Eastern Caribbean Cruise Part 2

We had a different type of balcony with our cabin on this trip.  It's called a cove balcony and it's much lower on the ship. It is more enclosed and you can see the heavy duty door that can be secured in case of high waves and rough water. (There is the regular glass door there too.)

I had considered trying out this type of balcony before...but this time there was no choice. We were late in booking the trip and it was the only balcony room available. 

The good part is...it's very private and shady nearly all day. 

One reason it's shady - the life boats are stationed above us.

It will be hard to decide next time if we want to be higher on the ship or choose a quiet shady spot like this again.

So Day Three we docked at St. Thomas.  We originally planned to take a taxi to the beach but instead decided to stay on board and relax.

It was interesting watching different boats coming and going...sail boats, private yachts, tour and snorkel boats, pirate ship theme party boats, charter fishing boats...all kinds.

In between, we read, napped, ate, and I did some stitching.

It was nearly dark when we pulled out of port and  the lights boats and on the hillside and the harbor made a very pretty scene.

Day Four was Puerto Rico.  I got off the ship and walked around the area near the port in search of a rum cake to bring home for The Sasquatch.  

  

There were lots of street vendors set up selling crafts and jewelry.  Also food, candy and icy fruit drinks.  I walked to a state sanctioned arts and crafts fair but came away empty handed. There were some interesting things but I'm supposed to be down sizing, not adding to my possesions.

I did buy that rum cake and some coconut candies from a booth. One must contribute to the local economy!

Back on board, I joined Lonnie in doing some more of that all important relaxing.  We went out on deck and watched "Aladdin" on the big outdoor screen. 

Later, back to our balcony as the harbor pilot guided the ship back to open sea.

You can barely see one of Puerto Rico's old forts there in the distance.

So after all that relaxing, we were ready for another beach day on Day Five at Grand Turk.

(I am retiring this poor camera. The photo above taken with my cell phone and below taken with my camera. What a difference in color and clarity.)

We have been here before. This is the beach where we swim next to the ship.

That's Lonnie in the water with just his head sticking out, to the right of center.

I tried my snorkel again and found a few fish.

The beach was crowded and busy. Directly behind is a "Margaritaville" bar and restaurant which was always jammed but I did manage to order margaritas and "volcano nachos" to bring back to our beach chairs.

The last day was a "Day at Sea", which we started off with brunch in the dining room.  One of the perks for cruising so many times with Carnival is a coupon for a free drink at breakfast or lunch.

We normally wouldn't have a drink so early in the day...but hey...it's free.

A Strawberry Daquiri and a Kahlua Rattlesnake.  

See those fat straws in the drinks?  They are made of cornstarch to help with pollution caused by plastic straws.   They are edible as well and I saw some people eating theirs.

Hope all that cornstarch doesn't thicken the oceans, ha ha!

It was a very trip, a nice winter get-away.  As always, we were glad to be home again.

Eastern Caribbean Cruise Part 1

We have been on a Carnival cruise.  Back on the ship "Carnival Breeze" which we have sailed on before.

We flew down early on the morning the ship sailed which can be a bit nerve wracking, worrying that a flight will be delayed or a connection missed and we'd be too late to board the ship...but this was a 6:10 am non-stop flight so not much chance for anything to go wrong.

I had a window seat and I was able to watch the full moon setting on the horizon.  It was neat and I tried getting photos.  That's the colorful wing of the airplane and the moon in the photo below.

Before I tell about the cruise...I know I'm not the first one to think of this but I am delighted with my new method of packing.  I splurged on some jumbo zip lock bags and in each one I placed one day's outfits...pants or capris with two shirt options.

Once on the ship, I just stacked them in the closet.  Everything stayed tidy until I was ready to wear it. The things I didn't wear stayed clean and folded and easy to put away when I got back home.

The bags are still in good shape and can be used again.

Day One of our cruise was a day at sea.  Day Two was the most fun day.

We sailed into port at Dominica, an island we had never visited.

Sometimes we make our own arrangements or take a taxi to a beach but on this island it was suggested to book tours through Carnival, so I set this up while planning the cruise.

It was an open air bus/truck to a beach on the other side of the island.

We are ready for that beach!

It was a gravel road and a bumpy ride. Through creeks and up and down hills.  We passed by homes and through jungle like areas...

...and past some lovely ocean views complete with palm trees.

Here is the beach. Neither of us really like broiling in the direct sun so we chose some chairs back in the shade.  Look at that turquoise water.  I had to get in right away!

I tried snorkeling (brought my own mask)but the water was too cloudy to see very far.

We had a front row seat to see some zip liners coming in for a landing. I was tempted to try it...maybe next time...or maybe never.

It was a very nice day and we would have stayed longer but had to get back on the bus for that hour long ride back to the port.

I snapped a quick photo of a cemetary - little houses built over each grave . I guess that green structure is for above ground interment?...maybe just for cremains?

Notice the fence post sprouting limbs and leaves in the right foreground.

Lots of windmills on top of the hills.

The homes were open-air and somewhat primitive.  The smaller stores and restaurants looked almost like the homes.  But what we noticed most, was that everything was clean.  No garbage along the roads or in the water or on the beach.

The residents seem to take pride in their piece of paradise and want to take good care of it.

Well, I have more but I'll write up another posting.

finished that quilt

I finished up that quilt that I was working on.   It is the 6th project I have completed since I vowed to finish up all my UFO's (unfinished objects).

As I mentioned in a previous post, the fabrics came from a kit that I bought cheap but then wasn't thrilled with the pattern that came with it.

