A Home Fit For Scarecrows

Well it’s been lot longer than I had wanted it to be but I am finally updating ‘Gullidgestravels’.  It’s now November and I’ve been neglecting this blog for the past 8 months! I hear you all ask ‘What have you been doing?’ well here is the shortest version possible:

March: Made it back to Nebraska after cruising with Allison and making a few stops on the way home. Klause was back to his usual self and I was wearing a smile from ear to ear. 

April: The night before we were due to fly to England we lost my wallet. Turned out to be in Allison’s handbag the entire time (even after we both checked it twice) ugh! Landed in England and it was the wettest April on record! Literally ‘April Showers’ for our entire trip. Beside the weather, we had such a wonderful time. We were lucky to have my mum there for the entire month and David’s car (Thanks David!!) Sadly Tara (the dog) was in Spain with David so no early morning walks but the weather would have ruined that anyway. Visited the birthplace of my dad in Somerset and met some distant relatives too. Nearly made an offer on the pub that my dad was born in (yes…he was born upstairs of the King William Pub in Curry Rivel) If only I had 300,000 pounds to spare! Oh and witnessed my sister Emma getting her first tattoo! Lots of laughs and some tears when it was time to head back.

Gullidge/Winter family day out in the rain at Wilton House, England

May: relaxed in Nebraska whilst staying at Dani & Michael’s place. Painted Allison’s parents house (white!!) and helped out over at our friend Robert’s house. Tilled his bathroom floor and sanded down 100+ year old wood. I was in my element. Then it was time to leave…again! A sad good bye to Klause but he is in perfect hands with Allison’s good friend Jamie.

June: arrived in LA for rehearsals. Allison arrived a week later. Had a good time hanging out with some old friends from TN, Justin & Melissa. They live in LA now. Spent a week in the studios with a friend from my 2007 Disney contract. Learnt all three shows and a few other little pieces. Flew to Vancouver and joined the Coral Princess on 25^th. Back to good old Alaska. Yoho!

LA, with my favorite band.

July; (Our Birthday month!!) All three shows are now up and running and we are out of rehearsals. Enjoying my time in the cabin and benefiting from dating a singer! (Room service & two portholes) Was spoilt on my birthday by Allison with a scavenger hunt for all my presents. She set the bar high for next year by getting me a new set of luggage! Am I a lucky guy or what! Just after my Birthday I got to see my partner in crime Jethro Marles. Many many laughs were had. Allison was pleased to finally meet this mischievous small boy I lived with whilst at college. He was working as a singer/dancer on Celebrity Cruise Line. The cast and I all went on a whale watching tour. We saw plenty and definitely got our $15 worth! Went to a 80’s theme party…but we went dressed with a twist…as 80 year old’s!! Got some laughs.

a sunny day visiting an Alaskan Glacier

soaking up the sun

Partners in crime!! Me and Jethro Marles

August: exploring the Alaskan ports with my friend Les and his girlfriend Mel. Fishing and hiking etc. Plus eating cupcakes in Skagway has now become a tradition. Saw some more of Jethro and mainly had breakfast with our other-half’s. Oh and we didn’t get to see any of the London Olympics due to Princess not airing it on the ship! Oh and took tons of photos of mushrooms.

A cold day fishing in Skagway with Les & Mel

Spotting lots of Whales

September; saw the Great Alaskan Lumberjack show. Started rehearsals for the two shows that are added when we switch to 14-day cruises.  Finally left Alaska and cruised down to LA and on through the Panama Canal. Celebrated Allison and I’s 2-year anniversary, she got me a year membership to Ancestry.com! I have spent a lot of time putting that to good use researching the Gullidge family tree! Rehearsing all the time for the new shows too. Went to a Hollywood themed party, Allison went as ‘Holly’ (the bush) and I went as ‘Wood’ (the material). Again some more laughs.

A fantastic group of Jack's!

Our 80 year old efforts!

hitching a ride!

October; spent this month mainly in rehearsals doing technical runs of the two shows, ie for lighting & automation! Went through the Panama Canal a few times too! Also swam with some Dolphins in Cabo San Lucas…beautiful experience!! Allison’s parents and grandma came on for a day visit whilst they were in LA. Enjoyed showing them around the ship and were we live. Her mum got us the biggest pumpkin pie I have ever seen!




November; happy to watch President Obama get a second term as President of the United States. Not sure how I would have felt if Romney had won! Now counting down those days until we sign off this ship! Went as Rodger and Jessica Rabbit for Halloween!

Halloween 2012

Both of us will be flying to Tennessee on Dec 1^st. Staying two nights with friends and clearing out our storage unit. Loading it all into a U-Haul truck and driving it to Nebraska. We will be back there on the 4^th and finally reunited with our dog! The plan is to spend Christmas in Lincoln, NE and then we will be making a move out to LA in January. My friends Justin and Melissa have offered me a job in their company. They both work for a small company called Ten Thirty One Productions. And they produce the LA Haunted Hayride every year. The company is growing and will be taking on new projects like a Hayride in New York etc etc. They spoke to me about it whilst we were catching up with them in LA. It’s a fantastic opportunity to finally step off the stage and make some career changes. I will be helping them with the production and special effects side of it all.  Something I am very interested in. There is a lot riding on this so please pray for a smooth relocation and job hunt. Until the new position with them picks up I will have to find other types of work and LA is really popular for extras. ie background work on TV and movie sets. Allison will also be looking for background work but she is still very much interested in performing. So keep your fingers crossed for us both. Putting positive thoughts out there and trying to network as much as we can!

Well for now I wish you all a happy fall season. I can’t wait to get into that festive mood, as it’s an odd feeling being in a warm climate during this time of year.  Thank you again for reading and I won’t be leaving it this long to update next time! Cheers.

Also…

sadly the day after we arrived in England my great Aunt Florrie passed away and we were just about to go over to visit her. The world works in a mysterious way I suppose. She was being forced to be moved to a hospice, as she was becoming very sick and frail. She had refused any treatment and said many times she wanted to die at home in the house she was born in. She got her wish on the morning the ambulance was there to pick her up. I was sad to have not been able to say good-bye to her but we were conveniently there to attend her funeral. She would have just celebrated her 90^th Birthday last month.

Planking for Mr President