Pushing Buttons

Greeting from Anaheim!

2010-09-22T19:56:00.000-07:00

Greetings from SoCal!

I made great time on my travels for this year's Disneyland trip. In fact, I gained a whole day! Go figure. Originally I wasn't going to leave/arrive until tomorrow morning by leaving at the crack of day (not even, it would have been more like 2 in the morning) and arriving before Disneyland opened. Then, as I was sitting at home yesterday taking a well deserved break from the packing saga, I was browsing through the HoJo website (HoJo of course meaning Howard Johnson, the hotel I am staying at) looking to see if any of my previously chosen dates were available ad their discounted Entertainment Rate when I saw that the night before I left had popped up. $57 seemed well worth a full nights rest as far as I was concerned so on a whim I went ahead and booked another room for the one night. Instead of trying to make it through day 1 on very little sleep and after a 6 hour drive I left at 9a this morning after a pit stop by my Credit Union to cash in on Miss Piggy (a grand total of $127.00) and after hitting the briefest of L.A. traffic I managed to check in and get myself situated into room number one before 3p in the afternoon!

Did I mentioned I made great time? And because I know you're thinking it, I did not drive like a bat out of Hell.

After checking out my room itself, I think I may have a hard time giving it up in the morning for my original reservation. Tomorrow night I'll be in a room with two Queens, but for tonight I get a King all to myself -- no space hogging cats for five whole nights! The poor things, I'm sure they'll miss me though. No sense in actually unpacking though. I got out what I would need and then left to go walk over to Downtown Disney and just relax, have some food, and possibly do some shopping. I even got a sneak peek at what I get to experience for myself tomorrow.
That's enough for now! I'm off to relax a little, get some sleep, and be fresh for a full day at Disneyland tomorrow!!

The end of my September '09 trip

2010-09-21T18:30:00.000-07:00

As much as I would have loved to stay another few days and just relax in all things Disney, our little pit stop on the drive home was something that I was really looking forward to. And we finally got to sleep in since we weren't trying to get to the park at opening. We were finally rounding up all of our things for check-out sometime around 10 a.m. so we could hit the road and cross our fingers that I wouldn't get lost along the way (because I'm usually real good at that). I had no problems until we got of 101, though. But once we got off I managed to do what I always do no matter where I go, take a wrong turn and spend the next 10 minutes trying to figure out just where I made my mistake. But hey, I figure it out eventually and found our way onto Hollywood Blvd.
Our destination was the Disney Soda Fountain. It was a fun pit stop and our chance to do the tourist-y thing in Los Angeles before finally heading home. We got a little food, did a little shopping and then we also had to stop at Grauman's Chinese Theatre and take a look for a few of our favorites. I've always thought it was a silly thing to do, but it was a lot of fun. And yes, I took my photo with one and since I was not going to be wearing heels (the imprint in the cement sure makes me giggle a little) I went for the hands instead. Julie Andrews is an all-time favorite of mine, so it was a no brainer that we had to search hers out (and her star as well).

And somehow, some way, my next trip will be even better than last years!1

September '09 Trip Day 5.3

2010-09-19T15:32:00.001-07:00

Unfortunately in the year that has passed since last year's birthday extravaganza I seem to have lost a few details. But this was my last day and I know I spent the majority of it going to the places I hadn't been quite as often over the previous days so I could get some photos. Ride signs, things like that. Given a couple hour time gap I can't say what I did for sure anymore, but I somehow found my way back in front of the Main St. station where I found a couple of characters that I hardly ever see - from Pinocchio! And the worst part was when I completely forgot the name of Honest John's scraggly looking tag-along. You know when you have a word or name right on the tip of your tongue but you can't spit it out? It was one of those moments.

By the way, I did finally remember his name, although it was an hour late!! Gideon, of course!! One of these days I would love to see Honest John outside of a parade. By getting those photos I just missed out on seeing Cruella de Ville, but a CM suggested I be near the Fire Station a little later if I wanted to see her. So I made note of the time and went off to take some more photos.

This was my first little teaser of a Halloween trip that at the time I could only dream of making!

I even did some wandering around Tomorrowland to get some photos since it is usually the least visited on my itinerary.

I made sure to get back to the Fire Depot with plenty of time to spare, just as I always do. This way I could take my take and get some photos of everything inside. I really love going in there, no matter how many times I have before.

And here's one just for fun!
If you ever have the time to do so, I definitely recommend taking time ou of your days to try and see as many of the different entertainment options available to you outside of just the rides - especially when there is music involved. Between the Bootstrappers, the Jambalaya Jazz Band, Disneyland Band - you name it, I enjoyed everything I saw and heard. Especially when said musical entertainment is accompanied by some Disney friends. The Hook and Ladder Company had some help from Cruella and Goofy to Chip & Dale. It was all good fun, and some of the kids got to get involved as well (and some not-so-kids as well).

I couldn't live with myself if I didn't head back to New Orleans Square to close out the final day - my favorite place in the park (outside of the walk down Main Street after walking through the front gates). On the way I managed to add in another ride (SR line) on Indiana Jones as well as Pirates and got to enjoy a little more music courtesy of the Jambalaya Band and Queenie. I even got some more Mardi Gras beads.
I also took some time out to watch the Laughing Stock Co. outside of The Golden Horseshoe. Every time I've ever seen them outside I always happen to be passing during the same skit - the one where they are playing that Bachelor "game" show one, so I figured since I had time to "kill" (do you ever have time to kill at Disneyland? I think not, but I was trying to experience a little bit of everything) so I stuck around the general area to watch all of their little skits. It was pretty entertaining for the most part, although I can see how it's not really peoples style. Plus, when they're doing it outside you're standing in the hot sun!! I believe they also perform onstage as well at TGH, but I've obviously never seen them in there. These were a couple of my favorite photos ...

I can't say with any certainty what I did after that, all I know is that when it was time I grabbed some grub from the Stage Door Cafe and met up with Andrea at our new designated Fantasmic location where we once again found ourselves chatting away with the people around us about anything and everything. I also had to go grab my final-farewell mint julep before I set up my tripod for the night's photo taking adventure. I don't thin we had planned it originally, but we ended up staying through the first showing of Fantasmic, the Magical fireworks, and then the second showing on Fantasmic. It was a great way to end the night and say goodbye to the Land, knowing we wouldn't be coming back the next morning because we had to head home! How sad, right? Here are a few of the photos - which turned out much better than the previous night!!

After Fantasmic, Andrea and I parted ways once more - it feels like I didn't see her at all on Saturday! I spent my last moments in the park simply wandering around and loving everything at nighttime. Sure, we didn't have to get up super early in the morning but I was still going to be the only driver on the way home so I didn't want to stay until closing like she planned on. It was a great 5 days in the park, but I didn't want to leave! Luckily for us both we had one more Disney-filled stop planned on our journey home.

September '09 Trip Day 5.2

2010-09-18T13:28:00.000-07:00

So, what is Mickey's Toontown Morning Madness about, anyway? Other than the wonderful perk of getting to see an uncrowded Toontown and hang out with Mickey, Minnie and company they do provide a little entertainment. I would venture to say that unless you have a little kid in your party it probably wouldn't be of interest to many adults but this adult has the heart of a six year old. You get to witness a Toontown Town Hall Meeting with Mayor Mickey Mouse presiding and everyone becomes an honorary citizen.

I enjoyed it, although the 'meeting' itself I can probably live with seeing once. But just being there without huge throngs of people and getting to see Mickey, Minnie, Goofy, Chip & Dale, and Pluto with some very short lines is a draw that I can hardly walk away from. As for Toontown itself, there are all of these little fun touches that you find all over the place that I absolutely love. Things like the brass plaques around Mickey's fountain (when you stomp on them, be ready to listen with your ears) were even fun for me to play around with. Before making my way out of Toontown I had time to stop by Minnie and Mickey's homes, and said good morning to a few other friends.

After I was done exploring all of Toontown that I felt like exploring it was just a few minutes until 9 and as I was walking back towards Fantasyland I happened to see the Princess Fantasy Faire line and it was short, short enough that even though I already had quite a few Princess photos, I hopped in line and waited for no more than 10 minutes. I don't regret the decision. I got photos with the 3 remaining Princesses that I needed: Snow White, Sleeping Beauty (a.k.a. Aurora) and Cinderella - I had seen been Ariel, Belle, and Jasmine the day before. I was told Mulan still comes through now and again, but I had no luck seeing her anywhere during this trip, but I did see her and Pocahontas when I went back in 2007.

Afterward I embarked on the "Happiest cruise that ever sailed 'round the world". There have been some new additions to It's a Small World recently in the form of some beloved Disney characters. Personally, I love the new touches! I even tried to photograph all of them, and while I wasn't successful I managed to get quite a few. There's always the next time. I probably enjoy it more now than I did before they added the characters because the first few times it's been all about trying to spot the new additions which can be a fun challenge in itself until you've memorized them all.

Adventures of the Birthday Girl

2010-09-14T18:41:00.001-07:00

I have to face reality: Next year I will be a quarter of a century old!

Such a horrible reality that is, lol.

I tease, I tease. I'm still young and I know it. No need to go through a 'Quarter Life Crisis' or anything dramatic like that. But yes, I am officially 24 years old as of last week. I have been meaning to post about all of the fun (and not so fun) moments of my weekend, but alas I love to procrastinate. But I also have what I believe is a valid excuse, but I'll get to that later. I do have a lot of ground to cover here after all. And I'll apologize in advance for the amount of babbling I am bound to do. Sometimes it just helps to get my thoughts out in words and if you know me at all you'll know that my thoughts tend to involve a lot of words. Now if only I could form one cohesive journal of my thoughts. That sure would be something. In the meantime you get as follows: me rambling.

