Easter Sunday at Sea

April 8, 2012

Holidays remind you that you are away from home. There is no question that I have enjoyed my experience during this contract and definitely plan to return for a second stint. The day to day activities of life at home are definitely missed as are the people you love who you are away from. However, the non-stop activity gives you little time to think about what you are missing until you slow down. Holidays, even at sea, seem to have a slightly slower rhythm.

It is still a workday, of course, and the daily pattern is defined by what day of the cruise it is not by a date on a calendar. But psychologically, something seems to be different. As previously stated in a blog Easter Sunday had me conducting a signoff meeting for the crew that would be leaving us two days hence. However, on the other side of the doors in the conference center our Youth Staff was putting on an Easter Egg hunt for a couple of hundred pint-sized guests. The Easter Bunny made his appearance after having passed through my conference room as I was setting up. Officers who had arrived to toast off the departing crew slid into the back door following the Bunny to nick a couple of chocolates for their own holiday consumption. Some of us had already received our chocolate treats, though, as our HR team had gone to dinner at Tuscan Grill and when we arrived, Tim had arranged for a large chocolate Easter egg to be at each of our places, accompanied by an additional chocolate bunny. After leaving the restaurant that night I ran into my friend Giorgia who was feeling a little down about being away from her family. I happily presented her with the chocolate bunny so that she could share in the celebration even while far away from her loved ones.

Easter greetings were commonly shared that day especially at the delicious crew brunch that F&B hosted. With egg and waffle stations, many dessert choices, and both carved lamb and ham, it was clearly a holiday brunch. Tim and I went straight from brunch to the bocce game against the guests. It seemed very appropriate to be out on the lawn under the blue skies on an Easter Sunday. As an added treat our Cruise Director, Paul, had arranged to do a small concert in the Grand Foyer of a few of his favorite tunes. He sang, “You Raise Me Up,” as well as three numbers from Phantom, the last as a duet with our vocal captain, Maria. I stood in the back of the crowd enjoying the music and embracing this beautiful Easter gift.

But several times during the day I found my mind in Colorado remembering the standard flow of Easter. There was no Easter vigil, no lighting of the Easter candle, no Exsultet, no Easter baskets for the kids, no traditional breakfast or watching the Disney Easter Parade. In the afternoon I imagined Rosie going over to share Easter dinner at the Hemings. The simple, comfortable routine of the holidays did not exist.

I am so blessed to be able to live this life of working on a ship. But all choices in life result in necessary tradeoffs. Some days we are simply more aware of them.

And the adventure continues . . .

Language Shorthand on Ships

April 7, 2012

There is another language that I have made much better progress on during my time on Silhouette. It is the language of ships. This is the coded vernacular born of expediency, multi-culturalism and shared experience that has resulted in a new language for this band of gypsies.

Yes, we are gypsies. We are inhabitants of another land who travel about and land on the shores and invade the homelands of others. Sometimes we even stay. In Barcelona and Malta my friend Karen ran into two former crew members from the ships now working on land. And like any immigrant we travel with our own culture, customs and language. Let me introduce you to a few of our common phrases.

You OK? That seems to make sense just as it is, but it is a common greeting of those who work on ships. We know that we are away from home for long periods of time. We know the trials and tribulations of working seven days a week for months on end. It is good to check in with each other to see how we are doing. In civilized society that would result in a long conversation that edged gently towards the goal of inquiring as to our state of mental and emotional health. In reality, we have no time for all that courtesy. So, the simple question that it expressed in passing is simply this, “You OK?” We expect each other to answer honestly. Anything less than ‘excellent’ indicates that there may be trouble in paradise. We really don’t expect people to be perfect all the time, and ‘You OK?’ allows us to take a moment to be honest on how we are feeling before we put our game face on and return to portraying the joy that will create an excellent vacation for our guests.

“On ships” is another expression that demonstrates the economy of language by which we live. Part of that vernacular is created by the diversity of languages onboard. Adverbs, adjectives, and even articles seem extraneous when we are simply trying to ensure we communicate basic concepts. ‘On ships’ is a very precise term to refer to anything that refers to our life once we started to work on a cruise line and leave the ‘shoreside’ world behind. Until a person has lived ‘on ships’ they can’t understand the life we live. They will always assume it is romantic. They won’t understand the height of the joys or the depth of the lows. So to ask someone how long they have been ‘on ships’ is to inquire as to how much experience they have in this alternate universe. Anything less than two months is no guarantee of their ability to succeed. If they are at the end of a first contract and plan to come back or are further along they have made the transition to ‘on ships.’

