I have been on 15 Sixthman cruises, and every event is full of surprises.  But this year, I learned about something that had never even crossed my mind…though I guess, knowing Rock Boaters and their love for free booze, this shouldn’t have been a surprise at all.

I’ll let the video speak for itself…

For subscribers, you can watch the video here.

Congrats, girls for teaching me something new this year.  Ships and Dip, Cayamo, and Mayercraft cruisers – you wouldn’t even dream of doing something like this, right?

I know this secret is safe with you…

-Lauren

I’m currently sitting here in the atrium on the final morning of the Rock Boat.  The hours of sleep each night became less and less as the week went on, so my whole body, mind, and equilibrium is in a state of confusion.  Luckily, my brain and motor skills are functioning (barely) to write this blog for you Rock Boaters to read as you get off the boat.

You know you had fun on the Rock Boat when:

-You hear your alarm going off in your sleep, and yet your body refuses to acknowledge it for about five minutes.  Seriously, I heard the alarm in my dream this morning, and my body just said “NOPE.”

-You look in the mirror and just burst out laughing when you see yourself.

-Your eyes are so bloodshot they resemble road maps.

-You try to run a comb through your hair and it gets stuck.

-You have to McGuyver an outfit out of clothes you’ve already worn twice, picking the stuff that smell the least like casino smoke.

-You see your cabin steward bring a blow-up doll out of the room next door.  Not kidding.

-You walk around looking like a deer in the headlights, afraid that if you close your eyes at ANY point you might fall back asleep.

-You turn your Sign & Sail bill into a paper airplane so you don’t have to look at it.

-You tell people not to talk to you.  Not because you lost your voice, but because you’re afraid of the words that might come out due to pure exhaustion and delirium.

-You can’t stop smiling.

-You look at other guests and a nod is enough emotion to convey everything you’re feeling.

-You can’t wait to get home to tell your friends how amazing your life has been for five days.

-You try to write a blog chronicling the end of the cruise, and you seriously can’t remember what you did five minutes ago, let alone yesterday afternoon.

-Your disheveled co-worker slumps down next to you and just starts laughing hysterically for no reason.  Apparently, whiskey and Jagermeister is the reason.

-You have the hardest time picking your favorite moment.

-You now have a place in your dreams that you can escape to whenever you’re having a crappy day.  You know you’ll be able to close your eyes and hear the claps and na na na’s of Stephen Kellogg and the Sixer’s “4th of July,” feel the ground shake during Gaelic Storm’s “What’s the Rumpus,” and see the sun set over the Caribbean Sea as Zac Brown sings “Toes” up on the deck.

-You realize that your body hates you for not sleeping for five days, but you couldn’t care less because your eyes and ears love you for giving you these memories.

Adios, and vaya con Dios Rock Boaters!  That was certainly one for the ages.

What about you? Leave a comment to tell everybody your favorite “You know you had fun on the Rock Boat” moments.

-Steve

You have been judged.

The phone ninja contingent of Sixthman is representing here on the The Rock Boat (we miss you Jana, Michelle and Lisa, stay gold). We may have may have left our phones at home, but we bring our stealthy ninja moves with us everywhere we go.  This is my second cruise season but last night was my first chance to participate in a most esteemed Sixthman tradition. No, I’m not talking about escorting Kappy to his cabin. I am of course talking about beer buckets in glass elevators.

Around 7pm on Tuesday night April, Lauren, Kelly and I pack 4 buckets with ice cold brewskies (yes, they are Coors Light and yes the mountains are as blue as Stever’s eyes), print a few signs and head for the Atrium: “Have a cold one on Sixthman. Don’t get greedy, we’re watching you.”

We drop off a bucket and a sign in each elevator, take our posts and watch the fun ensue. Despite my name, I don’t actually have the opportunity to bring joy to people as often as I would like in the real world of life on land. We watch as Rock Boaters see the sign, partake in a beer and a smile and get off on the next deck. Well, except for that one guy. Stripey shirt with baseball cap dude who took three cans for yourself, we were watching you, judging you from afar.