So, where to begin? Oh, yes, the birthday.

Truth be told my birthdays have never been big celebrations by any means, at least not compared to some. As far as I can recall I have never really had what you would call an actual birthday party, which I could probably blame in part on my lack of socialization, but still. I don't mind this little factoid of my life. Goodness knows I've never felt quite comfortable in party settings of any kind, I prefer smaller and more intimate family affairs I suppose. And regardless, I usually enjoy myself. As much as I don't like big gatherings I certainly do have an affinity for being the center of attention and birthdays make that possible without coming off like too much of a brat. So yes, I proudly announce my birthday to anyone who will listen to me.

That being said, strange things always happen on or around my birthday. I'll spare you the details of past years but let me fill you in on what happened this year: I locked my keys in the trunk of my car. Not so bad an event in itself, but I was trying to leave work with my hands full of birthday gifts from my awesome Disney Princess loving co-worker, securing the balloons in my trunk so they wouldn't be an accident waiting to happen in the backseat of my car and the next thing I know I have no way of getting into my car. I'm rather thankful of the fact that home, and work, and my families work places are all within a 7 minute drive from one another or else getting home may have taken a lot longer than it did. Said Disney Princess loving co-worker was amazing enough to come pick me up so I could get my spare key from home, but of course upon arrival I couldn't find the spare key to the house so I had to go pick up a key from my dad at the Shop where he works and the back to the house, and then back to work again. All in all, I got home 1 hour after I got off work. I suppose I could have called AAA, but in the past I have done this so often that I used up all of my "freebies" and I would rather save those for times when I'm not a couple of miles from home. At least I can laugh about the ordeal. Of course then, for dinner, I ordered pizza from the wrong Round Table and when my family went to go pick it up there was obviously no pizza there and the one I did call was literally on the other side of town. I felt even worse about that than I did with my car keys seeing as that affected everyone and not just me.

Speaking of my awesome Disney Princess loving co-worker and my gaggle of birthday presents, take a look at what she got me!

A Princess mug so I can some hot chocolate for the road when I leave home at 2 am on my way to the Happiest Place on Earth.

A gorgeous little ornament from the Ashton-Drake Galleries "A Dream Come True" collection.

There was also a Snow White pin that I didn't have yet to add to my collection, my Snow White birthday balloons, and a Disney Princess bucket to hold it all. Talk about a great way to start off my day in addition to the card from my parents and some Pez candy with a Snow White Pez dispenser and money for Disneyland. Do you see the connection here? I guarantee you, I am easy to shop for. You can never go wrong with Disney/Snow White and money for Disney. The trouble comes in finding something that I don't already have, such as this precious Jim Shore figurine of Snow White and the Prince that I fell in love with the moment I saw it for the first time. My parents got it for me for Christmas last year, and now I have two thanks to my beloved Aunt Lisa. But I love it regardless. It's nice to have it displayed on my TV cabinet along with my large water globes. I have most of my figurines packed away for the time being until I move out and can display them all in a case, safe away from my cats who have a tendency to knock things over on a daily basis.

But I am excited to announce that between my birthday money and the money I have saved up with Miss Piggy, who I introduced to you all not too long ago, including the recent addition of 24 dollars and change from my recycling collection I now have close to $500 of spending money outside of what I have been putting away to begin with. I'm excited to go do a little shopping for myself, although first the money will go towards paying off the meals I have planned for myself.

In other news, and the reason behind my forgetfulness and procrastination as of late, I have given up soda. Again. This isn't the first time I have sworn of my sugary-caffeine fueled addiction, but it is the first time I have felt confident I can make it stick. As of today I am already one week 'soda-sober' as I have come to call it. The first few days I was absolutely ridden by headaches that made me miserable. Thankfully, they are gone now, but they have been replaced by a lack of focus that has made me rather forgetful and uninterested in a lot of things. I can only hope this part will be temporary while I'm still getting used to not having any soda in my system. I've also added coffee to my no-drink list in part to keep me away from temptation and in part to save some money as well. Those weekly coffees before my overnight shift and the few in between add up fast, especially on top of the money I was shelling out to curb my Coca-Cola cravings.

happy birthday, body, this one is for you!

It appears my forgetfulness has struck again. I had more to talk about but unfortunately I have completely forgotten. Although, kudos to you for making it this far!

You'll hear from me again soon. I am one week away from the start of my vacation, only 5 days of work left between me and freedom, and I want to finish my story from last years fun before I leave. Do you think I can do it? We'll have to find out.

T.T.F.N.

September '09 Trip Day 5.1

2010-09-11T07:41:00.000-07:00

The plan to save our Magic Morning, our extra hour before opening, for our last day turned out to be a bad idea for one of us and an excellent idea for the other. Take a guess which of the two categories I fell into? Let's just say it was a fantastical morning for me. I'm an early riser to begin with (my wake-up time for work is usually 4 or 5a depending on the day, and 5a is just when my internal alarm clock goes off to begin with) so getting up early was in no way a hard thing for me. But a certain somebody didn't want to get up in the morning, which is fine by all means, but it was frustrating that yet another thing we were going to do together wouldn't be happening. But anywhooooooooo. New days = new beginnings. And since I was all ready for my day by no later than 5:30 and with nothing better to do I took my time walking down Harbor and getting myself situated comfortably to wait for them to start checking bags before I could wait at the gate.

Needless to say I beat everyone there (cast members included) by quite some time. It made for plenty of time to chit chat until things actually started to get rolling.
I may have gotten there a lot earlier than is considered reasonably sane, but it paid off for me in the long run. I led the pack down Main Street with absolutely uninterrupted space before me. I will admit that I literally skipped down all of Main Street before slowing it to a walk as I neared the castle so I could get a few non-bouncy shots. Either way, I was still the first one to cross the drawbridge and enter Fantasyland! Have you ever seen an empty Disneyland before? Let me give you a looksie ...

Add to that, I was also the first person on two rides in a row (Peter Pan and then Snow White) and I was a very, very happy camper. I even got another "Happily Ever After" button for being the first one on Snow White. That's pretty much why it was my next choice after Peter Pan. That and my obsession with Snow White. Well, these were pretty awesome accomplishments in my book. It just meant that I had even less time waiting in line and more time to go on some rides more than once. I toured all of Fantasyland, and some rides twice: Dumbe (x1), Peter Pan (x2), Snow White (x2), Alice in Wonderland, Mr. Toad, Pinocchio. Yup. Yup. Magic Morning is the best time to tour Fantasyland, no question about that. I even went on the Carousel and had to find my favorite horse of all. Next time I want to photograph all of them. Is that going a little overboard, do you think?

And how about those practically empty Fantasyland photos?

The real reason that I saved my Magic Morning for Saturday instead of using it on Thursday for my birthday was two-part: (1) because Saturdays are a lot busier than Thursdays so I figured I would get in as much as I could before the crowds fell upon us and (2) because Andrea and her mother never used their vouchers for Mickey's Toontown Morning Madness when they came during the Summer and it's a silly-little something that I have always wanted to do. So this way I could enjoy my time in Fantasyland and not have to make a mad dash back towards Toontown in order to make it in time. I had to do a little waiting, but that was OK. I seem to enjoy taking photos of the ground. Because ... well ... because ... Disneyland ground is the best kind of ground there is!

As far as MTTMM goes, the kid in me really enjoyed all of it, especially the chance to get photos with Mickey and friends without waiting in huge, long, never-ending (well, it seems that way sometimes ) lines. Plus I love the environment. It's totally wacky and perfect.

Once it's time they let you walk down to the gates to Toontown with your little voucher to entrance. We also received these little "search & scratch" cards with little challenges on them. I took a photo of the challenges and I'm pretty sure I went around and took photos of each answer. It gave me a way to pass time before the fun started at City Hall, and I'm sure little kids would really love it too. It was all about finding those hidden experiences all around TT, because there are many.

I love how gloomy and overcast it looks in the morning, when it couldn't have been a more inaccurate indicator of the weather. It was actually a very warm morning and I was had been doing just fine without a sweater or anything.

I snuck in a few photos with Mickey, Minney, and Donald before they had to go get ready for the show.

I can see how Toontown can get a little overrun with people for the morning madness thing since the vouchers come with packages through WDC, but it wasn't all that crowded for me on a Saturday morning. There was seating for a lot of the people standing by to watch and become an honorary citizen and the rest just formed a semi circle around us all. And even afterward the street weren't busy and I was still able to walk right on to Roger Rabbits Car Toon Spin.

But before I get to photos from the little show they put on, here are a few random ones I took around Toontown while waiting for their little song and dance, so to speak.

More to come, eventually!

September '09 Trip Day 4.4

2010-09-09T07:20:00.000-07:00

So lets see here, where we last left off I was gazing at delicious and yummy treats that would instantly send me into a sugar coma for I don't even want to think about how long. Since the eternal question seems to be what next, I'll continue with our little story!

I don't know how much you (yes you, the reader) knows about the FastPass system at Disneyland which can be a pretty handy dandy little time saver, but let me tell you that in the case of Indiana Jones and the Temple of the Forbidden Eye I am so over them! I discovered the wonder that is their Single Rider Line (or SRL) where you actually enter through the exit, bypass just about everyone, take a little elevator ride, and then wait for space to fill you in one by one. It was wondrous. As opposed to the 45+ minute stand by line and the 20 minute FP line, I will take 8 minutes of walk times and ride time combined any day or night!

