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Posted by Devon Swanson on February 23, 2012 at 10:42 AM under
• 0 commentsYou probably noticed a few black smudges on foreheads across town yesterday and it is no secret that the city of Knoxville and everywhere else around the globe celebrated Mardigras a couple nights ago. Fat Tuesday isn’t just about purple and green beads and a lavish trip down to New Orleans though. One of the main reasons Mardigras is considered such a wild celebration is because it signifies the “last hoorah” for many people who plan on giving up some specific treat or desire the next morning.
Ash Wednesday marked the beginning of the 40 days of Lent leading up to Easter, and for those who observe the religious event, yesterday also marked the beginning of some type of fasting. People typically use the next 40 days and 40 nights as a time to give up something they routinely enjoy. Even those who don’t participate in Lent for religious reasons will commonly hop on the bandwagon and sacrifice some type of luxury they commonly benefit from. Many give up this vice as an attempt to remove barriers to God, while others use Lent as a time to buckle down on those forgotten New Year resolutions.
So did you give anything up for Lent? It’s not too late to dig deep and pinpoint something that you do a lot of and that you find pleasure in. Some of the most common things people give up include:
- Junk food. Actually food in general is the most popular thing to sacrifice for Lent. For Catholics, this means giving up meats on Fridays from now until Easter, or to fast entirely for one day a week. Other people just give up those beloved salty or sweet snacks that are so hard to resist (we’ll miss you, potato chips…).
- Television. It’s amazing the free time that becomes available to people when they turn off the TV after dinner. It can be difficult to part with guilty pleasures like Deadliest Catch and Grey’s Anatomy, though, so we won’t judge if you begin a six-week countdown until McDreamy is back in your life.
- Facebook. Whether you’re a college student or a mom with four kids, Facebook is a magnet for procrastinators around the world. Many people choose to give up social networking completely and separate themselves from the cyber world for the next 40 days. Forewarning: after deactivating your Facebook account, side effects typically include strong withdrawals from incessant status updates and also the common pastime of “Facebook-stalking” (don’t deny it).
- Alcohol. Stimulants like coffee and alcohol can have a strong presence in the daily lives of many people, so it is not rare to see fewer cars in the Starbucks parking lot and a shorter line at the liquor store for a while. No wonder bars around the world consider Fat Tuesday one of the busiest nights of the year!
- Cussing. Swear words are considered to be a sin in the Bible, and they are also seen as a major faux pas in today’s society. A lot of people see giving up cussing as a challenge and they work on biting their tongue for the next six or seven weeks. Rappers especially struggle with this one.
- Chocolate. It is no secret that chocolate is an all-time favorite treat for people all over the globe, so it comes as no surprise that it is typically given up for Lent. Hopefully everyone got their chocolate fix in last week over Valentine's Day!
Lent is not all about giving something up. It can also be about adding good things to your life. In fact, you’ll sometimes find that by giving something up, you’re simultaneously adding something beneficial to your life too. A few suggestions are:
- Mend a few bridges. Maybe there’s someone in your life that has done you wrong or vise versa. Many use Lent as a time to reconcile those negative relationships and move past an issue that has taken up too much space in their life.
- Daily exercise. In the religious sense, many perceive their body as a temple, so in an effort to worship and give thanks to God, they focus on working out and taking better care of their bodies. Even if you aren’t religious, it couldn’t hurt to take another stab at that resolution you made to hit the gym at least four times a week.
- Do a good deed every day. As the saying goes, you always feel better about yourself after you make someone else feel better. So go out and make someone’s day! Chances are it’ll bring a smile to your face too.
- Spend more time with family and friends. Work and school tend to bog down people’s lives and can sometimes make them lose sight of what’s important. Whether it’s going out for a nice dinner with their spouse, playing a board game with their kids, cocktail hour with the girls, or even just taking some time to themselves to relax and be alone, many people use these next 40 days as a time to reflect and focus on those who are most important to them.
