Got up at 3:00 a.m. yesterday, took a cab to the Austin airport, 6:30 flight to St. Louis, drove a rental car two and a half hours in the pouring rain to teach Eclipse software to some future court reporters in Southern Illinois. Usually when it’s raining, students don’t show up, but they were there.
At the end of my class, they presented me with a thank-you card that they’d all signed and a Starbucks gift card. I’ve been doing this sort of thing at schools near and far for free for nine years, and that simple token of appreciation really stopped me in my tracks.
It’s so touching and heartwarming to be appreciated. Possibly even life-changing. I’m vowing to do better with expressing my thankfulness, because you just never know what a person is going through and what it took for them to be where they are when they’re there for you.
Thank you, John A. Logan College students and Ms. Marilyn, for teaching ME the lesson yesterday! I appreciate you.
Julie Samford
Norwegian Cruise Lines has extended our offer. There is still time to sign up for the cruise! You are invited! The date is November 9, returning on November 13. It’s five days, 4 nights for just $219 plus $69.56 tax, for a grand total of $288.56 per person, based on double occupancy. If you have more than two people per room, the added roommates are even less expensive. I’ll be offering a short Eclipse training seminar for court reporters. Hope you’ll join me!
You have the option of using separate credit cards for each passenger to pay for the room. You also have a choice to take either the best room available in the category you choose or to be flexible and possibly get a free upgrade. I’ll take the free upgrade… thank you very much!
If you need a roomate, please use the message form at the bottom of the page to contact Julie Samford, or call 800-320-6223, x1.
Click here to book your cruise now!
Interested in the Eclipse training offered on the cruise? Click here!
Cruise and Transportation Details
One reason I chose Norwegian is because of their slogan, “Dinner will be served promptly at whatever o’clock.” If you don’t feel like eating at 5:30 pm every day, you don’t miss out on your meal. I love that. This cruise is normally $900 for an inside cabin. I’m so excited about our deal!
You can board the ship any time from noon until 5:00. One of the most wonderful parts of the cruise is when it takes off from the port. I’ll be sure to set up a meeting place so that we can all enjoy this together. Feel free to invite anyone you want. My next-door neighbor is coming, as well as my mom, little brother and the sweet couple I got some oleander from on CraigsList. I’m quite sure they won’t be joining us at the Eclipse training! We’ll have some meeting places designated ahead of time in case you want to do things as a group. One thing that I did on my last cruise that was really an adventure of a lifetime was to swim with dolphins. It costs almost as much as the cruise, but it’s an experience you’ll never forget.
It may be cheaper to fly into Fort Lauderdale Hollywood International Airport (FLL) and catch a ride to the Port of Miami. My flight from Austin to FLL was $89 each way, and as of August 16, flights from LA to Fort Lauderdale are $114 each way on Southwest Airlines. As of August 17, flights from Oklahoma City to Miami are $198. Check out www.kayak.com for some great rates from multiple sites. If you fly into Miami, your least expensive bet is probably just getting a cab. It’ll probably be about $25 regardless of how many people.
Has a lot of dining and shopping options across the street. Five-minute cab ride from the cruise ships.
$125 per night, but I’ll see about getting a better group rate.
Note: Filling out the form in the black box below will send a private email to Julie. To leave a comment on this web page, please use the comment form at the very bottom of the page. Sorry for the confusion!
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A great example of what goes through a court reporter’s mind sitting in court all day.
CLICK HERE to watch the video ….
