walking on broken glass...

not really but it sounded good.

actually, we - the bar department - were taken on a tour of the volcano national forest today. second to snorkeling, it's the most amazing experience ever. the magnificence of the mountain, the craters... the solidity of the rocks around the area. smell of sulfur. the ability to walk through a lava tube that years ago carried hot magma... wow.

hawaii is such a beautiful place. it's somewhere that never entered into my mind unless someone mentioned its name. here it is out in the middle of the pacific. you land on its ground and cease to be amazed.

for instance, a large majority of the plants here are not native. after all, the island, i've learned, are nothing but the peaks of mountains and volcanoes that extend above sea level. plant life was unheard of mostly until birds carried seeds in their digestive tracts or on their wings to the islands. air currents brought others before humans contributed even more.

the language, all their own and made up of just fourteen letters is amazing. it's difficult to learn but a beatiful language.

then their is aloha... most of us believe it's simply hello and goodbye yet it's so much more. it's a spirit, a passion of the people. it's helping your neighbor... a way to say i love you... hello and goodbye, of course... it's just aloha... being great.

the people are so happy here. those on vacation and the locals (i learned the hawaiian word today but can't spell it off the top of my head...) are all smiles. makes my job wonderful and my spirit happy.

speaking of being happy... perhaps some of you will be getting some nuts for christmas. after the park, we toured the macadamia nut factory. rather simple and small but very interesting. i was expecting more but it's just a little warehouse in the middle of nowhere with about twenty-five workers, including the one who greets you with samples as you step off the bus...

we're sailing, which means that we'll be on the other side of the island in a couple hours to see the lava flowing into the sea. passengers love it and so do i. wow.

in other news... i just had a meeting with the head of h.r. all my ideas for the newsletter were approved. i'm assuming the name i suggested -- the americana -- will title it. eight pages. news, poetry, pictures, contests, classifieds, letters to the editor, department highlights/updates, etc.... i love my job but should it become mundane, this will give me yet another outlet to have fun.

and on that note and following the message that we're now out of red zone, i'm going to smoke, call a few people and get ready to head to the bar.

things that make you go yuck!

so, yeah, i'm working at the pool and it's all fun an' stuff.

BUT... i haven't seen so many hairy, old, fat men since... well, maybe heritic on wednesdays.

and speedos... don't people know they're reserved for the likes of david phelps, greg louganis and others.

some of the women are just as bad. when you're sixty and carrying an oxygen bottle, cover up yourself already. wrinkles aren't in nor are they attractive.

that's my rant. i'm alright now.

what a day!

so, my first cruise is under my belt... (among other things. ha!) now is the beginning of the second. not counting it, there are eighteen more to go...

i sold almost a grand today. nine, ninety-nine and twenty-five cent. pretty big day. besides that, i had to participate in the passengers evacuation drill. perhaps it's the feeling that 'it can't happen to me' but it's funny how angry people get when they have to take part.

this is certainly no titanic but things could happen. wouldn't you think they'd want to be prepared? haven't they seen the chaos in that movie? just like the dumb-asses on the airplanes, i reckon.

more of my class arrived today. it was a pleasant surprise to see them. time doesn't matter here so i didn't even expect them. still nice.

we're on our way to maui. the itenerary changed this week so we flipped some days/destinations. no matter to me because i'm lost all the time. all the islands look the same to me.

when i get me next paycheck, i'm buying a digital camera. i'll try to post pics then. i can't on these computers. maybe when i get the laptop for the newsletter i can... thoughts... hmmm...

oh... i want to say thanks to the person who is still keeping up with my life and reporting it back to my family. or my family who have become fans. know that i'm not worried, still. if i were, i'd hide the things/thoughts i write here so freely. that's all i have to say about that other than you disgust me.

better things... i'm about to go to the bar.

just a thought...

someone sent me an e-mail that made me think. it was an article from the ajc about a woman who had cancer yet believed the lord had blessed her.

and he did. i just have never thought 'outside the box' like she did. her belief fits me as well although i do not have cancer.

she suffered. however, her blessing was being able to endure suffering. her blessing was inadvertantly giving others strength who saw her struggle.

i'm nowhere near the suffering i imagine a cancer patient endures. however, distanced family, financial hardships and just plain bad luck can make one feel really bad.

i'm not being conceited and hope no one perceives that. i know that there are those who look at my plight and say 'well done'. i know there are those who have told me they don't know how i make it at times.

maybe this woman is right. i am blessed. i suffer. but through that suffering, others are inspired and lifted up.