On that note, we urge you to come aboard the Volunteer Princess for one of our dinner cruises and enjoy a relaxing night out full of good food, good music and great views. Good luck to everyone who is giving something up for Lent – stay strong! Easter is only 45 days away and who knows, maybe you’ll like giving up that guilty pleasure so much that it just might stick and be gone forever :)
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Posted by Ashley Parker on February 22, 2012 at 1:54 PM under
• 0 commentsMurder at the Café Noir
Have you ever wondered what it would be like to be Sherlock Holmes, chasing the coattails of villains and trying to unravel the hidden mysteries of a story? What a thrill it would be to find clues that others have missed, and uncover answers to lingering questions! Well the good news is here is your chance to be the sleuth you have always wanted to become! Bring your magnifying glass, notepad, and intuition down to the Volunteer Princess because beginning this April the Mystery & Mayhem Dinner Theater comes to Knoxville!
The Volunteer Princess is hosting a special event for all you detectives out there and we need your help! Guests will be greeted and shown to their tables by the swanky Madame Toureau, where they will be wined, dined, and interrogated to help discover who the culprit is. A traveling acting troop will mingle with the guests on board and perform the show before their very eyes, ensuring that every guest can be in on the action!
The show, Murder at the Café Noir, will begin on Wednesday, April 4, 2012 from 7:00-9:00 p.m. and will be showing every Wednesday evening through the end of April. It will be a 3 course plated dinner and interactive murder mystery show for only $59.95! Remember, we allow detectives of all ages to participate so you can bring the little ones along too, and the best part is they are only half price! For dinner, a show, and a night of comical mystery it can’t be beat! But you’d better act fast before the seats disappear! Call or check our webpage to make reservations now. Until then, we will see you at the Café Noir!
Murder at the Cafe Noir
Dinner Show
Boarding Time: 6:30 PM
Cruise Time: 7:00 - 9:00 PM
Be close to the action as detectives sort through a cast of clueless suspects in an effort to pinpoint the show's fiendish felon while enjoying a menu co-starring entrées like:
MENU:
- Princess Salad
- Your Choice of Bacon Wrapped Chicken Breast, Pork Tenderloin, Salmon with Sweet Chili Sauce, or Vegetarian Option
- Smashed Potatoes
- Fresh Vegetables
- Chef's Dessert
Trust in your hunches and arrest this Ticket soon, because savings like these never return to the scene of the crime.
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Posted by Madelyn Martin on February 17, 2012 at 9:39 AM under
• 0 commentsSome people love Valentine’s Day because they get to spend a special night out with the one they love. Others love valentines because it gives them an excuse to stay in and watch romantic movie marathons on TV. However my favorite this about Valentine’s Day is getting to see all of the proposals that happen on our Valentine’s Cruises. You can always pick out the guys who are getting ready to propose by how excited and nervous they are when the get onto the boat!
This year we had two surprise proposals onboard, and even though I had never met either couple before I was very excited for both the second they stepped onto the boat!
Our first surprise proposal happened on our Sunday night Valentines Cruise. For this proposal David planned to propose to his girlfriend Autumn while taking pictures. This was my first proposal that I had been apart of on the boat, so I will admit I was probably just as nervous as David was as I asked them to follow me to the back of the boat for their picture that was included in their package. As I got ready to “take their picture” David turned to Autumn and surprised her by getting down on one knee and asking her to marry him!
 
Our second proposal happened on our Monday Valentine’s Cruise. Aaron wanted to be alone while proposing to his beautiful girlfriend, he planned to take a “walk” around the boat after dessert and surprise her by proposing on the bow. After dinner had been served the couple headed out front (and the crew headed to the pilot house to watch the proposal!). After he proposed Aaron suprised his new bride-to-be with a suprise photo shoot on the bow of the boat.
 
So in my opinion the best way to spend Valentine’s Day is on the Volunteer Princess, watching real “Happily Ever After’s” Happen!
