for summer, then that was cxl’d. April '20 cruise 4 nighter w/friends, then this March I had 2 back to back cruises booked, 1st week w/friends on this: www.the80scruise.com and then I was literally getting off that in the morning and cabbing to a different port to meet my family for our Spring break cruise. We have traveled for a beach vacation where we did a lot of nothing but hanging out on the beach, and that was fantastic. PS5 will stay in my son’s room, he loves that thing so much! Next cruise at this point sets sail in 365 days, that one better happen!!!

@cbilyak We kind of went cruise wild in 2019 with the family cruise, a short after tax season cruise and a panama canal cruise.

The theme cruise looks interesting. Have toyed with the idea of one of those ourselves, but the were always pricey on less than new ships. You may have read my post about my client wanting to take me and my wife on a clothing optional cruise. Not really the type of theme cruise we wanted to go on.

@cbilyak @Felton10
OH MY, clothing optional? And with clients? What kind buisness ARE you in, sounds like it COULD get dicey!
Lol…

@Felton10 the theme cruise is a bit pricey but so worth every penny, at least this one is. Have sone it a few times and it quite possibly the best week of the year!

@Lynnerizer I am a CPA and I know you should everything about your clients but I think this is going a little too far. I told him to have his wife talk to my wife and if she could convince her to go, I was game. My client is African American 6 foot 5 inches and 20 years younger than me and my wife and I am sure he sticks out like a sore thumb (no pun intended) at these places which he tells me there are very few blacks at and he had been going to plsces like this for 20 years (cruises and clothing optional resorts).

@cbilyak I think ones like that might be fun as we ride into the sunset re cruising. You can only play so many games of trivia or attend so many art auctions before they get boring. Plus most of these cruises leave from ports near us in Florida.

@f00l We are not even sure Walter knows his own name so if that it true he certainly doesn’t know he has been with us for 25 years.

Either our daughter is coming down to stay with him as she has been down twice this year already and has fallen in love with our community pool and the ability to order drinks (on our dime) from the tiki bar at the pool while in the pool. Have my doubts about her taking care of Walter she is one of the two people who Walter actually bit on purpose.

The other option is to take him to the pet motel where he has gone to over 30 times and they love him there. His cage is kept in their main office and so he is never bored and one of women there has really taken a liking to him and takes him out of the cage all the time and carries him around the office.

@f00l @Felton10 I thought parrots could count. Have you not been telling him how old he is this whole time? Lol

@f00l @Felton10 @unksol If he knew how to count I am sure he’d be demanding a driver’s license and his own account at the tiki bar, not just his own credit card.

@f00l @Kidsandliz @unksol We are pretty sure I knows how to tell time because every night at around 11:00PM (give or take 15 minutes) whether I am in my office with him or not, he climbs down from his cage and starts his trek across the house ending up in the master bath. Most of the time I don’t even notice he is gone until I hear my wife yelling “Will you get this bird out of here”. He chases her out of the bathroom while she is getting ready for bed. For some reason he goes after her purple sneakers and even though she is barefoot she doesn’t want to take the chance.

@f00l @Felton10 @unksol I know my cats can tell time. They want to be fed at the same time each morning even if I am trying to sleep in. They have no understanding of our twice a year time changes either.

Maybe your wife should shut the bathroom door?

@f00l @Kidsandliz @unksol Then he will start banging on the door with his beak-same as if you are in the water closet and the door is closed. He walks right in there if the door is open if you are either standing or sitting.

No respect for privacy.

@f00l @Felton10 @Kidsandliz the cats know when I go to bed/work/etc not so much what time it is. They get annoyed if I work late/get of schedule

@seespotbark Well it didn’t end on January 20th as the stable genius said, I don’t have any insider info as to the exact date it will end.

So, IF I was to make a cardboard sign and stand on the highway it would say “Florida or BUST”! OMW DAD, hang on i’m coming! BUT, since I won’t be holding any signs on any highway, WHEN it’s safe we’ll be flying to Florida!

@chienfou Hey can I sneak onboard via your luggage? That should be really fun!!!

@chienfou How many people are on a ship like that and where are you headed. On my last cruise (the family cruise) it was my son and daughter, his wife and my granddaughter and 6,000 of our closest friends.

