Best Mornings of the Year

Breakfast on the Veranda
Utopia of the Seas near CocoCay, Bahamas
January 7, 2026

  What I treasure most about cruising is the opportunity to savor breakfast on the veranda. Chris and I order coffee, fruit, and pastries delivered to our stateroom and,  weather permitting, we relish breakfast while watching the sunrise, the ocean, or other captivating scene that graces our view.  

It is a perfect way to start the day. 

We sit and chat about the plan for the day and discuss some of the overnight news and happenings. But mostly, we just look out at a scene we only occasionally are fortunate enough to enjoy. 

Back home, our condo has a very limited view from the veranda. Mostly we enjoy a few plants, and ferns and a large green hedge. The occasional squirrel, bird, or lizard often become topics of conversation. 

Shipboard, it is a whole different environment. And we make sure to enjoy it. I fear too many cruisers pay for the veranda but never venture outside of their cabin. I get the veranda because I want to use it! And we do!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Escape the World to Dinner

The Stew, the Morning After
Tequesta, FL
January 20, 2026

I am not a cook and I have never played one on TV. 

 Chris and I tried a new recipe last evening. We found it in a book of soups and stews. The dish was named, Beef, Barley & Butternut Squash Stew with Blue Cheese Croutons. Since it was unseasonably cold here yesterday, it seemed a good time to pull out a feel good recipe and try it out.

Mmmm!

It took almost two hours to prepare and cook, thankfully I started at 4 PM. I had forgotten to plan around a 6 PM HOA meeting and so the dish sat until 7 PM before we were able to enjoy it. It was everything we hoped it would be and went very well with a Washington State red wine.

I discovered something, it is really expensive to cook creative dishes! The cost was over $40 just for the stuff we didn't have in the pantry or refrigerator.

Croutons Ready for Browning
Tequesta, FL
January 19, 2026

But, I guess that is the price for hiding my head in the sand so as not to hear the insane things that our president is saying and doing. Who says things like, since you didn't give me the peace award, I'm going to go to war now? Huh? Really?

A couple things about the dish--first, I enjoyed cutting the leaks. They were fun to joke about because Chris asked me where they were and I told her to look for the wet spot. I also had fun with the croutons. The blue cheese and walnut topping was really good and is a definite keeper for other dinners. 

Well, at least we have enough for lunch today and possibly tomorrow. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Monday Musings - January 19, 2026

 Martin Luther King Day

1. Welcome to the third Monday of January. It is a federal holiday. And that means no bad news in the mail. There are 49 Mondays remaining in 2026. 

2. I realized that it is hard to watch a complete NFL game when teams I care about are not playing. I saw parts of all four games this weekend, but no complete game. I did, however, see the ending of both overtime games!

3. I considered attending the college football championship game tonight. It is about two hours away in Miami. I was serious enough to look for tickets. Silly me, I actually thought I would find some reasonable tickets for the game. I was shocked by the prices! I went onto two resale sites and found tickets ranging from about $4K to $18K per ticket. Ugh. I posted the seat maps from two of the popular resale ticket sites. Who really pays that much for a sporting event? I mean, really? 

4. It appears we are in for another week of crazed things emanating from Washington. It surely has been a wild start to the year. Tomorrow marks the one year anniversary of the ascendance of Donald Trump to the presidency and the beginning of his 2nd term. I don't think any of us saw what was coming when he stood on Inauguration Day and lied about everything he intended to do. The text of his address can be found here. A couple of quotes remind of us what he said so we can compare them with what has actually transpired.

Next, I will direct all members of my cabinet to marshal the vast powers at their disposal to defeat what was record inflation and rapidly bring down costs and prices.

After years and years of illegal and unconstitutional federal efforts to restrict free expression, I also will sign an executive order to immediately stop all government censorship and bring back free speech to America.

Never again will the immense power of the state be weaponized to persecute political opponents -- something I know something about. (Laughter.) We will not allow that to happen. It will not happen again.

Under my leadership, we will restore fair, equal, and impartial justice under the constitutional rule of law.

5. Today in History. On January 19, 1809, poet, author and literary critic Edgar Allan Poe is born in Boston, Massachusetts.

By the time he was three years old, his father had abandoned the family and his mother had died, leaving him in the care of his godfather John Allan, a wealthy tobacco merchant. After attending school in England, Poe entered the University of Virginia in 1826. After fighting with Allan over his heavy gambling debts, he was forced to leave school after only eight months. Poe then served two years in the U.S. Army and won an appointment to West Point. After another falling out, Allan cut him off completely and he got himself dismissed from the academy for rules infractions.

Dark, handsome and brooding, Poe had published three works of poetry by that time, none of which had received much attention. In 1836, while working as an editor at the Southern Literary Messenger in Richmond, Virginia, Poe married his 13-year-old cousin, Virginia Clemm. He also completed his first full-length work of fiction, Arthur Gordon Pym, published in 1838.

