“No way!” my friend Ellen’s son Alex said when I mentioned it to him. “How can you live on a cruise ship and get paid for it?” ”Yes way,” I said, adopting my granddaughter’s phrase, “you sure can.”Alex was skeptical but after he read my article about working on a cruise ship and the fabulous bennies, (is that how you spell another word for benefits?)he checked into it, using some of my suggestions, and during summer break from the University, he worked on a cruise ship sailing the Inward Passage in Alaska.I got a post card from him mailed from Juaneu. The writing side was covered with Xs and Os–with just Thanks, Alex. His mother showed me pictures from his cell phone and I could see he was havin buy my house g a blast.When he came home at the end of the summer, he came to the house and told me about his adventures and what he loved most about working on one of the finest of the cruise ships doing the Alaskan summer sailings.He grinned, as he mentioned the partying among the crew members. Oh and yes, he did meet a young lady who was a tour escort for one of the shore excursions. Whenever he was in that port, they had a date. He thinks it might lead to something but not sure. She is a student at a College in CA. They have both signed on to go back on the summer cruises next year.Alex was hired to work in one of the casinos as a dealer. He said the training was really easy and the hours working were minimal.