Afterward it was time for another daily-must for me, and something I have never had to wait for more than say ... 8 minutes ... as well. The Jungle Cruise. It was a lot later in the day than I am used to riding it, seeing as it's usually the first thing that I do in the morning. Even so it was only about 4:30 in the afternoon. One of these days I'm going to get on at night. As a matter of fact, it has officially made my to-do list for this late birthday/early Halloween September trip!

Speaking of that seemingly never-ending Disneyland to-do list (because it always seems to get longer with each trip and I'm not sure how that works) that I have permanently stickied to my brain, there is something that I finally managed to cross off after a few attempts: the Mark Twain Riverboat! That's not to say that I have never been on it, because I have, and the same goes for the Columbia. It's just been a lot longer since I've stepped on board the MT. I almost can't remember ... almost. I had perfect timing in the end and made it to the dock just before boarding for the final departure of the day which would give me just enough time to grab some food and meet Andrea on the Rivers of America so we could camp out for Fantasmic!

Here's something that I wish they were still allowing while I was there, and I also wish I knew exactly when and for how long they stopped allowing it: riding in the Pilot House with the Captain. I know I have read about people doing it in the past and unfortunately they had to stop allowing this fun privilege some time around when I was there because I suppose someone got injured. Not that I'm sure how they managed to do that, but it's what I was told when I asked. It's a shame really, because it was probably something really idiotic that happened no less. That's what usually happens, right? The idiocy of some ruins the fun for all. They said it will probably be something they will start doing again when they figure out safety concerns, but it didn't really help me on that particular day now, did it? I've heard they've been doing it again so I'll just have to try again on my next trip!

After my tour of the Rivers of America on board the Mark Twain I had to give Andrea a call to see where exactly we would meet up again. Some people were already starting to claim there spots for the evening's entertainment and I wanted to make sure I could get a good spot for my picture taking endeavor. I had been under the impression that she'd already be there by 6 with our blankets and whatnot ready to go and I would just have to find her, but this was just not the case. She was still back at the hotel which meant probably an hour or so before I would see her. So it looked like I would be saving our spots with no soft blanket to sit on. What a lovely prospect that was. But first I ahd to grab some food from the French Market before I did anything else.
And after that I did go an try to find us a good place to sit and hopefully a prime spot for me to get some great photos. I had really, really, really looking forward to this one! I wasn't exactly able to get any space right along the railing which was going to make things interesting for me and sitting right on the ground wasn't very fun at all. But I did what I had to.

By the time she actually showed up with the blanket I kind of had to get away for a little while or risk getting testy with her so I left her on her own for a little while. Petty of me, maybe, but if it's better than getting into our age old argument, all the better. I had to go get my stuff from the locker anyways, so it had to happen either way. But I did sneak a run or two through on Indiana Jones courtesy of the SRL. So I didn't feel so bad. She was relaxing and listening to her iPod by the time I got back so I ended up just playing around with my camera and tripod as it got darker hoping I could get some fun shots and have everything ready once the show started. I even managed to talk my way in between a couple of families right along the railing since I take up very little space. I just needed enough room to put my tripod really. I was really excited to get some photos without anything blocking my view. By the time the Jambalaya Band came out on the raft to give us a little pre-show entertainment I didn't think I could handle waiting any longer. But we did meet an awesome family from Australia who we chatted with for the better part of an hour.

All in all, where Fantasmic that Friday night was concerned, I think I took 300+ photos, but I hated the way most of them came out. We were going to try again on Saturday regardless, and they did come out much better so I didn't end up editing every single one from this night. But here are some that did come out. I absolutely adore Fantasmic, which is funny because the first time I saw it I was a nervous wreck of anxiety and could not enjoy it for the life of me. But now I really do just get lost in it.

It's really hard for me to admit it, but this means the end of day 4, and only one more Park day to go!

September '09 Trip Day 4.3

2010-09-08T07:00:00.000-07:00

Outside of our breakfast with Minnie Mouse and the half an hour we spent following Peter Pan and the little girl around the park Andrea and I had been off doing our very own thing. She was probably off going on all of the rides that I wouldn't touch with a ten foot pole, seeing as I am a chicken. Or, as my high school biology teacher would say during our blood typing lab - "I am a wuss"!! But we did have plans to meet back up later. Obviously we'd have to find each other at some point to watch Fantasmic! but at 3 o'clock we met up with another member of the Disney forums that I am addicted to outside of Pirates of the Caribbean. But not before grabbing one of my all-time favorite treats at Disneyland, a mint julep. I know I have said it before, but I am addicted to them and I need them like air or water when I'm there. I'd been waiting as patiently as I could since we had arrived on Tuesday since they wouldn't be open until the weekend. Or at least until Friday. Which, surprise surprise, it was. Sure, I had one at lunch at the BB, but it just isn't the same.
I love grabbing a mint julep from the Mint Julep Bar. And luckily enough it's behind the French Market near the New Orleans Square Station and I had just enough time to stop by before finding a place to outside of POTC to just relax while I waited for Andrea and what a nice, relaxing, few minutes it turned out to be while I finished off my drink and my co-hort showed up. The funny thing is, as soon as she saw what I was drinking sh had to go and grab one for herself. It was nice to meet someone from the message boards that had been alongside us with all of our planning questions and all and the four of us enjoyed a go on Pirates and chit chatted for a fun little bit.
By the time that we all got off of Pirates and said our goodbyes it was a little too late for us to head back towards Main Street for the Flag Retreat Ceremony which we had a tentative plan to go back for and there was more of that "well, what should we do next" talk that drives me up the wall and is part of why I like to plan things the way that I do and that Andrea has always been very resistant to. So guess what we did again? We split up, of course! I made my way towards Critter Country to take some photos over there and to take a spin on the Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh. Mostly I wanted to go into Pooh's Corner and get some photos of some Tigger Tails, which are a very Disney-fied marshmallow on a stick, and try one for myself.

September '09 Trip Day 4.2

2010-09-07T18:07:00.000-07:00

Andrea and I pretty much kept to our own schedules after our adventures with Peter Pan, although we had plans to meet up with each other later in the afternoon to make a new acquaintance and for the night's big entertainment, Fantasmic. While I couldn't tell you how she occupied her time I do know that I started by savoring all that Main Street has to offer and to stop and catch a little sidewalk performance by the Dapper Dans.
Considering how only the hour before I had every intention of heading towards Fantasyland I believe this is a perfect example of how easily I can get sidetracked. But of course I made it there eventually, making my rounds on the rides and never waiting for anything more than 20 minutes. And let me just say that the 20 minutes was the longest wait by a good 10 minutes. I dare you to take a guess as to what ride I'm talking about. Why, Peter Pan's Flight of course!

And to share here are a few other photos I took while in the queues for Mr. Toad's Wild Ride, Snow White's Scary Adventure, and Pinocchio's Daring Journey.

I even made my way back to the Princess Fantasy Faire, even though I'd already gotten my Princess photos (some more than once as a matter of fact). I like getting different backgrounds for my pictures, what can I say? The wait wasn't even that long to be honest, not like the waits I had back in March or during a previous year. I know waited for no more than 20 minutes this time around. I wonder how I pulled that off? It was also the first time that I have seen Ariel at the PPF. I know it's nothing new, but never once when I have gone through have I seen her before, so I found it exciting. I do still miss her having her own special meet and greet area where she was still sporting a fin rather than a dress.

September Trip Day 4.1

2010-09-06T16:11:00.000-07:00

A brand new day means brand new adventures to be had, including the third and final character meal of my stay. With all the fun fun between Ariel's Grotto and Goofy's Kitchen it was bittersweet to make our way to the Park for breakfast with Minnie & Friends. Back in March 2009 Minnie's became my first character meal experience and we had so, so, so, so much fun that we had to add it on the 'menu' again. But let's just say the morning didn't go so smoothly. Andrea had a very hard time getting up in the morning which led to a rather stressful morning between the two of us. Without going into all the sordid details, because I was at my breaking point that morning, I left the hotel all by my lonesome to get in line at the gates for Minnie & Friends for our PS. I prefer the earliest time that we can get so it doesn't take too much time away from enjoying the park, and getting a fix in of having the Park all to myself for just a moment. I wasn't in any mood to compromise that morning, so like I said, I was off on my own and she either got there in time or she didn't. I honestly didn't care, even if it would mean a lonely breakfast and possibly no photos.

Because this particular meal takes place inside Disneyland it has it's own special entrance gate in the morning so those of us with a PS time before the park opens can get inside.
The wait wasn't even that bad. I love chatting with other Disneyland-lovers while waiting to get into the Park. Sometimes you even learn something new that you didn't know or remember something that you always wanted to do, which is never a bad thing when you are always forgetting your previously made mental to-do lists. Having others in line to talk to made up for the fact that I was there by myself. And did I mention how much I like unobstructed views of Disneyland? When they started to let us in through the gates I managed to take some photos on the walk down Main Street to the China Closet where we would line up again at the little red door at the end of the street and wait for the cast member who would let us through the door to walk over to the Plaza Inn and check in for our meal. An empty Main Street is not something you get to see everyday.

