March 3, 2007 11:45pm... Poolside with Miami PHC and The Thirsty Parrot Cruisers
Craziness always follows us and our friends. Everybody got here, but most of their luggage did not. Randy Ackley has never been to San Juan, but as of today his luggage has. All was not lost though, I guess, hmm, must be a silver cloud somewhere. Ahhhhh, American airlines offered a $25 per day clothing allowance. Whoooopty-frickin-doo, what can you do with 25 bucks? Not much, not even in Tijuana these days.
Anyway, troubles pushed to the backs of their minds and looking forward to a party with Miami's Parrot Heads, The Thirsty Parrot Cruisers ordered and drank and ordered again. Woo hoo!
Frankie (owner of Frankie's) was a little more than nervous when we hauled load after load of gear through his bar into the pool area. "Don't worry Frankie, we have this much gear so we can turn it down, you see?". His nervous smile changed to a grin when the party got rolling and hotel patrons came down and joined in instead of complaining.
Jimbo and Brad broke it down to sax and percussion in the middle of Banana Republics. It was working beautifully so we let them go for a while until finally we built it up for a nice finale. Painting a musical picture is an incredibly powerful artform that is sometimes hard to pull off, but man, it worked tonight.
Lynley's pan work on Postcard and One Particular Harbor was perfect, she's really found out exactly how aggressively you can play these drums without hurting them.
Tomorrow we board the ship and set sail for the Eastern Caribbean with tons of friends. I really hope it doesn't sound cliché, but I wish you were all here with us, it's starting out to be a big bunch of fun and we love to share the fun. If we play on the ship like we played tonight, it's gonna be another big time aboard the Magica.
Many thanks to the following folks for making this party happen: Brenda and John and the rest of the Maimi Parrot Head Club members who came out; Frankie, the owner; The Hampton Inn and Suites for being very cool; John and Shirley Murphy for making the calls and doing the legwork for all of us; and The Thisty Parrot Cruisers for getting their party on after such a trying day dealing with airlines and their substandard customer satisfaction representatives.
Victoria from Carnival was at the party and is already talking to John and Shirley Murphy from Memorable Cruises and Vacations about an 8 day cruise to the Southern Caribbean soon. That's St. Kitts, Arruba, etc.. Count me in, and try your best to count you in.
Nite y'all, happy to be here, sad that you aren't.
Brad is snoring light, while Lynley and Mandy float on a tropical sleep cloud. I'm next, Miss ya, Nite. hope to dream of a round of video game golf with a hottie dressed in red.

March 6, 2007 2am... The day was perfect, The night was too...
It's hard to remember all the events of such a good day. The gear was delivered to the aft pool like clockwork, by noon, but the 1 o'clock start time was pushed back by just a hair because of light rain. The hydraulic roof was closed and the gig went great. People were dancing, swimming, drinking, eating, and a few were semi-comotose of chaise lounges in the back. Dollar Wine was a hit, but Linda Kiraly needs a lesson or 2 when it comes time to "raise the tempoooh",, love her. Lynley's big solo thing was once again Mambo Italiano. With Magica being an Italian ship she tore the house down. Jimbo's was the back half of Black Magic Woman where percussion was the word of the day. Brad? We're Not Here For a Long Time, We're Here For a Good Time was saxophone city.
We all got a little solo time during our Reggae Breakdown and when it became Bob Marley's "Is This Love", the staff boogied right along with us. Qusetions: Playing tomorrow? Got cd's for sale? Why don't you stay onboard? Can I buy you a drink? Are you married? Answers: Nope, but we would.. Nope, but we should. We'd love to but the cats need their humans.Yes, please, 2 Captain and diets, 1 Corona, and a Limoncello straight up please. The cute one is married to the blonde girl, the sax guy's girlfriend is onboard cruising with us and Jimbo's Lovely wife is also here to help us Pullll Bacccckk.
Dinner? Awesome! It started with escargots and ended with Marscapone Mousse. Everything in the middle is a wonderful gastronomic blur. And, ahhhhhhhhhhh, no tab,we're all very happy.
It was 70's night in the Capri Lounge and Lynley & Gwen came in second in the twist contest. A late night stop at Jimbo and Linda's cabin for rrrrrrrrrrrum crrrrrrrrrrrrream over gelato was just the nightcap that was needed for what will be another good night's sleep out here on the big blue ocean. And another word or 2 about this man we call Jimbo. 8 years have gone by since we met him during a party gig at Outback Steakhouse where he an L chatted about the percussion that she was playing at the time. The chat resulted in Jim sitting in for a tune or 2 and then a gig or two.. A lot has happened in 8 years and Jimbo's been there for most of it. Love that guy.
Ciao Y'all, time for some sleep.