Speaking of judging people, Jill, May and I should not be left alone with the little red stickers reading “YOU HAVE BEEN JUDGED,” that we use to judge the door decorating contest. I love all of you, but those of you who got an extra special pat on the back from me, May or Jill last night were lucky enough to be judged. There may have only been a few official contest winners this year, but Rock Boaters, you all have been judged. The phone ninjas deem that you are all winners. Stay gold Rock Boaters, stay gold.

See you on the flip side,

Joy

10:45AM – GOOOOOOOOOOOOD MORNING ROCK BOAT!  Five hours is plenty of sleep, right?

10:46AM – I look out the window expecting to see an island.  Instead, I see blue water.  And we’re moving.

10:47AM – We missed the port.  Apparently it was too windy. Or something.  What is it with the Rock Boat and not making ports!

11:00AM – Head down to the office, chug a Gatorade, and check in with the Sixthman team.  We have a plan B!  We add extra performances for Widewake and Blackberry Smoke on the lido deck during the day, and slide up other performances so there’s never down time.  I’m not scheduled to “work” until Hazel’s deck show at 4:30, so I get to hang out with my friends today, woohoo!

11:15AM – Lunch. Pizza.  Shocking, I’m sure.

11:30AM – I meet my friends up on the deck, and end up sitting with my feet dangling in the pool behind the stage.  It’s nice to actually sit down with them and find out how things are going.  They all agree that this is the best trip ever.

1:00PM – Wideawake takes the stage, and the crowd is pumped.  I’m pretty freaking excited too: this is my first Wideawake show, and I loved the songs they played for our podcast yesterday.

1:30PM – Still sitting by the pool, I look around at my friends.  They all have this look of absolute bliss and happiness….except that it’s so much more than that.  I realize I reference the Shawshank Redemption WAY too much, but the best way I can describe their faces is to talk about the scene after the inmates tar the roof of the prison.  You know the part where they zoom in on Andy’s face, sitting there with the sun on his back, and a big grin on his face. Replace a prison roof with a boat in the Caribbean, and THAT’S the feeling.

2:00PM – Wideawake ends their set.  Yup, gonna go buy their album immediately.  I am a fan.

2:30PM – Blackberry Smoke takes the stage and ROCKS everybody’s world.  I’m ashamed to say that I was far too busy during Skynyrd last year and this year to catch a full set of theirs, so I’m looking forward to hearing them from beginning to end.

2:45PM – I am very glad these guys are on board.  We needed that real gritty southern rock on this boat, and BBS is firing on all cylinders.

3:30PM – I love the Smoke!

4:30PM – Boo, I have to start working!  I run to my room, throw on my Sixthman shirt, and then head back up to the deck for Sister Hazel’s Sail Away Party.

4:35PM – They’re all wearing dreads and tie-dye shirts.  They’re going to sing all of their songs as if they were a Reggae Band…mon.

4:45PM – They’re singing “Red Red Wine,” and turning it into a drinking game.  Everybody has to drink every time the guys sing “Red Red Wine.”  Glorious.

4:50PM – A reggae version of “All for You”

4:55PM – They sing a mix of “Chicken Fried,” “Mmmbop,” and “If You Could Only See”  reggae-fied.  Awesome.

5:20PM – Limbo contest on the stage.  The winner goes really low, and everybody is quite impressed considering this is all takes place during the Captain’s Party (free drinks!).

5:40PM – They play “Hot, Hot, Hot,” and a MASSIVE conga line forms around the ship.

6:00PM – Uh oh, what is this feeling coming over me?  My legs ache, my eyes are heavy, and I just want to sit down…I think they call it “tired?”  I don’t know what to do!

6:05PM – I slap myself on the face.  No excuses, play like a champion!

6:10PM – Second wind.  I’m on the Rock Boat, sleeping or resting = missing out on everything else.  I can sleep in when we’re done with the cruise season, right?

Check back later for the second half of the day!

-Steve

Sorry for the slow updates…the internet is moving slower than molasses at this point!  If we can’t get the rest of the blogs up today, expect a bunch tomorrow when we get off the boat and onto dry land.