This is the design that I came up with instead.  I like it and these bright colors are nice to work with on these gray winter days.

As a last minute idea, I added these stars in the sashing intersections when putting the quilt together.

In the picture above you can see that I made a switch from my regular meandering quilting design.

It's not a big quilt. About 42" x 54",  throw sized, so I finished it up pretty quickly.

I like the way the design seems off center and can be seen as diamonds or big X's.

Trying to find some greenish grass for a good picture.  No luck.

Well, here comes Puss to lend a hand (or a paw).

Here is the back...same fabric as the sashing and borders on the front.  I had it in my fabric stash and I can't remember where it came from. (Some other quilter's give-away, I'm sure.)

 I think it may be a poly/cotton blend but I'm not a bit worried about that.  It was right for the job and what was I saving it for if not to use it?

The quilting swirls show up better there on the back also.

This one isn't intended for anyone at this time.  I've sort of gotten attached to it so I'll save it back for now.

coyote

There has been a coyote in the back field a couple of times recently so I am worried about letting the cat outside.

She has seen the coyote too and growls as she watches it through the back door glass.  She knows it's not friendly!

I assumed the coyote wouldn't come too close to the house but then there were these tracks in the driveway....

Some are coyote tracks...

But there are deer tracks too...not necessarily from the same time.

Sorry to show gross stuff here. This was in the grass near the driveway. I thought at first it was hair from a skunk, but then I remembered there is a rotting deer carcass out near the road a few feet down from the driveway.   I think this is hair from a deer tail.  That's probably why the coyote was passing through there...for snacking on that dead deer.

I hope the coyote stays away.  I read online they are becoming a problem.  They kill and eat so many small animals and have no predators except for humans.  Their population is growing.

Puss is very alert and very fast...and she is a good tree climber.  She'd better keep her guard up!

a quilt in the works

This quilt I am working on started as one of those clearance priced kits.  When I ordered it a few years ago, I planned to make the pattern that came with it, pictured here, but to add more borders to make a toddler sized quilt.

Back then, when I started cutting the fabric, I really started to dislike the mix of colors.  I like things colorful but these seemed to all be fighting for attention and not even coordinating that well.
Maybe that's why it was so cheap!

And that's why I had bagged it all up and stashed it in the closet to figure out later.

Well, later is now, and it's time to do something with this unfinished project.

My first idea was to use some of the fabrics and use the pattern for a 3 yard quilt like one I made last year.

That turned out just sort of okay looking so I dug around in my stash to try to see what else I could use to make it cuter.  Sashing? Borders?

What if I set the blocks on point and bordered them with this raspberry colored fabric?

I sort of liked this layout below, but there wasn't enough raspberry fabric to also fill in the edges.

What about having some blocks point left and some point right?

Getting closer...how about blocks forming a zig zag with raspberry sashing!

Nope, Puss doesn't care for this layout.

Okay then, let's try this...

Hey! This is the one! I like that it sort of forms a lattice...and that it isn't symetrical.

I sewed it all together and had enough raspberry for borders too. 

Puss approves and declares it to be comfy enough for a snooze.

I also added some stars in the sashing intersections to add a little interest.

Now it is pin basted...

...and ready for quilting.

New Year's Cleaning

It seems like a new year inspires us to clear out the old and refresh and clean our homes.

Judging by the mounds of stuff I saw piled outside the door of the Goodwill store, a lot of people feel this way.  Or maybe they just got so much stuff for Christmas, they have to clear out a place for it.

I decided to wash my kitchen cabinet doors and, at the same time, replace the shelf liner that's been there since the cabinets were new.   I stepped up in quality with this washable shelf liner that I found on Amazon.  Made in USA too.

It's easy to trim with scissors.

Chaos has been conquered and order is restored!

I realized I have a lot of weight in this cabinet.  It's Fiestaware dishes and they are heavy.  I'm never sure how much weight the upper cabinets are meant to hold. I could probably pull out a few of the plates and saucers and store them elsewhere.

Speaking of cabinet cleaning...see in the photo above how my cabinets are mounted a few inches below the ceiling?  It's the way I chose but it does collect grease and dust up there.  I can't really get up there and get my arm in to wipe it off so I just ignore it.

Am I missing something?  What does everyone else do?

I am also working on clearing out my basement.  Apparently, I never met a half full rusty can of paint that I didn't love.  But - no more...out they go!  Well, there are a few more but I didn't want to fill the garbage can up with them.

The mischevious Puss must have discovered a new hiding place when she was in the basement with me.

Later, after I came upstairs, Lonnie and I heard a crashing noise.  We had no idea where it came from or what it could be.  When I flipped on the basement light there stood a very guilty looking kitty.

She couldn't help but to lead me to the scene of the crime.

Broken flourescent lights and torn insulation...plus the light fixture was separated and hanging from it's wires!

I figure she must have climbed from the middle of the stairs on to an air duct and from there wiggled between the ceiling and the insulation.  When the insulation ripped loose, she must have jumped on or tried to grab the light fixture, knocking the bulb out.  

Such a big catastrophe for such a small cat.   I checked her little feets for glass splinters but she was unscathed.   Surely she won't try this again!

Here is something that I though was funny.  When I go to the grocery I take my own bags.  I always just put them on the moving belt first then load my groceries on there.

On this particular day, when I finished unloading my cart, I turned around to see the bag boy using plastic bags.  As I was telling him that I had brought my own bags I glanced down to see that he had bagged up my reusable bags!

He was embarrased of course and I guess new to the job.  I told him I had never seen such an effecient bagger!