Congratulations to both Aaron and David for doing such a great job (they have set the standard for any guys that plan to propose to me!), and best wishes to both of the couples! Who knows… maybe we will see them on the Volunteer Princess again for their wedding or reception!
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Posted by Ashley Parker on February 8, 2012 at 1:50 PM under
• 1 comment
NY Giants win!
This past Sunday’s Super Bowl was definitely one of the best overall shows that football lovers could ask for. The game kept everyone on their toes, the commercials kept everyone laughing, and the halftime show was truly a masterpiece!
The New England Patriots and the New York Giants went head to head this year to see who could win the battle of the brawn. The players put sweat and tears into this game, hoping by some miracle they could pull out a big win and even bigger bragging rights. Throughout most of the game the Patriots were really doing a great job of jacking up their score while holding back the Giants. That is until the game changing play made by Mario Manningham, which gave the Giants a new breath of life and enough push to score a game winning touchdown.
Let’s move on to everyone’s favorite part of the game, the commercial breaks! This is the time of year every well established company is waiting for, the time for them to bring out the big guns and show the world their best ad’s yet. Unfortunately some went out with a fizzle, while others went out with a bang!
For many companies it is the most important time of the year to run an add because the super bowl is the most viewed show on television. Over 110 million people were said to have watched this year’s game, which is why companies are willing to spend big bucks to get their name out there in hopes of increasing sales revenue. Forbes has reported the estimated cost of running a 30 second add during this years super bowl cost $3.5 million dollars, plus the cost of production and special guests. As the old saying goes, great success comes with great risk, and these are just a few of the companies who decided to take that chance.
Best-
1.Honda with Mathew Broderick, throwback to Ferris Bueller’s Day Off.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VhkDdayA4iA
2. The Voice commercial with Betty White.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gvzIfrsViWg
3. Chevy happy graduation commercial.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ae52ourE3Pw
Worst-
1.Pepsi commercial with Elton John and Who? (Some girl, no one knew who she was. Apparently she was on Xfactor.)
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3rZs8ZKTsp0
2. David Beckham H&M underwear commercial. While I’m all for seeing David Beckham in his tighty whities, this commercial was a little awkward for me. It was too long just showing him posing. There seemed to be no message strategy.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQb_-OY7Z0E
3. The Doritos dog commercial. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=STb6ZSo5CPw
Then last but certainly not least let’s talk about this years fabulous halftime show. Halftime performer and world renowned diva, Madonna gave a great show at this year’s Super Bowl! Also performing along with her were special guests Nikki Minage, MIA, Celo Green, and LMFAO. These artists all came together in perfect harmony to create a show that no one could forget. From the elaborate entrance to the flashy costumes and grand finale, every second of this show was pure perfection!
Overall this year’s super bowl was definitely a touchdown in my book. The game was awesome; the halftime performance was captivating, and the commercials only added to the entertainment. This year only made me more excited for next year’s game, though I think it will be hard to top it! Until then, go Giants!
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Posted by Madelyn Martin on February 1, 2012 at 11:07 AM under
• 0 commentsOnly 13 more days left until Valentine’s Day! What are you going to get for your loved one this year? If you haven’t thought of the perfect idea yet, we are here to help you out!
1. It may sound simple but honestly how can you go wrong with Chocolate, Champagne, and Roses?
2. Valentine’s Day is only one day out of the year so get your special someone tickets to the movies, a concert or a sporting event so you can have a special date night in the future!
3. Diamonds are a girl’s best friend, so jewelry is always a perfect gift idea for any holiday gift especially Valentine’s Day! We suggest a necklace or bracelet… No Rings unless it comes with a surprise Valentine’s Day proposal!!
4. Maybe jewelry is not in your budget this year, but do not worry after all it is the thought that counts! So make something homemade. Need an Idea? Here is a fun website to make your own Valentine’s Day coupon book! http://familycrafts.about.com/od/coupons/tp/couponsprint.htm
5. And of course our personal favorite Valentine’s Day gift idea! Surprise your valentine with a romantic cruise aboard the Volunteer Princess!
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