all aboard

Ahoy,

First week back from the cruise. Hello, reality. I don't really remember the other 2 cruises we went on when I was a kid. I remember them being fun. And the pools were filled with salt water, like it came straight from the ocean. I had a great time this time around, and I hope my companions did as well. I was mainly the cruise director for my group of 8. We booked this adventure way back in October. I was scrambling to find people to join in on this deal I found. And then reeling from the aftermath of committing a group of 8, pretty much under my jurisdiction for a vacation. Oh, boy.

There was a lot of convenient eating. So now we are back to cooking our own food and cleaning our own dishes. And not having access to ice cream mostly around the clock. What a drag. Leaving this time with my family also tears me up a little. My dad was so happy to hang out and play with us. He's spent our whole lives working. And now that he's essentially retired, I'm more than halfway across the country. I've never really spent so much time with him. Every time my grandma sees me she asks me to go back home. I just feel bad about being so far away from them. I really want to know my dad better. And I really want my mom to detach from her phone.

I think it was a good time for us. My mom had been looking forward to a family vacation for a while. It was a lot of time spent with all my favorite people. I am truly so happy they all graced me with their presence and agreed to go on this expedition with me. In many ways, I hope I wasn't dragging anyone along. As the cruise director, sometimes it does feel like I'm dragging someone along. Challenge by choice. It's usually just the RRS I'm dragging along, but this time it was 7 whole humans. What a blessing to have 7 mostly willing participants.

generally ashore,
jt