‘Going out’ has no relationship to whether you are dating. It is simply the expression that is used to either ask or state that you are going ashore at a port for at least a short time. “Going out” is a question if you are planning to ‘stay on’ and need to know for whom you have to cover. “Going out” is a statement if you are planning to leave the ship for some period of time to remind yourself what the world has to offer. And where we travel has a LOT to offer.

“Shining Star” and “Crew Bar” are the yin and the yang of our existence. Our customer service philosophy is called STAR service. Our awards for the top performers each month are called Shining Stars. So for us anytime that a person does something that really goes above and beyond the call of duty we immediately dub them a Shining Star. It is our way of saying ‘great job.’ ‘Crew Bar’ is the opposite. The Crew Bar refers to the smoking bar down on Deck 30. Mingles is the non-smoking gathering place on Deck 2. Deck 30 refers to the deck below Deck 0. It is the only smoking crew area on the ship. It is dark, with loud music, fueled with alcohol, definitely smoky, and basically a place that if you want to make a bad decision you probably can. To ask if someone has been in the Crew Bar is a veiled inquiry as to what choices they made the night before. I have only been in the Crew Bar twice on my contract. The first with the HR team to show we would make a presence there and I left after 20 minutes. The second I stayed longer after instigating a silly ‘raid’ from a guest lounge on Deck 3. I stayed longer this time but escaped with my integrity intact. However, I asked my cleaner to have all my clothes dry cleaned the next day, such was the impact of the smoke. ‘Crew Bar’ can often denote bad decisions.

“Talka talka” definitely comes from the Caribbean roots. It refers to any worthless conversation, but pops up in a variety of contexts. If someone is wasting your time they are ‘talka talka.’ If they are spreading slander about you it is ‘talka talka.’ If they are simply saying something that doesn’t interest you it is ‘talka talka.’ This is a very handy term in society as a whole.

My personal favorite phrase from the lingua franca is ‘Got a banana.’ This refers to anyone that has received a very negative result from something they have said or done. If someone messes up royally and is reprimanded for it they ‘got a banana.’ By the way, this is not pronounced as Americans would. It is properly stated ‘bah-nah-nah.’ You seriously don’t want to get a banana. So far I’ve avoided it but I’m sure my day will come.

Welcome to my second language of ‘ships.’

And the adventure continues . . .

Self Improvement ---Learning Italian

April 6, 2012

I joined this ship with a clear goal of improving my ability to speak multiple languages. That goal has gone mostly unrealized. To get a conviction of First Degree Murder you generally must show Means, Opportunity, and Motive. The same appears to be true with learning a language. You must have both the means and opportunity to do so and you must be motivated to pursue the available path.

The Means are definitely in place. With co-workers from 72 different nations, there are an abundance of languages being spoken. For at least half of the crew English is not a primary language. So, if you want to start learning a language, there are plenty of ‘means’ available. In addition, we have four Rosetta Stone laptops in our crew library. When I arrived they were loaded with only English and Spanish. In March, I ordered Italian and French to be added and the software arrived at the end of April. So, the means are now available in this well crafted form, as well.

Technically speaking the Opportunity is there. If you want to use Rosetta Stone, Pages, our crew library, is open 24 hours a day. Your fellow crewmates are also available at least that often. (I swear some work more than 24 hours a day, despite the fact that you may feel that is impossible.) By law within a 24 hour period we must have at least ten hours to ourselves. By Collective Bargaining Agreement, we try to cap work hours in the neighborhood of 10-11/day. So there are hours of opportunity to complete this task.

Finally, there is a Motive. The ability to speak to other crew members in their own language is attractive. As we are now in our European season there are also an increasing number of guests for whom this would be a convenience, as well. And since the Captain is Greek, learning a few words in Greek wouldn’t hurt either!

But Motive does not always translate into Motivation. The main barrier is tired people. When you have been working 10+ hours every day of the week for months on end you generally aren’t signing up for additional tasks to accomplish. The most convenient path of course would be to use the Rosetta Stone software. But since this is on a corporate license it can only be installed on Celebrity laptops. If I could have it on mine, I would be happy to sit in my room in the evenings and study for 30 minutes every day. However, the need to walk down to Pages and sit at a computer after working in an office for most of the day is not my idea of fun. With English being the official language of the company, it is very comfortable for an English speaking person to not require themselves to extend beyond his or her lexicon. But I still wanted to expand my skills.

