Fuchsia Shoes and Hijinks With Friends on the High Seas

I know it’s been a hot minute since I’ve written, but I do hope you’ll forgive me. I have been going almost nonstop, and I’ve been dealing with a lot of soon-to-be blog material. 

The week before Christmas, I went on a cruise by myself. This was the first time I had ever done a solo cruise, and it was a bit weird to be eating dinner by myself, but I still enjoyed it. I wasn’t completely alone, though, because Brian was also on the cruise. We just weren’t sailing together, although we did get to spend quite a bit of time together.  

On Day 1, I went to trivia in the afternoon, and after playing the first game by myself and still coming in only one point behind the winning group, I found myself invited to join their team. For the next five days, some combination of Sharon, Howie, Michael, and I played trivia as much as possible. At this point, I have so much Royal Caribbean swag that I can start an eBay shop! We were killing it! Sharon and I connected immediately over a tattoo, and we get each other. Even though she lives about five hours from me, I know that we will definitely get together again soon.  

On 70s night, Brian and I went straight back to Studio 54 with our outlandish 70s garb, and my fuchsia shoes that really deserve their own blog! When I first moved to Italy in 1996, I went to my first outdoor market as part of my introduction to the Italian culture. Every city and town has one day a week set aside for the market, and vendors sell everything from fruits and vegetables to cleaning products, shoes, furniture, and clothes. At that first market, as I was walking around checking it out, something bright and shiny caught my eye from one of the many nondescript booths that were set up – a pair of sandals with black platform heels and straps covered in fuchsia glitter! I made my way to the booth immediately, and although the shoes are one size too small for my feet, I bought them, right then and there. I knew they were meant to be mine, and that someday, I would find reasons to wear them, which I have on rare occasions over the past years. What better way to pay homage to the shoes than to wear them?! Sharon and Howie were dressed in 70s garb, and the four of us cut a mean sight on the dance floor! 70s night was a perfect time for the shoes to come out and play, and play they did, as did my blonde Debbie Harry shag wig! People I had met and spoken to several times on the cruise did not even recognize me while I was dressed as one of my alter-egos, Sheena the Disco Queen! If you ever need any undercover work done, I am your girl! Maybe I should get my Private Investigator License… 

The final night of the cruise was Quest night… Without going into any detail because everyone knows that what happens at the Quest ends up on YouTube, Brian and I decided to be the team captains for our team, and we really got the whole team in on the fun! When points were tallied at the end of the game, Team 4 had a decisive win over the other teams! The game hosts said that not only did we win, we won by a lot!!! It was so much fun, even if my voice was pretty well shot the next day!  

Some people would probably tell you that I cruise too much, but I say that I don’t need that kind of negativity in my life. I’ve written before about how water is my element, how just being around it heals me, so it should come as no surprise that the sea is where I go for refuge and to recharge my batteries. It also gives mew the chance to meet new friends and experience new places. I get to dress in nice clothes, and do all the things that I wouldn’t normally be able to do at home. My feet get itchy every few months and I start dreaming of distant lands, imagining the sound of the sea as the ship glides across it, the warmth of the sun as it kisses my skin, and the smell of the ocean breeze as it whispers, “Welcome Home” into my ear…