Quote of the Day!

"Quickly! Get to the choppah!!!" - Artur, our russian engineer.

We all about peed in our pants. Cuz he has zeez vonderful accent....

By the way...

I got dust in my eye today, and it totally hurts and I am trying to keep it shut. I took my contact out but damn it hurt this afternoon, which is no good because my crew mates are trying to make me wear an eye patch like a pirate which would be fine but i'm not wearing a pirate costume. Maybe if i had a patch like this I would wear it.

QUOTE OF THE NIGHT

"Are you saying that I have a planet for a head, and this is like an eclipse?"
- Justin

After Celine asked him to stand a little to the right to block the porch light from blinding us....

LOL!

P-otos you want? POTOS YOU GETS!!!

4 bottles of wine later..... The Mac computer (mine) comes in to play with the Photobooth program....
This is me and Justin and Celine! Enjoy... pee in your pants laughing... we almost did.

A lovely eveining in Seattle...

It's chilly, but nice. It's nice to leave the windows cracked at night and nestle down under the covers! The worst part about leaving the windows cracked: waking up in the morning and having to crawl out of the warm cocoon into the frozen tundra that is your room. Me and the crew are having a glass or 3 of red wine while we watch a movie. Things are going well with Celine, the new chief stew, she is getting along famously with everyone. Hope everyone is having a great week, it's halfway over now! Have a great Thursday and Friday!

Update on Jeff and Zach!

They were in France last I heard, on their way to Germany for OKTOBERFEST!!! I am so proud... :) I will post pics when I get them! For now here is a pic of what I imagine they are doing...

Such a nice note.

I just got an email from my Captain in St. Thomas, Jeff. He and his wife Phebe were great to me in St. Thomas and Jeff was kind enough to give me a shining recommendation when my current Captain called him before she hired me here on So Taj. I am doing well here and I hope they are well and happy too!

Here is the little part of the email that brought a tear to my eye:

"I am happy for you and know you will be a great crew member for your cap and owners. I am wondering if I could be effective, or productive doing that as you are. Be safe and happy as I know you are on the water. I admire you alot. Jeff "

That really made me happy and I wanted to share.

I am really excited about my new job, looking forward to payday on tuesday... paying off loans...getting my shit together in other words.

In the pic, the totally taken apart dining salon... whew.

Hope you all had a nice tuesday!

What's a "freeze watch"?

Oh no, it's coming... The cold. Some guy on the news just said the "snow line" is lower than they have seen in a long time and we are under a "freeze watch". We always leave the balcony door open with the screen shut because it's been cool out and our apt is really warm, but this morning I thought I was gonna freeze to death when I came into the living room! It got COLD last night!!! Still looks like "Seattle" outside. Cloudy and misty. As much as I bitch about the cold, I have to admit, it was really nice not sweating my ass off while walking around shopping in downtown yesterday. It felt really great. I feel like I have been sweating my ass off for 2 years! I am here at the apartment again today, finishing up the crew towels and duvets and shams... IT'S A SHAM, ALL A SHAM I TELL YOU!!! haha. Now I am getting ready to give the apt a nice deep cleaning because we are getting our new crew member today. Not sure what time she gets here so I better get crackin! Yall have a nice monday!!!

Oh one more!

I wore the boots my grandma gave me last night! I rolled up my pants so everyone could see them too. I rock.

Weekend hi-jinx!

I have had a great weekend so far with my crew! Friday, Justin and I went on a booze cruise on a boat called the Islander. It was a party with 2 DJ's and 3 decks of bumpin beats. :) We met up with his friend's Kevin and Apri and as it turns out the four of us are an unstoppable quartet of fun. I don't think I have ever laughed so hard. Last night we went downtown and met up with Kevin and April again, April tried sushi for the first time then we played some pool walked around to a few bars and ended up at this pool hall/dance club where we proceeded to dance till the lights came on. Kevin drove us home and he and April came in for a night cap, Justin decided to make us all breakfast, now this wasn't your normal drunk after bar food, we ate gourmet steak and stuff!!!! Can you believe this breakfast?
I love my life.

Here are some pics of the boat. I took this one while standing on the bow looking aft. That means I was on the pointy end looking toward the ass end.
And this is the marble bathroom I detailed.