not bad, huh?

hau'oli la ho'omaika'i

happy thanksgivin', y'all. hope you're having a great day. i wish i had some turkey and dressin'. maybe they'll have it for lunch today...

i got some great news today... two things, actually. the first being i will be changing rooms on saturday. no more smoke filled cabin for me. two people are leaving the ship so it'll just be me and one other guy. not sure who that is yet.

the other news is that the company is beginning a crew newsletter and has asked me to 'spearhead' it. i agreed, of course! they're in the process of getting me a laptop with publisher on it and have given me my first assignment, which is to contrast new ship life to those returning... should be fun.

i don't know how to say this without revealing what i'm talking about but there's something heavy on my mind. i'm dealing with it alright but it's still crazy. sad. almost unbelievable. there's four people i have in my prayers and i'd appreciate it if everyone else would do the same.

i'm gonna run... not sure where. there's a beautiful mountain outside but i have no clue where i am. maybe i'll go see.

i passed on skinny-dippin'

i would have but there was too many people out. in cars. school buses. working on the side of the road. all at 2:30 a.m. so, michelle and i walked back to the ship, smoked a bit then went our seperate ways.

all this came after my first real day off the ship in maui. i got off the ship in hilo, too, but it was not as eventful. in fact, we walked to a restaurant only to turn around and eat in the crew mess. it wasn't worth paying for.

anyway, back to last night. brian, becca, justin and i went to the ale house across the street from port. brian wanted to do jager bombs but i threatened his life. instead, we had surfers on acid. beer. more beer.

michelle, shawn, d-an (real name), chris, steven and a whole other shitload of people showed up. there was a live band doing dmb, creed, 311 and the likes so it was fun.

i had a mushroom swiss burger, which was awesome. at $9.95 plus $1.95 for lettuce, tomato and pickles plus a $2.00 upcharge for fries, it should have been! oh well. it's the first meal i've paid for since i left baltimore last week.

tonight there's a toga party in the crew bar. we're somewhere between maui and whatever island is next. hell, i don't know.

oh! you know how the wave pools operate at white water in atlanta. so do ours when the ship initially sails! it's awesome. i thougt perhaps some of the loud-ass children in there would get out and go to their rooms or possibly drown but they didn't.

hmmm... not too much to say tonight. tom called and he is going to join ncla pending some minor issues with his health, etc. i called christine but couldn't talk long and a nurse walked in to change the i.v. she sounded well and was happy i called. i think they're going to do some procedure in the morning with super glue... at least that's how she described it. keep her in your thoughts and prayers.

back to work... we're supposed to follow someone for a week before we get 'let loose' on the floor to sale. however, we're getting them in the morning! we've all decided we're kicking ass and taking names. the glory is great but the money is the motive. gotta believe it.

the roommate situation isn't much better but is tolerable. all the male rooms are full so i can't change right now. in fact, some of the crew are staying in staterooms waiting for others to leave. that's what i'm doing, too... well waiting for people to leave. justin's roommate is leaving friday week so i'll change into his room then. he's my buddy so that'll be great.

i'm going to try to post pics if i can. if not, oh well. deal with it.

pool, people and pina coladas...

so this was my day... i woke up at seven. ate breakfast (free). watched the ship dock next to the mountain range in maui. walked up to deck 12 to ocean drive bar, which is poolside. clocked in. then talked to people. sold a few drinks. talked to more people.

walked around a bit. then it was 12:30, time to be off. went back to eat lunch (again, free). smoked while watching off the aft mooring deck. got off the ship and wandered around maui. went in a few shops. mapped out where i'm going after this... just strolled around.

then i came back to my cabin... small as it is, it's not bad. the magnets and such that i bought to keep my organized and best use the small space can only help, and do. the lei i bought yesterday (full of orchids but just eight bucks) is hanging from my shelf. the room smells of magnolias.

at four, it was time to be back poolside. such a hard task. more drinks, more conversation, more friends made. at five-thirty i was off to eat again (yep, it was free, too!).

i lazily went back to work at six, only to close the bar at six-thirty. cleaning took less than an hour and here i am.

i'm lovin' this. it's an amazing sight, a terribly easy job and one that allows you - almost mandates - to make friends. there was even some idiot on here today with a georgia tech hat. i would have asked where he was from but he probably couldn't tell me...

i've often thought about home and my friends and i truly miss both. but this is unlike any other experience i've had. there's no reason to be homesick. i'm five time zones away but i'm surrounded by beauty, comfort and, surprisingly, a close-knit group of people whom i'm certain will be awesome friends come time to leave.