March 7, 2007 2:17am... Good Night San Juan
Wow, pretty incredible. Lynley's day started with a massage, a dip in the hot tub and a Piña Colada bought for her by crazy Spanish men vacationing on their bosses dime. Wopah!
Later in the day, Memorable Cruises and Vacations along with Costa Magica hosted a cocktail party. Free drinks are rare on a cruise ship, so an hour and a half's worth is not to be missed. Jimbo described and delivered prizes as we called off the winning tickets. He's more fun than a gecko in your shorts.
Afterward, Lynley and I jumped ship with Brad and Mandy for San Juan. A stop in Señor Frogs ended up with Lynley and Mandy winning a shot of Tequila for their participation in crazy stage games. And oh by the way... it was Mandy's 1st shot of tequila ever. She did fine. Nachos and other appetizers at a local restaurant fueled us for shopping where we stumbled across a Starbucks. Mandy is a Starbucks Barista in Virginia Beach so we had to stop in to see what was shakin'. She wanted to get behind the counter because they were doing it all wrong all wrong all wrong.
Linda and Jimbo decided to stay on the ship, have dinner and knock back a cocktail or two. A light attendance in the dining room offered the opportunity for them to hang out with our waiter, Elmer. The stories about the small world of ship life are pretty interesting. These folks are out here for 6-7 months at a time. Some leave families at home and they all look forward to finishing up their contracts and going home on vacation. Elmer left a wife and a daughter (Angel). Last time, we met a guy named Richard. He was going home for 2 months after that cruise. Well, Richard's back aboard and ironically after this cruise, he goes home again. Good for you man, you've been here 7 months, time for a break.
Back onboard we ran across the ship's only sax player, Guiseppe. He and Brad chatted about sax player stuff. Mouthpiece this and reed that, I think it was all some type of strange code, but it was nice to see an American and an Italian whose common ground is music. Lynley and a bunch of the girls hit the top deck for caribbean night line dancing and the limbo contest. Lynley, Winnie and Jessica danced non-stop for about 45 minutes. (Yes, there's video). Then Lynley joined the Limbo contest and was one of 4 winners out of 200 contestants! (Yes, there's video) Lynley is perfect. Smooooooooch baby! ahem, where was I?
Back underway and with San Juan growing more distant at our stern, we're thankful for the day we had and look forward to tomorrow in St. Thomas.
Buenos Noches y Adios, San Juan, we hope to held again by your beauty.

March 8, 2007 2:14am... Paradise, St. Thomas Style
If we walked one block today, we walked 9 miles. The cab dropped us off downtown and then we walked from store to store to store. Great shops and great prices if you haggle. The sun was hot, so I think we burnt off some of the calories we took in earlier in the week. After what seemed like all day we came back to the ship to find we'd only been gone 3 hours. St. Thomas gets 2 thumbs up; it's a beautiful, sunny and an affordable stop for cruisers like us.
Tonight was Italian night onboard Magica. Dinner was interrupted by: That's Amoré, Volaré, and that unknown Italian Favorite that everybody conga lines to. The napkins were spinning above our heads and the whole place got up to dance and to watch the choreographed waiters dance Volaré. Well done Costa, you've made us smile again. Dinner led us right into the casino for a few minutes where I lost 40, Brad lost 40, Jimbo and Linda lost 40, Lynley lost 40 and Shawn won 400. Directly after the casino deposits, the Tarantella lessons began. Mandy grabbed Brad for the lessons and Jimbo grabbed Lynley. Brad and Mandy kept it straight and paid attention while Lynley and Jimbo (who had tilted a few before dinner) turned it into The Marx Brothers become Italian. (Yes, there's video). Little conversation time in the Grand Bar Salento and a few dances shared by Lynley and Luigi before we ditched for a late night green salad at 11:30pm. The best part was finishing the salad and walking right into the midnight buffet outside Grand Bar Salento. Polenta, Pastas to order, traditional Italian cookies, Canolli, and fresh fruit. Yes, we ate. (No there's no video.)
Back in the cabin, it looks like sleep's gonna come very easily tonight. A funny thing happened on the way to the forum is on TV and the motion of the ship is light and constant. With only 37 nautical miles between shore stops, we're cruising in low and enjoying the slow roll of the sea. All in all, it was another perfect day in paradise. Ask us about how to do it when we get home. Really! Ask us! All of a sudden Lynley and
I have the hot tips and direct connections to beat even the internet prices. You tell us where you wanna go and we'll do the work. With us in your camp and with you being our friends it's even easier to make time for a vacation and save while doing it.
The weather's been nice with just a sprinkle or two to take the edge off the heat. Miss all our friends at home but we'd rather you come her than us go there. I have to cook at home and it's warmer here.
Tomorrow Dominican Republic, tonight lala land. miss ya, sleep well! More news tomorrow. nite ya'll. zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

