All right, Don -- Now it's 444 days till sailaway!

You're right, we do have a good Dallas-Fort Worth contingent for this cruise. Now if only we could get our Dallas-Fort Worth leader extraordinaire, Ngaire, to join us!

Can NYer/SOCAL folks crash the contingent?

Yes,we need Ngaire and Ken.

Denise,

We will have to practice our Texas Drawl. We will also need to learn proper use of the words "y'all" and "all y'all". Not sure how it sounds with a NY Accent, but we Californians have no accents (well, maybe some Californians have a slight Spanish Accent) since we're all from somewhere else anyway.

We can look the part. Apparently, we are lucky here in California because we do have a few Western shops and we can get Cowboy Boots and Stetson Hats. We'll be ready to crash the party!

Absolutely--all ya'll are more than welcome. I'll bring some hot sauce if I can sneak it on the plane--if not, I'll just bring the jalapenos--we'll make our own!

A NYer with a drawl is a pathetic thing. I'd hate to alienate anyone we're just going to meet for the first time on CROSS.

The New Yawk accent stays. Can't we all just get along? ;)

Are we ready to try and convince Ngaire and Ken to CROSS with us?

Oh YES, lets do it Denise -

Ngaire/Ken - CROSS - CROSS - CROSS!!! :ch: :ch: :ch:

Ngaire/Ken - CROSS - CROSS - CROSS :woh: :woh:

Just a thought - Funny if all you Texans come off the ship speaking NYese. Could happen.

Denise, we can help you talk Texan in just 8 days!!! LOL

BTW, I lived in NY for a shawt time and can already speak like a true Long Guylander!

I found this article on how to talk Texan that I thought you would enjoy. Its really funny.

HOW TO SPEAK LIKE A TEXAN:

Drop the g.
Cut out unnecessary letters like g in -ing words if you wanna talk like a Texan.

Use Texas contractions and phrases.
There are certain word combinations that Texans like to turn into a single word and some common words we use in uncommon ways. Use these if you wanna talk like a Texan:
gotta (got to, must)
gonna (got to, going to)
over yonder (over there)
nu-uh (no)
fixin ta (getting ready to do something)
y'all (you all)
wanna (want to)

Speak slower.
Next thang ya gotta do is slow down. Don't be in such a hurry. Chew on those words awhile. You don't hafta have a drawl like J.R. on Dallas but talkin' ninety to nothing'll mark you as a non-Texan no matter how many y'alls and fixin's you throw out there.

Tell a story.
Now ya havta paint a pichur. Texans like imagery, similes, and metaphors.

Who doesn't like a story about fluffy bunnies and wild horses? When asked 'How hot is it?' ya say It's so hot the hens are layin' hard-boiled eggs. Tell folks your boss is meaner than a skillet full of rattlesnakes.

Make the weather more excitin' than it really is.
When someone asks, 'Get any rain lately?' ya say, It came a real gully-washer last night or, Nu-uh, it's so dry the trees are bribin' the dogs.

Put on a happy face.
Did ya win the Lottery? Well yur so lucky yur riding a gravy train with biscuit wheels and yur prolly feelin happy as a hog in slops. Next time ya go acourtin' tell yur gal she's cute as a possum and makes ya happy as a gopher in soft dirt.

Dispel stereotypes.
Someone call ya a dumb blonde? Heck, tell 'em they couldn't pour rain out of a boot with a hole in the toe and directions on the heel.

Show some emotion.
When yur teenager takes the truck out for a drive try to be calm as a june bug not nervous as a long-tailed cat in a roomful of rockers. When yur teenager brings the truck home with the gas tank suckin fumes don't get all worked up and throw a hissy fit.

Learn the sports lingo.
Remember, when a Texan tawks 'bout playin' ball he prolly means football.

Learn proper meal time etiquette.
When a Texan invites you over for supper it's the noon meal 'cept if'n it's the evenin' meal. Or it could be dinner at noon. Ya better ask for a time just to be sure.

Practice makes perfect.
Ya keep practicin' and quick as a hiccup yur gonna talk like a Texan and sound like a native. Next lesson is dressin' Texan, but that's a whole nuther thang, sure'nuff. :D

Ya know Don, like, us Valley Girls, um, like, know that you once lived, like you know, uh, in California. Ya think? Where'd y'all learn to tawk like that? Huh?

Well Frank is from Alabama, and he uses all those phrases ya'll mentioned. So you Texans and he will "git on" jus fin!!! 8 days with ya'll (16 with some) he will pick up that accent before I know it!!

Don,

Thanks for the Texan primer. Gives us over a year to practice.

Valley talk is gnarly, fur shur.

