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Cellpic Sunday – Mrs Roper (x 40)

Cruise Ship Fun

February 2025.
Somewhere in the North Atlantic Ocean.

You never know what you will discover on a cruise ship. There was a cruise where a couple spent their time walking around the ship in 1940s era fashion, and then they dressed in different formal clothes of the era for dinner. But in February, this group took the cake. I’d seen a few of these red-headed clowns in a pink dress and sunglasses wandering around in small clusters since we boarded the Norwegian Bliss in Southampton, England.

One day, however, the entire party showed up on the Lido Deck. I couldn’t figure out the clown costumes, so when I saw a couple of these redheads at the bar, I figured it was time to refresh my drink. While waiting to get served, I struck up a conversation. The short story is that this assembly of friends decided to cruise and party dressed as Mrs. Roper from the hit 1970s and 1980s comedy, “Three’s Company.” The membership count was approximately 40, one Mrs. Roper speculated.

For those too young to remember, the series was a top-10 ratings hit for most of its 7-year run from 1977 to 1984. In its second season, it was moved to a Tuesday night triumvirate of Happy Days, Laverne & Shirley, and Three’s Company. The time slot ensured continued success, combined with the two blockbuster ABC comedies.

I’m not sure if they had other large gatherings, but I suspect they did in the evening hours when people of my age are tucked away, snoozing in their cabins. Sea days can be entertaining and contain many surprises, like this party, which was not affiliated with the cruise line. They were just a bunch of Mrs. Ropers enjoying the cruise.

About the photo: This was a quick snapshot with my Samsung S23U in JPEG mode. There were lots of people wandering around, taking pictures of the group, so I didn’t spend a lot of time on composition. My first attempt was ruined by a lady walking directly in front of me as I snapped the shutter.

Processing was simple, with people who were also taking photos cropped out from the edges. After adjusting for a slight tilt in Adobe Lightroom Classic, most of the editing was done in Luminar Neo, utilizing auto-adjust exposure, a small amount of Enhance AI, and the AI removal of an arm belonging to another photographer that covered part of the dark print dress at the extreme left edge of the photograph. You can pixel-peep and check out the metadata on my Flickr site by clicking on the photo.

I encourage fellow bloggers to create their own Cellpic Sunday posts. I never have a specific topic for this feature, and the only rule is that the photo must be captured with a cell phone, iPad, or another mobile device. If you have an image from a drone or even a dashcam, that’s also acceptable. The second rule is to link your challenge response to this post or leave a comment here with a link to your post in the comment. Oh, you don’t have to post it on a Sunday.

John Steiner

35 comments

  5. […] This morning, we saw an immersive exhibition outside Bunjil Place in Narre Warren. Created by renowned Australian artist Amanda Parer, LOST features glowing (at night), oversized sculptures of rare and endangered plants from around the world. I am linking this to Becky’s Simply Red and to Johnbo’s Cellpic Sunday. […]

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  10. What a crazy thing to see, John! Mrs Roper! What a blast from the past. How fun to have seen so many! Nicely done on the photo! No cellpic for me this week since all my birds were taken with my Lumix camera.

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  20. So funny. I never got into that comedy for some reason, but I love the fact that these people did. She makes a perfect character to spark the imagination. Shame on the photobomber. LOL She wanted a better pic and figured you knew what you were doing so she would stand there. Great pic, John. 🙂 xxx

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