March 10, 2007... Now that was a day!
THE SHOW:: Today started really bad! Seasickness is no joke, just ask Lynley. Imagine feeling ill on a rollercoaster and not being able to get off. It hit her this morning before the show and for a while it looked like we weren't going to go on. Dramamine and Bonine and this and that and finally wrist bands with knobs for pressure points. One of them eventually worked and we hit the stage at 1:06, just 6 minutes late. The show was very cool! The back, adult pool deck is a perfect place for The CalypsoNuts, large enough to get a lot of people in, but small enough that it's still intimate. It rained early in the day, but as we started they drew back the roof and the sun streamed in. Beautiful! Anthony and the bartender's staff were back and the party was on. Can't believ how well received we were. It's easy to play a good gig, but great gigs only come along when we're really on and the crowd is really receptive. Today was great! Jimbo was dead-on! Good feel, good tone and all with a genuine "Glad to be here" smile. Brad was a big hit! His playing was a great accompaniment and has become an intergal part of our show. My playing was at its best today. What they got from me was all I had to give. Lynley was the big trooper. Her pan parts and singing was spot-free and perfect and the crowd never knew that she was dealing with motion problems. Looks like I owe her jewelry for her oscar winning performance and I'm OK with that.
THE TOGA TACO PARTY:: Toga cocktail party before dinner and then dinner and the Roman Show starring Julius Caesar and the cruise entertainers. Affordable Cruises and Vacations along with Costa Magica, sponsored yet another cocktail party for our group. This time it was Coronas, Margaritas, and Rum Punch. A taco bar was brought in so we could eat 30 minutes before we went to dinner! Sheeeeeesh! NO MORE FOOD! Jimbo and I, in fine toga form took control of the delivering of the presents. Corona Hats, CalypsoNuts t-shirts Stihl Drink coozies,Nelson Enterprises' various goodies, CalypsoNuts ink pens, stress ball, paperclip seperators, you name it, we gave it away. Last party's grand prize winner, Carol was offered her choice of a lt of Mango Rum or a lt of Orange Rum. Her pick was Mango so the Orange Rum went to the other big prize winner, WiinieFried Rabbio. We (Jimbo and I), say that we're always ROPED into doing the giveaways, but truthfully we really enjoy it. Off to the dining room and yet more food!.
DISEMBARKATION GALA DINNER:: Dinner was Awesome again; Tuna Carrpaccio with Chinese spicy relishglazed Virginia Ham, Roasted Chicken, Sirlion with Mushroom Sauce, 2 pastas, 3 soups, 2 salads, and DESSERT! Dessert tonight was: Cheesecake, Black Forrest Cake, Rhum Baba (Rum Spongecake), Tirimisu, Fruit and cheese. All this food was eaten by wild people in toags and variations of togas. 6 of our group had spiky blue wigs with their togas, making it appear as if the came from the set of TheFlintstones, Jim and Lynley added white gated togas garments and gold lamé to their togas this year. Lynley, Standard hottie toga, just add spikey spikey heels. I wore a purple-Romanish robe with my laurel leaf covered pith helmet and black dress shoes with dress socks. Great time, funny stuff, incomparable comaradery.

March 11, 2007 9:46pm... I95 North, 242 miles from home
Wow, it's hard to believe that the week is over and we're almost home. It went so fast that it feels like we just boarded the ship yesterday. At 8am Lynley marched us all to the front of the disembarkation line and security let us butt in so we could get to our gear. Although the gear was cageless and mixed with luggage, it was all together. 5 porters, with their trusty hand carts, whisked the whole pile right to the customs agent where once again Lynley worked her magic. No questions asked and we were through and curbside in seconds. We tossed the gear in the truck, hit the road and for the first time in a week we paid for a meal. Now, 13 hours later, we're running the week through our heads and loving it. The compliments were awesome. It always amazes us how music and entertainment can help people have a great time. We love what we do and we love how it affects people. Thanks to all the folks from: Baltimore, Hampton Roads, Philadelphia, Toronto, Quebec, Italy, Mexico, Cleveland, Akron, Ontario, Colorado, Miami, Ft. Lauderdale, North Carolina, Washington DC, Boston, Georgia and I know I missed some, sorry.
What a great week that started with the Parrot Head Club of Miami and ended with just the two of us and our GPS in the big white van. Gonna be good to see our fuzzy faced kids. Thanks everybody for a great time. R&L