Back From Vacation

After 12 straight days without hearing the sound of an alarm clock I can’t tell you I was very happy when I was woken-up at 2:30 this morning by that all-too-familiar sound. Vacation is over and it’s back to work.

Most of my vacation was spent aboard the Carnival Miracle for an 8-day cruise out of New York with stops in San Juan, St. Thomas and Tortola. The promotional trip was put together by Galaxy Cruises and Travel of Hazlet and we had a wonderful time and met some very nice people. The weather for the most part was great and one of the highlights had to be spending a day at Sapphire Beach in St. Thomas where the ocean water temperature was in the mid 80’s. It was on that beach that I bumped into Bob and Kathy Novy of Toms River, who were actually on another cruise ship which was also docked in St. Thomas at the same time. Bob is a well-known attorney, who hosts a talk show on 1160 WOBM AM.

As someone who swore they would never go on a cruise I have to admit that I’ve quickly become a fan. Sure there are a few negatives but it seems to me that there’s no vacation that provides as much diversity as being on a cruise.
There is literally something for everyone and at all times of the day and night. My daughter brought two of her friends along and the trio of 15-year olds had a great time and provided us with a lot of laughs. And of course no cruise would be complete without my fellow sports broadcaster Ed Sarluca, who really missed his calling. The retired teacher and coach does his homework and provides plenty of inside information. However even he had to admit that nobody is better at securing lounge chairs at the pool then my wife Jane, who was usually the first person on deck each morning to reserve our spot.

As great as the trip was I have to admit that it was a bit frustrating trying to follow sports during the week as the international ESPN they showed on TV was heavy on soccer and the Tour de France but not much help when it came to baseball.

Speaking of which the Lakewood BlueClaws are playing pretty good ball in the second half and despite losing on Sunday have a 15-8 record and a 2 ½ game lead in the Northern Division. What’s more tonight their 3-millionth fan will come through the gates at FirstEnergy Park…they are just 344 shy of the 3 million mark.