After checking in I got my photo taken for the photo op and paid for the meal. The funny thing about my table is that I was seated in the exact same spot as we were back in March, just on the opposite side of the restaurant. Instead of going to the left, I was seated on the right. At least I found it funny. I had enough time to grab myself some food and get a solitary visit from Tigger and Dale and Pooh Bear too before Andrea showed up. I tried my best not to be in a grumpy mood, but sometimes my best just doesn't cut it.
Unfortunately it made for a tense breakfast and as soon as I was done eating I was ready to high-tail it out of there rather than wait for any more characters, which meant that I didn't get the wide variety that I saw my first time. In fact I only got visits from Captain Hook, Winnie the Pooh, Eeyore and Minnie Mouse. It's a far cry from the insane amount of characters that we saw back in March but I couldn't sit there much longer or I think I would have exploded. If I remember correctly Andrea was sill eating when I left, but I do know we spent most of the day doing out own thing with plans to meet back up to save ourselves some seats for Fantasmic! which we weren't going to miss for the world, especially with the debut of the new dragon just a week or so before we arrived. But before I forget, here are the photos:

Now I remember. Since we planned on catching Fantasmic! later that night we were going to need a few extra things from the hotel with us for the night in the Park. Mainly, needed my tripod if I expected to get any photos worth keeping. And since this is me, that would be a definite yes, please! I didn't want to bring bulky items with me the breakfast without anywhere to put it all so when I left the Plaza Inn I made my way back to the hotel and grabbed my tripod along with a change in clothes. The black bermudas were already a little too warm for my taste so I knew I wouldn't last the whole day. When I got back to the Park and stowed my tripod and a sweater for later in a locker I started to make my way towards Fantasyland and got side tracked by a couple of things, one being Mickey Mouse and the other proving to be a fun distraction that Andrea would have killed me over if I hadn't gotten a hold of her. She was a little bummed about my little encounter with Peter Pan the previous day and was determined to see him at some point before we left. Well, I did happen to spot him off to the side of the Castle and had to give her a call.

What ensued was probably the funnest 30 minutes I have ever spent at Disneyland, even if it sounds a little silly to anyone else. We went on a little adventure with Pan and an adorable little girl dressed as Wendy who were trying to set a trap for Chip & Dale. Sitting there and watching the interaction between the two really made you want to be a kid again and get to experience the magic of Disneyland like that, because I sure as heck don't have stories like that to tell when I was her age. I mean, I don't see how it can get much better. I don't think anyone who witnessed it would doubt the Disney Magic. I'll try and give you a run-down of what happened, but it was one of those "you had to be there" moments for me.
only the best acorns for the sticker trap...

too bad the weren't good enough...

step quietly away from the trap and let's catch a chipmunk...

too bad it didn't work. we hid and watched groups of people walk by and not touch the trap. well, darn! A new plan was needed...

brainstorming...

new plan: we have to capture a princess. with a pine cone. and what does a princess like? flowers, jewelry ... and pretty boys...

after failing to capture a princess a new plan was needed...

and we were off to seek the aid of an evil witch...i mean queen!

dear evil queen, please cast a spell on this acorn to make a princess fall asleep so as to help us capture chip & dale...

but we should have known better, time to be off again...

perhaps a wishing well will end our quest...

alas, no such luck. but a new plan has been formed. we shall find alice and have her shrink us to chipmunk size...

someone got a little side tracked looking for new recruits...
Eventually he managed to find Alice and brought her out to say hi to the little Wendy. It was a fun half an hour to spend watching the interaction and going on an adventure to capture a chipmunk or two (even if we were unsuccessful). You really had to have been there. And some other things we learned straight from the mouth of Pan ... He can speak Whale (he must be friends with Dory), spit isn't sticky and he has no boogers, girls aren't that smart, the best way to attract a Princess is with flowers, making traps takes too long and hunting is better, and where is the fun in capturing Hook if you don't release him in the end so you can capture him once again?

Best Disneyland moment by far.

September Trip Day 3.3

2010-09-05T16:27:00.000-07:00

2009 was a great year for Disneyland! For the first time I actually made two trips to Disneyland in one year. This trip, of course, and then one only 6 months before at the end of March. Both trips were amazing and awesome but there was one thing that made my birthday/September trip better than my March trip and that was my experience on the Lilly Belle. In March Andrea and I had a rather disappointing experience due to some rude people and I really wanted to make up for it. So after getting a check-back time I made sure that I got there with time to spare, even if Andrea was still back at the hotel as she knew the planned time and would be there if she was feeling better. Let's just say that my second time aboard the Lilly Belle was just about a million times better than the first. It was just me and one very nice cast member/conductor who actually took time to answer my questions and tell me what she new. And then just chat in general about our love for Disneyland. It's really a great experience, and if you can have the time I recommend asking to see if they could accommodate you for one round-trip. The only bad thing that I have to say (and it will be quite obvious when you see the photos) is how absolutely hot it can get - especially in the late afternoon on a hot summer day. I felt like I was in Hades. But that's alright, I got to take my time photographing the interior, and a little video for my dad who was intrigued when I told him about it. And hey, who doesn't like to be the center of attention when everyone you are passing by or who is on the train keeps pointing and wondering what makes me you so special? I kid, I kid. Sort of...

And here are some obligatory photos from the interior:

And just one more in passing ...
By the time I had finished my trip around the Disneyland on the Lilly Belle I got a call from Andrea that she was going to be leaving the hotel pretty soon to meet back up with me at The Golden Horseshoe for a bite to eat and to watch Billy Hill & the Hillbillies perform, which was high on the list of things we wanted to make sure we did this trip. If we had skipped catching them again with a whole 5 days in the parks we both would have been extremely upset with ourselves which doesn't work when you're trying to ride a Disney high. But we still had a little time before we needed to meet up in Adventureland, especially since I knew it would take her a little while to walk from the hotel to the parks so I made my way to Pixie Hollow to see if I could spot a new fairy this time. Alas, it wasn't meant to be. But I did see a Tinkerbell who looks a lot like my younger cousin ... strange. Oh, and of course a few more photos of the things we pass all the time. But of course from the perspective of a Fairy.

All in all my detour only took about 20 minutes and then I was on my way to meet up with Andrea at The Golden Horseshoe and we decided that I would go and stake us out a table if she took charge of the hunting party to bring us back some grub. And BBQ sauce. She couldn't forget the BBQ sauce or I would never forgive her, it is a vital life source where I come from. She met me up along the balcony at a table with perfect timing to sit back and laugh and enjoy the show. The next time I can drag my family down there I'm making sure my dad gets to see these guys again. I know he'd just absolutely love it, which is why we had to bust out the Flip camcorder once again. Of course I'll share a couple of the photos I took.

We spent the next couple of hours hoping from ride to ride, never waiting for anything more than maybe 15 minutes at most but I couldn't tell you what we did anymore. My little notes are long since gone, and unless it's documented on film (*cough*memorycard*cough*) I don't remember diddly squat. But I can tell you three things we did: (1) We rode Alice in Wonderland, (2) we rode Indiana Jones, and (3) we parted ways for the night as she is the night Owl and I am not.
And what better way to finish off your actual birthday than spending a little birthday cash? I didn't go straight back to the hotel after I left the park. Not at all. I spent some time wandering around Downtown Disney and made a stop into the World of Disney so I could start looking for what I was going to spend my Birthday Fun Card on. Well, needless to say I found more than enough. I will show you my spoils (and my awesome group of the few birthday cards that I was given before we left home).

Mondays and Magical Extras

2010-08-30T15:54:00.000-07:00

So sad, the weekend is over. Did I do anything? Well, I worked. Overnight. Starting at 10 o'clock until 6 in the morning! Or, more like 5:30 this time around which was a welcome surprise. I was worried this weekend would be a lot more difficult than it was but everything went down without a hitch and we were rolling right along! Talk about something to put me in a good mood for a few days! Mom and I also spent some time out and about on Sunday which I have decided really helps with getting back on track with my days and night, provided I actually got a little sleep. We hit up Michael's and Smart & Final for a couple of errands and had lunch at Daphne's, this yummy Greek cafe chain here in the Bay Area. It's a bit of a favorite of mine. Too bad the experience this time was less than stellar. First mom's salad came with chicken instead of the gyros she ordered and then her baklava seemed like it would never make it to our table. I've had worse experiences, but it was frustrating.

And yes, that concludes the excitement of my weekend. That's the problem with working overnight once a week. It doesn't give you much opportunity to do much else, or at least not that I've found! Before I knew what was happening it was already Monday!

Is there such a thing as a "good morning" on a Monday? I usually want to laugh when someone says it in passing at the beginning of every week because my Monday's are usually anything but. I blame it on an exhausting weekend of work, what with my overnight shift and all, and of course it always turns into a busy day. I always feel like I'm running on fumes by the time Monday rolls along. Today has been pretty good though, and I'm not complaining. I woke up in a good mood, work wasn't stressful, and I had a nice little present waiting for me in the mail when I got home ...
Yes, this has to do with Disneyland!

I never really get to book my vacations through Disney Travel, Costco, AAA, or any source that offers you some "Magical Extras" for your stay. It's just cheaper for me to book everything separately and cheaper is the way for me! There's two of these Magical Extras that enjoy doing, one being Mickey's Toontown Morning Madness which is a special hour in Toontown before it's normal opening hours with a little show put on by Mickey and friends and smaller crowds. It's the best time to check out Toontown and it can be a lot of fun for the little kid in you, another being Preferred Seating for the Aladdin Musical at Disney California Adventure. Thanks to a wonderful community of Disneyland fans I've got vouchers for both! It's looking as though I may not be able to sue the ones for Aladdin due to the fact it probably wont be showing while I'm there, but a girl can always hope and dream.. Besides, if I can't, I'll just pay it forward!

So, nothing bad to bring me down today!

