Disconnected by Disney

I’d like to blame Disney Cruise Line (DCL) for lack of internet service for over a week. The truth is, I could have paid beaucoup bucks for the privilege. But, alas, I’m married to a Scotsman. Actually, I rather enjoyed being disconnected while on a cruise with my family. Here’s a picture of our boat.

Oops. Wrong picture. Here’s the right one.

While aboard, my computer sat in a drawer. I saw it every time I pulled out my socks, which wasn’t too often. Sandals were perfect for Caribbean weather. Sandals at the beginning of April while snow fell back home. Mother Nature’s April Fool’s joke on West Michigan.

Cell phone service was also available. Again, at a high price. However, DCL has a neat service for travelers. With an app, we could text each other at no charge. Now that was cool. Daughter and I were able to meet up when we needed to, arrange for the kiddies’ adventures, and lots more. They also had “wave” phones—portables connected to the stateroom that family members could use. Unfortunately, Hubs and I had a hard time figuring them out. I felt like an absolute ignoramus.

What was the best part of the cruise? (Besides being with family on a terrific vacation?) One day was “Star Wars at Sea.” Can you imagine me turning down a chance to hobnob with SW characters?

I should have taken pictures of the storm troopers that marched along the outside deck, threatening all that didn’t comply with the First Order, but I was laughing too hard. All day, John Williams’ Star Wars' soundtracks played through the speakers and on the stateroom television. Concluding with a spectacular fireworks display to the triumphant march from the end of Episode IV, A New Hope. The costumes people wore all day were amazing. Many, many Princess Leias, several more Reys, storm troopers, ewoks, and sandpeople. Of course, a certain Princess Leia and Darth Vader captured me heart.

I’ll be back next week with more tales of our cruise. You never know. Maybe some of those details will appear in a book someday soon.

Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens

poster from IMDB

After much anticipation, my family and I finally saw the new Star Wars movie. The Michigan contingent saw it first. The rest of us, a couple of weeks later. When the 6-year-old Star Wars fanatic found out he couldn’t reveal any spoilers, he refused to talk to us. The 8-year-old said, “You’re going to cry.” No spoiler there. Still . . .

I deliberately avoided any news about the movie after it came out. As much as I wanted to join an online discussion group of science fiction romance writers, I refrained. Talk about sacrifice. LOL Finally, Son, DIL, Hubs, and I went to the show. When the familiar music opener and crawl began, I got chills. Just like I did with A New Hope back in 1977. Much of the movie brought back memories of that first film. Big ships, Stormtroopers, desert terrain, rebels, and villains. Old characters and new.

Old characters: Han Solo, the irresistible smuggler; Leia, without the cinnamon buns over her ears; Luke Skywalker, who wasn’t seen until the end. Like all of us, they’ve aged. The droids are back—C-3P0 and R2D2.

New characters: Finn, a former Stormtrooper who sees the light; Kylo Ren, Darth Vader wannabe; and Rey, a kick-butt heroine and my favorite character. Unlike in A New Hope, we get little backstory on the new characters. But we do get some insight. I wanted to know more, of course.

Oops, almost forgot the new droid BB-8, cute and fast. Hubs, the engineer, and Son tried to figure out how it worked. On the way home, the four of us talked and talked about the movie, each of us taking guesses on where the next movies will go and what surprises are in store for us. 

I can’t say I was as enthralled with this movie as I was with the original three (Episodes IV, V, & VI), but it’s a different time than post-Viet Nam/post-Watergate. Back then, we didn’t know what to expect and were blown away by an old-fashioned Good versus Evil movie. This time around, our hopes were high. I’m glad they put a lid on the trailers—not giving away too much. I loved what J.J. Abrams did with the Star Trek reboot, so I was anxious to see what he’d do with Star Wars. I’m pleased that he’s done a great job.

I’ve mentioned before that I need to watch a movie more than once to “see” everything. I can’t wait until Star Wars VII: The Force Awakens comes out on DVD. Of course, I could return to the show and see it again.

Have you seen The Force Awakens? What’s your opinion? Please, no spoilers.