11:00AM – “How to Combat a Hangover” seminar with Mike Rickett, personal trainer extraordinaire.  Not surprisingly, a few people show up halfway through, hung over.  Extremely informative.  I make notes for tomorrow morning…not that I’ll need them of course, but just in case.

12:00PM – Flip Cup Tournament!  After the chaos and crazy success of last year, we enlisted the help of the Flip Cup Guys, a company that JUST runs Flip Cup Tournaments.  We have a full 32-team bracket, and my friends have two teams in it!  Of course, they happen to play each other in the first round.  Crap.

12:05PM – Gaelic Storm challenges Sixthman to a flip cup match to kick this thing off.  None of them have ever played before, but they are Irish so it could be close.

12:07PM – Damn the wind!  We lose to Gaelic Storm, and I am cloaked in failure.

12:09PM – Patrick Murphy of Gaelic loses his cowboy hat into the pool and decides to jump in fully clothed to get it.  It’s going to be a good day.

12:45PM – Code blue! Code blue! We need more Coors Light!

12:50PM – Corey brings us up some more beer.  Crisis averted, game on!

1:00PM – My friends get knocked out in the Final Four.  Valiant run guys, your moms would be proud.

1:30PM – Tournament over.  Much more organized than last year!  The Flip Cup Guys challenge the winning team to a showdown, and completely obliterate them.

2:00PM – Artist trivia.  I wasn’t sure we could top the hilarity of last year, and then Gaelic Storm showed up.  Ken Block hosts and the three contestants are: Michael Tolcher, Boots from Stephen Kellogg & the Sixers, and BOTH Patrick and Ryan from Gaelic Storm playing as one person.  How do two people play as one person?  Easy!  They both put on one t-shirt, drink a lot of Guinness, and pretend they’re Siamese twins.

2:15PM – Ken is assigning points in random amounts for each correct answer.  Tolcher has 4,000, Boots has 5125, and Gaelic has 2.5 points.  When Gaelic answers the next question right, Ken asks them how many points they’d like.  “How many does the leader have? 5125 huh?  Hmmmmm, okay we’ll take 3 points.”  I love these guys.

2:30PM – Ken asks a question about what tattoo he has on his ass, and Boots knows the answer.  Not weird at all.

3:00PM – I get to interview the boys from Wideawake, who I am currently listening to on my computer as I type this.  Joe, Matt, Scott, Chris, and Andy, great to meet you.  Cool story: they were “discovered” on the Rock Boat a few years ago during a torrential storm.  They were scheduled for the Lido Deck, but due to the storm, they were moved into the Atrium, and EVERYBODY on the boat was there to watch them.  They play two songs for the podcast, and I’m an instant fan.  Mental note: catch their next set.

4:00PM – Head up to the Lido to catch Zac’s set on deck.  His songs are amazing, and I could listen to him sing all day… but for whatever reason they sound even better when played under a cloudless sky in the Caribbean.  “Life is good today…”

4:45PM – Time for the alumni show!

5:00PM – This is why we do this job.  A special performance from Ryan Newell, Emerson Hart, Aslyn, Pat McGee, and Stephen Kellogg JUST for alumni that have been on four or more Rock Boats.  These are the artists we had at the bluffs back in August for our first official Sixthman Sessions.  They are going to sing the seven songs they recorded from that weekend.

5:30PM – Wow.  We’re only halfway through and everybody’s mouths are on the floor (mine included).  Turns out Sister Hazel might be recording one or two of these songs for the next album.  I feel like a proud parent, because I was there for the creation, writing, and recording of these songs six months ago!  It’s like watching a song grow up in front of your eyes, if that makes any sense (which it doesn’t).

5:35PM – Pat McGee tells the story of “El Grande Rojo” streaking through the Plantation back in August getting a laugh out of everybody.

5:36PM – Kappy disappears from the crowd.

5:37PM – Kappy streaks the stage in just tighty-whities and a hard hat.  Turns out he found a tool belt back stage but he couldn’t put it on fast enough.

5:38PM – Emerson tells everyone, “That was like a weird mix of the Village People…and Sasquatch”.