there aren't many people from the east coast here, mainly texas, california and oregon, of all places.

i'm not sure if tom has made his final decision, but he has applied with ncla and should be leaving for piney point on friday. i haven't been able to call yet to learn his final decision. it's possible he'll be on the pride of america as well.

leslee... give my congrats to jenny on the baby girl. and send me pictures as soon as you get them. every time i get a new job, she has a baby. (that's dangerous!) tell her i can't rush away to see her this time. send me her address so i can send the baby something.

oh shit! macadamia nuts... i need to look for those. oops.

oh... if anyone wants to send me anything for christmas, i'm going to make a wishlist. normally, i think that is tacky. however, since i work and live on a ship, i think it's a better idea to let you know what i might need and, most importantly, have room for...

here's a few: anything magnetic, such as a cork board to post pics, etc. pictures... i didn't bring any. the magnets that have clips on them to hold paper, pics, etc. hmmm... i had a whole list before i started typing. oh! white footie socks. black footie socks. cute underwear. haha. keep in mind that i've gained a little weight... seven pounds. you weren't ready for that, were ya?

i gotta go. i'm getting silly and laughing out loud and people are staring.

aloha.

aloha kakahaika...

that's hawaiian for good morning! and it is. i'm looking out the window right now at the huge island with trees and mountains and palms and birds... only the clattering of dishes in the mess hall next door interrupt what must be heaven.

just a brief update here... i am going to eat then i have safety class at eight. oh, yeah. keep in mind that i am five hours behind eastern standard time, especially if you call. my cabin is on deck one, all the way forward so after i go to sleep, i have no reception. from the second deck and up, i normally have great service.

roommates. i hate 'em. gotta switch. i turned into martha last night and spent two hours cleaning our room. keep in mind that it's smaller than even my bedroom in atlanta! i was like cinderella on my hands and knees scrubbing the bathroom floor and shower stall.

empty bottles were all around. i ended up with three bags of trash!

i even vaccummed. dusted. made my bed. hid their mess among theirs. and left them a note...

it didn't work, though. i asked them to be neat and to not smoke.

i woke up at three to slamming doors and cigarette smoke only to go back to sleep and be awakened to the same thing around four-thirty, only from the other roommate. obviously, he works in the galley and is pissed at his manager about something. he ranted about that until five and left.

that's when i was able to try to sleep again. the cigarette smoke from both their nasty cigarettes had filled my area, though, so it was tough.

then, at six, the guy on top's alarm went off for twenty minutes... i tried to knock a damn hole in the bed but he still wouldn't wake up. he finally did at 6:45.

i gave up. i took a shower, brushed my teeth, am here updatin' and will go eat in just a minute.

then, i'm going to h.r. i can't stay there.

aloha

one t

first drill is over!

i had my first crew drill today. my duty is to be crew leader on deck six, zone three, which encompasses all thirteen decks. i must make sure my crew (four people) is present the check all thirteen decks to make sure they're present as well.

should we abandon ship, i have to wait until all thirteen decks come out with their passengers then report to the front of the ship to board our life raft.

was pretty awesome. they actually put the boats in the water and cruised around. certainly not the titanic.

we had some free time earlier so we got off the ship here in hilo. not too much near so we just wandered around. mainly tours of the volcano and helicopter tours, which we did not have time for.

ate lunch... i'm gonna be fat.

now, i'm going back to class. should be off tonight to watch the volcano pass. hope it's flowing. should be very pleasant.

i need a nice digital camera. as soon as i get the money, it'll be my first investment.

aloha

aloha from hawaii!!!

hey guys and girls... i'm finally five hours behind you guys; no longer penned up in maryland. my flight arrived here around eight p.m. local time. i arrived on the ship after a much-needed night of rest about twenty-four hours later.

it is magnificent. huge. overwhelming. amazing.

i'm more excited now than i have been at any point since being a part of this experience.

two of my roommates from piney point are here so that's going to make it that much easier. also, i've seen two people with whom i was friends in maryland here already... even easier a transition.

mojo is my buddy and head bartender. mr. b. is our boss. fun people, both of them.

i haven't had time to visit the island but i have an awesome schedule, which should allow me some time to get off the ship...

my roommates here suck. that's been the only negative thing thus far. no offense to old people but they are. besides that, they both smoke in our shoe-box-sized room. yes, i'm a smoker but never in my bedroom. i've already petitioned to move so i'm crossing my fingers. the place is nasty.

