How Sad?

It is with deep regret and joy that I now admit that the Bohlender/Steeno candidacy is over. Having gained momentum, they have decided that it would be a perfect time to quit.

Im both happy and sad. I so looked forward to being backward.

Bohlender/Steeno in 08

I would like to officially endorse a candidate for the 2008 Presidential Election.

Randy Bohlender has announced his choice for running mate, and has come up with a catchy slogan. These two things put him bald head and shoulder above any candidate already out there, and I think that is just ducky. Here are some things we know, or have heard, or just plain made up about his platform:

1. He has no party affiliation, but he likes a good party.

2. He believes in a strong bi-partisan gridlock, effectively bringing the government to an effective standstill allowing those of us who care the ability to truly engage self government the old fashioned way.

3. He is a staunch advocate for reducing our dependence on foreign ethanol. He has a plan to mix gasoline with it in order to help wean us off our deadly addiction to foreign "E".

4. He believes in relative Global Warming, especially in northern latitudes.

5. He doesn’t accept the argument that people are born skippers, but that they make choices to engage skipping, and can refrain if they wish. I have personally seen video tape with him interviewing the founder of the pro-skipping movement, and while I saw him "skip" he actually didn’t "inhale". Information can be found here

6. I did hear the phrase "World Peace through Aerobics" in his campaign headquarters, however most of his people looked like they are not members of any gym.

7. While rumors abound about his affiliation with a “Gun Club” there is no public evidence, and his position on gun control has yet to be determined, we do know that candidate Bohlender seriously opposes giving live ammunition to stupid people, effectively opening a door to true gun control.

All I can say is wow. I think Randy Bohlender provides a clear vision for homeo-politco-stasis, and is like a great bottle of wine: busy yet precocious, absurd yet flaccid, cheap, and full bodied. The Henrys urge you to join the campaign, and really constipate the wonderful federal republic we enjoy today.

You know you have the best family when...

on Wednesday you just looked at putting an offer on a house and getting preapproved for a mortgage, and then immediately you find out that you are losing your day job, and then find out Thursday that its all done by Friday and you got 2 weeks of income.

WOW.

And you know you have the best family when your wife lets you just lay your head on her chest, and she strokes your hair and the starts praying and telling God thagt she is not afraid and that He is the provider. And then she tells you she is confident, and believes in you. And the jokes about how great it is to marry a guy and 3 months later watch him get laid off!

Then you tell your kids, and your new wife comes in and sits down and you all discuss it and it turns into a learning lesson about how we trust God to lead us to the grass, and we have to bend down and eat it.

I have a woman in my life that is beyond worth. I cannot imagine what it would be like to get broadsided like this without her. And my children look at us, and trust us that things are ok, because they dont see stress and tension and fear.

Who can ask for more than that?

Go Faster Go

God is gracious, and He is helping me with this process of decomposition. As hed led me to deny certain things, He is helping me process the results.

Raw Food was easier this time than ever, but my energy level has taken some serious swings. The last few days I developed some problems in the back of my throat and tongue which hurt, but the real issue was total lack of energy. All I could do yesterday was lay around. I slept a little, worked a little, but all in all the day went by with me laying on a couch. Not tired in a sleepy way, tired in a weak way.

Today seems better. God also led me to remove some season Passes on my Tivo of things I really enjoy. I figured it must not be worth it for me if God is saying stop it.

GodTV has been a huge thing. I normally dont connect with "christian" TV, but the content on this channel is fantastic. And there really is a tangible anointing on a lot of the pieces. I seriously encourage you to watch it either online or via DirectTV, and then I encourage you to support it.

So if God asks me to give up some things, or remove some things, it isnt because He doesnt want me to have some things. I am guessing He is removing props that I rely on that allow me to stay hard hearted. For some people, these things arent the issue, for me maybe they are. I read recently in a book how this man realized he was like a crowded city, and nothing could be added unless something was removed. No rennovation was possible. I think thats my problem.