Here’s where my friend Giorgia enters the picture. Giorgia signed on as a Shore Excursions representative about a month after I arrived and I got to know her spirited personality as she attended all the required courses for new hires. She is only one of two Italians currently working on the ship. Fortunately, though, since she is a ‘scarce commodity’ many crew members started approaching her and asked her to teach them Italian. So she came to me as the T&D Manager and asked if I would help her setup a class. Over 20 people expressed interest, but then the typical barriers appeared. Everyone cannot attend at the same hours. Housekeepers want the class late in the evening. Restaurant workers want it mid-afternoon. Bar workers prefer mornings. Shorex staff, like Giorgia, can only deliver the class at night on Sea Days. The net result is that only five students have shown up for the class. The benefit for those that showed up, however, was much more personal attention from someone who has a natural gift to be a teacher.

Just as we began to gain traction, however, we reached Europe. With a port virtually every day Giorgia’s time is now scarce. Still I maintain my set of notes carefully typed up. She always works to engage me in my limited Italian. And somehow, with that little toehold into the world of a new language, sitting at a Rosetta Stone laptop no longer seems that bad.

And the adventure continues . . .

Still a Speech Coach

April 5, 2012

Being a speech coach has been a major part of who I have been for the last eight years. Beyond being with my family, it was my single biggest loss as a result of my new job and life. I have kept my finger in it slightly by staying in touch with my team in Colorado. But it was hard to make a real impact on these students from so far away. It appears, however, that this part of my life will continue with a decidedly different team.

It started when our new Gift Shop Manager, Tian, came onboard ship in early March. As I was completing a walk around in guest areas one evening I crossed in front of our boutique shops on Deck 5. Tian strode out of one of the shops like a bullet from a gun and rapidly introduced himself to me. He described a professional development opportunity that his regional manager had given him and was told that he was supposed to talk to the T&D Manager about it. The goal was for him to improve his presentation skills particularly when he was ‘selling up’ to executives and senior managers. I agreed that I would meet with him later that week to create a plan and determine the next steps to help him move forward. In that meeting we decided that the first step for us was for me to hear him do a presentation and I would do an initial assessment to determine his areas for growth.

Having seen a number of bad business presentations in my life I was pleasantly surprised in the basic quality of his performance. There was definitely ground for improvement but a firm foundation was definitely in place. I provided him very direct and specific feedback . . . my speech team can tell you what that sounds like . . . and Tian responded by taking careful notes and thanking me for the feedback. I later followed up with a written summary to ensure he had remembered everything we talked about. Several days later he asked me if I would mind sending a similar summary evaluation to his regional manager as they wanted a firsthand assessment. Our next step was to have him rework the presentation based on the critique and deliver it again to me a week later. I was pleasantly surprised to see how coachable he was as he had addressed in whole or in significant part every item that I had mentioned. We came up with a new list at the end of this session which was designed to raise his game even more. There is no question in my mind that he will continue to improve and continue to move up in his career.

The next request came from our Shore Excursion Manager, Carolina. She had attended one of my training classes and determined that I had presentation skills that she needed to learn from. So she asked me to attend a presentation on the European ports that was soon to be held for our guests. Due to my schedule that day I needed to join her ‘in progress’ and sneaked into the balcony of the theater with notepad in hand. Her presentation was wonderful and I had very little critique to give. However, I did identify three things that I thought would take her to an even higher level and emailed those to her that evening. Her response to my suggestions was as if I had just provided her with the eternal truth of the ages! I was happy to help but kept thinking that what I was doing was pretty simple and obvious.

This past week I was approached by Kimberley, a supervisor in shops who Tian had recommended to come and see me. She had an upcoming class to teach to the gift shop team and so I sat in to provide an assessment. Once more a very solid and professional presentation but seemed to lack the passion that this young lady has  for her work and for her team. We spoke for a bit on a few topics related to how to engage both head and heart and I’m sure she'll add these new skills to her repertoire.

The word appears to be getting out that I might have something to say about the art of Public Speaking. I am once again clearly a speech coach. Just this time at sea.

And the adventure continues . . .