Meet 'Miss Piggy'

2010-08-26T13:09:00.000-07:00

No, not that Miss Piggy. This Miss Piggy ...
And in case you were wondering, yes, she is a piggy bank. You know, for money? I've been pretty good about not going overboard with buying things and I've managed to save money a lot more than I have in the past. This is a very good thing because it means I have money for my vacation and I wont be broke as can be when I get home. This is a very, very good thing. But aside from moving money from savings to checking or vice versa I have a strange fascination with physically putting money away, hence the piggy bank.

I've been collecting stray change and whatnot for as long as I can remember. I usually dip in and out of it as the need for change pops up, which usually meant rummaging around for quarters which left me with a whole lot of pennies! What a useless bit of change they can be, until they add up. Earlier this year I took my cup of change (in case you were wondering it was a plastic souvenir cup from the San Francisco Zoo) to our Credit Union to "cash in" and along with some cash that I kept hidden at the bottom of the cup and it easily came out to something over $200. The money went towards my Park Hopper for the upcoming Disneyland trip (27 days from now, in case you were curious) with some spare parts left over for savings and the whole process started over again to see what kind of extra spending money I could save up before I leave. The only difference this time was that I wanted something a little more ... permanent. Harder to break into to fish for change.

It didn't help that these ceramic and brightly colored piggy banks at Target went on clearance just days later. Miss Piggy cost me about $2.

It's not so strange to have a piggy bank, but you'll probably find it strange that I keep track of what I put into said piggy bank. I am not joking when I say I have a spreadsheet tacked to my door so I can mark off every penny, dime, nickel, quarter, or bill that goes in to Miss Piggy. Already I have about $68 saved up in there and I still have a few weeks to go along with a trip to the recycling center. I've got lots of plastic bottles and aluminum cans to take in. I wish there were fewer since I did vow to drink less soda this year, but that's still a work in progress.

September Trip Day 3.2

2010-08-26T11:53:00.000-07:00

Have you ever been to a shooting gallery? Well, I have. That is only if you could the Shootin' Exposition in Frontierland. I don't have any photos to share from that, but it was one of the things on our mental to-do list as added by Andrea that we actually remembered to do. Will I ever do it again? Probably not! But it turned out to be the last thing we did together in Disneyland for the rest of the afternoon. After a couple of hours in the Park since opening we were going to take full advantage of our Park Hoppers and actually park hop so next up was Disney's (although it is now officially Disney) California Adventure. One big draw over there is the Aladdin Musical Spectacular that takes stage at the Hyperion Theatre. It truly is spectacular as anyone who has ever seen it could tell you.

So we made that long trek across the esplanade and we're back in DCA for the second time this trip with a couple of hours to kill until Aladdin was set to start. It probably wasn't even noon yet and I could see that Andrea didn't look so well to put it mildly and it seemed pretty obvious to me that she needed to head back to the hotel. I tried to talk her into it or into taking a resting break but she kept on insisting that she'd be fine and she kept pushing on. So we did a photo op in the Sunshine Plaza with everyone's favorite Mouse.
It didn't take long, but right after we finished getting our photos with a vacationing Mickey Mouse Andrea finally decided she needed to step into one of the air conditioned shops to cool off and rest and I just took my time taking photos around the Hollywood Pictures Backlot.

After my little photo spree I checked back in with Andrea to see how she was doing and she finally made the call to head back to the hotel for a little while. I knew it was bound to happen eventually. After having some alcohol out by the hot tub the night before, barely getting any sleep, the heat, and not having enough water what else was bound to happen? It was nice to finally have an answer however, and I was able to go off on my own for a while. I do just fine at Disneyland all by myself, birthday or no birthday. I don't know why anyone would ever think a solo trip couldn't be fun. You get to call all of the shots without having to conference over what to do next. And to top it all off, I get around a lot faster on my own and I guarantee you I was hauling you-know-what. I'm not usually a leisurely walker. I know what I want and I'll barrel towards it, full-steam ahead. So the first thing my speed-walking-demon self did was take a full but brief self-tour through DCA stopping to visit a few friends along the way.

I even stopped by for a walk through the Mission Tortilla Factory and got some free tortillas for my birthday. Nothing satisfies a grazer like me like food to munch on!

I didn't end up staying in DCA for too long. The one ride that I was interested in, Toy Story Midway mania, was shut down and I wasn't going to sit around waiting for it for to be back up and running for forever. I also had a date with the Lilly Belle at 3 so I needed to make sure I was back at Disneyland before then. I thought about riding Indiana Jones until it was time to head back to Main Street but by the time I got there that was closed down too! It was funny listening to people waiting around. They actually had turned the lights on inside the ride and the people who got stuck on it were able to walk through all the different scenes. I think that would have been a pretty neat experience!
Rides go down, it's to be expected. So I just made the decision to got to Main Street regardless of how early it was. I figured I could get some photos and shopping done, and of course watch some candy being made!

$25 later

2010-08-25T15:12:00.000-07:00

To be honest there is not a lot that $25 can get you nowadays without knowing where to find some good deals. Now, I know I'm not the worlds greatest bargain shopper, but a lot of great deals cross my path on a weekly basis simply from working in retail. It's hard not to take advantage of getting to touch all of the clearance items before anyone else sometimes, especially when you want something so badly that you just have to have it. I confess, I tend to be an impulse shopper, so I suppose it's a good thing I don't shop too often. I can't set things aside for myself or hide them after marking them down until I can purchase them, but that doesn't mean the second I'm off I can't hightail it back to a particular department to scoop up whatever amazing deal I saw earlier in the day. And there are times when amazing deals just happen to pop up. Don't kid yourself like I used to. Clearance items aren't cast-offs or rejects. Some things simply have to go to make room for new merchandise. I never used to touch clearance because I had that mentality of "if it's marked down, it must not be good" but now I know better. You would be surprised how much clearance comes straight off a delivery truck and has never even been touched in a store!

Hopefully by now you know what I'm getting at: I went shopping. Now, I do mean it when I say it's a good thing I don't shop often, because I don't. Like any female worth anything I know how to spend money, but I don't purposefully go out to buy things and I especially don't go drop lots of money on clothes frequently. In fact if you took a look at my wardrobe right now, most of it would be the same ratty jeans and tees that I have been wearing since I graduated high school. It's kind of pathetic. I'm 23, going on 24, and I still dress like a teenager. Not that there's anything wrong with my go to casual of jeans, a tee, and my chucks but I don't dress up much either, even if it's just a sundress and sandals. I want to start working on that, but it involves that shopping I mentioned earlier. And I hate buying clothes. The real reason is probably because everything costs so darn much nowadays. Why on earth would I want to pay $20 for a single shirt? Heck, sometimes $20 wouldn't even cut it and don't get me started on the price of pants or shoes for that matter.

But I'm going off an a tangent again! Instead of spending $20 on one single item I managed to get a little more bang for my buck this week. And sure, two days of $25 purchases comes out to $50 I think I did pretty darn good. Now if only I didn't feel like I was babbling for no good reason, but hey, I'm here to share my day to day, right? And my love of commas, so it seems.

So yesterdays $25 went towards clothes, specifically. A cute kimono-style dress I have had my eyes on for a while finally went clearance and we actually had one in my size (or as close to my size as I was gonna get) in the color that I wanted! It's a blue floral type print and I love it. I did get a pair of black leggings to go with it, and while they weren't clearance they were on sale for $1 cheaper than normal. Every little bit counts especially when my other discounts are factored in. Maybe I'll take a photo of myself in it later, it really is cute! I don't normally dress for cute, but there you have it. Add in a pair of pink shorts that went 50% off and that's not bad. You can't even get one pair of jeans at our store anymore without spending close to $30 so I walked away feeling like a winner.

Today's $25 went towards some shoes and sunglasses. I don't own a lot of shoes, despite what my dad may have said the other day. I have my chucks, a couple of flip flops that have really seen better days (as have my chucks, but those will be worn until they are falling apart on my feet a la my sister), some black sneakers for work, my running shoes and a pair of black boots that I honestly don't know how to walk in. Can some female please give me the secret to heals? I just don't get them! Sure that's more than a couple pairs, but it's also a lot less than some people I know. I wanted some summer sandals to wear and Payless is having another of their infamous BOGO days so I stopped by to see if anything caught my eye. Well, a couple did and so I bought them. It took forever to find some that fit, or so it felt like. As it turns out I wear 3 different sizes depending on the shoe itself, all the way from a regular old 6 to a 7 (the other being a 6 1/2). Yes, according to my sister I have pixie feet. Too bad I hate feet altogether. Somebody remind me to get a pedicure before I wear said sandals! And no, I didn't spend $25 on just two pairs of shoes. I also bought 2 sunglasses that I actually liked. I never think I look good in any (they just don't seem to fit my face shape) but I liked these enough to buy them. So 2 pairs of shoes and 2 sunglasses for $25. Not bad, I say.

And because I can, I figured I would share photos of my loot from today!

Two Nine

2010-08-24T16:19:00.000-07:00

Two? 2. Nine? 9. Can you guess what I'm talking about? I'll give you a hint ... it involves Disneyland!

OK, you've probably already heard me doing my daily countdown for a few days now so being 29 days away from my vacation shouldn't really come as a surprise. All I know is this: I have less than a month to go until I'm at the Happiest Place on Earth!!

Excited? Me? Never!!! Haha.

I did not intend to disappear for a week or so and fully intended on getting quite a few updates of not only my day to day life and thoughts (that is what this is for, right?) but also a few more updates from last September's Disneyland trip but that hasn't quite panned out the way I thought it would. First my boss goes on vacation which means (a) more hours and (b) more stress for me at work and then my sister officially left for Humboldt which left me (a) a little depressed and (b) a little lonely. None of those 4 things are very conducive conditions for internet and/or blogging. But I did promise to stop slacking and get something up today so here I am!