Im packed with stuff. Good and bad. But what I need is some relief. I need some rennovation. Truthfully, a spiritual enema is probably more in line. I need external help to remove internal spiritual plaque. I could take the metaphor further, but I will spare you.

Married UP?

With all the respect due to my friend Randy, I think I married up fruther. That is mainly because I was so far down the totem pole to start with.

My wife has a birthday today. My WONDERFUL wife has a birthday today. This is important for one of several reasons.

1. She is now closer to my age, which makes me feel less old.

2. She was born. Had she not been born, I would be wandering around more confused than normal.

3. It forces me to stop and think about how much I like her.

4. It gives me a chance to show her off.

Danie, I love you a lot more than Im able to process. Im so glad for your life, and the life you share with me....

Dear IHOP Folks

I wanted to relate some recent experiences that I hope might encourage you. This happenned on Saturday.

Have you ever been sitting at home listening to the IHOP, and what the person prayed began to happen to you? I just did.

It was almost 9 am Sat (PST) and a girl got on the mike and prayed for all the people attending the Onething. I was just sitting on my couch, resting and praying about some things. I overheard her pray and thought “Hey, I went to the Onething on GodTV”. She started praying, and I drifted off into some thoughts and prayers. Next thing I know, Im yawning, but not a normal type of yawn. It is the type where I am actually going through deliverance. It just keeps bubbling up and out. Then I realize both the girl and the people praying (I had kind of tuned out in a way) were asking God to fill them with the Spirit of Might in the inner man etc… and I realized…

God was answering their prayers at that very moment and was displacing things that were in me crowding out the truth and the presence of God!!!!!!! At that very moment, and in the very way they were asking.

Some of you might say "DUH". God answers prayers Sean, thats why we do this.

I wish I knew who it was, as I would run and tell her because Im not sure if when we pray we realize how strongly and definitively our prayers are answered. In addition, if I simply “attended” OneThing because of getting the chance to watch it on GodTV, how many MILLIONS (10? 100? 200?) of people just got touched all over the world whether they realized it or not? WOW. Is it possible one simple prayer of faith from one person could have altered 200+ million people at that moment?

I also spent some time this am and played along with some keyboard player (I think Danie said it is Justin Rizzo?). I plugged my computer output into my soundboard, and then put on headphones and played music and prayed as the sun came up. It really helped me connect. I sound pretty good when someone that skilled is playing! LOL.

Another interesting thing was during Onething, Mike spoke a prophetic word about integrity in finances. I had been wrestling with what to do as Master Solutions has significant (for us) amount of $$ in the bank that we are using for development projects for our next generation of product. It is vital I complete this. However, because of the way out company is structured, all that money was considered income, and taxable. I was basically going to lose anywhere from 20-30% of it just because I hdnt spent it yet. I couldn’t figure out what to do, and was trying to understand if there was any way to save it. At the SAME EXACT TIME, I am working on programming along with another guy. I had an idea how to work the money in a way that would keep us from paying taxes, and it was legal and fine.

BUT… What I didn’t realize at the time was that an interesting thing happened. On the same day I set up a process to move money around, I hit a wall in programming. All the work I had been doing literally stopped working. I hadn’t changed anything that I was aware of, but literally a form that worked the day before stopped working. For 4 days I wrestled with this. Then I watched the Onething on that Thursday, and Mike says basically “God is asking for integrity in finances. He will deal tenderly with you, let Him have it” There was more to it than that, but that part piqued my interest. That night Im sleeping and thinking about it. I wake up the next morning about 4:30 and start working again. I realize what I was doing with the money, while legal, was not appropriate for me. It might be fine for others, but God was putting His finger on it. I sat down, emailed the parties involved, canceled checks etc…

As I then truned my attention back to programming, EVERYTHING WORKED. Im not kidding. Within seconds, everything was fine. Not only that, but since then, I have had TREMENDOUS ability to learn, write, program, problem solve without the typical manic/depressive kind of up and down that normal when I get in this hyper creative, intense cycle.