@chienfou @Felton10 those kinds of sailing ships likely have (overnight vs day sails are different) between maybe 100 with the smaller one in the photo with 3 masts and maybe 225 or so with the 5 masted one. The numbers would depend on both cabin size and USCG regulations (if USA flagged). One hundred ton ones (around 125 or so feet in length and typically 2 masts; the 100 tons is common due to coast guard license, inspection, etc. rules that are partly by tonage) typically have passenger numbers in the 20’s to low 30’s depending the cabin layout.

@Felton10 @Kidsandliz
Correct on the passenger counts. We are sailing on STAR CLIPPERS for that cruise.
Haven’t done one that size yet, but have done (and truly loved!) our cruises on Island Windjammer.
We lucked onto a terrific sale that ended up at $1k each for the tiniest cabins on the ship. My opinion on room size is once I lay down and close my eyes it is the same size as the biggest stateroom… I don’t find I spend much time in the room the rest of the trip, so yeah, cheap is good!

@Kidsandliz

Hey can I sneak onboard via your luggage? That should be really fun!!!

1. See “tiny room” comment above,
2. If you are still interested, I’ll run it by SWMBO (but don’t get your hopes up!)
   

@mbersiam Wait till you have been married 30 years like we were when we decided to move to Flori(DUH). That was almost 20 years ago when we were in our mid 50’s.

@Kyeh I haven’t even seen my mom since Christmas 2019. I hate that. So I know exactly what you are saying/meaning. Since I live 950+ miles away driving there for a one time 30 min visit is just not practical.

@Kidsandliz Wow. Has she at least been able to get vaccinated? My mother has had her first shot and gets the second on Wednesday. She still lives in her own place, so didn’t automatically get signed up.Her slightly younger beau finally got them scheduled.

@Targaryen

White Sands is amazing.

If you have time off you can go now

it’s safe enough to travel by vehicle. just don’t get to eat in any restaurants
And you kind of have to avoid all the tourist shopping and all the indoor stuff
but truckstops are OK if you are masked

I guess there’s a risk associated with being in a hotel since you don’t know for sure that the previous residents of your room were disease-free

some folks are going camping or car camping

And if you’re in the area don’t forget Carlsbad
And the atomic testing sites
And El Morro. And Shiprock. And all those lovely drives around Santa Fe and the ski resorts.
And Gila. And the canyons that have lots of archaeology.
And the insanely beautiful lake Powell. And Chama. And the dormant calderas. And the outdoor portions of Los Alamos.

And anything associated with Georgia O’Keeffe

And that’s just A tiny fraction of New Mexico and barely scratches the surface of the incredible stuff.
And I’m not even familiar with New Mexico in general or with the reservation areas

One bad note is that fuel prices are kind of stupid expensive right now

—
Also right now is the absolute best time of year to visit Big Bend or Bend Ranch or Santa Elena Canyon or any of that and it’s all outdoors, people will be 5 miles from anybody
so no worries unless you can catch something from an armadillo

@f00l Yeah everything you cautioned is part of the reason I haven’t gone far. I have a few things to add to the list now though which is nice. Maybe I’ll go when some of my family come down to visit in a few months. That’ll be something different.

@Targaryen

I’m a huge fan of just getting in the car on the van or the truck and going
Car camping etc along the way

I can get a motel shower every few days or get a shower at the truckstop or if you have a fitness membership like planet fitness you can visit their locations for showers.

Mostly I go alone or with friends or family who are very tolerant of this travel style

Some very well off relations love traveling this way

They could afford all the airfare and luxury hotels wanted but when their kids were younger or teenage the whole family traveled this way in a huge extended van completed out with tents air mattresses good quality cooler full of ice drinks and food, and portable grills showers and all that

and now that those kids have kids of their own, my relations travel as a couple that way frequently and have a grand time

When they did this the shortest kid was 6’6“ and they all managed to be comfortable and happy anyway.

They camped in state parks and national parks and national forests and other parks and they also camped at commercial campgrounds like the yogi bear chain which is nice although it’s kind of amusing kitschy

And there are plenty of parks and commercial campgrounds where you can rent cabins and also plenty of parks and commercial campgrounds where you can do tent or car camping but they have public showers and restrooms

This doesn’t require any special skills or fitness that your average American idiot doesn’t have

And it’s quite comfortable and relaxing mostly, and when the weather turns awful you can flip a coin about a motel or hotel

These relations of mine arent addicted to roughing it or the simple lifestyle
They’ve also done the luxury hotel visits to Paris and Beijing and all that
but they just think car camping is a blast

You really don’t need that much purchases equipment because you can rent a whole lot of it at REI and that way you can try it out without much shopping, all you need is a vehicle

And in the great Southwest (Texas through California inland) it’s pretty easy to have a grand time outdoors, you’re not exposing yourself much to nasty respiratory stuff. .

