We have Liftoff

Home for the next 111 days

In the business world, I would put it like this. After 3 years of strategic planning and 1 year of tactical execution, we have gone live with a new program that will have significant impact on the company. The "strategic" part was figuring out how we would or could do such a trip and the "tactical" part has been figuring out how to pay bills in advance, get prescriptions for 4 months, and take care of our "stuff" while we're away. But my oh my, it's already evident that the impact will be significant on the "company", which means this will be life changing for us.

Day 1 is by all accounts a success. The first time we breathed a sigh of relief was 2 days ago when we received our negative COVID results. That was the last hurdle to board the ship. Then we started thinking about the boarding process, which is typically a PITA (pain in the a$$). Kudos to Princess for figuring out a new fantastic boarding process during their hiatus from being able to host guests. We received our medallions in the mail last week. These medallions replaced traditional key cards and are our "everything" on board. More about the technology later. But suffice it to say that we were on board in about 15 minutes. That's unreal. After the first of about 10 drinks (gotta love the AYCD package), we had a light lunch and then toured the ship. It's a relatively small ship by today's standards....but again, more on that later. Suffice it to say, we already feel at home. We had to do the mandatory safety drills, which again have been streamlined. Our luggage arrived in the room about 5pm and we began the unpacking process. I think we packed well, but again, more on that later. Suffice it to say, maybe we'll be seen in the same outfits a few times, but hey, everyone's in the same boat ;-) (Dad joke #1 of the cruise). Dinner was in the Bordeaux Dining Room where we sat with 2 other couples. One of the couples was on the world cruise in 2020 when it was interrupted and ultimately cancelled due to COVID. Throughout dinner, several other couples who had also been on that cruise spotted our dining partners and stopped by for a "survivor's reunion". It was so interesting and heartwarming to hear about how that all worked out as we had wondered how the cruise line handled it. We were supposed to be on that cruise too, but delayed it because our strategic vision still needed some work. After dinner we went to a comedy show in the theater, which was quite funny. The comedian was one of the Pips from Gladys Knight and the Pips. He was funny and he had some pipes on him too, not to mention his dancing.

And now we're back in the room settling in for our first slumber of the cruise. It's after 11 and it's been a long day. But tomorrow is a sea day so some flexibility. After an early workout in the 24hr fitness center (yeah!), and a light breakfast, I'll start my first workday on board. Yes, I've agreed to work about 250 hours over the next 4 months to help advance projects I spearheaded last quarter. Some of you might think that's crazy but honestly, I'm grateful for the opportunity. With 60 "sea" days, I think I'll be glad I had something consistent and familiar to do; plus the transition back to consulting when I return will be far smoother.

As for the teasers above, here are some posts I'll be doing later in the cruise:

1) The Medallion - like the key fob for your car only 10x better

2) The two main questions we get are a) how much does a world cruise cost and b) how do you pack for 111 days. I'll be answering the latter within the next few posts. I will share the cost information at the end when all the costs are in.

3) What is the ship like?

I'll add pictures shortly but in closing, it's profound as something you've dreamed about and planned for such a long time finally comes to fruition. The transition from surreal to real is quite interesting, sometimes almost getting choked up and other times, just truly thanking G-d for this opportunity.