I just thought some real world feedback for you all might be encouraging. I am going through yet another fairly deep cleansing and shifting, and a lot of it is being facilitated by what you all are doing. I think it is even more important to grasp how possibly inconsequential the actual physical prayer room is. Not that it isnt great, or that it so obviously facilitates prayer. But that if a simple prayer offerred in faith can do that, does it actually matter where it is prayed?

Think about it. When Kelsey Bohlender says she is trying to figure out ways moms with babies can pray "from home", there is nothing inherently less effective about it. Although the prayer room is awesome, and I love to be facilitated, the prayer itself is the thing.

I hope that this simple reminder of the results of prayer and effort you all have expended on behalf of the kingdom puts a face and a name on it. And I hope that it encourages you to RELEASE EVEN MORE AGGRESSIVE FAITH. DONT HOLD BACK. In fact if prayer creates that impact then I will:

God I agree with your design that the prayer of a righteous man or woman avails much. I agree that you are righteous, and that our faith in your perfect sacrifice makes us righteous. I release even greater power, faqith and vision in prayer to these people who contend for your purpose. I agree with you that all your promises will come forth in ever increasing measure for them, to them, and through them. I beleive that as they pray, it will become more and more obvious that it is YOU praying.

They will feel the power and the majesty of Your hand, Your Heart, Your mind, Your VOICE until they become prayer. They will see answers to prayer before they ask, they will see harvest at the same time as sowing. They will do might things because they KNOW YOU.

Im going to beleive that as I pray that (I write it out as a prayer) and you read it, I will be answered. In fact, as I just wrote that, God touched me.

a small wall

I hit a physical wall last night. Eating only raw food is great for you, but not if you like to exercises, especially lift weights. I have been on a roll lately, and working out every day in some way or another. I dont do a lot, but I try to always keep a demand on my body so that my metabolism is active, and Im maintaining some basic strength.


Uggghhhh. Last night, right about 6pm, my body got really tired. I wasnt sleepy, but my body was tired. And it started getting sore. I knew I simply hit the edge of my bodys ability to recover because ti simply isnt assimilating food, especially amino acids (e.g protein) fast enough to compensate for tissue generation and recovery. The only way to do this is supplement with something really available as far as amino acids, and that would be a protein shake.

So I will have small amounts of that during the next couple months. It keeps me fasting in general, but does allow for the need to exercise. I notice a lot better mental performance, and stability if I exercise.

In fact, I have been very productive lately developing the next generation of software for our company, and I think it is a combination of several things, one of which is exercise, brain chemistry (taking fish oil again for the last 2-3 months), and overall GRACE. Im not a good enough programmer to be doing what I have been doing lately. Im getting a lot of help from God.

I awoke this am after having a FOUL dream. I cannot tell if this is something that simply came by and "darted" me, or it is something I have left over from years of GIGO (Garbage In, Garbage Out) or it is one of those things where as your body detoxes, things get released and its just the way it is. Some of it was tied into my childhood though, so maybe God is stirring something that He can remove! That would be great.

Day 4

Whoever you are that read my previous posts and prayed for me, may it come back to you 30, 50, even 100 times.

I simply read one piece of scripture today, and it touched me. For many people, that is common. For me, it is like a revival. It simpyl doesnt happen often, and something so simple as reading about Jesus washing feet grabbed my heart...

In john 13, it says Jesus knew that He had done everything, and had authority over all things, and then He got up and washed the disciples feet. Right after that, Jesus explains that He IS their Master and Teacher, and yet the deeper model for them is His Actions as a servant. He even has to explain to Peter that it is necessary, that Peter simply wont be able to handle life without submitting to Him in this.

I realized that until we have a strong security in who we are (in Christ), and what we are about, we simply cannot truly serve one another. I mean, of course we CAN do things for each other, but we arent truly able to give with humility. Humility is knowing who you are, and what you are about truthfully, not arrogantly or unrighteously, whcih then frees you up to wholeheartedly serve, and my guess is without thought to how it would affect you because you are already settled.