All of the stress and loneliness aside, I've actually had a few fun things on my plate as of late. Probably the highlight of he past couple of weeks was spending a day out with my cousin, having lunch and shopping before going out to dinner and having a nice evening catching up with our Aunt. I can't remember the last time I had a full day out like that and it was just awesome. Plus I got to see all the photos my cousin took while studying abroad in France this summer - she even dot to go to Disneyland Paris!

Talk about a day of spending money! I haven't gone clothes shopping in a while and spent a pretty penny on some jeans and a couple of cute tops that are going into my Disneyland vacation clothes pile and not to be touched until then. Call me crazy, but I like having new clothes for vacations. I could have done even more damage at the Hallmark store all thanks to their buy 1 get 1 free deal on select Disney Precious Moments figurines. I absolutely adore those and they even had one Snow White one that I have had my eyes on for a rather long time. But I just couldn't justify the money right now. Clothes were a necessity, these were not. Although I can guarantee you that if they had two and not just one Snow White figurine included I would not have been able to resist.

I did make one other purchase that is directly related to this vacation. I'm not one to bring my entire wallet into the Parks so I usually stick the essentials in one of those metal ID cases. Well, I found one that made me think of Minnie Mouse and I just had to get it since the one I usually use belongs to my sister.

Unfortunately there isn't really much else to update on. It's been very much a work-sleep-work-sleep few days for me. Here's hoping the next few weeks will be fun before I leave. At the very least my birthday is in 2 1/2 weeks so I should have a lot of fun things going on by then!

September Trip Day 3.2

2010-08-24T09:57:00.000-07:00

There was more fun to be had than just our breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen! I remember I ended up having to walk back to the hotel to drop off our photo package and change out of the capris I was wearing. It was already starting to heat up and it was barely even 9 in the morning yet! What a hot day that turned out to be, perfect for me! It just wasn't perfect for the whole party but that was neither here nor there at the moment. When we finally got in to the park a little before opening we hung back around the Main Street station to ask about something I was determined to do that day: take a ride on the Lilly Belle parlour car. That was what I wanted for my birthday, and we were told to check back sometime around noon and they would see what they could do to accommodate us.

At that point we were going to take the train to New Orleans Square for our first ride (Pirates) but we spotted two of Andrea's favorite characters and there was no way we could just walk away without getting photos. It turned out to be a headache as there was no formal line and many parents just pushed their kids in front of those of us patiently waiting our turn, but that's just something you have to deal with sometimes. But at least we did get our photos. We even got a photo together at the little photo op spot right at the beginning of Main Street. I thought I would be funny and gave a certain someone bunny ears, lol.

As it turns out I would rather walk a mile than hike up a set of stairs for a train and so we made the walk to New Orleans Square on foot and got sidetracked as always by two of our favorite rides ever. At least with one we simply grabbed Fast Passes for our proposed return later in the evening when we knew it would be busier. The Fast Passes of course belonging to Indiana Jones, while we rode the Jungle Cruise. To top it all off, Adventureland was look particularly exotic that morning.

Sidetracked much? I think that's an understatement. It's almost a miracle that we ever did make our way over to Pirates, but this is what happens when there are so many fun things to see and do. To bad one of those fun things was officially closed for the remainder of our trip!

September Trip Day 3.1

2010-08-10T19:13:00.000-07:00

happy birthday to me,
happy birthday to me,
happy birthday to me-e,
happy birthday to me!
Another morning, another breakfast at Disneyland! But who am I kidding, there's no such thing as "another morning" when your birthday is involved. September 10, 2009 meant happy 23rd birthday to me! And as it turns out, my 23rd birthday was easily on of the best birthdays ever and it all started with an amazing birthday-breakfast at Goofy's Kitchen! "What is Goofy's Kitchen?", you ask? Oh, nothing much, just another of the five character meal choices at the Disneyland Resort, hosted by none other than Chef Goofy. We had a 7 o'clock breakfast (the earliest we could get in) so we would have time to make it to the gates before the park officially opened with plenty of time to spare while we diddy-dawdled at the restaurant. The only downside to breakfast that early (other than a rather long walk from our hotel to the restaurant) is that it's pretty cold outside! I never actually thought about how long of a walk it would be from the HoJo to the Disneyland Hotel and it wasn't until we were on our way, marching along, that we realized we didn't know exactly where we were going. Sure we knew it was located at the Disneyland Hotel and we've both seen it before but we couldn't actually visualize where we needed to be headed. Luckily for us we ran into someone we had met the day before who was on her way to the Anaheim Convention Center for the Expo who was able to point us in the right direction as she was staying at the Disneyland Hotel and had eaten at Goofy's the morning before. We arrived at Goofy's Kitchen with plenty of time to spare so I took to exploring the wonder that is the Disneyland Hotel (to be more specific the DLH Convention Center). It's like walking into a world sprinkled with pixie dust. To top it all off we were the first party there to check in when they opened.

Unlike our breakfast at Ariel's Grotto the day before Goofy's Kitchen is a buffet with so many options for food it can make your head spin - they even have a PB&J pizza, whoddathunkit?! We were barely settled into ourseats when we got our first visitor ... Baloo, from the Jungle Book!! Later on during our meal Baloo succeeded in scaring me half to death when I didn't realize he was right behind me. I am not joking when I say I let out a little (or maybe loud) scream with a jump out of my chair to match. The character meals stand out a little more for me when you get to see characters that you wont have the chance to see in the parks. I think they should always have at least one exclusive character at each meal. Then I'd be sure never to miss one - ever (although that could prove to be a potential bad, bad, and expensive thing)!

Before settling down to eat for a few moments we were also visited by Chef Goofy himself! There was a lot more fun with Goofy shortly thereafter as he gave an impromptu cooking demonstration full of laughter and a little dance session with the kids in the restaurant. I may not be a little kid anymore, but I still got a kick out of it. Especially when he dropped the cake the first time trying to unveil his masterpiece. That is totally something I would do (and have done) in the kitchen!

Next up was a visit from Cinderella. She was the start of the name/face recognition that turned up everywhere on Thursday. She remembered us from Ariel's Grotto the morning before. That put an even bigger smile on my face - I'm beginning to wonder how I can even feel my face anymore! So we went ahead and did a different Princess pose this time.
But what was the highlight of the meal? Or my highlight of the meal, at least. I kind of made the mistake of leaving my sweater back at the hotel, stupid, right? Knowing how cold I get when I eat. Maybe I was thinking that I didn't want to be carrying it around if we were going into the park right afterward when it was just going to get hot again, who knows? But as I said, I get cold when I eat - very, very, very, very cold! So there I was, feeling like I was freezing with nothing to keep me warm. My solution was to keep getting up and getting more food since it was warmer there than at our table and upon returning Dale came by with a little present: a tablecloth! And of course where there is Dale, there is also Chip!

And last but not least was Jasmine! Both of the Princesses remembered at least one of us from the day before, only this time Andrea had seen Jasmine in Disneyland at the Aladdin meet & greet at Aladdin's Oasis in Adventureland.
Goofy's Kitchen was very filling and a very fun way to kick off my birthday!

After breakfast I made the decision to go ahead and head back to the hotel before up with Dre again at the gates for our regular entry. Heck, we could have gone ahead and done Magic Morning on Thursday, but we had already decided that we were saving it for Saturday when we would also do Mickey's Toontown Morning Madness. Really, I just wanted to go back to the hotel so I could drop off the photo that we had purchased from Goofy's Kitchen. I didn't want to ruin it, carrying it around the park all day. On the way I also stopped off to get what inspired the whole trip in the first place - my birthday Fun Card!
The Fun Card was a gift card worth one day's admission costs that I could use at pretty any shopping destination within the Disneyland Resort which worked out to be roughly $72 dollars for me to spend. It was all part of the year's promotion of free admission on your birthday, only since I already had 5 days (for the price of 3) worth of park hopping and the gift card was one of two other options available to me and the one I opted for rather than special fast passes. I loved getting the chance to pick up a few birthday extras.

September Trip Day 2.3

2010-08-09T12:02:00.000-07:00

It's really, really hard to say which Land of Disneyland is my absolute favorite. I've mentioned before how much I simply love the atmosphere of New Orleans Square, but Fantasyland is right up there at the top for what I hope are obvious reasons: I am a Princess! I didn't spend any time in Fantasyland on our first day, but I did get the chance on our second. It's hard for me to ride hop in Fantasyland during the day because it gets so crowded. Fantasyland is best saved for first thing in the morning and on Magic Mornings. Luckily for me, however, my favorite Princess has her own ride which tends to stay uncrowded through the day.

We were doing a little browsing in one of the shops in Fantasyland only to realize someone (as in not me) didn't have any cash on her. Which meant a quick stroll back to the ATM at the end of Main Street where I spotted some old pals of mine, hehe. In my old Disneyland days I hardly ever saw Mickey or Minnie Mouse. Now in my new Disneyland days I seem to run into them just about everywhere!
It turns out we went off on our own a lot on day two. Andrea was gung-ho for getting on Space Mountain but if you know anything about me at all it probably wouldn't surprise you that I went off in search of other things to do and at Disneyland I'll always find things something, even if it's in Tomorrowland, my least favorite Land in Disneyland. I've just never found much that appeals to me there. That is until I discovered the Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters! They aren't horrible to do on your lonesome.

