R Family Cruise: T Minus Two Days

Posting is light this week because I know many folks are on vacation, and because I’m in the throes of preparing for my own. This Saturday, my partner and I and our four-year-old son will be setting sail on the R Family Summer Adventure cruise. We’ll be the special guests of the Family Pride Coalition, who have asked me and fellow blogger Terrance (from the Republic of T) to give an onboard seminar about blogging and online activism.

I’ll also be posting live from the ship every day, the gods of technology willing, so stop back to see what life is like on board and on the beaches with 2000+ LGBT family members and friends. My partner and I have been on two Olivia cruises before, but I suspect that cruising with a small child (and a crowd of both men and women) makes it an entirely different experience. Our first hurdle is a five-hour drive down to New York, where the ship departs. Luckily, our son is a good traveler, so with a stack of CDs, a few sticker books, and enough snackage, we should be all right. (We’re abandoning our usual attempts at good nutrition for the week, and will probably lead off with a stop at Dunkin Donuts on our way out of town.)

Off to finish packing. So far, I’ve got: sunscreen, bathing suit, tank tops, more sunscreen, sand toys for son, sunscreen for son, shorts, sandals, sunglasses, laptop, yet more sunscreen, and an array of legal documents (son’s birth certificate and court order, marriage certificate (for all the good it will do out of state), and medical powers of attorney). Did I mention sunscreen? Yeah. The curse of being a redhead. That aside, I’m looking forward to the trip and to sharing it with all of you.

If you’re going to be on board yourself, drop me an e-mail. It would be great to get together.