Then I pictured in my mind Jesus doing that for me. I tried to receive it, and I just got teary eyed, and leaned forward and placed my head on His. Im emotional now thinking about it. It is far deeper in me than conscious thought. I dont know what is so moved, but I dont care.

This is such a luxury.

Its like an apricot seed....

My heart is. Well, maybe my spirit. I dont know exactly what it is, but I know the place of connection (conscious connection) with God has gotten harder, and more distant, and more removed from every day life. It is an abnormal thing for me to have revelation any more, or to have a sense of the Love and Grace and wonder of God. And because of this, my life is unfruitful and uncentered.

Its like a seed. Not a kernel, but a seed. Like in an apricot, where there is the skin, then that weird flesh, then the kernel, then inside the kernel is the actual seed. It takes so much effort and decomposition to break down the kernel, and to get the seed to even sprout...

Recently watching the Onething conference on the television, I had some wonderful refreshing. I need that. Some people seem to have an intensity of focus and ability to get and stay refreshed by thing like reading the bible, or prayer. I have NEVER had that. It seems to take quite a lot of external intensity for me to get to a place of conscious connection with God. And I went through a few mini deliverances, and some little bursts of infilling. As soon as that happens, BAM I'm myself again. I can see and hear Him more. I have more awe and wonder and faith. I start to perceive so much more than the immediate of life.

It was encouraging and discouraging all at the same time. It is encouraging because there is still a seed there. When Holy Spirit moves enough, something way down deep in me responds. Way past words or thought. And it starts to breathe again. And it starts to feast.

It is discouraging in that there was seasons of my life where that was the norm. and somehow life has worked its way towards squeezing that down and out into a little corner of my heart, and I cannot access it. I realize that I have little faith for anything significant, and I have allowed ambivalence, and cynicism to have a soapbox to preach from in my heart.

As I hear these men and women who struggle and contend and fight to stay in that place pray and speak, I remember just how much revelation I have had. You must understand the TREMENDOUS GRACE that God pours out to me. It is shocking, and even a little offensive to me. I get bothered sometimes by how generous He is, when I honestly didnt ask for it, steward it well, or respond to most of it at all. When I hear the messages, I remember them! As I hear people share, little tiny things pop up in my memory about times God shared something similar, or that I came to realizations like that too. But somewhere along the way, I lost them.

So I fast now. For a long time. I dont know any other place to start. I need to crack the kernel. I cannot do it myself, I can just let go of the tree I have been hanging on, and drop to the ground. Then I can rot and decompose the flesh away, and then depend on the created order of things to take over and hydrate and dehydrate and attack this hard shell around my heart.

Yesterday as I started, I already didnt like it. There is anxiety and tension. Boredom and antagonism. I used to fast so much and so often I honestly couldnt remember if I was eating or not, if so, what, and how. I got to the point where I really did experience fasting out of heart sickness. What a great grace. I would give things up simply because I just loved Him so much, and had nothing to give. I believe at one point He even told me to fast fasting, because it had stopped serving its purpose! LOL.


I need the prayers and fellowship of people, and the Grace of God. I do believe God will help me. It is true he seeks out a heart that wants to be near Him. He does draw near when we do.

Just because you arent a Jew or a Muslim doesnt mean...

I am realizing something very annoying, and I think detrimental.

The world in general believes that "the West" is Christian. They say this within the context of "instead of a Jew or a Muslim". But it is completely untrue.

I am a christian. Not a very good one, but certainly someone in deep need of Mercy and Grace and I trust only Christ and Christ alone for forgivness and salvation. Not because Im caucasian, not because Im an american, not because Im a westerner.

The problem might also be with the idea of a "Jew". There is a difference (to me) between an Israeli, and a Jew. Israelis live in Israel, or come from there. A Jew is a religious term (again to me). I dont consider someone who goes to temple and fools around with Judaism simply because of a cultural history to be a Jew.