5:50PM – Stephen Kellogg invites Sixthman on stage to sing the last song, “Peaches in the Summertime.”  I run up on stage, throw my arm around Kappy and Andy as we scream “HOT BANANAS!” during the chorus.  Another moment in my life that I can’t believe actually happened.

5:59PM – We walk off the stage to a standing ovation.

6:00PM – I still can’t believe that just happened.

6:30PM – Dinner time!

7:00PM – I’m now sitting on the floor of the library, listening to the boys from Hazel sing acoustic versions of Mandolin Moon and Shame for our podcast.  Eight months ago, when I told Andy we needed to be doing podcasts and video diaries, I didn’t realize where that would take me.  Here I am, interviewing one of my favorite bands and listening to a private acoustic performance.  Other than the band in here, it’s just Andy, April, myself, and our sound/video guys.  Yup, definitely beats my old job.

8:00PM – Gaelic Storm plays two songs for our podcast too.  Patrick and Twigger continue to berate me and discuss the flip cup match from earlier in the day.  Luckily Gaelic is on Ships and Dip too, which means I get to hear more “Hey look it’s Steve, one of the losers from Sixthman who can’t even beat us in Flip Cup! Bahahahaha.”  Thanks jerks!

9:00PM – Sixthman meeting.  Mike and Cole walk in wearing green dresses for St. Patty’s Day (Night).  I hand them a camera, tell them to wander the ship and make another funny video.  This could get ugly.

10:00PM – I meet up with the Marketing team for an impromptu meeting at the bar.

10:30PM – I stumble across a huge pile of beads for St. Patty’s Day. I have so many around my neck, I feel like an Irish Mr. T.

11:00PM – Stephen Kellogg finishes his set with “See You Later, See You Soon.”  There is not an empty seat in the venue.  From my friend Matt, who had never seen the SK & the Sixers before: “That was, by far, the best show I have seen on this boat.”

11:30PM – Let’s try gambling!

11:45PM – What a terrible idea!

12:00PM – I head up to the Lido and run on stage to drink Guinness with Gaelic Storm.  Of course, the first words out of their mouths are “thanks for the kind words Sixthman.  We kicked your asses in flip cup today.”  Yup, I’ll never hear the end of that.

12:15PM – I introduce Andy to some of my friends.  They ask how to get my job.  He tells them the story of our conversation last year on the boat, when I threw my arm around him and asked how much I had to pay him for this experience.  Didn’t think he’d remember that one.

2:00AM – Gaelic just rocked the boat.  During “Me and the Moon,” the left half of the boat yelled “We brought the whiskey!” and the right half then yelled “He brought the light!”  I’m not kidding, the boat literally rocked with each chorus.

2:15AM – I think tonight is gonna be an early night, I’ll just go see what’s up on the promenade bar.

5:00AM – Ooops.  So much for an early night.

5:15AM – Goodnight!

-Steve

Yes I am high, but not in the way that you are thinking (and that means you, Andy).

I am on a different kind of high today. An unexpected high considering the circumstances. We rock-boaters woke up today to find ourselves still in the middle of the big blue, and not at beautiful Half Moon Cay Island as we were anticipating. Because it is a tender port, the waves were too high for us to be able to safely make it ashore. You would think that the mood on the ship would be somber, but not with this crowd.

Not even close.

There is nothing that can bring these folks down. Another day at sea filled with music on the sunny lido deck, a captain’s party at 4:30, and, dare I even say it- free booze? Um, what island? Rock-boaters are smiling and happy, and to top it off, as of 42 minutes ago we have a new president, and we were all able to witness history in the making, watching the inauguration either on the jumbo screen out on the lido, or packed together in the criterion lounge. There is an excitement in the air that is palpable and it almost felt as if we were there in DC to witness the momentous occasion, except that it is 70 degrees and sunny and not freezing like it is there. We might be far away, but the feelings of humanity and connectedness carry all the way here to this crowd of folks drifting in the middle of the big ocean (not sure which ocean, but I have been assured it is not the pacific ocean).

Maybe we will make it ashore tomorrow, or maybe we will have to spend another day afloat this fantastic party boat with nothing left to do but smile, smile, smile.