Here is Phillip the chainsaw massacre.

And this is Justin's beautiful marble galley!



Today we are going back downtown to do some shopping. I need a jacket and a few other things and the guys need to do a bit of shopping as well, then it's on to laundry and getting ready for our new crew member to arrive tomorrow! Oh yeah, forgot to tell ya about that. Our Chief Stewardess is coming tomorrow, we are all a bit nervous, hope she is as cool and fun as we are! If she's not we will make her fun! :) I will take more pics as soon as they unwrap the boat, you really cant see anything with it covered in plastic. Ok! Bye!

ITS OFFICIAL!!!

I AM A FEATURED BLOGGER ON BLOGTRIPPERS! Woo hooooooo! Guess who else is a featured blogger??? Yep, Miss Maria on Ferroever! Make sure ya'll pop over there and click that Blogdig button on the top right hand side of my blog!

From our Russian engineer Artur...

Today we were all sitting around playing on our computers and Justin said something in a russian accent and we all cracked up because for some reason it's way funnier to speak with a russian accent when there is a russian in the room. Soon after, Artur told us about this video and I found it for you all to laugh about!

Whew....

I'm exhausted. I spent alllll day DETAILING 2 marble bathrooms.... holy crap! I am so tired. My arm feels like it's going to fall off from cleaning the mirrored ceiling... I would like to punch the designer of this boat square in the head. Who puts mirrors and glass EVERYWHERE??? I smell like vinegar. Haha! It's ok though because now I'm home, just ate a grilled cheese sandwich and I am going to bed early. Nite nite! 

Good Mornting!

Well, I'm off to the boat yard! I will take some pics of how the boat is coming along today so you guys can see what the guys are working with, as I probably will be headed back to the house to do laundry..... :) Have a lovely day!

I found Mr. Onigiri!

Under a harvest moon in Seattle, Washington...

I am blessed. Truly blessed. What an amazing crew, I feel so fortunate to be a part of this group. How bout this picture? Phillip, Justin, Me and Artur. 

Updade on Jeff and Zach!

They are in Scotland! Thats all I know. Zach has been updating his location on facebook, Jeff hasn't emailed or updated it in a week! Thanks Zach! Jeff... call your mother or email me or mom! Good to hear they are still kicking around out there! I'm sure they are having a blast!!!

Chill work day...

My big project today is.... laundry. 

I'm chillin here waiting on crew linens and blankies to wash and dry. Which means I have 5 mins of work then 55 mins of sitting around. I did clean the apartment this morning which took about an hour. I don't mind doing things like that because the guys work hard all day and after all, I'm just sitting here. They are very clean compared to other crew and roommates I have had in the past. I mean it. They are all so nice and respectful and don't leave their stuff laying about or dirty dishes on tables or in the sink. Phillip actually did all of our dishes after diner last night! Thanks Phillip! Today Justin made a fabulous lunch of Tilapia (chicken for me and him) and little cubed roasted seasoned potatoes and baby bok choy! We watched the travel channel while he cooked and then drove over to the yard to have lunch with everyone and now I am back at the apartment doing laundry again! This will last all day, but tomorrow I will be back in the yard to order our new crew uniforms! 

In other news, today is that last day of nice weather in the foreseeable future. It's been like 78-80 degrees in the "heat" of the day and in the 50's at night, which I have found is perfect for leaving the window open while sleeping. The weather has been just beautiful. Tomorrow we take a turn for the worse. Highs only up to 60 and I don't even want to think about the lows. 

Justin and I have decided to go to the Toadies concert downtown on friday night! I am so excited, I can't wait to see the Pike Street Market which is where the clubs and bars and brewpubs and live music venues are. The Toadies are an awesome band from the 90's that we used to cover when I was in a band in high school. The Toadies are also from Texas! We are planning on heading downtown early in the evening on friday so we can grab a bite to eat before the show and I will be sure to take a lot of pictures!  

You guys be good and have fun wherever you are! 

p.s. I can't believe no one has commented on "the scoot"!!!

What about this flavor Uncle Michael???

Phillip in my shades....

"The Scoot"

I almost forgot!