I DO tend to assume people with an Arabic or Persian ancestry to be Muslim unless they tell me otherwise. Again, there is a huge difference between someone who says they are Muslim, and the real people who observe all the tenets of Islam.

Anyhow, I hate the fact that someone assumes my neighbor is a Christian simply because they are American, Western, or White. Or they say they believe in God. It is odd to me. I am a Christian because of WHO I FOLLOW, not where I was born.

Disclaimer

Much alcohol was referred to in previous posts. Although it is mentioned often, in truth I think that is because almost evrything was a perpetual celebration, and many of the things I mentioned were the highlights.

One night Danie and I actually TRIED to get tipsy, and had to work rather hard at it. I dont know that we had a huge tolerance, but we sure are lightweights.

So, just in case there is a little concern out there, we didnt ratchet up our life styles permanately. LOL.

BackHome

We got back Saturday, and spent the next 2 days recovering. I got used to the rocking sensation when going to sleep. I got used to wandering around with nothing to do. It took me about 3 days before I really settled. I could see a 10 day cruise asa little better, as I really did only relax in time ot enjoy a day or 2.

We ordered fresh fruit inthe morning in our cabin. The Pineapple was way better when we hit Mexico. They had saladsand such int he free form dining area, but it would be awfully hard ot eat healthy.

I really reccommend a cruise as a way to go somewhere without massive planning. I look forward to going again as a way to get away with my wife. She is great to travel with,a nd we had a great adventure to get started on our life. What a treat I got with her.

Back at Sea

The next 2 days were just sailing home and relaxing.

Danielle is the only person I have ever met who will get up to go teh bathroom,a nd come back and tell me she just made friends with the nicest girl who was cleaning it, and how wonderful she is and how she is her favorite person (that day). the people that waited on us were so wonderful, both danie and I were a little emotional leaving!

Pras was our dining steward. he is from Indonesia. He might well be the most graceful man I have ever met. His demeanor, his movements, his speech were all so geniune and graceful without being effeminitte (sp?). His names means humble, and it was fitting.

I asked once for Tabasco, and from then on out there was a little gravy boat ofit at my seat every night before I got there. Lots of little things like that was such fun and nice for us.




Evangelina (Vangie) was our drink steward. She was such a bright personality. She called me "Sir Sean" the whole time. She would always see us ans smile and say "Hello Daniel and Sir Sean!". She was from the Phillipines. Danielle loved her so much she would tell me all night how she would just watch her walk a round and talk and smile at everyone. she was the brightest most happy lady int he whole dining area!






Anhar was our dining steward assitant. He was from Bali, and his names mean "River" and "Believers". The guy never stopped laughing and giggling and telling jokes and smiling the whole time. He has worked on 3 "World Trips" that are 3 months long, and one of his customers wason their 20th WorldTrip. Eeesssshh. We have his email, and when he is in Long Beach, we are going to go get him, a nd make him dinner and bring HIM food! He was definitely the most adventurous one, and had lots of stories.



The food was good overall. Some really good things, a few really awful desserts, and the rest nice. I gained 7 pounds, and I cannot see that Daniegained anything at all! The service was great, and I really enjoyed the parade of Baked Alaska. Watching grown people prance around in the dark with flaming cake is worth a lot of money to me.

Puerto Vallarta

This was the best of them all. Nicer city, fun adventure.

We got off the boat, and got on a little speedy boat. We went about 35 mph accross the bay for about 20 minutes, and pulled into a private little cove with some residential houses called Tomatlan. We pulled up right on the shore, and got off.

they put us in a 4x4 unimog that might have seen service in Korea. We packed into the back and went up the hills to a little camp about 2000 feet. The scenery was interesting. We werent in the jungle, but you could see how different it was. It wasnt like California witht he high deserts orevergreens, and notlike the ferns and such up north. vines more than bushes, and cool light green leaves and the air was perfect.

We then mounted mules, and rode up a foot path about 15 minutes. They had to get a bigger mule for me, and he wasnt happy abouot a big yelling red haired ass riding his ass. Then we got off and hiked abouther 10 minutes up a path, and zip lined all the way back.

they dont let you bring cameras, mainly because they want to sell you pictures. but here are some of the other stuff.