Trump links Greenland threat to Nobel Peace Prize snub, EU eyes trade retaliation - Reuters

At least 39 dead in Spain after two high-speed trains collide - Reuters

A year into his return, Trump wields executive power with few restraints - Reuters

Iran to consider lifting internet ban; state TV hacked - Reuters

CNN poll finds majority of Americans say Trump is focused on the wrong priorities - CNN

There’s a reason the DOJ wants to stop Minneapolis citizens from filming ICE - MSNow

White House told CBS News that Trump would sue if his interview was edited - MSNow

What Trump’s proposed 10 percent cap on card rates could mean for you - The Washington Post

Trump Has an Offramp on Greenland. He Doesn’t Seem to Want It. - The New York Times

David FrenchAn Old Theory Helps Explain What Happened to Renee Good - The New York Times

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

We need normal!

 

It was a classic, but not unexpected, move. 

In a long screed this morning, Trump’s social media account said the president is placing tariffs of 10% on all goods from the countries currently protecting Greenland after February 1, and that the tariffs will increase to 25% on June 1. The post says the tariffs will be in effect “until such time as a Deal is reached for the Complete and Total purchase of Greenland.” (Letters from an American)

And where is the money to purchase Greenland coming from? Congress certainly has not appropriated such funds. Did anyone notice that the residents of Greenland do not want to be Americans? 

Who suffers at the end of the day? 

We do!

Trump has already added more than $2 trillion to the national debt during his first year in office. 

We get to fund that. 

And the increase in prices caused by the punitive tariffs is not going to improve affordability, nor will it encourage American production of exports when the retaliatory tariffs are applied. 

I remember, decades ago, when George H.W. Bush called Ronald Reagan's economics plan: Voodoo Economics--turns out it was. But Reagan got elected and Bush became his VP.

I have a name for Trump's economics plan--Bankrupt Economics. He is, after all, the king of bankruptcies. 

Consider that Greenland, tariffs on Europe, and Venezuelan oil are definitely not America First policies--they Trump First policies. 

I know the phrase was used unsuccessfully by rival presidential candidate, but I saw it scrawled on a protestor's sign in Copenhagen yesterday--we need to be normal again. Make America Normal Again! We need to restore our traditional alliances and trading partners. The insanity has to stop. 

Instead of punishing the American people with tariff wars, suffocating debt, and loss of healthcare access, we need someone who remembers that the president is the servant of the people and the steward of democracy. He is not the king of the world. 

Note to Congress: WAKE UP!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Made me Smile

 Surfing the net, or more specifically Facebook, provides a wealth of information. It is amazing what I find there and sometimes it even makes me smile.

The parody of noxious lawyer commercials did just that. It also caught my eye because the pictured dog is a Keeshond, my favorite breed of dog. 

Check out the name of the law firm. 

It is hard to find humorous items these days without looking hard, but this one just popped up. And every dog lover/owner can relate. 

As an aside, I did not come across and any cold lizards yesterday, they kept to themselves. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

The Cold Returns

 It was 39 really cold degrees when I woke this morning. 

Yes, the iguana alerts were out. Beware falling iguanas and don't bother them as they can still defend themselves. (Newsweek)

Chris and I are fortunate in that we do not live in an area where we see many iguanas, but they are around nearby. Given the cold, it is unlikely that I will attempt a bike ride today unless it is later in the day after the temperature had risen and the iguanas have awakened. 

Iguana on Welcome Sand Art
CocoCay, Bahamas
January 7, 2026

We were surprised last week when we were visiting CocoCay to see an iguana on the sand art welcoming people to the island. It was a bit humorous. What was even more amazing was the number of people who barely even noticed the lizard sitting in the sun on the sand art. Totally oblivious. I think it added something to the experience. I enjoyed seeing the iguana hanging out there just looking at all the people.

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

It was in the News

 The Verizon outage yesterday made the headlines. Chris and I, although we have service from competing carriers, were affected as we tried to call Lucas and sing Happy Birthday on his 16th birthday. He was finally able to call us after we contacted his Dad, who is on XFinity. 

A major outage attributed to an undisclosed problem is very concerning. Was it a cyber attack? But, even more, an outage like this demonstrated the fragile nature of our communications architecture.

I know that I am very dependent upon my cell phone and Wifi carrier. I am very happy that I do not have Verizon.

And they won't say, why?  Why?

But wait! There is more strange stuff in the news, this time from the White House.

"FEAR NOT, GREAT PEOPLE OF MINNESOTA, THE DAY OF RECKONING & RETRIBUTION IS COMING!" - Donald Trump (Yahoo News)

What does that mean? 