In this pic , on the left is Artur "from russia with love", he is also from St Petersburg russia. If you haven't realized yet... I made up these nicknames.... And yes.... they do know who the Red Elvises are... And yes... the Red Elvises live in Venice beach which is only 2 seconds from Marina Del Rey.... You better believe we will be going to some shows.....

Welcome to the Alkai Open!

This is the first mate Andre "the pitbull", and deckhand Phillip "chitlins" who is drinking PBR out of a plastic bag... He is getting ready to commentate... 

Getting ready....
Andre serves,
Phillip holds the "mic" and commentates....
Justin "the bulldog" plays ball boy,
I take pictures of the sidewalk art,



Phillip explains Pabst Blue Ribbon to Andre who is from Russia...
Justin takes a swing...
Those mountains are in Canada!

we obviously fend for ourselves for dinner

The view from my apt.

By the way, on my way out to take this pic I walked straight through the screen door. I was looking down at my camera and knocked it clean off the door! Phillip watched from the couch the whole time and didn't warn me. We were both cracking up! I noticed that he knew exactly how to put it back on the track so I said "please tell me I'm not the first one to to that." He said, "no, I did it the other day, that's why I let you do it too." What a true friend! :)
In the pic below, Phillip.

First Day!

What an eventful and productive day! I forgot my camera at home or I would have some crazy pics of today! It's amazing. The boat is in a huge shed up on blocks and totally COVERED in plastic sheeting! I walked in and was like WOW! It looked alot bigger that 126ft to me then Justin says, "right there where that paint line is, that's where they added the new stern addition." Oh... so um, the boat is now a whopping 155ft long!!! Bigger than the yacht I worked on in Savannah! Well, the inside was just as amazing as the outside. The entire boat is torn apart! There are about 50 guys working on the boat in all different rooms and cubby holes, installing wiring, flooring, woodworking, painting, you name it there is someone doing it. There is no room for me on the boat at this time and nothing for me to do on the boat anyway so I spent the first half of the day riding around with Leslie, the current temporary stewardess. She is the Captain's friend and is just here for the next couple of weeks. Then it will be me all alone. Sole stew. Haha I'm gonna start a band and call it Sole Stew. Or Soul Stew. Ahahahhahahah! Anyway, Les and I went to Home Depot and to Sears to buy me some khaki shorts and we also took a drive through downtown Seattle on accident because we took a wrong turn. Let me tell ya.... Seattle downtown is AWESOME!!! I can't wait to spend some time down there. We have the weekend off too, so I should have plenty of time to do so. This afternoon Capt. Veronica gave me a challenge. She handed me the approved uniform binder that has all the uniform stuff laid out so the owner can see what it looks like in it. She asked me to get all the guys clothes/shoe sizes and go through the book and find out how many of what size of what item we need and write a list for each store or catalog it came out of and then make a list for each store and make the orders so we could get our uniforms in soon. She said "here, that will keep you busy for a few days at least." Two hours later I came back to the office ready to make the orders. You should have seen the look on her face. It was awesome!!!! Haha I totally impressed her today! She was excited and we ran over my orders to make changes or additions and then I typed up an xcel document so we could have these lists ready for anytime we need to order and printed them out. I made a few orders and then it was time to leave work! These guys don't mess around! It was 3:31 and they were waiting at the door for me, ready to go!!! Now I am sitting back, watching the travel channel with the guys, drinking a glass of red wine Phillip so kindly uncorked for me, and now I am about to go out on the balcony to gaze at the mountains.... Ahhhh.... life is good.

- in the pic: Our chef, Justin and me. A big thanks goes out to him today for a delightful lunch! Chicken caesar salad!!! Yum it was awesome!

Good Mornins Seattle!

Wow! I'm up, ready to rock! It's just before 7am here and we are just about to head to work! We work 7:30 to 3:30 so that's cool! gotta go!

Sleepless in Seattle.

i am in Seattle. I love Seattle. The Chef Justin picked me up at the airport. We are best buds. Tomorrow I wake up at 6am with the boys and go to work till 3:30pm which is a pretty great work day! We all went out for a "crew bonding night" where I met the crew of another boat and learned that my most favorite female captain in the universe, Wendy Kitchell is in the same marina as we are!! I can't wait to see her! I will post pics tomorrow. Crew bonding was a bit much... I can write but not post pics.... thats a good judge of sobriety....

Delayed in Dallas.