-Nora

11:00AM – I wake up, look at the bright sun-shiny port of Nassau out my window.  I bet it’s nice.  Oh well, no time to get off the boat today.  I go back to sleep for another glorious hour.  I am very thankful for a port day after boarding day.  It gives us employees a chance to recover.

12:00PM – Okay I’ll get out of bed.

12:30PM – Lunch with the Sixthman Staff.  Pizza.  Again.  I eat way too much pizza, oh well!

1:00PM – Go to a meeting with the Ships and Dips Team and talk about onboard activities for that cruise.  Even when there’s downtime on one boat, we’re doing everything possible to get ready for the next.  No excuses, play like a champion!

3:00PM – Podcast interview with Emerson, Jeff, and Dan from Tonic.  Wow Emerson is funny.  Great guys, so excited for them to perform their Lido Deck show performance this afternoon.  It’s their first show back together in like five years!  I’m a huge Tonic fan, so I try to contain my giddiness as I ask these guys questions about what’s up for Tonic in 2009.

4:00PM – Pizza!

5:30PM – Tonic takes the stage up on the Lido to a deck full of happy fans.  We manage to figure out a way to feed the camera capturing the concert into the GIANT big screen behind the band.  Very cool effect.  Also very helpful for the people who’ve maybe had too many drinks and want to lie down on a deck chair and still enjoy the show.

6:00PM – They play “Soldier’s Daughter.”  Wow.  I check in with my friends who spent the entire day in Nassau and they are on cloud 9.  The smiles on their faces and the sheer excitement in their behavior makes me that much happier.  My roommate Evan is singing every song, watching the sun set over the Caribbean as we pull away from Nassau.  I don’t think there is any place else he’d rather be than right here right now.  I know that feeling all too well buddy.

6:45PM – “If You Could Only See”…chills.

7:00PM – Tonic ends, and everybody goes their separate ways.

8:00PM – I head down and do “doors” for Graham Colton.  This is a fancy way of saying “Stand by the door, smile, and greet the Rock Boaters as they come in.”

9:00PM – I hop on stage and introduce Ken Block of Sister Hazel in the Criterion.  I tell the crowd, “He’s the reason you all are here and the reason that I have a job.  Here’s Ken Block!”

9:01PM – Ken takes the stage, “Thanks Steve….you’re fired!”  Oh well, I had a good run.

9:30PM – Rock Boat Karaoke!  It’s as terribly awful/awesome as you’d expect. Each song gets worse and worse  until the lead singer of a band that will remain nameless CRUSHES Bonnie Raitt’s “Something to Talk About.”  Easily the most epic karaoke performance I’d ever heard.  Top that, next girl who is now in deep trouble!

11:00PM – Tonight is the Rock Horror Picture Theme Night, which means we have a dance competition in the Disco.  My friend Brad, one or two (or twenty) beers deep, is in a bathrobe, Buddy Holly-like glasses, and tighty-whities.  I walk into the disco, and within two seconds all my co-workers come up to me and say, “um, is that your guy in the bathrobe? He said he knows you.”  I look down at the disco floor, and Brad is rolling on the floor like Curley from the Three Stooges, sans bathrobe, making weird noises and slapping high fives with random strangers.   Rock Boat baby!

11:15PM – Brad comes in 4th in the costume contest, and I don’t know if I should be embarrassed or proud.  Let’s go with BOTH.  I remind myself to tell Brad tomorrow that he came in 4th, because he probably won’t remember much beyond this point.

11:30PM – I catch the first few songs of Cowboy Mouth’s main stage set.  Damn Fred can command a room.  He grabs his mic, leaves the stage, and climbs the balcony to make sure every individual guest is in fact standing.  He stands in front of one woman for a full minute until she finally decides to stand up.  Don’t ever bet against Fred.

12:00AM – Ken and Drew from Hazel do an entire set…with puppets.  It was as hilarious and random as it sounds.  Both puppets were highly inappropriate, full of bad jokes, and loved humping each other.  Also, Drew’s puppet loved to make fart jokes.  Normally this wouldn’t go over well with a crowd full of adults.  Luckily, we’re on a boat full of crazy children trapped in adult bodies.  Laughs all over.

