A Winter Vacation OR St. Patrick's Day
Originally Written Between 2016-2017
Well, folks. You are in for a treat today. I have been able to not only write about a winter vacation – but, also write about St. Patrick’s Day! You see, back when I was 39 – going on 40, I told Norm that I didn’t want to celebrate my 40th birthday in Spring Lake Park, Minnesota. I wanted out of the town. I wanted out of the State. I wanted out of the country. I wanted to go somewhere I had never been before.
And so, we went on our first Caribbean cruise! Our cruise left Miami on Saturday, March 17, 1984 – St. Patrick’s Day. And since Spring didn’t start until March 20th, this was still technically called a winter vacation. I know I’m stretching this a little – well – a lot; but hear me out.
When telling a group of friends about our upcoming cruise, one couple said that if we didn’t mind, they’d like to join us. Of course, we said, “yes.”
Ken and Patty Spitzmueller and Norm and I decided that we were not going to be stranded in a blizzard in Minnesota on March 17th since the total snowfall in Minnesota for that winter was 98.6 inches! And, it was the week of the basketball tournaments!
So, we booked our flight to Miami for the 16th and arranged to stay at a hotel that was right next to the pier. From the 24th floor, we got to watch our ship, the S.S. Norway arrive and the passengers disembark. The hotel organized their guests’ departure by floor number and shuttled us to the pier. I was so nervous that our best laid plans of arriving a day early was to be in vain. Because we were on a high floor, we were the last guests to be taken to our ship and literally, the last passengers to actually board the ship! The photographers were packing up their equipment when we arrived. I was so mad that we didn’t get a picture taken of our first steps on the ship. We later learned, of course, that the photographers capture practically every one of your waking moments and charge you an arm and a leg to buy a copy. Of course, we bought four pictures!
You know how you always remember your “firsts?” Your first kiss, your first date, your first love, etc? Well, I will always remember my first cruise. Even after 18 cruises later, I still consider my week on the S.S. Norway as the best cruise ever! Oh, it was an older ship that I later was told had worn carpeting and had other areas of improvement. But, “First-Cruise Mary” saw none of that. To me, everything was perfect. I experienced many “firsts” – tasting caviar and lobster and baked Alaska – playing a slot machine – experiencing a Midnight Buffet -- winning $66 in a casino in the Bahamas – snorkeling – swimming in Meghan’s Bay in St. Thomas – winning the Olympic games by the pool – enjoying a “My Fair Lady” production on board the ship – and many other adventures.
One of those adventures happened on our first full day at sea. I was walking to my lounge chair next to the salt-water pool. Of course, I was taking in the various shapes and sizes of my fellow cruisers. Smiling at everyone – because I was happy. I was on vacation. And, I got to do what I do best – which is: sitting by the pool, drinking margaritas, and reading a ton of novels. What a life! Well, I’m just looking around, enjoying the wonderful sunny weather and all of a sudden, I see this beautiful blond woman strolling around the pool. My goodness, she was gorgeous. And, what a stunning outfit! She must have spent a fortune on her clothes. All of a sudden, I notice that the price tags were still hanging from her back zipper. I thought, “Oh, the poor thing.” I should tell her. I know I would want to know I had forgotten to take off my tags. How embarrassing for her.
So, I got out of my chair and walked ever-so-slowly to her … ending up next to her. I whispered in her ear, “I hate to tell you, but you still have the store tags on your blouse.” She turned and faced me, smiling … and said, “I know. I’m a model and I’m in the middle of a fashion show featuring the clothes for sale in the boutique on the ship.” What did I do? Well, of course, I bought the blouse! No, actually, I quickly ran back to my chair, gathered my book and sunscreen, and hightailed it out of there!
Fast forward to Sunday, June 10, 1984. My actual 40th birthday. I’m in the USA. In Minnesota. In Spring Lake Park. 7770 Jackson Street. Our family had just returned home from church. One of our kids closed the drapes. Another went down to his room in the basement. A third put away the Sunday paper that was all over the living room. “What was up?” I asked myself. All of a sudden, about 30 of our friends and neighbors walked into our house yelling, “Surprise!” What a wonderful day and what a great surprise party. I guess it wasn’t so bad being in Spring Lake Park after all.
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