In the NUT SHELL

[Topless In Texas]

well.
Paul dumped me and his divorce was not even 2 weeks fianal. Guess i was a good diversion.(we'd never made it anyways, too many personality conflicts.And, my heart is elsewhere), my daughter was STRANDED on a Carnival Cruise for 5 days this past week in the Gulf of Mexico, in a broken down ship that was in the news all *******' week for her Spring break, and is now sicker then dog, along with her dad, that took her, they are heavily medicated, and my Car Clubs 10th annniversary and show is in a few weeks... uggh
And Whitesnakes brother is having major problems from a REALLY bad Motorcycle accident. Broke alot of bones, and his rib went thru his spleen. They released him tonight, thank God. they thought he had some internal bleeding.
heres a little bit of everything.
In the nutshell...
Been a wonderful couple of weeks. lol.
Just got to move on. Check out these newsclips. There is video too.

http://www.khou.com/news/local/galve...1349d81d7.html

http://www.khou.com/news/local/galve...311_cd_ecstasy

http://www.khou.com/news/local/galve...1244f0220.html
Also, Here is the flier to our sprng show.
Me and steve will head up the judging, if ya'lll have ever been out you know we have a class act show
hope to see some of you there...
TNT

[OnMy3rdStang]

Wow looks like Im not the only one having a crappy few weeks.

My grandma was in the hospital back in Feb, but shes ok now. Last week my mom was raped by her boyfriend. SHe slowly getting over that and she hurt her back at work a day later and went to the doctor and found out she has severe athritis of the spine. Its not life threatening but she will be uncomfortable for the rest of her life.

I hope your daughter get well soon and your friend gets better as well. I give you my best.
Haley

[Topless In Texas]

my original thoughs ..
i posted tall this on RHC. Im just still real upset

uggh..
Like this week has not SUCKED enough...
My ex always takes Caitlin on a cool trip for Spring Break. Last year they went to D.C. and the year before to Vegas. I'm so glad he can do that, cuz I cant, and its real special for them.

Well, Her Spring Break 'Carnival Cruise' out of Galveston, has been the main story all over the news tonight. I am so ******* pissed and upset. She was supposed to leave Monday afternoon. They did not get to board till 9:30 pm on Monday and pulled out Tuesday morning at 4am. With 'MECHANICAL PROBLEMS'.

She finally called me last night at $6/min. to let me know that they did get out, but they will not be going to Cozumel, and Playa Del Carma to swim with the dolphins. They are having to abort and go to Progresso, Mexico, to replace a part that broke down on the ships Propulsion. I am so ******* pissed and upset. The news on TV said that they were given the option to bail out, in the beginning of the cruise and get a full discount. They chose to go , which I'm glad that they did so she could at least be on the water, she LOVES the water. Her dad will get a measley 25% rebate and a discount on another cruise. lol. ya right.

I did not even know the ship was in distress till my mom said she saw it on the news, then Caitlins best friend called me tonight to ask me if I knew, and gave me a link to the news website. Evidently, there are passengers protesting ON THE SHIP. Its a ******* mess. And, this is not the first time its happened on this particular ship....
anyways. Here is what the Website said. Not much. The news tonight really got to me, to see the ship. They were interviewing people, and showing the ship, and I was waiting to see her on it. I know she is okay. Im just really upset that her Spring Break is RUINED>....
uggh

Carnival cruise ship still limping along

05:22 PM CST on Wednesday, March 9, 2005


From 11 News Staff Reports



Repairs crews are trying to get to a Carnival cruise ship loaded with passengers that is having problems at sea.

The cruise ship Ecstasy left Galveston Monday on a five-day trip, but experienced propulsion problems. The ship is expected to arrive at Progreso, Mexico Thursday where the faulty part will be replaced.

This is the second time Ecstasy experienced problems. Over the weekend, the same problem caused the ship to return to Galveston more than a day behind schedule.
They were actually stranded out dead in the water. They are supposed to have gotten enough power to go to Progresso today. Its still in the news and on the internet news. I am going to watch the news at 10 and see if there is any new news. I dont have a clue where they are, and what the situation is now...
they just did an update on the news again. Man, I am so upset. They are calling it the 'cruise to Nowhere'. They said that they are trying to make it into Progresso, Mexico to fix it, but bad weather might be coming. They say it is due back in Galveston on Saturday. I dont see how that can possibly happen.
They are still having alot of the passengers 'protesting' on the ship. Evidently they knew when they sailed, (Carnival) that the ship still had problems.
Here is the link to the news page. Its KHOU news/Houston, if the link does not work. You have to register to access the stories, but it just takes a second, and it does not cost anything. There is a video you can watch...
From what they said on the news, it sounded like they were still trying to get to Progresso to fix it. Evidently they had some parts choppered in.
Please log into this link, and watch the video...
http://www.khou.com/topstories/stori...1244f0220.html

This is the latest on the webpage:

Agony on the Ecstasy cruise ship

04:10 PM CST on Thursday, March 10, 2005


By Jeremy Desel / 11 News



Click to watch video


Hundreds of Carnival Cruise Lines passengers are still stuck at sea. The ship, originally bound for Cancun, is limping back to Galveston while repairs are made to its propulsion system.