12:30AM – Hanson takes the stage up on the Lido to a PACKED house.  The front bunch of rows is full of passionate Hanson fans.  The back few rows are Rock Boaters who are here to see what the brothers sound like all grown up.

12:45AM – Hanson – awesome.  You are now looking at a boat full of Hanson converts.  Just an all around great, tight performance by these guys.  Well done.

1:00AM – I run down to the casino bar to catch Michael Tolcher playing in the promenade.  I got the chance to meet him earlier in the week and he couldn’t have been nicer.

1:15AM – He covers T.I.’s “Whatever You Like.”  Nothing like hearing a rap song done by a white guy on an acoustic guitar…it was AWESOME.

1:30AM – Michael finishes with Mission Responsible mixed in with Buffalo Springfield’s “Something Happening Here.”  My favorite song by him, and a great song to close out the set.

1:40AM – I run to the palladium to catch Zac Brown’s first official set.  Of course, at this point he’s already played three unofficial sets at this point two days in.  He can’t be stopped.

4:00AM – Zac is still going.  Wow.  He ends with “Free,” “Toes,” and “Chicken Fried.”  This is my boy Evan’s first Zac show; he is so freaking tired but can’t bring himself to leave before the end.  He tells me after the show, eyes half-closed:  “I will be at EVERY one of his sets from here on out.”  Welcome to the club Evan!  Now, good luck staying awake and actually finding all of his sets.  You never know where he’ll show up.

4:30AM –Francisco Vidal and company is holding court on the promenade bar.  “Feeling good Lewis!”

4:45AM – Inside of my eyelids looking good.  Time for sleep.  Day 3 is PACKED, check back soon.

-Steve

Next blog will come much later today, we’ll be too busy hanging out on Half Moon Cay.  Rough life indeed…

So, this Wednesday on the Rock Boat…we have our first ever Sixthman Rubik’s Cube Party.  For those of you unaware, this theme night involves people trading clothes.  Lots of brightly colored clothes.  Everybody starts wearing six items of clothing, each a different color of a Rubik’s cube = (Red, Orange, Yellow, Blue, Green, White).  As the night goes on, clothes get traded until people end up wearing six items of all the same color.

To make sure we were prepared for this night, we sent our two production assistants, Cole and Mike, to a Goodwill store in Miami with a budget of $150 and a video camera.  We told them to record their adventures.

Here it is:

For those of you who subscribe, click here for the link to the video.  We’ll get picture up of this epic evening after it happens.  Hilarity will most certainly ensue.

-Steve

I am measuring the days of The Rock Boat in cones of frozen yogurt consumed. That would make today day 8. Oh, wait… I think I may need to find a new system. Day three. It is officially day three and I am finally getting my bearings on this cruise. I am learning more about the fans that have been with the boat since the beginning, more about what they like and what they don’t and how very very different they are from some of our other cruisers. What struck me the most hit me before we even left the port. There is an unmistakable spirit on the Rock Boat. There is something all at once intangible and in your face about Rockboaters. An infectious little sparkle right behind the eyes, a knowing little grin…

As I looked up from the Lido just as Cowboy Mouth fired up the first song, on this the ninth boat of its kind, I think I got a little choked up. Everyone I could see had a drink in their hand a smile on their lips and was either singing, dancing, hugging an old friend or some combination of all three. Looking out into the crowd and all of those singing, dancing, smiling faces it hit me: THIS is the Rock Boat. It didn’t even take me until day 8. I mean three.

-May

All you have to do is be human. Seriously. If you are on the Rock Boat tonight – and you CAN’T for some reason feel the energy, you might just not be human.

As you walk down the halls, there is just this energy. It’s powerful. it’s undeniable. It’s contagious.

I had the pleasure of chatting with Ken Block from Sister Hazel, merely 2 hours after we boarded, and he had a very interesting take on why this year’s TRB felt different.

Take a look, and for the first time in your life, ‘catching the disease’ might not sound so bad.

Watch the video in Youtube here.

Ape