We may all end up speaking in tongue (fur shur).

Oh gosh, Don, I'm cracking up -- ur, fixin to fall out of my chair, ur ... oh well, I'M A TEXAS TRANSPLANT, honest ... I'm going to have to take lessons from all y'all, sure nuff!

P.S. I hadn't heard a couple of those -- trees bribing dogs is a good one during this drought. And actually, there is lots of truth to that supper/dinner dilemma. I've gotten caught in that one!

Between Texas talk and Valley talk and Alabama talk, our group may get some strange looks. Fur shur.

Being a transplanted Texan from Minnesota, you betcha!

Weeelll, I'm really confused. I was raised in California, reside in Texas, but also lived in NY.

A New Yawker asks, so busta, wheresabouts out on Long Guyland, does yous guys live. Answer: We lives out on Oysta Bay!

A Californian asks, Whoa dude, I am so stoked. So like where in the Valley is your pad again. Answer: We reside in Reseda!

A Texan asks, I reckon I should know this, but I'm fixin' to ask you anyhow. Where do you call home?. Answer: We got ourselves a right perty spread just a smidge south of Waxahachie! :D

Sorry, Don, but he lies like a rug. That dude hangs in Malibu, Venice or Sherman Oaks. No dudes in Reseda. They speak Spanish now in Reseda.

Oh my gosh! You all are too funny!

Kathy - forgot to mention that our friends will be doing the b2b.

Momma, were not just funny, we are totally crazy!! This will be one crazy cruise! I can definitely see Don keeping us entertained on the crossing!

¡Mi error! Como seguramente, residimos en Reseda.

JoAnn, Instead of being stand up comedian I'm more like a sit down comic. Whenever I get up to entertain, people usually tell me to sit down! :D

Don :app: :app: :app:

Kathy,

Please update the rollcall list to reflect that Alan and I are doing the B2B. Thanks.

Don, who needs Kenny Smiles when we have you?

Yeah, and I could go by my stage name, Donny Frowns! :(

I'm sure the audience is never frowning, Donny!

<img border="0" alt="[vhappy]" title="" src="graemlins/icon_vhappy.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[vhappy]" title="" src="graemlins/icon_vhappy.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[vhappy]" title="" src="graemlins/icon_vhappy.gif" /> ROTFL!!

D-Neice, I wus startin' ta worry bout ya! Butchya shur shone us on TUSH dat ya kuld tauk Texan reel good lik! Ida thawt yus from dese hear parts, fur shur! Sew housa a good Jewish girl lik yoo, learnt to tauk lik dat?

BTW, for those keeping track. There is now only 418 days for those on CROSS part 1 and 426 days for those on CROSS part 2. :D

Sand is sooner but Cross is looooonnnnnggggerrrrr :p

Hey, Texess Don! Ah lrnd et frum da bst - Kinky Freidman frum Texess!!!!

Let's hear it for LOOOOOOONNNNNNNGGGGGGGG CROSS!!!

Mebee Ah well brang a Kinky Friedman song on the eye-pod for us to have us some down home fun!

Kathy - you can add our friends Dick and Nancy to the MED only portion of CROSS, cabin 857 (at least I hope they end up coming - long story, never mind) put them on a lets see.

Denise and Kathy, I new yus gals from Caleeforneyea wus nto Kinky! ;)

Why, Texas Don! <img border="0" alt="[naughty]" title="" src="graemlins/naughty.gif" /> <img border="0" alt="[naughty]" title="" src="graemlins/naughty.gif" />

Ahm a'blushin'!

Is everybody interested in doing a Murder Mystery at Sea during CROSS? Diana and I write these and put them on for parties and fundraisers. We were thinking it would be kinda fun to actually do this at sea with everybody having a part to play. We will for sure have plenty of sea days to kill off somebody! Any volunteers? LOL We even have a name already for our little whodunnit, 'Vengeance on the Voyager'. What do you think?

Sounds fun to me. Frank loves mysteries. I think it's a fun idea - I bet we could set it up in La Veranda one night on the unused side.

Sounds fun to us too. I can check with the other couple with us and see if they are up for it as well.

I think it might be a fun idea!

I was thinking of some cast names. I think in honor of TUSH, we will have to have a character named Ben Dover. ;)

Don - right on! His sidekick, of course, is Seymour Butz.

Cheers, Anne

Shirley U. Jest????

What???????????????? Obviously I did not read enough of the TUSH stuff - so no clue here!!

Ben Dover
Seymour Butz.
Shirley U. Jest????

JoAnn!!!!!!!

Bend Over
See more Butts
Surely you jest?

Nothing to do with Tush