Minerva Wanders

 Ten nights in the Carribean!  Doesn't that sound like a dream!?  Beautiful blue waters, sunshine galore, rum, exotic islands, more RUM, breezy beaches, shopping deals, and maybe a little more rum!  This little sailor has come to appreciate a cruise ship.  Drink up, eat up, and kiss up (to me).  High expectations were had by all (me and BA)!  Now for reality.  I don't want to be too negative.  I was after all, on vacation.  Still.  Apparently only old people take ten-day cruises.  Old folks and Australians, but the senior citizens were in the lead.  We overheard more than once others commenting on the number of walkers and canes that seemed to abound.  So, let's just say the vibe was off.  Pool side activities were decidedly not 'sexy'.  Service was not superlative.  We tried to order poolside, and our drinks never found us.  Someone got yelled at for not being where their medallion reported them b...

The best part is always the beaches.  Here are some memories from the beaches we visited during our cruise.  I like to call it the St. Somewhere cruise as four out of six of the islands were named after a saint.   1.  Jost Van Dyke (not a saint) and the Soggy Dollar Bar.  The Soggy Bottom specializes in Pain Killers.  Oh you'd like a margarita?  Here's a Pain Killer.  Mojito?  You mean Pain Killer.  You want a beer?  Get the fuck outa here.  You can even buy a Pain Killer for any friend who might have plans to be there next week or next year.  How was the beach you ask?  Gorgeous clear water.  Warm.  Gentle.  Lots of boats docked around, close enough to swim into the beach.  Just the type of place you want to be whilst sipping your Pain Killer.  I couldfloat here forever.   2.  Magens Bay, St. Thomas -  I was talking to a lady and trying to explain that a Pain Killer w...

A couple of my heros Mom admires strong women.  Actually, strong men too, now that I think about it.  I've seen her look at men far too young for her with that mixture of fear and fascination, then giggle.  Yeah Mom, I know that giggle!  Anyway, she claims to be tiny and weak but only one of those things is true.  Mom is one tough mother.  I've seen life slap her (like it does) and she practically yawned.  She's the type of strong that comes from daily necessity.  It comes from, metaphorically speaking, going to the gym of life and lifting heavy every day.  And yet she is still this never-ending fount of unconditional love.  Maybe the two go hand in hand?  How can one give up on life?  She's got kids to raise! Anyway!  Let's start over...  Mom admires strong women.  When I was a kid, she always gleefully called me an Amazon.  She couldn't believe she bore this giant child.  As an adult, during the times...

Have you ever gotten Dvorak's New World Symphony stuck in your head?  the second movement to be specific.   Have you gotten lost in the geometric perfection that is the disk florets of a daisy? Or how about this?  Have you ever looked at the sky and cried The clouds!  The clouds are on fire?   If yes, be careful.  Everything and everyone might look beautiful in your expanded perception, but it might grant you a peek beyond the facade of a fool.  the fool has a heart that is beautiful and this experience feels like love.  But you can't live here forever.  

(Sorry, no catamaran pic as I don't like to mix boating and drinking with my phone)  If you forget my booze, I'm not shy.  I'm still nice, but nope, not shy.  This anecdote starts on a catamaran in the Carribean.  It was an excursion, a pineapple and bubbles cruise, two of my favorite things.  BA was quite worried we'd be relegated to the shady seats.  She is a sun worshiper.  Sitting in the shade is tantamount to sacrilege, so physically moving another human being from 'her' spot is not rude, it's merely holy war.  Luckily, I know a bit about catamarans.  The best seats weren't taken yet!  those old fogies didn't know where the best seats are!  I do!  so, my first heroic act of the day, I directed us to the nets in the back of the boat.  those are the best seats.  Lots of sun, and closer to the sweet, sweet saltwater spray from the Caribbean Sea, while still room to get up and dance!   Around came the pinea...

 Don't you love it when you have a couple days to kill so you rent a car and run off to the Keys?  (What?  that doesn't happen to you?)   So here we were.  BA and I were in Fort Lauderdale for a cruise.  We flew in a bit early, because why the hell not.  Fort Lauderdale was windy and well, just iffy.  So fuck this place!  Florida Keys here we come!  We ended up on Islamorada, Hog Heaven to be specific, and that's really where I want this story to start.  At the end of the docks was an old Cuban refugee boat.  it was hard to imagine it ever had a purpose.  I suppose it was left there because it made a great conversation piece.  Rusty, covered in a makeshift flotation of empty plastic bottles, and duct tape, a tiny outboard motor.  It reeked of desperation.   A family of native Cubans actually stopped by to look and talk.  Well I had to butt in.  If anyone knows about Cuba it would be these...