You Get What You Get, So Don’t Throw a Fit

You get what you get, so don’t throw a fit.

This might be a little bit of an off-topic post, but since cruises are my favorite vacation and that’s the banner on my site, I’m hoping you’ll hang with me on it.  Plus, the point is actually more than the cruise itself – it’s about enjoying life and aiming for more.

I started this post while on a cruise ship.  We’ve been on a number of cruises with lines like Princess and Celebrity, but this is our first time with MSC Cruises.  We’re on the MSC Seaside en route from Miami to St. Maarten, Puerto Rico, and the Bahamas before we head back to Miami.

We didn’t plan to take a cruise this year as we have so much going on… and there’s obviously the cost.  However, I came across a good deal back in January and we couldn’t pass it up.

MSC is big over in Europe, but they’re new on this side of the world and they’re trying to get a foothold.  And because of that, they were offering up some pretty good deals.  We were able to score a room with a balcony for all three us for $1,802.00 for 8 days (7 nights).

The ship, the MSC Seaside, is brand new – it just went in service in December of 2017.  It’s a monster one, too, with a capacity of 5,119 passengers!  It’s beautifully built with all kinds of cool technology throughout.  For example, we’re able to see exactly where we are on the ship with our phones and get directions to whatever area we’re looking to visit.  We’re even able to book reservations for the shows from our phones as well.

Of course, it’s got all kinds of cool entertainment like water slides, zip lines, a 4-D movie (this was mind-blowingly awesome!), a bowling alley, etc.  The point is that it really is a work of art ship.

 

The cost – not so cheap!

We were able to book a room for the three of us with the drink package for $1,802.  Higher end cruises are not cheap, but when you take into consideration what’s included, it’s not too shabby.

Some of what was included:

• The room with a balcony (the balcony is actually my favorite part of going on a cruise!)
• All the food we could eat, including top-notch dinner in the main dining room
• A basic drink package (mmm… beer) – we could have upgraded to a better package, but we’re pretty easy-going on what we drink
• Tons of fun on the ship like the water slides and pools, along with parties all over the place
• Shows and performances every night
• And lest we forget, the ship’s taking us to three different countries!

Now, outside of that cost, we did have to pay for our flights ($994.80) – too bad we didn’t have our travel rewards in place by then!  Then there were the cruise gratuities, a few drinks outside of our package, and the 4-D movie – all of which totaled $339.86.  And finally, we spent around $150 in the different ports on meals and such.

So, the total cost ran us about $3,300.  Yeah, that’s not cheap.

It’s definitely not inexpensive, but that’s our big splurge we like to do every few years.  I’m pretty cheap on most everything so spending this for a vacation every few years doesn’t bother me very much.

 

The bad reviews – uh-oh!

Because this was a new line we were trying out, we spent a good amount of time over the past several months reading reviews trying to get a gauge of what to expect.

The reviews have been all over the map.  Many folks loved everything about the ship, but there was another decent percentage of people that hated it.

A few of the common complaints we read about…

• The staff is unfriendly and very rude.
• The bar service is too slow.
• The food is not good.
• The staff utterly hates being there.
• The other passengers were very rude and inconsiderate

This wasn’t encouraging.  There were a lot of good reviews as well, but why were there so many bad reviews?  Was this a roll of the dice to see if we were going to be in for a bad time?

I have to tell you – most of this was B.S.  Here’s what we figured out – some people are just complainers.  Nothing satisfies this type of person.

 

What we found instead

The staff has been fantastic.  Mrs. R2R and I, along with the wonderful family we shared a dinner table with throughout the week, talked about how we haven’t met anyone here who hasn’t been friendly.  In fact, most of the staff seems to go beyond the regular smile and passing “hi” to make conversation.  They ask us questions about our day, give us advice to make our trip better, and make small talk with our daughter.

When it comes to the bar service, I really don’t get the bad reviews on this.  I asked Mrs. R2R and her thoughts were the same as mine – the service has been better and faster than most bars I’ve ever been to.  Sure, sometimes you’re waiting for another customer or two before you, but geez – relax!  You’re on vacation – what’s your rush?!

Not only that, but every bartender we’ve encountered throughout the ship has been incredibly friendly.  Our favorite though was George at the Jungle Bar on the ship.  Hailing from Jamaica, he was arguably the friendliest guy on the ship – outgoing and always laughing.

