2012-2-5 Dancing with Loose Women

I met my first dance host last night. I heard that HAL had men who are available to dance with unattached women but I never actually met one before. Last night, Bill and I were watching dancers in one of the piano bar areas. The little band was excellent and the songs were foot-tappers. After one of the dances, a handsome older man walked by us and I read “Dance Host” on his badge. I asked him, “Do you dance with loose women?” He said, “Yes, I do--if their husbands allow me.” I said, “I might take you up on that sometime.” 

I went to the first book club meeting at 2:30. Last time, they read a book that I have already read and discussed. This one is The Lacuna by Barbara Kingsolver. She wrote The Poisonwood Bible. I already have several books going. Right now, I am absorbed in Twenty Thirty by Albert Brooks. He wrote and starred in “Defending Your Life”, a movie I really enjoy in the PG version. Twenty Thirty is speculative fiction about the year 2030 when cancer and obesity have long been cured and old people just refuse to die and get out of the way. Young people feel that their lives are undercut by the amount of their income flowing to their grandparents and great grandparents. Actually, this is not far from the truth and there will have to be some adjustments. 

I met Inez from Nova Scotia while Bill was napping. I said some nice things about Nova Scotia helping out with the airplanes during 9/11 and then we were off and running. She told me that it is almost a crime to wear perfume there—something I didn’t know. I do know that the use of perfume and after shave is in serious decline. I guess that is why. She described her husband’s death four years ago and told me to take good care of Bill. 

I have met several widows and I am always interested in their stories. One of them told me that she was in a class action lawsuit because her husband died of mesothelioma twenty years ago. When that suit was settled, she suddenly had money to travel, although she said she would rather have him back. 

Later: There was a bottle of Chardonnay in our cabin when we came back from lunch. Then, a steward delivered a plate of dark chocolates before dinner. I asked him why and he said it was a gift from the captain. The wine is safe but the chocolates are already down the hatch. 

The captain appeared at the show tonight to welcome us all on board and to introduce his staff. The stewards brought out glasses and he led us in a champagne toast. “CJ and Veronica” put on a ballroom dancing show tonight. 

The hit of the evening was when they turned up the lights, got us all on our feet and taught us to do the Merengue. They brought a male dancer with them who trained at the famous dance studio (in Orem?) that produced Derek and Julianne Hough. The three of them are currently touring the U.S. with Louis Van Amstel and working their way to Broadway, they hope. This is another show that is using the cruise ship stage to gauge reaction to their production. It was very well received, by the way. 

When the young dancer said he was from Utah, we clapped and we noticed another couple clapping, too. Afterwards, we went over and introduced ourselves. They are Bill and Pat from Park City. Unfortunately, Pat walked backwards into Bill’s scooter a few minutes later as we were heading to the elevator. She said she wasn’t hurt. I hope so. I hate it when we run over someone we know. 

We never saw them again. I think they were avoiding us. They weren't Mormons and we are still active in that religion. That's a big dividing point in Utah.