I woke up this morning to an email from my husband (who lives in a different city; that’s for another post, I suppose). It read (in part),”I had the underwater camera from the Cruise developed … enjoy!”
To end 2008 and begin 2009 we went on a cruise of the Caribbean. One of the highlights of the trip was our day on Bones, off the coast of St Thomas. Captain Jim had the perfect mixed CD for a contemporary pirate from Mobile, Alabama; we discovered St. Thomas native, Dana, went to CU-Boulder but was not one of my students; Mango dove in at the sea turtle spot and showed us around (see below). I loved the pirate punch, the Bones t-shirts and the temporary tattoos. It was a fun, affordable day (and included the best beach Bar-B-Que. We anchored offshore and snorkeled in to a beach where a young woman from Texas had set up a Bar-B-Que joint in a trailer on the beach). Jimmy Buffet, rum punch, sun, sand, good company, real Bar-B-Que, good snorkeling… it’ll definitely go in the Best of 2009 report at the end of the year (for the Best of 2008, see here).
Here are some of those photos off our disposable underwater camera:
Our fearless leader
I thought it would be more interesting if you could have a closer look...
We don’t know yet where we’re going for this New Year’s. I have a tradition now, I guess, of doing exceptional things at New Year’s. I love New Year’s. It’s like a do-over, or a renewal of my vow to live full out. I review the year and create my Mondo Beyondo. New Year’s is important to me.
It’s also made for some watershed moments. It was New Year’s Eve 2004/2005 that set me on this road as an expat. I was in the Stein Erikson Lodge in Deer Valley (Park City), Utah having dinner next to the former mayor of Salt Lake. The Gin Blossoms were playing. Live. I realized bigger things awaited me somewhere and it was time to set out to find them.
So then in 2005/2006 I was in a beautiful little restaurant in Lyon, France with the French professor. Set out I did – that was a lot of change that year!
2006/2007 S & I were in a home in Lingfield, England, near Brighton. They have funny traditions on New Year’s, those Brits. They all sang Auld Lang Syne at the top of their lungs and kissed every single person in the room. (This took a while.) 2008 started in the English Channel on a friend of a friend’s yacht.
Last year we were in the Caribbean. I don’t know what we’ll do this year. I hope it involves skiing. Maybe back to Utah to come full circle. Can we count on snow at New Year’s? I’m not sure.