George said he’s been bartending on cruise ships for about 5 years (and does a great job).  Does he love it… no – it’s a job.  But like he said, “I’ve got kids.”  So he makes the most of it with a smile on his face.

Additionally, he took a liking to our daughter making jokes with her and coming up with all kinds of fun drinks for her throughout the trip (non-alcoholic, of course).

David, another bartender, from India, has been with MSC for three or four months.  I asked him if he loves it or hates it.  He said emphatically that he loves it – that it’s been a savior for him and his family.

The food has been wonderful, particularly at dinner in the main dining room.  Everything I tried there was absolutely awesome.  And the buffet food was good… I mean, a buffet’s a buffet – not much to say about that.

I think most of the bad reviews we read were likely from people who like to treat others like crap.  They feel they’re on vacation and everyone should be their servant waiting on them hand and foot.  When they demand something, they want people jumping to help them.

If you’re one of those people, please find another blog to read.  Treat people with dignity and respect and they’ll bend over backward for you.  These folks are working hard to take care of their families in countries throughout the world.  They’re just making a life for themselves like anyone else.

Treat people like you would want to be treated and you’ll come out miles ahead.

On another note, with the ship leaving toward European side, there were Speedos galore.  And I get it, that’s the norm in Europe… but it ain’t the norm for us in the U.S.

But hey, different is good.  I love it – to each his own.  Even so, it was still entertaining to see some of the old guys with giant beer bellies in Speedos.  It gave all three of us the giggles on several occasions!

I will say that I can understand where people thought many of the other passengers were rude.  In particular, we did notice that some of the Europeans did seem to have more of a focus on themselves than others.

That’s not a dig, just a difference we noticed.  Stopping in the middle of a busy walkway just to talk or take pictures or whatever.

Although I could see how that would bother some people from the U.S., it didn’t really bother me.  It was more interesting to observe than anything.  Just a cultural difference, I guess.

Overall, the cruise was wonderful.  I just asked Mrs. R2R if there was anything we didn’t like about the cruise and she couldn’t think of anything either.

It was really a great vacation and provided a lot of memories.  That includes the time we were at the beach in the Bahamas and a giant wave came, knocked over me and Mrs. R2R, and then just obliterated our daughter… good times!

 

You get what you get, so don’t throw a fit!

While in Panama last year, one the nicest folks who also happened to own the tiki bar in Nueva Gorgona we enjoyed so much rattled off the phrase “you get what you get, so don’t throw a fit.”

This saying’s been around for decades, but it wasn’t one I was familiar with at the time.  But I loved it.  It’s stuck with me as a mantra to live by and it should be everyone’s outlook on life.

You get what you get, so don’t throw a fit.

We all have out plans in life and guess what – they’re not always going to go the way we want them to go.  Life’s going to throw you curve balls.  You have to learn to deal with it and not let it get you down.

Appreciate what you’ve got and make the most of it.  The saying goes hand-in-hand with the expression “When life gives you lemons, make lemonade.”

There are always going to be people in life who struggle with this.  They’re constantly unhappy with the cards they’ve been dealt and spend their time being miserable and just complaining… know any of these people?

You can always tell who these people are because they’re not just pouting about service being slow on a cruise ship.  They’re likely never happy with anything and always find a way to bitch and moan about something.

 

Here’s the point…

Yeah, believe it or not, there’s actually a point to this post.

Life isn’t always fair.  There will always be @#$% trying to trip you up.

Those that are successful in life are the ones who can accept the curve balls they’re thrown, adapt as needed, and overcome adversity.

Those who cannot are more than likely doomed to a life of unhappiness.

You only get one chance at life – don’t waste it being miserable.  Make the most of every moment and find ways to continually make your life better in every way… and that includes your financial status.

The point of “you get what you get, so don’t throw a fit” isn’t about contentment.  It’s about stopping and realizing what just transpired, accepting it graciously, and then finding a way to make things at least one step better for the future.

People love people who are happy and motivated to make their lives better.  And funny enough, those are the folks that then get even more opportunities.  Success begets success.

Don’t be a complainer in life.  You make your own luck.  And if you’re always upset about something, things will continue not to go your way.

Have a positive attitude and enjoy life and the chips will fall your way.  People want to be around happy people – they don’t want to be around misery.

You get what you get, so don’t throw a fit.

 

Would you agree that success tends to follow those that are happy and work to improve their lives?

 

Thanks for reading!!

— Jim