Well, my friends, it has taken me being put into 48
hours of isolation here on the Zuiderdam, in order to
get back into the blogging game! I have sat for
hours writing interesting snippets about my adventures
in the Mediterranean, only to have them either lost
while posting them, or just lost...gone....no where to
be found!! So, I now have NO excuses (where have you
heard THAT before!!) as I lie here, Macbook Pro
balanced on my pajama clad lap....ready to regale you
with well-turned phrases and salty yarns about my high
jinx on the high seas and in various exotic ports.
I am actually in quarantine due to a stomach bug,
which, you can well imagine, is serious business on a
cruise ship! After waking from a night of fever and
chills, I called James (Leader of the best HALCats
band...everrrrr....and someone who will appear in many
blogs to come, I'm sure!). We both agreed...shuffle
myself up to the medical clinic and get what's coming
to me. 48 hours of isolation is the treatment of
choice when anything gastro-intestinal shows up among
crew or passengers. Darn.
While having my blood pressure and temperature
checked, I did have a chance to chat with the crew
doctor, who, as it turns out, is also a singer! So,
after discussing the merits of Marvin Gaye , she sent
me back to my cabin with strict orders to STAY PUT for
the next 2 days. She informed me that every
department on board will KNOW I am quarantined...and
that under NO circumstances will I be leaving my
cabin. I will call room service for broth and
jello...I will take my Loperamide Hydrochloride, I
will not wince as the electronic tracking device is
shackled to my leg!!! ARGH
I used to wonder what it would be like to have 2 days
ALLLLLL to myself here. Don't get me wrong, I
probably have the lightest work load of any musician
on board...(sometimes having several days off in a row
due to guest entertainers needing the band) but even
on those days, I find myself busy
with....with....whatever!! Now I was faced with the
chance to experience those 2 days of
solitude....but.... I didn't factor in the
gut-wrenching pain, the limited cuisine, and feeling
like a leper!
And, I didn't realize how badly I would feel about
missing my sets with the band!
We had an easy day schedule, with only a couple hours
of music for a sailaway party. Thankfully, though,
a former Zuiderdam Halkitten, Marisha Wallace, is on
board visiting her boyfriend (our drummer, Dom). She
very graciously agreed to lend her incredible pipes
for the afternoon. God bless you, girl!!
So, here I am....knowing there are a dozen blogs to
catch up on....and knowing that this is the perfect
opportunity to write them!
I will try to include a pic that fits with my previous
blog....about arriving in Venice.
After about 2 days in the air, I spent yet another
sleepless night at the Plaze Hotel. (Wow...that
really was almost 2 months ago!) All of my annoyance
vanished; however, when I watched the sun rise over
Venice. Breathtaking.
A great way to start a new chapter in my travels.
Since then, I have taken hundreds upon hundreds of
pictures and videos. From Italy to Turkey to Greece
to Croatia to Sicily--each picture tells a story far
more eloquently than I ever could.
I have also been blessed with some of the most
wonderful friends & crew mates, not to mention the
best band on the high seas! The adventure has become
bigger than the adventurer, I think, as I lie
here....gatorade on my left...telephone--my only
lifeline to the outside world of A & B decks--on my
right.
Now, if I actually do all the catching up I should do
here, this quarantine thing, might turn out to be
something productive...or at least more productive
that the "whatever" I have been doing! lol
So....I raise my gatorade to the first of many
installments to come!
hours of isolation here on the Zuiderdam, in order to
get back into the blogging game! I have sat for
hours writing interesting snippets about my adventures
in the Mediterranean, only to have them either lost
while posting them, or just lost...gone....no where to
be found!! So, I now have NO excuses (where have you
heard THAT before!!) as I lie here, Macbook Pro
balanced on my pajama clad lap....ready to regale you
with well-turned phrases and salty yarns about my high
jinx on the high seas and in various exotic ports.
I am actually in quarantine due to a stomach bug,
which, you can well imagine, is serious business on a
cruise ship! After waking from a night of fever and
chills, I called James (Leader of the best HALCats
band...everrrrr....and someone who will appear in many
blogs to come, I'm sure!). We both agreed...shuffle
myself up to the medical clinic and get what's coming
to me. 48 hours of isolation is the treatment of
choice when anything gastro-intestinal shows up among
crew or passengers. Darn.
While having my blood pressure and temperature
checked, I did have a chance to chat with the crew
doctor, who, as it turns out, is also a singer! So,
after discussing the merits of Marvin Gaye , she sent
me back to my cabin with strict orders to STAY PUT for
the next 2 days. She informed me that every
department on board will KNOW I am quarantined...and
that under NO circumstances will I be leaving my
cabin. I will call room service for broth and
jello...I will take my Loperamide Hydrochloride, I
will not wince as the electronic tracking device is
shackled to my leg!!! ARGH
I used to wonder what it would be like to have 2 days
ALLLLLL to myself here. Don't get me wrong, I
probably have the lightest work load of any musician
on board...(sometimes having several days off in a row
due to guest entertainers needing the band) but even
on those days, I find myself busy
with....with....whatever!! Now I was faced with the
chance to experience those 2 days of
solitude....but.... I didn't factor in the
gut-wrenching pain, the limited cuisine, and feeling
like a leper!
And, I didn't realize how badly I would feel about
missing my sets with the band!
We had an easy day schedule, with only a couple hours
of music for a sailaway party. Thankfully, though,
a former Zuiderdam Halkitten, Marisha Wallace, is on
board visiting her boyfriend (our drummer, Dom). She
very graciously agreed to lend her incredible pipes
for the afternoon. God bless you, girl!!
So, here I am....knowing there are a dozen blogs to
catch up on....and knowing that this is the perfect
opportunity to write them!
I will try to include a pic that fits with my previous
blog....about arriving in Venice.
After about 2 days in the air, I spent yet another
sleepless night at the Plaze Hotel. (Wow...that
really was almost 2 months ago!) All of my annoyance
vanished; however, when I watched the sun rise over
Venice. Breathtaking.
A great way to start a new chapter in my travels.
Since then, I have taken hundreds upon hundreds of
pictures and videos. From Italy to Turkey to Greece
to Croatia to Sicily--each picture tells a story far
more eloquently than I ever could.
I have also been blessed with some of the most
wonderful friends & crew mates, not to mention the
best band on the high seas! The adventure has become
bigger than the adventurer, I think, as I lie
here....gatorade on my left...telephone--my only
lifeline to the outside world of A & B decks--on my
right.
Now, if I actually do all the catching up I should do
here, this quarantine thing, might turn out to be
something productive...or at least more productive
that the "whatever" I have been doing! lol
So....I raise my gatorade to the first of many
installments to come!
