Here Beginneth the Trip

Having survived the assassination attempt by an evil cartel of European microbes, I will now commence the travelog of Adventures & Wonders-2026. 

 

Let's start at the very beginning (🎶A very good place to start🎶 -- thanks Julie) with the ship and departure from Ft. Lauderdale. The ship was the latest design from Celebrity Cruises, and we were both curious to see its vaunted innovations. There was some nice stuff, admittedly, but the newer ships tend to leave me mostly cold. The promenade around the ship, where I spent a lot of time on the first trans-Atlantic crossing watching and listening to the sea in fascination and reading some ancient history, is being replaced by various modern gizmos and "fun" features. The decor is often garish and the public spaces, often filled with too-loud music, look more like a passé disco than a ship. Call me old fashioned, but if I'm on a ship, I want to feel like I'm on a ship. Anywho, enough rant. Here's what things looked like... 

The ship had a lounge/bar mounted to its side which gave nice views. It actually can move up and down, but conditions were such that the captain left it in place.

 

more ship

the largest art installation; don't quite know what I thought of it

there was, however, a lot of very good photography in the passageways

I took some artsy stuff myself 

it's sad to think someone thought the sign was necessary

Delay

Gentle Reader: If you are wondering about the delay in my travel postings, I appear to have caught a nasty bug on the way back. It's just a cold, but it is draining. I should be back to what I call normal in a couple days. Thanks!

I have returned!

 I have returned from the 2026 edition of Adventures & Wonders. Give me a chance to recombobulate, and I shall begin relating my narrative.  😘

Vacation

The time has come for an extended respite from my global despotic duties, hence I will be on holiday and won't be posting until I return. Now, y'all  behave yourselves while I'm gone...  WH 

                                         created by GOTTE(@hamgotte)

BREAKING: Trump Loses Fight With Pope

 

The Death of English as We Know It

I accidentally ran into this hot grammatical mess, a headline of a New York Times op-ed piece:  

‘The Reason I’m Not an Atheist Is That I Think the Philosophical Arguments Against It Are Unanswerable’  

Huh??? I stared at it for a while and could not figure out what it meant (have I mentioned I have a PhD in Classical Studies from Duke and have read undergraduate papers for over 30 years).  Utterly stumped, I tried turning the plethora of negatives into positives and got "The reason I'm a believer is that I think the philosophical arguments..." uh-oh, that can't be right. The arguments for theism are answerable? The arguments against theism are unanswerable?  Back in high school, there was a term for this kind of writing. It was called crap (on a polite day). The "It" has no clear antecedent, and all the negatives convoluted the meaning so terribly they might as well have written it in early Hittite. Apparently NYT has fired all their copy editors in a cost-cutting move. This is nothing short of shameful.

The Weather

Last Wednesday, there were frost warnings at night. This Wednesday the forecast high is 91 (33º C).  Mother Nature has clearly developed a major drinking problem.

This Does Not Bode Well...

I prefer my breakfast to be less mysterious, thank you. The last thing I need is surprises in the morning.

 

Assorted Blossoms

No Home Should Be Without One!!!

O Glorious Day!

The sequel to Three Bags Full (see https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Three_Bags_Full) has finally come out! Combined with the premier of the movie version of Three Bags titled The Sheep Detectives, slated for a May 8th release, it is truly a wonderful time to be a sheep!!!

🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏🐑🐏
* written by Craig Mazin and starring Hugh Jackman and Emma Thompson

We're Doomed...

Just in case you needed another reason to shake your head in shame and disgust... the other day I needed to Google something about Canada and under "people also asked" got the following gems:

• How do you pronounce "I love you" in Canada?
• What do Canadians call a bathroom?
• What is the gloomiest city in Canada?
• How do I say hello in Canada?
• How do Canadians say "sorry"?
• Do Canadians say "please" and "thank you"? 

 🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦🇨🇦

Easter Week Funnies