And there are no special fitness requirements or outdoor skills unless you’re deliberately choosing those activities (like serious hiking or climbing or getting on the river) but you could have a grand time on hikes that are a mile long fully paved

For the long drive from wherever to wherever it helps to have either audiobooks and podcasts especially if the topic is a history of the area you’re visiting

Anyway spring and fall are prime time for thi even in normal years. Youre mostly outdoors not risking your health, and right now in pandemic times the roads and the various places you would visit are pretty much near deserted so even better.

Couple notes;
Carry lots of portable phone battery chargers. I understand these can be purchased from some company that’s in Carrollton?

Carry water and ice.

Don’t take a non off-road vehicle onto a road that’s marked “4wheel drive vehicles only” or similar.

If you do this in summer take 5x as much water and ice.

If you do this spring or fall, the weather in unpredictable. Carry winter stuff jic.

Walkie talkie devices or similar are good to have jic.

@f00l @Targaryen I can’t see going to New Mexico without being able to go to the restaurants!!! It’s one to the main reasons to go there for me.

@Kyeh @Targaryen

New Mexico is astonishing with or without restaurants

If I have the free time I go now and do outdoor stuff and then I’ll go back and do more outdoor stuff and then back and do more outdoor stuff you’re not gonna run out

And then when the pandemic is finally leaving us I’d start doing these trips again and again and again with both outdoor stuff and restaurants

New Mexico is just so worthy as a place to visit

@f00l @Kyeh @Targaryen
We have plans for Durango/4 corners in OCT (hopefully with the grandson if school issues permit)… Looking forward to exploring that area.

@chienfou @Kyeh @Targaryen

I forgot a few essentials for the list for vehicle traveling in the SW US, really any time a year.

Hats.
Hats for cold weather, fall-spring.
Hats to protect from sun, year round.

A gas or fuel can.

Always always the necessary cooler w ice and extra water and drinks. And then extra water and drinks.

Sunscreen. Pref a waterproof one that doesn’t sting eyes. Like a waterproof one for kids.

Something wearable with which to carry extra water or suitable drinks and sunscreen in, should you choose to or have to walk any distance.

@chienfou @f00l @Targaryen Are you going to ride the trains? I hope they’ll be running again by then. The Durango-Silverton is really spectacular. I hear the Royal Gorge is fun too; I haven’t been there yet myself.
Also, the Great Sand Dunes is worth a visit!
The Black Canyon of the Gunnison is wonderful too.

@Kyeh

Are you going to ride the trains?

That’s the plan. We truly enjoyed our trip from Denver to Glenwood Springs last fall and want to explore that area (4 corners) with our (13y/o) grandson. We are trying to do trips with the grandkids as they get older to build memories for later (so they won’t think of us always as being ‘that old couple whose house smells funny’)

@chienfou Nice - how many grandkids do you have?

@Targaryen white sands/arches/petrified forest/red rock… There is a ton to see out west. If you get a few weeks

@Kyeh
2, one of each.

@Kyeh f00l

people will be 5 miles from anybody

That’s what I thought when I was backpacking on Cumberland Island last March and they kicked us off the Island (16 miles long max of 200 on the island at a time) at the start of the CoViD craziness…

@romellex Where do you live that salons aren’t open! I’m in California and I feel like it’s pretty strict here, but we’ve been able to have hair/nails done for a few months!

@romellex @RPVMom I’m in Oregon, which has had fairly strict lockdown policies, and I’ve been able to get haircuts as often as needed. Some barbers have gone to scheduled appointment-only but the shop I visit just has a sign-in sheet and limited seating (max 2) for waiting customers, else you wait outside in your vehicle.

PS and for my niece to get married. Her husband to be is from another country and so they are postponing it until his family can attend. They had planned to be married very early into the pandemic. Fortunately for them they are living together so nothing is changing from that point of view but I know they really, really wish they hadn’t had to postpone their wedding.