Carnival was due for some good news.
In November, the Splendor caught fire off the coast of Mexico/California and, while nobody was hurt, there was a lot of bad press.
In December, the Inspiration was caught in high winds and high seas off Tampa, delaying its arrival at its home port in Florida by a full day, delaying the start of the next cruise.
Still in December, it was discovered repairing the Splendor was going to take longer than expected, and all cruises scheduled until February 20 were canceled, bringing the number of cruises canceled to 14.
Merry Christmas.
So Carnival tried to make a little good news…
It partnered with Louisiana’s first lady Surpiya Jindal and the Volunteer USA Foundation to 
support the production and distribution of the state’s Love. Read. Learn! Baby Journal, an initiative that strives to highlight to new parents the importance of reading. Approximately 65,000 journals are being distributed to birthing hospitals statewide — one for each mom who gives birth over the next year. There is no cost. It’s an extension of a program launched by Carnival and Florida, 12 years ago.
Then, Carnival became the “official confetti sponsor” for next week’s Times Square New Year’s Eve gala. This is not your typical confetti. It will be created by (or at least enhanced with) paper bearing the 2011 hopes and wishes of visitors to the “Wishing Wall” at Times Square (there’s also a way to participate online). Somebody will win a free cruise.
And finally, last week, the 4th-quarter earnings arrived for the Big Carnival in the sea, the corporation that operates the namesake cruise line, along with Holland America, Cunard, Costa, Princess and Seabourn. Profits increased by 11% and Carnival’s stock rose by $1.37 to $44.62 per share.
For the shareholders, getting some good news was worth the wait.