After more than doubling my previous score on the Astro Blasters I was making my way over to Frontierland when I got side-tracked by quite literally my favorite character to spy on at Disneyland: Peter Pan (and I promise, by the end of this September report you'll understand why). For some reason we kept forgetting to ask at City Hall when and where peter Pan would be out during the day and there he was at the Carnation Plaza Gardens, which are semi out of the way if you normally stick to the Hub and the main Land entrances, along with Captain Hook and barely any other people just messing around. Between scaling fences, climbing trees, endless fascination with spider webs, and a never-ending contest to see who was taller this was definitely a highlight of the day for me. And while I tried to call Andrea over because I knew how badly she wanted to find Peter Pan I never could get a hold of her.

By the time all of that fun was done I didn't get the chance to explore Frontierland as I had originally planned. I may have forgotten to check with City Hall earlier in the day to find out exactly when Peter Pan would be out, but I did remember to find out about one character we wanted to find: Br'er Fox! There had been a minor debacle at a character breakfast we had on a previous trip where I accidentally deleted some photos of us and Br'er Fox so I needed to make up for it. As it turned out Dre was nowhere in sight by the time I got over there but Br'er Fox and Br'er Bear were so I gave her another call so she could make her way over. Luckily she made it in time, I don't think I would have lived to see my birthday if she missed Br'er Fox, Br'er Bear, Captain Hook and Peter Pan while I got to see all four. Nope, pretty sure I wouldn't have.

We hadn't been to Pirate's Lair at Tom Sawyer's Island so that was our next destination. We never made that hard journey across the River's of America when we were at Disneyland back in March and before then the last time I had been there was before the Pirate invasion had happened. I think ... Anyways! It was really a spur of the moment decision. We were walking back towards New Orleans Square and noticed that another raft was just moments away from departure so it was perfect timing really. I spent a lot of time over there simply photographing things since there was so much to see and it's not nearly as crowded as the rest of the Park. I didn't realize that the bone cage from Pirates 2 was back in the Smugler's Cove area ready for photo ops. But I had a lot of fun with that one, although it was reminding me just how tired and worn out I was. How I was lead to that thought I'm not quite sure, but it did. We took the raft back across the Rivers of America not long after that. But we did go play in the Crows Nest, although I believe Andrea has those photos as it appears that I have none!

Since we were in the vicinity as we left the Pirates Lair we hit up Pirates of the Caribbean before using Fast Passes that we collected earlier in the morning for Indiana Jones for where waited for quite literally the longest time of any of our Indy rides: a whole 22 minutes!
I have never been much of a night person to be honest so as the sky started to get darker I made my plans to say goodbye to Andrea and make my way back to the hotel. So I took myself along Main Street, stopping for a quick bite to eat and something to drink. I have never had a cream cheese filled pretzel before, and honestly I had never even though about using cream cheese as a filling but it was so delicious that it wasn't the only one I ended up eating during the week. I had to wait about 5 minutes because they didn't have any ready, but that was alright. I was zoning out as it was. On the way out I did stop and do a quick PhotoPass pose since there was no line.

And that was the end of my second day at Disneyland! Normally day three might have been the end of all the fun, but I still had another three days to go!!

September Trip Day 2.2

2010-08-08T10:32:00.000-07:00

After leaving DCA it was back to Disneyland we went. I had a rather hefty goal for this vacation: to meet and greet as many characters as I possibly could, which also meant getting photos. I mentioned before how much I miss the other Ariel's Grotto that was a meet & greet station for the Little Mermaid herself but has now been turned into a meet & greet for Tinkerbell and her friends called Pixie Hollow. We wanted to see how the line was before we decided if we would go in or not. It looked short enough to us, and we weren't disappointed as we only had to wait about 15 minutes. We got to meet Tinkerbell and Silvermist.

Afterward we had to make our way back over to New Orleans Square for one of our last opportunities to ride the Haunted Mansion, a favorite of ours. On Wednesday, September 10th (coincidentally this was also my birthday) it would be shutting down until the end of September for it's transformation into the Haunted Mansion Holiday so of course we had to get our fix in! Boy did we ever. It was literally a walk on and I just couldn't help myself, I had to go twice in a row. I did make one small detour though. It's common knowledge that outside in the queue for the ride you walk through a pet cemetery that I usually photograph like crazy. But what isn't common knowledge is that there is another pet cemetery to the right of the mansion. So of course I sought after the ones you don't see every day by asking a CM about it before jumping in for the second time in a row. It's small, as much of what had been there was moved to the more visible pet cemetery long ago, but there's still a couple of things to see.

By that point Andrea and I had both went our separate ways to do the some thing solo which proved to make a huge difference for me. I move around a lot easier when I'm by myself, all of that speed walking of mine can get put to good use, and I made my way through some favorites including:

Pirates of the Caribbean

Jungle Cruise

And to leave us off for this installment are a few photos I took in Frontierland before meeting back up with Andrea!

End of Summer Goodbyes

2010-08-07T14:43:00.000-07:00

My sister is off on an adventure to Hawaii! The lucky little goose. This is the first of two goodbyes we'll be saying this month as shes gets ready to leave for her first semester at Humboldt. Of course I'm going to miss my sister! Things will probably seem a little lonely around here, what with her not around to tell me "leave me alone" and all that jazz. She'll be gone for a whole week before coming home for, what, one day(?) before loading up her car for college and all that higher learning.

At least we got one last sisterly bonding breakfast this morning. And she even consented to a photo together. I can't tell you how miraculous an occurrence this is!

September Trip Day 2.1

2010-08-06T18:05:00.000-07:00

Breakfast fit for a Princess

Day 2, in some ways, was really just day 1 (or maybe day 1.5) if you ask me. It was the first Disneyland day that we had fully rested without a 6 hour drive under our belt to start us off, and what a world of difference that can make right there. But day 2 sported something that Day 1 didn't and for that we were excited: our first character meal of the trip!

"What is a character meal?", you ask? Why, it is a meal with Disney characters, of course. A perfect blend of two of my favorite things about being at Disneyland: food, and my favorite Disney characters. And for this particular morning we would be having a Royal breakfast at Airel's Grotto (that's the name of the restaurant) in the Disney California Adventure park. Both parks didn't open until 10 a.m. but our PS (remember, that's a dining reservation in Disney speak) was for 9:40 a.m. We made sure to get there nice and early so once we were let into the park we would have time to get back to Paradise Pier for our meal, since it is located at the back of the park.

Similar to the rope drop that we experienced at Disneyland the day before they started letting everyone into DCA around 9:30 and with the direction of a few Cast Members we got past the ropes and were directed on where to go for our breakfast! I really enjoy having these early morning PS inside the parks because you don't often get views with absolutely no people in them!

After our arrival we got our photo taken with Ariel herself. I love the blue dress that she wears, but it really makes me miss the good old days when she had her own meet & greet in true mermaid fashion. But that's Pixie Hollow now, a meet & greet for Tinkerbell and her friends. Phooey. Of course I ordered the photo package which comes in a cute little themed folder.

Rather fittingly the restaurant has a very pretty Under the Sea theme that kept my eye wandering as we were seated and then waited for our food. The food was served family style, meaning you get a whole lot of it to share with everyone at your table. Let's see, we had a three-tiered platter with an assortment of fruits, cheeses, and breads, a big waffle as well as another tray filled with meats, potatoes, and eggs. I didn't need much encouragement to dive right in. The highlight of the food itself was probably my birthday brownie, equipped with a group of CM's to sing an Ariel's Grotto rendition of Happy Birthday.

Each of the Disneyland Resort character meals has a bit of a theme to it that continues down the line with the characters you'll find there. Ariel's Grotto, for one, is all about the Princesses. And in keeping up with that theme a Squire (or rather a CM dressed up as one) performed a little song for us before introducing each of the 4 Princesses as they entered the dining are and made their way around the room, visiting with each table for photos, autographs, and whatnot. I was really only interested in seeing one (and I'll give you one guess as to who that was), but we were graced with the presence of Cinderella, Snow White, Aurora (from Sleeping Beauty), and Belle (from Beauty & the Beast).

It was a good meal, especially considering how I am not a normal breakfast eater, made all the better by some of my favorite Disney characters. It's the way to go when you want to see the Princesses because your other option is waiting in the very long line for Princess Fantasy Faire which can be a royal pain in the you-know-what!

We did hang out in DCA for a little while after our breakfast was over before we made our way across the Esplanade back into Disneyland, proper.

I'm very excited to see this area filled with water again this September!

Summer Livin'

2010-08-06T15:53:00.000-07:00

It's been a long 8 months since the last time I ventured to this corner of the internet. How lonely my blog must have become since November of 2009! I would love to recount all that has happened in my life between then and now but let's face it, this is me, which means there was a whole lot of work and not too many fanciful stories to tell. I would hate to bore anyone (and everyone) to death. But while I'm here there's no harm in mentioning a few of the fun things that I did manage to take part in this summer:

Walt Disney Family Museum
http://disney.go.com/disneyatoz/familymuseum/index.html

This museum dedicated to the Disney family opened up at the Presidio in San Francisco last October and I have been dying to go since I heard the news. I finally got my chance just a couple of weeks ago with the dad and it was just something else. There was so much to learn about the man behind all things Disney. And we were even there on Disneyland's 55th Anniversary, which I found pretty neat. Hopefully someday very soon I will get a post up about our experience there. But I can tell you this much: I will be going back for sure!