Well, my flight is delayed till 10:30am. I am supposed to land in Houston at 11:30am now and my next flight is LEAVING at 12 noon!

Check in was a breeze here at Love Field. I was the only one in line for check in at the continental express desk where a nice young man helped me with my check in! I warned him as I plopped my bag on the scale "this thing weighs like a hundred pounds", he laughed and said, "close". It weighed 54 pounds! Anything over 40 and there is a 25 dollar charge and anything over 50 and its a 50 dollar charge. Since there was no one behind me he said, "If you can get 4 pounds out of there and put it in your backpack that would work." So I rummaged through my bag and pulled out my big song book where I keep all my guitar tabs for my now non-existant guitar, and I also pulled out my "Insiders Guide to Becoming a Yacht Stew" book by Julie Perry! Perfect! 50 pounds. We laughed as I fumbled with my now even heavier giant backpack and he said, "lets check on your connecting flights, ooo, looks like you might miss your connecting flight in Houston, the only flight out that has room leaves at 8:30pm this evening." I just shrugged it off and said with a smile "let's hope I don't miss that flight in H-town then!". By this time a couple of ticket counter ladies had walked over and were chatting with us. I was getting my wallet out to pay him the 25 bucks for my over weight (obese) luggage when he handed my boarding pass back to me, yanked my bag off the scale, sent it down the conveyor belt and said, "thanks for being so understanding, have a great flight." I just kinda took the boarding passes and said, "uh... Oh! Ok! Thanks! You too! Bye!" and that was it! He didn't charge me the 25 dollars for my bag! See? Always be nice to people in the service/customer service industry, they hold your wallet in their hands...

Now I am sitting at a lovely executive desk with my laptop plugged in, wireless internet pumping through my Mac and Red Hot Chili Peppers pumping through my headphones. I can see our plane out the window, It's a little jet! No propellers! Pretty cool.

I will update you guys when I get to Houston if I get delayed, If I can make my flight I won't have time to write so if you don't hear from me that means I made my flight! Keep your fingers crossed!

Thanks Ike!

HOLY CANOLI!!! I'm going crazy!

I got a call today from my Crew Account Manager, Kendra at Luxury Yacht Group in Ft. Lauderdale. She called just to say hi and touch base with me since I am leaving soon to join my new boat. She also wanted to make sure I was aware that I would be promoted to Chief Stewardess soon after my arrival on So Taj. I was a bit taken aback by her tone, she sounded a little concerned about the fact that I would be put "In charge" of the interior department so soon, as this is my first job on a megayacht. I assured her that yes, my Capt. did tell me she would like to promote me to Chief when the current Chief stew leaves. My Capt. and I spoke at lengths about my boating and service industry experience and I am certain that she wouldn't have considered me for the job if she didn't think I was 100% capable of rocking at it. Now I am nervous because it sounds like the current Chief Stew is leaving sooner than later and I am gonna have to pick his brain and cram for this crash course in So Taj Stewing! I am up for the challenge! Lots to learn in a short span of time. Now I am really really glad the boat is in the yard for the next month, that will give me some extra time to learn my way around and get used to the boat and procedures and crew.

In other news, Thanksgiving dinner was a delight! The cheesecake is sooooooo yummy! I am so full. After dinner I made mom a bento out of the leftover thanksgiving, you will have to check out her blog to see the pictures! haha!

Happy Thanksgiving!!!

OH! What? It's September you say? Well, I know that!

I wasn't home for Thanksgiving or Christmas last year and probably won't be here for Christmas this year either, so Dad suggested we have Thanksgiving tonight! It's my favorite meal of the year! So, I have spent all morning making a home made from scratch Cheesecake!!! My favorite dessert in the world! Check this baby out!



In about an hour I will be popping the turkey in the oven and at about 5:30 we will start making the fixins!!!

This is a great day!

I hope the cheesecake tastes as good as it looks, I'm a little worried because I substituted "mexican sour cream" for the cup of sour cream the recipe called for. I don't really know the difference between "mexican" and "american" sour cream, except the mex sour cream was really runny. Kinda like us when we drink the water there...

hmmm.....

I will let ya know!

For Maria!

ASK AND YE SHALL RECEIVE!!!
Click HERE for panties!
Click HERE for boxers!