We got back soaking wet (We rappelled down a waterfall and then zip lined down a river into a pool). We met a sweet couple that had jsut gotten engaged on the ship, and we took off in a taxi to downtown Puerto Vallarta.

Since we were the old married couple (comparitively speaking) it was even more fun. We got to just simply hang out, and I remember after some daquiris and margaritas carrying on about how to maintain the proper perspective in your small mfg business (he is a budding General Contractor) and then rambling on a bout adoption and the real nature of God and Love. She was a psych major, so I got into some discussion about healing, and then she asked if we were Christians, and then I got lost explaining that while we were, it was all about love and not titles and claims and religion. I hope it helped, but I doubt it.

Mazatlan

This was a fun place. I dont knwo why we dont many pictures.My guess is because the firststop was the BEER FACTORY TOUR. Danie is a beer girl, so I went along to keep her out of trouble.

It was cool seeing how they make 33 million gallons of beer a year. Nature is a trip, and yeast and bacteria were some kind of cosmic joke God played on us. You can make things like pickles,cheese, wine, beer and sourdough breadout of some of it, and yet int he wrong places, a nd the wrong amounts, it can make you really sick.

They took us on a tour of downtown Mazatlan, and our tour guide gave us some ideas of where she goes to eat.

We then took a taxi to the beach, and Danie went parasailing, the only thing my lovely lady said she wanted to do the whole time there. I watched as 3 strange latin men hooked my new bride into a harness, attached it to a parachute at one end, and a boat ont he other, and then I watched her float away. What and odd feeling....



























Here she comes back down.

















Then we went to eat at a local place and had shrimp and marlin empanadas. This was really good. Then back to the ship!!!!

How to pay for your habits...

They had a poker table!! Yeah. It was basic friendlypoker, and thankfully, no one was taking it too seriously. I spent about 10-12 hours the whole week playing poker, which was the only way I was able to make any money back we lost playing Roulette and 2 cardpoker and "fun 21" blackjack (AWFULGAME!!!)

Tthe problem was that I decided to have some fun, and see if I could win a lot of money.So I went to the first game a little intoxiccated, and acted like I had no clue how to play. I misbet intentionally, rambled on about how I had seen this on TV, and Danie even came up and started helping provide the persona with comments like "Honey this is just like when you watch TV" and things like that.She went and got me a drink, but I had forgotten I hadnt told her to make it LOOK like a Rum and Coke, but make it only Coke.

$200 later, I had the shocking realization that no one played well, no one was trying take advantage of me, and I had just wasted a lot of time and money trying to set up these people for the rest of the week!!!

Overall, I won about $400 playing nice and easy the rest of the week, which made up for the first day, and covered out losses having fun in the other partsof the casino. What a riot.

Cabo Wabo Why?

Our Monday was in Cabo San Lucas. Im still not sure why people like this place, and our conclusion is that they must mean away from the beachy areas. We went to a place called "The Office", got margaritas, and sat on the beach. The sand was very granular and unusual, and we spent the next 30 minutes saying "No thank You" at least 30-40 times (no exaggeration).

We decided to leave, walked up the beach, and got to a mall that was around the marina. It had Johnny Rockets, LaCoste, and every other thing you could get in South Orange County. We rambled back via the main drag, and went shopping at the tourist trap right by the docks.

I had a little encounter with a disabled little boy in a wheelchair that left me undone for quite a while. I kept touching him, and when I stopped he would reach out and grab my hand and put it back on his head, and make sounds like he just wanted to be touched. I kept praying for him secretly while Danie negotiated with his miother to buy some things. I was quite disoriented for the next 15 minutes, and later in the ship just had to cry my eyes out. Thankfully, Danie is gentle and patient with a big blubbering fool like me.




This is the famous arch that people go out ot and look at rocks and arches.