The cruise was supposed to be nothing but fun in the sun aboard the Carnival Ecstasy, but that is not how the passengers see it.

"Her very words were, 'We are dead in the water', " says Jay Laughlin.

Laughlin's wife Bonnie and 7-and 8-year-old daughters Maddie and Megan are on the ship for a spring break cruise.

The engines stopped, and the ship was just floating. Carnival says the ship is experiencing technical difficulties with its propulsion system.

Jay Laughlin's wife Bonnie and - and 8-year-old daughters Maddie and Megan are on the ship for a spring break cruise, as are a half dozen other families from their neighborhood.

"She was not happy. The kids were miserable couldn't sleep," Laughlin says about his wife.

Another passenger on the boat communicated via e-mail, writing, "We are going to Progreso, Mexico because there is a part being shipped there to fix the boat. Everyone is furious. Another security official told me that this has happened six times before with him."

According to the passenger agony on the Ecstasy came to a head Wednesday afternoon.

Also online

Statement from Carnival
At 2 p.m., about 500 people protested in the lobby of the ship. People were shouting "no Progreso, take us home".

"Guests were apprised of the situation prior to the cruise and had the option of canceling and receiving a full refund of their cruise fare if they did not wish to sail," says Carnival spokesperson Vance Gulliksen.

That's not what Laughlin heard when he checked in his family.

"They led us to believe that they had those problems fixed, both before they got on the ship and after my wife was in the stateroom," he says.

As for trying to get information out of the company, "In a word, 'clueless', " says Laughlin.

The problem actually started on the ship's last cruise.

Carnival says they stopped near Progreso where an engineer flown in from Europe boarded the ship to begin repairs.

According to the latest statement from Carnival, passengers will be offered a 50-percent refund of their cruise fare and a 25 percent discount on a future Carnival cruise.

Many say that is just not enough.

There are more than 2000 people on board the Ecstacy, and many are from this area and other parts of Texas.

The Ecstasy is scheduled to return to Galveston on Saturday.

All future voyages remain as scheduled at this time.

Man, I am so upset.
Well,
> I just talked to Caitlin and Louie. They have just got off the
>ship In Galveston. The news people are there. I never heard from
>her last night like I was supposed to, and the last report
>yesterday, was of the 'bad weather' which was keeping the ship from
>docking in Progresso. When I heard about 'bad weather' I was just
>real concerned and worried.... I called Louies cell about 7:30 this
>morning, in chance that he might be able to get a call. They were
>in sights of Galveston, running on one engine, and I got thru to
>him.
>
> They NEVER did get it fixed. Louie is FURIOUS! I have never
>heard him so pissed then when I spoke with him earlier this
>morning. They could NOT make it into Progresso to fix the problem
>w/ the ship because of the high winds. The only reason that the
>Captain was wanting to go to Progresso so bad and dock is so that
>the Carvival Cruiseline would not have to reimburse the passengers
>any of thier money, and this is what was causing the 500 or so
>protesters on the ship to have a 'mutiny'. The protesters wanted to
>go back to Galveston, to try to salvage the rest of thier vacation,
>instead of going to some nasty town in Mexico so the Criuse Line
>could keep thier money. His and Caitlins room was very close to
>where they were doing the protesting. Caitlin said that was the
>best part of the whole trip, and she got video of the protesters.
>They had no idea about the stories in the news, and when I told him
>about it and that they were calling it "Agony on the Ecstasy" He
>said that just made his day and he started laughing.
>
> Caitlin said there was NOTHING on the ship to do. They stayed in
>the room most the time and watched TV (they only had 6 channels.)
>Thank God he upgraded to a room w/ a big window. They only went
>down to the pool once or twice. They did have a/c, and plenty of
>food. Louie said he has never seen so many incompable people in
>his life. Caitlin said that someone had a 'drinking spree' by the pool last
>night that they had skipped out on, and it got charged to Louie by mistake. He had to PAY it, or they would not let him off the ship. Hes PISSED...He said he wanted to punch one
>guy in the mouth that was working there.. He will NEVER EVER do
>this again, and he said he has no desire to use the 25% discount on
>another cruise. They are reimbursing him 50% of the price. They
>gave the passengers $40 for the first day, because they left a day
>late, and gave them $100 'credit' to use on the ship to spend. They
>CruiseLine made a fortune on this trip, I'm sure, there was nothing
>to do for the passengers but 'shop' and spend money on board.
>Caitlin said that they were captive and she was upset that they
>could not make thier ports, and leave the ship. She said her
>vacation was ruined. So much for getting to swim with the
>dolphins.
>
> Anyways. I just wanted to let ya'll know, that thier back, and
>she should be home about 12:30 or so. I'm SURE that Channel 11 will
>have the follow up on the news tonight. Louie and Caitlin walked
>around the News Crews, it was starting to get crowded. I'm sure
>that the news people will be getting an earful this morning... I am
>still very upset that her vacation is ruined. What a waste of time.
>
> BTW: The Ecstasy is set to sail AGAIN later this afternoon, or
>tomorrow, fixed or not. Its in the paper that they are advising the
>passengers that there is a good chance that they will not be able to
>make its ports on this trip as well.
Well.
So much for Spring Break. I hope that KHOU puts in their website the Video of the newsclip tonight. It sucked, for Carnival. Louie chose to bypass the news people, he was just too pissed off, and he would have tore them a new asshole. I lived with him for 15 years, and believe me, they'd been in tears.. I just talked to him, and him and cc were in bed, and they are both feeling sick with sore throats and coughing. Just great.
and, they are STILL GOING TO SAIL AGAIN TOMORROW with another full ship!! ..... dumb mother fuckers is all I have to say about the new passengers. Louie and Caitlin were led to believe that not stopping at a port was VERY UNLIKELY, they are now saying that there is a possibility that they will hit all thier ports, or not hit any is VERY likely that they will not hit any ports.... I hope the new people take thier money and RUN!!!!!!
go figure.
TNT
I know its all over now, and shes home safe and okaym sicker then hell, but I CANT EVEN beging to tell ya'll how upset I am about her Spring Break. She was miserable. And, there was NOTHING I could do to make it better!
I wish I could.

