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Sunday 16 January 2022

Getting back into the groove

Well, I'm back!

After a break of just over a fortnight, I am back at my keyboard and ready to return to blogging. During my break, Sue and I have managed to get away to a slightly sunnier clime on a cruise (about which I will be blogging later this week) and I have had time to rest and relax. My batteries are now recharged, and during my break I have had lots of time to think about what I want to do over the next few months.

P&O's MV Iona ... which is currently the biggest ship in their fleet. She is big ... too big in our opinion, but she does have some excellent facilities. Luckily, we got a good deal on the suite we booked, so we offset what we didn't like against that and what we did like. That said, I doubt that we will be rushing to book another cruise on her in the near future.

It will probably take me a few days to get 'back into the groove', but I can assure my regular blog readers that I don't think that they will be disappointed with my output once I am!

28 comments:

  1. Bob,
    Good to see you back! I can see why you found the ship too big - it looks like a floating tower block.
    Best wishes for 2022, Arthur

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    Replies
    1. Arthur1815 (Arthur),

      It’s great to be back!

      Iona is big … and during our cruise there were just under 3,000 passengers aboard … and she was operating at 60% capacity!

      All the best,

      Bob

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  2. I'm glad you had a nice break, but that ship is huge! Sadly my private pension will never stretch to this sort of trip, but one can but dream. If I'd worked in the public sector in comparison I'd be laughing all the way to the booking office. C'est la vie.

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    Replies
    1. Steve J.,

      Cheers! Funnily enough, bigger often equals cheaper when it comes to cruises, and if you shop around, you can sometimes get real bargains. We can afford to go on so many because we book when prices are cheaper (they go up and down, depending upon demand) and out of peak season. One of the people on our cruise booked a suite for themselves and their children and it cost just over £3,000 in total for 12 nights. That works out at £62.50 per night for each of them ... and that includes full board and free entertainment.

      I was lucky in that I managed to work for enough years as a teacher to retire on a pension based on my final salary. When I was young, I resented having to pay 6% of my monthly salary as a contribution to the pension fund, but now that I am retired I am glad that I did not have the option to opt out. I recently discovered that I have a very small pension due to me from a time when I worked in the private sector, but I have yet to claim it.

      All the best,

      Bob

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    2. Glad to see you back. Ditto to final salary pensions. Without promotion the basic salaries in the Public sector were not so good as outside but in the long run we are now reaping the benefits for sure. Cruises can indeed be very "cheap" given the limitless food and entertainment available. It's a nice life style too. Regards.

      Delete
    3. Tony Adams,

      Thanks, it’s great to be back blogging.

      I was once told, many years ago, that had the Teacher’s Pension Fund been invested rather than just given to the government to create a notional pension pot from which to pay retired teachers a pension, we would all have been able to retire on full pay after twenty-five years. It wasn’t, and we didn’t … but it still remained a better deal than those who ended up with company-based non-final salary schemes. I know one of the people who had to sort out the aftermath of the Mirror Group Pension Fund being used by Robert Maxwell to prop up his failing media empire, and he said that the Public sector workers got a much better deal than most of those in company schemes.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  3. Glad to read that you're feeling recharged Bob

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    Replies
    1. Maudlin Jack Tar,

      Cheers! I feel so much better than I did at the beginning of the month ... and I am really looking forward to blogging and wargaming regularly again.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  4. Hi Bob,

    I'm so glad that you are recovered and feeling "fresh" ready to go. It's a difficult time for people to deal with given the periodic covid surges, the bad newsi in general and the political situation depending on the country you live in. I live in the USA and am very concerned about the decline of democracy.

    Scott

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    Replies
    1. Scott,

      Cheers! The past couple of years have taken their toll on most of us … and although COVID has been at the forefront of our problems, our national politicians have piled further problems on top.

      In the UK, we are currently up to our eyes with news about parties being held in No.10 and other government offices at a time when such gatherings were banned during lockdown. There are fervent denials and half truths being told by those who might - or might not - have been to one or more of the parties, or might have known about them. Whatever the truth is, the Conservative Party is convulsed in indecision about whether or not the Prime Minister should resign.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  5. Hi Bob

    Good to have you back. Look forward to your regular updates

    regards

    Paul

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    Replies
    1. Thistlebarrow (Paul),

      Thank you. It’s great to be back and in a positive mood … and to be blogging again!

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  6. Glad to hear you're back on form. All the best with your plans!

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    1. Donjondo,

      Thanks! I’m very pleased to be back … and have several ideas that I want to develop and share.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  7. Hi Bob -
    Great to see this blog spot once more in full swing...
    Cheers,
    Ion

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    Replies
    1. Archduke Piccolo (Ion),

      Thanks for the welcome back. It’s great to be blogging again.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  8. The blog post title conjured up images of you dancing to Madonna’s ‘Get Into the Groove’. 😆

    Glad you’ve got over your ennui Bob. Sounds like the break did a power of good.

    One thing to remember about public sector pensions, at least in my experience, are the lower salaries for comparable jobs. When I left the NHS 24 years ago I moved into a job for the same salary but FAR less responsibility and none of the head-spinning ambiguity.

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    Replies
    1. Nundanket,

      Funnily enough, I’m not a great fan of Madonna!

      I’m feeling so much more positive than I was, and the break did me the power of good.

      When I left banking to go into three-year teacher training, I was earning more than I did when I qualified as a teacher. In fact, I didn’t earn more as a teacher until I moved to London and got my first promotion. When I retired for the first time in 2001 as a Senior Teacher, I looked around for a job outside teaching, but I couldn’t find one that paid as much. In the end I set up my own company and became an educational consultant and lecturer.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete
  9. It's been a while Bob but I'm glad you're back. Good thing you weren't on that Swedish cruise that cancelled the trip halfway through!

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    1. Mr. Pavone,

      Cheers! P&O took loads of precautions to ensure that there was no COVID outbreak during our cruise. We had to be triple vaccinated, were tested before we allowed to board, tested halfway through the cruise, and had our temperature taken at least once each day. Now we are back, we are in quarantine until we have had a PCR test and got negative results.

      Not all cruise lines are as scrupulous.

      All the best,

      Bob

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  10. Glad to see you are back. Sometimes a change of scenery is just the thing.

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    1. Mark Cordone,

      Cheers! Being able to relax and not worry about having to go shopping for food, when to eat etc., and in a luxurious environment where the sun was shining is a sure fire way to recharge one’s batteries!

      All the best,

      Bob

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  11. Glad to have you back, Bob, and good to hear that the cruise has refreshed you. :)

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    Replies
    1. TamsinP,

      Thanks … and if you haven’t ever tried one, going on a cruise could be a wonderful experience for you.

      All the best,

      Bob

      Delete

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