THE VICTORY CASINO CRUISE--

You have to realize my lady Sue loves her arcades and casinos.

You also need to know she is likely to get seasick watching ducks splash around in the local park pond.

That's her in the aqua vest (above) mustering her courage and preparing to board this small ocean liner/casino.

She was well equipped with anti-seasick pills taken precisely as prescribed and fortified by a wrist band offering equal assurance of tummy-comfort while we journeyed somewhat beyond the 3 mile-limit offshore for about 4 hours of feeding money into the ship's uncountable collection of slot machines...

...bracketed by about 1/2 hour of sailing out and back through the terror of waves estimated to be about 6" in height.

This casino cruise launches twice daily out of Port Canaveral, FL just north of Cocoa Beach, the winter home of our retired, square dancing friends Dave and Maryann Lanahan and two friends of theirs, Bob and Sally, also from Ashland and wintering in Cocoa Beach.

This quintet was anxious to find and severely rattle the "Pot of Gold" emblazoned on the line's slick brochure while I was destined to lazy through the day with other non-gaming folks like those shown below loitering on the ship's sunny fantail. 

I was disconcertingly amused to find this sign wrapped in its comforting tropical foliage instructing me where to go in the event of an emergency--especially with lingering memories of the cruise ship that wound up half submerged on its side near that Mediterranean island just a year or so ago--and, of course, with vivid memories of the cruising fiasco recently in the Gulf of Mexico.

I had confidence in our survival given the obvious attention to life saving apparatus aboard our ship.  Even with the unlikely specter of a slow rescue, I probably could swim to shore; maybe even walk a good bit of the way.

Actually the day proceeded quite nicely without embarrassment.  About the most discomforting roll of the ship occurred when we crossed the wave created by a passing kayak.

Occasionally I drifted through the 4 decks of gambling activity.  Flashing lights blistered the visual senses and 100 decibel crashes of sound terrorized my hearing aids as the cacophony of whooping celebrants tried to outdo the whistling jingles of machines announcing the latest winner.

It looked and sounded like a colorful, circus sideshow on steroids.

I even enjoyed the companionship of this passing seagull who swooped down to his perch all the while squawking his hope for a treat while dancing to and fro on this lifesaving device then launching in search of a more promising human when it appeared to him (or her, of course) that I was more interested in conversation than I was equipped with culinary rewards.