and to end it all, Caitlin and her dad are sicker than dogs with a virul infection they got off the ship. I have never in my life felt as bad for her as I do now. If you feel the need to CRUISE Do Royal Carribian. Carnival SUCKS!
TNT
good to see ya'll again. Obviously, I'm still a bit upset. Sorry, but I gotta blow some steam.

[Rev]

Sorry to hear of all those problems Christine. Look at it this way, things can only get better, so keep your chin up. I know everyone here wishes you and Caitlin the best.

Rev

[7DMACH1]

It's all up hill from here on!!! Keep you chin up!!! RAY

[Topless In Texas]

Originally Posted by OnMy3rdStang

Wow looks like Im not the only one having a crappy few weeks.

My grandma was in the hospital back in Feb, but shes ok now. Last week my mom was raped by her boyfriend. SHe slowly getting over that and she hurt her back at work a day later and went to the doctor and found out she has severe athritis of the spine. Its not life threatening but she will be uncomfortable for the rest of her life.

I hope your daughter get well soon and your friend gets better as well. I give you my best.
Haley

Thanks ya'll. Caitlin is feeling well enough to go to school tomorrow anyways, she still feels bad, but is much better. Louie picked up her shool work she missed today for the last few days so she would not get too behind.

Haley, Sorry, I did not mean to blow over your post. I guess I have been a little self absorbed lately, more then I should be. Man, that is just awful about your mother. Is she pressing charges? I am assuming that she is not with him anymore? I hope your grandmother is gonna be okay. And, that your mom will be okay too. I hope things get better for you too.

I think I am still sailing/crewing for our friends we have been crewing w/ since last May, I REALLY enjoy sailing and have learned alot. There is a Regatta this weekend, and I emailed him (the guy w/ the boat) back saying I would crew for them still. I was considered part of thier permanant 'crew' and they take thier Racing seriously. I dont think they know that me and Paul split yet, but, I dont think it will matter. Paul is going to some Vette Races in Halletsville. And, we are going to remain friends. Its cool. Might be good for me to get out and Sail that day. IF the weather holds up. It was beautiful last weekend here, but now its COLD again and rainy. It sucks sailing in the cold and rain. The last 4 races the last couple of months were pretty miserable. I always did like the couple that owned the boat, and the rest of the Crew. They are good people and I had alot of fun with them. I will just have to see.
Good to see ya'll again. I will try to stop by more often, and with 'happy' posts. Just been a long couple of weeks, but, I am feeling a little better now.
TNT

[rwhite65]

Sorry to hear about your bad times (both of you), if it would make you feel any better I could dump my troubles on you to help brighten your day, but I prefer to say things will get better!!!
Ryan

[CobraJet428]

Sorry to hear about all this...Lord knows I thought my world had come to an end not too long ago when my fiancee' ditched me and left me with a couple of financial albatrosses around my neck, but thank the good Lord, I feel the best now that I have felt in years. As cliche'-ish as it sounds, things get better and good people come into one's life when its least expected to help us get over the humps. Hang in there. I'm living proof.

[OnMy3rdStang]

Thats quite alright. Things get tough and stressful so people need to vent.

[Topless In Texas]

I am crewing Sat. and Sunday on this Regatta. Weather is supposed to get crappy, but It will feel good to be out and doing something. Met my friend from the Cobra Club at my house after work, and we went to my Cruise night for my club tonight, it was packed. Did dinner, and she headed back to the Woodlands..
Got a call from Caitlins nurse at school today at work. She broke a tooth when she bit on something. It was a 'dental emergency'. she did not make a WHOLE day at school all week, between the sickness and now her tooth. I'm praying that it is a baby tooth, and not a molar, otherwise, shes getting a root canal in the morning. I am sick to my stomach for her. That poor baby has had a horrible 2 weeks.
Wish us luck in the Regatta. Im on a '32 Oday. HEAVY boat, does not like light wind. We sail spinnaker. I work the Spinnaker. BUT, if the race sucks and we end up DFL again, we have plenty of beer and Rum.
TNT