back to the good things... my first two weeks will be spent at the ocean drive pool bar, which is on the top deck in the south beach themed area. after that, who knows.

i have much better access to the internet here - it's certainly not dial-up! having said that, i hope to be in better contact with all of you.

some notes... i heard from christine... she's lost an amazing 32 pounds and is doing well. she'll be going back to work after thanksgiving.

wendell is still in south georgia among the rednecks. haha. he's doing well, too. that's all i'll say about that.

my fish are reportedly still alive, which is a good thing.

guys... i'm so excited. i wish all of you could be here! miss and love you all.

aloha

one t

crossing my fingers...

wow. it's been almost three weeks that i've been here. kind of weird: it seems like such a short period of time yet the friends i've made here seem like life-long aquaintances...

training is almost over... i only have firefighting, swimming and search and rescue left. that happens wednesday and thursday. we graduate thursday and if my mmd card comes in, i'll leave friday for honolulu. i won't be coming home after all.

all my fishies at home are still alive, i'm told. i hope that's still true. i miss them even though i only had them a couple weeks while i was there.

speaking of missing things, i want a mcdonald's double cheeseburger so bad i could kill for it. the food here is awesome but it's ship food and five course meals; nothing fattening.

i'm through working in the bar. i made the third-highest score in my class, which was a 62. before our class, the highest-ever score was 67 so i'm pleased. this place almost sets you up for failure with their weird schedule but you just have to make the most of it, which i did.

i'm not sure which ship i'm going to but i'll e-mail everyone the address when i get it. it'll be nice to stay in touch. also, i have to leave georgia behind and become a hawaiian resident. i won't complain, though.

more later... my fifteen minutes are up. it's like fame. once you have it, it's gone.

ha.

gotta make this a quick one...

i'm still alive... believe it or not. actually, i even weigh four pounds more... i'm over 140 now! (141, shuddup)

anyway, things are going awesome, still. as tom mentioned in his prior comment, this has basically been hell week for us bartenders. we had a test today that covered almost 150 pages of material and menus. we had no clue what to study; just told to know as much as possible.

i think i did rather well. the best score ever is 67 if that tells you anything. i think... and hope... mine is better.

let's see. this has been the past week. wake up at seven (imagine that) go to class at eight. get out at thre/four. work from five-fifteen until midnight and then start over.

notice there is no time for laundry, study, social time... nothing. it's been crazy.

i'm still sane, though.

and... the best of all... it seems like fate has brought me here and put me in the room with the guys i've made friends with as well as the rest of my classmates. we just learned, too, that we will be the last bartenders to go through training for a while! nick of time, huh?

i'll have to work and go to class the same through sunday. so, still not much time. however, i start safety training -- can you believe it's been almost two weeks already -- this weekend. i should have a decent amount of time in the afternoons then. maybe i can return to real life. i don't have any clue what's going out on there. is the world still turning?

it's chilly and blustery here today... not too much going on otherwise.

love all of you and miss you like crazy. i've talked with a bunch of you but haven't had a lot of time for everyone. i'm doing my best and will call as soon as i can.

gotta run eat so i can be at work on time.

later... one t

waking up is hard to do...

breakfast was at seven but class wasn't until nine... i slept in. i just couldn't do it this morning. then, after class, which ended at noon, i took the longest nap i've been able to take here: three hours.

that brings me to now, which is almost five p.m. i'm starving and dinner cannot come soon enough.

everything here is still going well. the new class came in last night so i'm now a junior! yay. and only two weeks until i get to honolulu. i'm excited.

why is it that everytime i get here my mind goes blank?

it just happened.

here in piney point, maryland...

alright. this is the deal. it seems that since the amish surround this base, the mentality overtakes the people here as well. this computer is on dial-up internet: a whole 24 whatever those things are...

having said that, i'll probably just post and respond to those things i can on my blog here rather than responding to each individual e-mail. i realize it is extremely impersonal but... gotta do what ya gotta do.

on to doing that, now

kelley - the lucky bitch - won a $2,000 diamond ring from the radion station the other day... congrats. ever think about selling it and giving me a part? send me a pic.

things here are beyond awesome. i told tom last night that i've been so busy i haven't had time to really miss too many of you, yet. it'll happen, though.

last night we had a five course meal for a select group of the class. it was alright but tuna just doesn't taste well dry. food overall, though, is tasty for cafeteria food. i'm back up to 140 in less than a week!

we welcome a new class tomorrow... party sunday... class next week. karaoke tuesday. a test tomorrow.

lot's o' stuff going on including this class i'm about to be late for...