(no subject)

[oyceter]

Back online!

Things learned in the interim:

• Cruises are really weird...


• ... but not bad when you get used to them.


• New Orleans is awesome.


• My allergies disagree, but I still prefer California weather to subtropical. Particularly when it comes to the bugs.


• I know sometimes people talk about being wired as a bad thing, but three days with no phone or internet sucks, even when you are having fun.

Comments

[yeloson]

We're aiming to do Friday anime/asian movie nights tenatively starting 8/3 if you're down.

[dichroic]

I just got back from a 12-day cruise int he Baltic, with no internet other than a few-minutes email check in Helsinki. I can't say I missed it desperately, though that's probably mostly because I did have my Kindle and lots to read. I think it was even good for me in a way; I tend to jump around a lot from book to email to Ravelry to LJ to book to Facebook to email, and I think it was good to do less of that.

[oyceter]

I did like reading much more, but it was also really annoying to not be able to communicate in any way with CB or to be able to look up bits of useful information.

[marina]

Yeah, cruises tend to be a sort of... altered state of mind that can be really enjoyable, but only once you get used to them.

OMG SO JEALOUS! I totally want to see New Orleans at some point.

As for people who talk about the benefits of offline living, I... greatly, strongly disagree, lol, as someone who's spent 2 years living offline. (I even wrote an entry about why, once. Item #2 in that post.)

[oyceter]

I want to be there so much longer! We were only there for a night, so sad!

Oh man. Yes to saying no to offline, if that construction makes any sense ;). I do think I can stop checking it quite as often, but that's more about my possible ADD and lack of focus than anything else. I really really really dislike not being able to contact people I like and care about.

[oracne]

Wow, you went to New Orleans in July and did not melt! I am impressed.

[oyceter]

... I totally did melt. OMG SO HOT.

I mean, about comparable to Taiwan in the summer, but still HIGHLY UNPLEASANT.

[oracne]

I hate the part where you are so wet you don't want to drink water, but if you don't drink water, you feel really nauseated and sick. ...I don't visit in the summer if I can help it.

[sanguinity]

Welcome back!

That no-phone, no-internet thing is part of the alternate reality field of cruising, I do believe.

[oyceter]

I think "alternate reality field" is the entirely right description for cruising. It was enjoyable! But definitely something else.

[sanguinity]

Did you get lots of strangers asking you if it was your first cruise? And trying to get you to commit to saying that you'd do it again? We totally did.

[oyceter]

Thankfully no! We mostly wandered around as a group, and one of my sister's friends seems to be good at talking to strangers, so she did most of that. Also, most of the conversations got siderailed into "Sister is the bachelorette!"

[sanguinity]

Ah. H and I were often breakfasting/lunching by ourselves, but two of us aren't enough to commandeer a table. And I'm the designated talk-to-strangers person in our rel'ship.