Lazy is relative

It's officially our 22nd day on the cruise, which means we are 20% complete on our 111 day cruise. The time has flown by. I can't really believe it. Tomorrow we will cross the equator about 3pm. They have a special name and ceremony for people crossing the equator for the first time.

Shell·​back ˈshel-ˌbak. : an old or veteran sailor. : a person who has crossed the equator and been initiated in the traditional ceremony.

We've crossed the equator many times due to our mission work in Ecuador. Here we are with 1 foot in each hemisphere last October.

But apparently there are 400 people on board for whom this will be their first time. King Neptune will be here to officiate, or so I hear. These are the types of events that make memories, even if it is a bit cliché.

The title of today's blog is Lazy is Relative because I felt lazy today. It's not that I didn't work a solid 5.5 hours, I did. It's not that I didn't spend 2 hrs on the elliptical, I did. But I didn't follow any other part of my regimen, my routine, my comfort zone, albeit all new within the last 22 days. The departure was nice. Because I started work early, I finished early. I skipped the sauna and didn't spend much time at all at the black jack table (you know what that means 😞). As a result, I had 3 whole hours before dinner with absolutely nothing planned, nothing scheduled, no goal, no challenge, no ambition · intention · objective · target · design · destination · duty. I suspect you catch my drift by now. For a person who's highly driven to be productive always, it was oddly satisfying. I walked around the Lido deck people watching, and found myself at the ice cream parlor. Yes, we have one on board and it's awesome. I had a small vanilla sunday which I washed down with a margarita (don't judge) after which I decided I wanted to lazy away the rest of the afternoon in the outdoor hot tub. Met some great guys and discussed everything from sports, to politics, to construction, to aging in America vs Canada. My 3 hrs of wild abandon passed quickly.....too quickly. I could get used to that.

Dinner also found us meeting 3 new couples, all very nice to dine with. Being lazy today, I forgot to take pics of my entrees, but I remembered the menu.

I also managed to get a pic of sunset right before the 7:30 show. That's a keeper!!

The show was an Elton John impersonator and he did a great job. We love Elton and it brought back memories of his 1994 concert tour with Billy Joel.

Tomorrow is Saturday and a work day for me. I get to play with data all morning as it is month end at home and that's when we summarize our progress accordingly. I'll enjoy staying focused on that without meetings or emails. Then tomorrow night we have reservations at the other specialty restaurant on board, the Bayou. There is a 20 oz porterhouse steak, rare, with my name on it. Not to mention 3 other courses of amazing food. For our first 10 or so cruises, I was dead set against paying an up charge for food when I'm already paying for perfectly good food. It's $29 per person extra in case you were wondering. But since the last 3 cruises I'm a huge fan. Despite my frugality, I feel like we get a good value and certainly a welcome change of pace, especially on such a long cruise. Tomorrow, be prepared for a culinary journey with pics.

Pasta manana (not a typo).