Incongruity in St. Lucia

April 4, 2012

My first visit to St. Lucia was a complete disappointment. Given that it was a Sunday when we were last here it was typically quiet as a number of shops were shut for Sabbath rest. In addition the port was rather bleak at a number of levels. In order to get from our dock to the ‘downtown’ area the shortest route was through what I can best describe as a ‘fishing camp.’ This was a collection of plywood and corrugated steel shacks along the waterfront next to fishing boats While this gave you a taste of the reality of many Caribbean port workers it was not exactly the face that their tourist and visitors bureau would hope to display. Once you traversed this camp it still wasn’t a particularly attractive downtown area. In one direction along the waterfront were ‘conveniences’ of the Circle K and Wendy’s variety. In the other direction were local markets with definitely local color but very little charm. The merchants generally seemed more bothered by the tourists than hopeful for any additional income.

For our last stop in St. Lucia for the season I chose to walk back into town looking for an attraction that had caught my eye last time which fed my desire to learn more about the environment and the seas in the Caribbean. The destination was a building called Our Planet and it had been funded by grants from NASA and NOA (National Oceanographic Administration). The attraction was housed unexceptionally in the upstairs of a plain shopping gallery, but for a modest $10 fee for crew members (normally $39) I chose to investigate. Once inside I chatted with the very friendly staff who told me a guided tour had just started which I could join. So I hurried ahead to join two ladies and three children who were already at the second display station. What I encountered caught me totally by surprise. I was in an incongruously high tech museum which was telling the story of the Caribbean people’s dependence on the land and the sea and the effects that changing weather and geologic patterns were having on them. The displays featured holographic imagery, interactive computer games teaching about the very real choices that they must make, and real-time satellite imagery. Needless to say the kids were fascinated, but no more so than the adults.

How had this extraordinary facility ended up in St. Lucia? I have no idea. Maybe just the good fortune of applying for the right grant at the right time, but it was two hours far better spent than wandering through the shops or bars that populated the rest of this district. I wish I had even more time to go back and explore the exhibits further but my report time was fast approaching. The hospitable museum director offered to give me a lift back to the ship but I chose to walk so I could experience St. Lucia for another 20 minutes with fresh and more positive eyes. As I approached the ship another crew member hurried up behind me and asked how I had enjoyed his home as he was from the island. I told him of my experience and he told me that to enjoy St. Lucia I needed to leave the port area at which we had docked. Perhaps next season I can get one of our locals to show me the real St. Lucia that seems to have hidden from me so far.

And the adventure continues . . .

Better at Bocce

April 3, 2012 

My first foray into Bocce was not going to result in my being invited onto the professional Bocce tour . . . even if there was one. Yet I had so much fun mingling with our guests in that way that I looked forward to the next event when it came. Once again the weather was gorgeous on Deck 15 and the green lawn looked spectacular under the brilliant blue Caribbean sky. Tim and I sallied forth to do battle with our guests and officer peers. This time with a bit of a clue as to what to do, I hoped we actually be a bit more competitive.

By random draw the officers are paired to play against guest teams and we drew a young couple from England on their honeymoon. They were simply lovely and it was a close match but on our final tosses we couldn’t make any magic happen and they got the win. However, there are always more guests to play than officer teams and so we were paired two more times to play in first round matches. Surprisingly, against more experienced teams who seemed to know the game, we won the next two matches. This meant we would advance to the second round. We now appeared to be on a roll and we easily dispatched our opponents and would move onto the third round of competition.

In the third round we were paired with a serious ten year old boy and his dad. The little boy took his time with every shot and was very competitive. After two ends we were up two points and they would need a stirring come back to win. The younger son of the family came up to me and started badgering me to lose because I was a nice person who wanted to make the passengers happy. I stared seriously into his eyes and asked him whatever gave him that impression. He continued to plead and taunt until . . . I threw him over the side of the ship!  Okay, no I didn’t but in my mind I did. Instead Tim and I put on the most dominating display in our brief bocce career winning the maximum number of points (4) for that end and vanquishing the lad and his dad. When it comes to competition I don’t believe in losing on purpose.

The final round brought us to play another team of officers, our Hotel Director, Damien, and our Bar Manager, Clint. Damien has been the reigning champion for several cruises partnered with our Associate Hotel Director, Robert, who was off ship at a conference that day. Clint had willingly stepped up and the game was on. After two ends it was tied at 1-1 with the third and final end ahead of us. With only one toss left by Clint we were closest to get the final point. Clint does not have the expertise of Damien but he let go with the perfect shot. Just before it rolled to a stop it nicked Tim’s closest ball out of the way and settled gracefully into that first spot. By the narrowest of margins we had lost our chance at championship glory.

