Come sail away (part 2 of n)

Five numbers align.
The victor receives great wealth.
Bingo is stupid.

A cruise ship is like a floating city in some ways, and an independent nation in others. It has its own customs and taboos,* its rituals and languages, and a surprisingly complicated legal system. Cruise ship society has a very clear caste system, with most of the population being part of the idle rich class. Idle with a vengeance.

Four of the seven days, we couldn't leave the boat. So there was ample opportunity to study this new culture. The anthropological implications are tremendous, and I'm sure there is no shortage of professors willing to wade in and get their hands dirty (or just manicured) in the name of Science.

I don't have the scholastic background to do it properly, but hopefully someone will find my layman's ramblings useful.

Bingo is... well, I don't care about bingo. Still, I liked the haiku.

Well, this post went nowhere. Sleep now!


* Taboo #1: Do not, under any circumstances, try to unionize the ship's staff. That can get you keelhauled right quick,

Come sail away (part 1 of n)

Like sailors of old,
who braved the wind, shoals, and salt,
I can't get wi-fi.

Last week, my family hog tied me, threw me in the back of the van, and dragged me off for a week of mandatory fun and relaxation. The plan: a week long cruise along the west coast of Mexico. While ocean cruises aren't the sort of vacation I would plan for myself, it was becoming clear that there is no such thing as a vacation I would plan for myself. Somebody would have to do it for me, and those somebodies turned out to be my parents.

I think I needed it. I think I relaxed some. I think it showed me that the Co-op can get along without me, at least for short stretches. That should be comforting, but I think some part of me was hoping for one or two "only Bryce can solve this" emergencies, just so I would feel missed. The ego can be a ridiculous thing.

One blessing in disguise: Norwegian Cruise Lines charges just shy of $1/minute for Internet access. Since I couldn't bring myself to pay those prices, my contact with work was limited to a couple of e-mail from seedy Mexican Internet cafes. Those emails basically said, "Relax. Things are under control."

Since I couldn't fret or micromanage, I had to find alternate pursuits. I've rediscovered reading. I'd entirely forgotten what it's like to burn through five books in a week. It's a good way to dust the cobwebs off the ol' noggin. I also spent some time chasing my niece and nephew around the ship. Let's just say that Beauden is a big fan of elevators. There are just so many buttons to push.

I've always been very negative towards cruises. I've always thought they were expensive, tacky, and powered by desperate third-worlders. Those opinions still ring true, but for the first time in months, my head was clear and I could hear my own thoughts. Having heard those thoughts, I found them anticlimatic, so I cranked up my iPod to drown them out.