This is our boat as we left it for the first time. Due to the problems with the boat, we werelate, and the rough water caused tremendous delays in "tendering" (odd word for getting to the dock).









Anyhow, we got back to the ship, a nd went in the pool and relaxed.

Formal Night

Sunday night was "formal night". I must say Danielle was awfully pretty, and we attracted a lot of attention. As we would pass tables, I would hear "He must be REALLY wealthy", or "What a gorgeous daughter he has, his wife must be a supermodel to make up for him", and "What bad thing did she do in a previous life?". More stories to come....

Highlights

Im simply not getting used to being back. It is a culture shock to have to walk up to a counter and pay for my food, not being able to order 2 entrees and 3 desserts, and not being in a state of semi-drunkenness.

It all started in San Diego on this ship...

As big as it looks, it turns out this is a medium sized ship. There are 10 decks, and we were located right behind the life boats. I wasnt aware that "slightly obstructed view" meant looking at my life raft.

We then had our fire drill. You cannot go out of the harbor without one. This was fun and odd, and we met some silly kids. At this point I engaged parental auto pilot and began to yell at other peoples kids, and ordering them around.












Then came leaving. We wandered around, and got to see the "azipods" work. Thoseare the cool propeller type pods that push the boat. One of our was broken, which meant we went slower the whole trip, which had its own problems. Danie likes to take fancy posed pictures










Then we had a day at sea. We had to figure out how it all worked. I had the odd experience of waking up at 4:30 am the first day, and watching the sun come up in the "Crows Nest", and about the same time the next.

On the Boat

We are arriving in Cabo San Lucas today. I am up again at 4:30. I cannot seem to sleep. I dont know why. You know that feeling when your eyes are tired, and you still cannot sleep? I actually forgot my room number yesterday. I knew where it was, but pretty much walked around in slight dellerium. The great thing is you can only go so far before you get back to the same place.

You would think witht he amount of food and alcohol we ingest daily, sleep would be easy!!! Actually we are doing really well on that. The food the first night was great, and we tried all sorts of things, and left food on the plate and didnt over eat. VERY proud of myself. Last night was "formal night", and weird enough, the food wasnt good. They literally didnt make some of the desserts right, and they were awful. We (I) actually had to tell them because Im sure they didnt taste that before they sent it out.

But aside from that, it is neat. Lots of families. Probably because of the holiday. Unfortunately, when you wake up this early, everything is fairly shut down, so I have been all over this ship. This cruise line really is for slight older folks, however they have this huge progam for kids that seems to be a hit. You can pay all this money to go on a family vacation, to drop your kids off and pick them up at 1am. No kidding. First guy we met was here with his "partner" and they do that with their kids.

Danie of course walks around with me, and everyone stops and stares. It is wild. When we walk around places she gets so much attention. I have always tried to be careful with my eyes, especially when it is obvious a gal is with a guy. No that Im married, it is actually easier. But I am not used to being with someone that gets checked out all the time! LOL. One time at the gym I was going to pee on her in front of everyone to let them know she was with me, but she asked me not to. Anyhow, the consensus is that most people think I am a really wealthy slob, with a trophy wife. I just have to let them think that.

They have poker here. So we cooked up a plan. I acted like a drunk fool (which wasnt hard because melatonin seems to affect me for a LONG time, and no sleep, plus melatonin, plus alcohol, makes me very odd. And she came up and acted all sweet, and tried to encourage me, and I acted like all I ever did is watch TV etc... and mis bet and made obvious errors. I figured I would lose some money, and then get it back later on in the cruise. The problem is, at the end of my plan (she was supposed to bring me a VIRGIN drink) I realized, the players sucked, no one even noticed how bad I was playing except for one guy, and I had just wasted a lot of time and money!!!!! So I have a few chances to get it back.

I miss my kids, so I yell at other peoples kids. Its a habit. During lifeboat drill, a kid next to me was blowing on the recovery whistle. I told them to take that out of their mouth, because they didnt know where that had been. As a parent, habits die hard.

More to come later!!!!