Bragging rights would remain with the HD, but we had made a statement and enjoyed a grand half an hour on the lawn. Perhaps there is a bocce championship in our future, but for now we needed to appreciate our valiant effort.

And the adventure continues . . .

Holy Week Begins

April 2, 2012

For the last ten years the rhythm of my springtime has centered on the season of Lent culminating in Holy Week and the celebration of Easter.With my dramatic change of venues for this Lenten season that rhythm was fundamentally disrupted. There would be no parish setting and no fullness of the traditional liturgies which I had grown to love over the last decade serving as a deacon. This year would be fundamentally different.

As I have mentioned Celebrity Cruise Lines guaranteed a priest on board throughout Lent. So that was one consistent theme during Holy Week, 2012. Of course, the priest was onboard primarily to provide services for the guests. Yet the visiting priests knew the importance of the Eucharist to the crew and easily agreed to celebrating a weekly mass with the crew members in addition to the daily masses they offered with the guests. But what would happen with Holy Week and the fullness of the Triduum? That would take a very real commitment by our guest priest.

I met Fr. Ed Condon on the first day of the cruise even before we sailed. As I crossed Deck 4 just before we departed I encountered a trim, white haired figure in a Roman Collar. We spoke quickly and agreed to meet for coffee the next day to ensure our bases were covered. Over coffee I learned that Fr. Ed had been a Navy Chaplain for 25 years so he definitely had a heart for serving the crew. He agreed to mirror the guest services as much as he could during the Triduum to fulfill the need of our members.

The first liturgy we would celebrate together was Palm Sunday, the kickoff of Holy Week. We had joked that we should have taken palm fronds off of the trees at one of our prior ports to ensure there were palm leaves for the celebration. What a surprise it was to learn that the Apostolate of the Sea had already taken care of that and a shipment of palm leaves had been sent to us. Fortunately the supply was so vast that there were extra above and beyond what was needed for the 400 people who showed up at the guest mass so we were able to bring palms down later that night to provide to our crew. Over 40 crew members were able to attend our Palm Sunday 10pm mass and they were delighted to receive the palms.  It was a great pleasure to narrate the Passion with Father reading the part of Jesus and my crew mates proclaiming the other voices. Holy Thursday was an unexpected blessing for our crew to receive the opportunity to attend the Eucharist, again, on this night at which we remember the institution of this central sacrament of our faith.

Good Friday was a most unusual day. We arrived in St. Maarten that day. Because it was Good Friday all of the shops and most of the restaurants were closed. This busy Caribbean vacation port took on an almost ghostly feel. It did not make many of our guests happy but it made me think of what it would have been like if you had been in the shops in Jerusalem when the spectacle of the Crucifixion was taking place right outside the city walls. It was a strange day and place to adhere to a time of fast and abstinence. For us it was still a business day. But I skipped breakfast and taught my morning class with a true sense of service in the midst of the emptiness of self-denial. For my mid-day meal I went ashore to The Greenhouse and had my one meal of the day, albeit delicious fish tacos. The restaurant was mostly empty except for a few tables of crew members which made it a very surreal experience. I returned to the ship to celebrate the Good Friday Service with our guests in the Silhouette Theater. Due to my schedule I would not be able to join the crew service that night but later heard that there were so many crew standing in the hall outside the training room that Father did not believe he would have enough pre-consecrated hosts to distribute. He completed Good Friday with zero hosts to spare.

Due to a Sign Off meeting on Easter Sunday morning I was unable to serve at the guest Easter mass. However, I did arrive thirty minutes before to ensure they were properly prepared. Between 500 and 600 guests attended that mass, while a non-denominational Christian service at the same time drew another 100 or so guests. I took care of my morning responsibilities knowing that I would celebrate Easter with my crew. The ship put on a nice Easter Sunday brunch in the crew mess and I ate my first waffle in nearly four months! The day was bright and sunny as Easter mornings should be, and it ended once again late at night in my training room, with over 80 crew members in attendance for Easter mass.

It was a very different Holy Week and yet alike in so many ways. Our celebrations were far simpler. There was no Easter Vigil with all its rich symbolism. Yet it was a chance for people from all over the world to come together to celebrate the central truth of our faith. It was still an undoubtedly Holy Week.

And the adventure continues . . .