25/12/03, 1130.
So. Christmas Eve. It started around 1000 with a rehearsal. This was followed shortly by a film, which gave me an hour off for lunch. After that, I didn't stop until 0130. First was a classical concert, during which I phoned various people to organise the hurried turnarounds of the evening. This was followed by a passenger choir practise, before and after which I tried to get some plotting time in. Then shifted a large followspot up to the top deck ready for Santa's landing on the funnel. 45 mins for dinner, shower and change, then up to operate said followspot. Then dismantle the spot and put everything back in the showlounge, from where I'd borrowed the spot's stand, before the show down there started. Then to the theatre to do two cabaret shows - another 30 mins off inbetween shows - and then a zero-time turnaround (great scheduling by somebody) from the end of the second show to the start of the Communion service which, unsurprisingly, started late. During this service I got phoned twice by members of the show company wondering why I wasn't at their party doing the Secret Santa thing I was in (no, nobody had told me it was happening then, otherwise I'd have said I couldn't make it). Once this service finished, we shooed everybody out of the door and changed things around for this morning's lessons & carols service, with chairs for a pax choir of 40 or so, etc..
Finished for the day at 0130 with many thanks to the ents team. I then went down to the showlounge to see if the showco's party was still going on, and in the process managed to fall off the stage and land on my arm. So with a numb and useless arm I continued and found that the party had finished. I went down to the crew bar nursing my arm, said Merry Christmas to lots of people, and had one of the singers inform me that I was selfish, ungrateful and antisocial for not going to their party (it was him I was supposed to give my secret santa present to, so at this point he didn't have one). Apparently the fact that I'd just finshed work was not relevant to this. The rest of the showco who were around all got very embarassed and tried to apologise for him.
By this time my arm was hurting, so nursing this I went to bed around 0200. Little sleep was had, due to both the arm and the drunk musicians shouting outside my door until 0600. So, at 0830 as my arm still hurt I got dressed (after a fashion) and went to see the doctor.
It seems I've fractured my right elbow. Well, I've managed 24 years without breaking any bones, so I guess it had to happen sometime. There's something terribly ironic about falling over and breaking one's arm on Christmas Eve *WHILE SOBER*!!!!!!!
On Aurora or (particularly) Oriana there would be a big problem now, but fortunately on this ship everything is automated, so the only real effect is that I can only press half as many buttons at once. My arm is in a tubigrip and sling, and only moderately painful, and hopefully I'll be allowed to return to work tomorrow. I'm not entirely sure how I'm going to get dressed in a manner suitable for passenger areas - one-handed shoelaces are *hard*, so I'm wearing flip-flops today. I'm writing this on my laptop and probably won't actually send it for a day or two, as I can't go to a pax cyberstudy dressed like this, and the crew office is closed today so I can't buy credit for the crew one. Shortly I shall go down to the crew mess for Christmas lunch, which could be amusing, since I'm not used to one-handed eating yet.
I think this puts a stop to my hoped-for jaunts to South America.....
Until I did my arm in I was actually quite enjoying the day - it's fun to be busy once in a while, especially when co-ordinating the busyness.
posted by Simon Thursday, December 25, 2003