Who talks like that?

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Gray and Overcast

Palms against the Gray
Tequesta, FL
January 13, 2026

 The weather yesterday, here in South Florida, matched the mood in the country--gray and overcast. 

The sun appeared only briefly and I never wore my sunglasses all day. There was a fairly consistent mist during the morning which convinced me not to head out on my bike and to take a down day instead. 

Even the palms at Tiki52 last evening seemed to be suffering from the oppressive gray skies. They did not have their usual vibrance. 

I have notice the daylight increasing significantly. I had to adjust the timer which switches on the outdoors garden lights. The lights were coming on whilst it remained light. I am very happy for the longer days!

I am hoping that today is a better day, but I fear not. The gray skies remain for the morning along with rain. 

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

It was a Crisis!

 Chris and I had a nasty surprise last evening as we prepared to eat dinner. 

The surprise was the result of traveling a lot since the end of October and not keeping tabs the condiment supplies. We had traveled 39 of 73 days, or 53 percent of the time, since the 29th of October.

We had decided to have burgers for dinner--something we do not often do. In fact we have salmon more than we have burgers, but we were in the mood for burgers from the grill last evening. 

All went well right up until it was time to serve the burgers and we went to the pantry for the ketchup. 

The bottle was empty!

We normally have a spare bottle, but not last night! There was enough for one burger and I gave that to Chris. 

I considered charging out to the store for a bottle of ketchup, but then the burgers would have been cold or dried out if we kept them on the heat. Instead, I used barbecue sauce and mayonnaise on my burgers--but it was not the same without ketchup or catsup!

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL

Monday Musings - January 12, 2026

 

Baby Pool Water Feature
Utopia of the Seas
January 8, 2026

1. The second Monday of January has arrived. This year is off to a fast start, I can only wonder what will happen next. There are 50 more Mondays remaining in the year.

2. The NFL Wild Card Weekend is nearly over. Most of the games were exciting. I wonder what will happen with the sole remaining Family Team tonight as the Steelers host the Texans. History says the Steelers get blown out, but this year there is the Aaron Rogers wild card in the deck.

3. And turning to other sports, Arsenal had a good week and remains solidly atop the Premier League Table. The draw with Aston Villa did not hurt as much as I thought it might as Arsenal is 6 points clear. 

4. Kamala Harris was right. On October 29, 2024, she told a crowd that had come to hear her speak on the Ellipse, “In less than 90 days, either Donald Trump or I will be in the Oval Office, On day one, if elected, Donald Trump would walk into that office with an enemies list…Donald Trump intends to use the United States military against American citizens who simply disagree with him. People he calls ‘the enemy from within.’ This is not a candidate for president who is thinking about how to make your life better. This is someone who is unstable, obsessed with revenge, consumed with grievance, and out for unchecked power.” (Civil Discourse)

5. False Narratives. This past week has shown that there are no lows to which the current administration will not stoop. The facts of January 6, 2021, have been rewritten on the White House website and despite clear evidence from multiple sources to the contrary.(ABC News) Further,  the administration continues in erroneously characterizing Renee Good as a left wing terrorist who attempted to run over an ICE officer. (Bring me the news)

6. I realized that Congress can stop the ICE abuses, defund them in the budget. Pretty simple. 

7. Today in History. On January 12, 2010, Haiti is devastated by a massive earthquake. It drew an outpouring of support from around the globe, but the small nation has yet to fully recover.

Haiti has a history of seismic activity—devastating earthquakes were recorded there in 1751, 1770, 1842 and 1946. The island of Hispaniola, which Haiti shares with the Dominican Republic, lies mostly between two large tectonic plates, the North American and the Caribbean. The Haitian capital of Port-au-Prince practically straddles this fault line. Despite this knowledge and warnings from seismologists that another earthquake was likely in the near future, the country's poverty meant that infrastructure and emergency services were not prepared to handle the effects of a natural disaster. 

Trump White House attempts to rewrite history of Jan. 6, accuses ... - ABC News

Iran says communications open with US - Reuters

Trump team ramps up attack on Fed's Powell with criminal indictment threat - Reuters

Winter pierces Kyiv homes after Russia knocks out heat - Reuters

International law applies to everyone, including US, says German finance minister - ReutersCompletely bonkers’: Trump’s Greenland mining dreams collide with reality - CNNHundreds more Border Patrol officers are headed to Minneapolis, Noem says, as new video shows minutes before fatal shooting - CNNIsolation defined Trump’s first term. Imperialism will define his second. - MSNow‘We’ve lowered our standards’: Former ICE director says agents are being put into situations ‘they are not trained for’ - MSNowMan who grabbed Pelosi’s podium during Jan. 6 riot runs for office in Florida - The Washington Post

-- Bob Doan, Tequesta, FL