So long, and thanks for all the genetic material!

Oy, getting so far behind! Suffice it to say for now that Ships ‘n Dip was awesome, and I’m still recovering. (Not from booze, just from late hours, rocking out, and a quite tender throat.) I will be posting about that in a day or two. I would do it now, but it’s going to be fairly epic, and since there are pictures to post (and possibly even video, if I get really crazy), it’ll have to wait until I hit a port with some good internet.

So for now, let’s get caught up to the start of Ships ‘n Dip, shall we?

As you’ll recall, the ‘rents were on that cruise. For our last day in port, at St. Lucia, we did the Soufriere and Piton Falls excursion. It was a scenic drive, several lovely views of the Piton mountains, and a nice little dip in a hot springs pool. Mind you, the driving time to enjoyment time ratio was pretty stinky (the drive was still scenic on the return, but having seen everything before and making no stops made for much nodding off on the hour-and-a-half it took), but no regrets.

That night, we performed our improv shows, with my parents watching for the first time in years. By my choice, of course: though the policy has softened over the years, I’m still somewhat reticent about having friends and family in my audiences (not counting performing friends, of course). And while the policy still generally holds, it was a pretty good show, and the folks went away happy. As a cast, we’ve mentally accepted but haven’t quite internalized that the crowds we’re going to have will be quieter (read: older and smaller) than we’ve gotten used to. But we’re keeping our swagger, and hey, not that long ‘til Spring Break.

Then a couple of sea days. Some nice conversations with the family, a viewing of Cirque Bijou (the folks were suitably impressed), and a goodbye meal with the cast at Mama’s Italian Kitchen. It was my second time at Mama’s, and I must confess to being a tad disappointed; I am certainly looking forward to a visit to Marcello’s for pizza and Vinnie’s Paninis for a chicken parm sandwich shortly after my return. (Don’t get me wrong, I miss people too…)

Then came the tearful goodbye. Well, they cried. I’m dead inside. Of course, we did it at night, as I wasn’t sure I was going to see them in the morning, but sure enough, they were there at breakfast, so I made them cry twice. I’m good like that.

Then a fairly uneventful day in Miami, though I did bump into Alice on the street and ended up retreating with her to Sedici’s, where Ian and some other cast members of theirs were doing the coffee-and-internet thing. Some nice catching up, and since it turns out we’re in Miami together every two weeks, hopefully there are group activities ahead.

And that brings us to Ships ‘n Dip.

In anticipation of the next post’s audio-visual wizardry, please enjoy some visual confirmation of what I’ve written: (Oh, and I’m just holding my glasses behind my back, lest anyone fear that I’ve lost an arm. I promise if I lose an arm, I will post about it, if only to practice my fancy new typing.)

Enjoy the relative brevity, because the next post…oh man…< ><–>

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