Cruise suckage ...

As most of the regulars around here know, I've had some SNAFUs when on cruises, having to blow off ports because of weather, getting shanghaied by the U.S. Coast Guard for rescue duty, going through Force 9 gales at sea, diverting thanks to a sick passenger, but those all pale when you're stuck on a dead ship:

An engine room fire that began early this morning on board CARNIVAL SPLENDOR has been extinguished but the ship remains without engine power while emergency generators are in use for ships’ services.

The 113,000-ton CARNIVAL SPLENDOR was on the first leg of a seven day cruise from Long Beach, CA and remains drifting approximately 55 miles west of Punta San Jacinto, Mexico with 3,299 passengers and 1,167 crew members on board.

...

I can happily say that (after 20 years and 30-odd cruises) I've never been on one that had to get towed in.