Cabin Fever

Feeling slightly violent right now, I just wrote a long post and it got cleared.

Take 2.

It has been one week since I got on the ship and I am coming down with a case of cabin fever. Not that I am complaining because lets get real, I have nothing to complain about, but the repetition is getting to be a bit much. We are officially four hours ahead of EST and it is currently 9:45am on Sunday. We turn the clocks ahead again tonight. I just had my 8am Biomedical Ethics class with a professor who I love. I have never enjoyed 8ams, there isn’t much to like, but I found myself laughing at crack of dawn. My professor just discovered the wonders of PowerPoint lectures (welcome to the millennium?) and she thoroughly enjoys making shadow puppets, yes shadow puppets, on the screen.

With all this down time I try to keep myself busy so I have been hitting the gym pretty hard. The gym… a story in itself. Try to imagine a heeling ship swaying back and forth 24 hours a day, 7 days a week. Now try to envision running a straight line on a treadmill, not happening. I have opted for the wussy elliptical machine where you can pretend your running while holding on for dear life. Living on the sea makes everyone look like they are drunk all day everyday, like pirates. I am sure if this were true, rum would be the culprit. It takes some getting used to, but it is completely acceptable to be walking and all of the sudden have a near death stumble with no one taking a second glance. We need to adapt this to land life, immediately.

We had an Open Mic night the other day. Some acts were amazing while some were… interesting. No joke, three guys came out and did a pretend double-dutch jump rope routine. I was left puzzled, but perhaps wanting more? I have a deep-rooted jealousy for anyone who can remotely sing. Essentially I sat there, reflected on my lack of talent, and left feeling spiteful. It really was a great audience though. I convinced my friend Jack to get up and sing because in my own words, “There are no haters here.”

We also had an activities fair and I believe I am joining the “24-Hour Pirate Watch Club.” Description: A vigilante group against pirates. Or, maybe I’ll stick to my guns and join the  “Nap Club,” most likely I will become president within the first week.

Lets talk about Edwin. Edwin is the man. Everyday Edwin comes into my room (hold on Dad) and vacuums, cleans, makes my bed, folds my clothes, does my laundry, replenishes my towels and leaves romantic notes. The note was along the lines of “Don’t take your make-up off with the white face towels.” Such a romantic Edwin is.

Come to think of it, I barely lift a finger on this vessel. Everything is done for you, Marissa I am sure will do the same for me when I return to western hemisphere. ☺

I have not seen anything but the MV Explorer and Atlantic water for 6 days now. Yesterday, I spotted a cargo ship in the distance; you would have thought I won the lotto. Oh, the small things of life.

We have had “Pub Night” every single night. You get up to 6 drinks a night and this is where you get to discover “that girl” or “that guy.”  You know, the ones that are holding on to immaturity until it is ripped from their white knuckled grip. As far as I am concerned, not to get too deep, I am here to see the world, better myself, and learn. “That guy” is there to save all drinks until the final seconds of pub night, slam them all to his face, put on that stupid “I am the man!” grin and try to impress girls. “That girl” will be the one who thinks he is oh so manly for doing such a daring act and they will live happily ever after. The art of people watching is an endless enjoyment. Seriously though, you can never tell if someone is stumbling from inebriation, or just getting tossed from the 45-degree heel to the right followed by the abrupt return to rest.

Well, the clouds have burned off and it seems to be another beautiful day. I have seen nothing but blue skies. It’s time to excite my melanocytes and get some vitamin D, aka tan.

Hostilla-waygo (Spanish? I took French, this will be interesting)
Jaclyn