San Francisco Walk for Hope
http://www.cityofhope.org/walkforhope/

Last October I blogged about my experience with the S.F. Walk for Hope with my Target fellow Target team members to raise money for Breast Cancer research. This past June another walk took place in S.F. with money raised benefiting research for all Women's cancers and I was glad to be able to walk in support. The walk started at Justin Hermann Plaza down the Embarcadero towards AT&T Park (home of the San Francisco Giants) and back to the Plaza coming in around 5K or 3 miles. It was a gorgeous day to be out with my coworkers to support a good cause!

AIDS Walk San Francisco
http://www.aidswalk.net/sanfran/

It's been roughly 2 years since I last took part in the AIDS Walk in San Francisco, a 10K/6.2 mile trek through Golden Gate Park. One of the things that I love about where I work is getting to participate in fundraiser events like this as well as other opportunities to help out in our community. Despite a nasty sunburn on my face it was a perfect day and I even managed to walk the entire 6.2 miles in under 2 hours (1 hour 45 minutes to be exact), but the most exciting thing was being a part of the $3 million + that was raised. And we were even treated with the cast of Wicked performing "For Good", one of my favorite songs from the amazing musical that I was lucky enough to see in person back in January.

Needless to say that my summer has been dominated by a lot of walking but some fun times have been had. I've even taken to joining the dad and the dog for some nice long walks downtown. It's about time I started adding some form of exercise into my life again! It also should come as no surprise that I am in the midst of planning another visit to Disneyland this year. 47 days to go, not that I'm counting or anything like that! It will be a belated birthday trip coinciding with HalloweenTime at the Disneyland Resort. I've been dying to see that Halloween decorations for some time now and I finally get that chance.

Funny enough I never did finish that report from last years birthday extravaganza, did I? It can't hurt to turn back the old clock and finish that, could it? It'll only get me (or keep me) in the Disney planning mood!

Troubleshooting Device

2009-11-15T14:15:00.000-08:00

Sometimes I really hate technology!

I am not any expert by any means when it comes to all of my little technological devices, especially when it comes to my iPod. I am so frustrated trying to figure this thing out. My biggest problem happens every single time I download a new version of iTunes. Every single time, without fail, my laptop and iTunes stop recognizing my iPod. It just wont mount at all. It's entirely frustrating and even though I've been through it before I just can't help but freak out that I am going to loose everything that I had. Any troubleshooting that I do says to try and restore the factory settings on the iPod, but how do you do that when your iPod isn't even coming up on your computer at all?

The solution is a lot simpler when you have more than one computer with iTunes. And thankfully we have 3! So I was actually able to restore the factory settings and get the updates that for some reason never come up when I sync it with my own iTunes library. But hey, the moral of this story is that I got it to work all on my own!

Really, I was just frustrated that I couldn't watch all of my Twilight Saga: New Moon video clips (download them for free on iTunes) on my iPod at work last night. With the movie coming out in just over 4 days, let's just say it's pretty much all I can think about!!

Thanksgiving Arts & Crafts

2009-11-14T09:31:00.000-08:00

Is Thanksgiving really only 2 weeks away? No, it's not. It's actually less than 2 weeks away. I wish I knew my finalized plans for Thanksgiving, but working retail makes it a very tricky Holiday. I know for sure I am working on Thanksgiving day and the day after (lovely Black Friday) but exactly what times is the mystery. Only time will tell.

In the mean time there are ways to get into the Thanksgiving spirit. This weekend's Fun Friday event at work is a Hand Turkey Contest. Sometimes I feel like I go back to preschool and kindergarten when I leave for work in the morning, and not a place of employment. But it's not a bad thing. I really get into our FF events, especially if there's a possibility of glitter being involved - and there was definitely glitter involved this week!

There is no justice in the world if I do not win. I want a new Target dog.

Walk for Hope

2009-10-03T15:09:00.000-07:00

Here are a couple of photos from this morning's Walk for Hope in San Francisco. It was a lot of fun and thankfully only 5K (the last walk that I did through work was 10K and I power walked the whole thing) starting from the Justin Herman Plaza along the Embarcadero to AT&T Park and back. It was a fun and emotional morning!

Time outs!

2009-10-02T19:40:00.001-07:00

Not that any explanations are really necessary, although I am sorry for the hiatus (if only too myself). I write up what I can when I can, and lately I just haven't been able too. But I am by no means done. Heck, there are still 4 days worth of Disneyland fun to talk about and share photos of plus one bonus day with a few hours spent in Hollywood!

Tomorrow morning I have something big going on, however. I will be participating in the Walk for Hope tomorrow morning in San Francisco with the Target team (in my over sized, XL Target Volunteers shirt) to raise money in support of breast cancer research.

Other fun stuff coming up? Karolina and I are going to see Toy Story & Toy Story 2 in 3-D on Sunday, and then the Sharks home opener is coming up this Thursday and guess who has herself a ticket?!

Trip Report Part VI

2009-09-23T17:38:00.000-07:00

Innovation and Invention
Anyone who knows anything about me knows that I am not a very big thrill seeker, especially in the form of roller coasters or simulators and what not. It's a big part of why, outside of Disneyland, I'm not a huge fan of amusement parks and the lot. I don't go to Disneyland for the rides (although there are many that I absolutely love), I go because of the experience. Is it surprising to anyone that I don't tend to make the venture into Tomorrowland all that often? Easily the two biggest attractions in this corner of Disneyland are Space Mountain and Star Tours. So we have a roller coaster and a simulator ride? Methinks they are not on my agenda. Ever. Or at least they were up until the new Nemo subs opened up replacing the space that used to be 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea back in 2007, which is a ride that I would venture over to see if it wasn't for lines that would go on for well over an hour.

OK, so my point is this: I don't spend a lot of time in Tomorrowland.

I've literally been on two rides in Tomorrowland to date: Atuopia and the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage and that is it. The whole theme of this years Disneyland trips (both this one and the one back in March) was all about trying new things. So guess where we were headed next? Not that there was any way she was going to get me on Star Tours, and Space Mountain was a no-go no matter what since it was closed while they installed a new Halloween theme for this years festivities. But there were a couple of things I could still try for the first time. Like the Buzz Lightyear Astro Blasters!

How can I best describe the Astro Blasters? It's like one bug, moving video game. You get into your Star Cruisers and you shoot at little targets with your hand held laser guns and you get points for every enemy target that you hit. It was an absolute blast and with a short wait time of 5 minutes while we were there, it was definitely worth it. And since it has the FastPass option I'd even give it another go during a busier season.

Let me just say that I totally kicked Andrea's butt at this one!

It felt pretty good. Games like those have never really been my strong suit, but what the hey.

And then of course there's Innoventions, which is even harder to describe than the Astro Blasters. It's not a ride, but more of a walk-through exploration kind of thing. Upon entering you play this little game show sponsored by ABC (total product plug, but what else do you expect) before you get the opportunity to explore the Elias family Dream Home, which is riddled with all kinds of high-tech digital technology. Out of all the rooms we really only discovered the full potential in one, thanks to the help of one of your friendly neighborhood cast member. It was the daughters bedroom equipped with a crazy magic mirror that lets you 'try' on clothes without actually having to put them on. It as pretty funny actually. And I loved changing the posters on the wall. I had me some fun doing some silly dancing all thanks to the poster of the dancer that us we when we went in there. Every room had something fun to discover and play with. But you have to keep in mind, the entire thing is a big old ad for Microsoft, HP, and all of the other companies involved. Again, what else do you expect these days?

The second floor didn't house too much interest for me. There were a lot of video games and what not. The only thing that I may have liked to see, but didn't think of because I was exhausted and ready to head back to the hotel at that point, was the ASIMO presentation.

But here are a few photos of the fun we had:

And thus ended my first day at Disneyland. Between the few hours of sleep, the loooooooong drive, and a day spent in the hot sun had me pretty sleepy at close to 7. No way was I going to be able to make it until park closing at 8 p.m. and still be able to make the walk back to the hotel before I actually fell asleep. I don't think sleepwalking along Harbor Blvd. would be that great of an idea. So Andrea and I parted ways at Innoventions so she could have the fun she wanted while I made plans to go catch some zzzzz's.

Coming up: Day 2 begins with a Royal Breakfast.

Trip Report Part V

2009-09-23T12:33:00.000-07:00

I can sing like the birdies sing
If there is one thing I have finally realized about this trip to Disneyland, it's that I tend to stick to one area at a time. Maybe it's a morning in this Adventureland and a night in Tomorrowland. Maybe it's one day in New Orleans Square, and another day in Fantasyland. Usually my tradition is to just bounce back and forth on a whim once I decide I want to do something and then choose to do something entirely different, not to mention that I usually stick to Disneyland for full days and give one full day to dedicate to California Adventure. But that's really how the majority of Tuesday went. We pretty much hung around the entire left-hand side of Disneyland with Adventureland, New Orleans Square, and Critter Country. How is it that we did not even set foot inside Sleeping Beauty's Castle and Fantasyland?

But it isn't all that we did on our first day. But I'm getting ahead of myself here. So let's take a couple of steps backwards.

We had just hung out with Winnie the Pooh, correct? Alright, good. After another leisurely stroll through New Orleans Square we decided to take another relaxing cruise through the jungle where, lo and behold, we were greeted by Skipper Sarah once more! What a silly little coink-e-dink, no?

Afterward, with the entrance to Indiana Jones right next door we decided why not just go ahead and use our Fast Passes that we had snatched up earlier? There was absolutely no reason not too. Sure, the stand by line was only about 35 minutes, but that was 35 minutes I didn't feel like wasting. Just to be clear though, Fast Passes don't mean that you get it right away. You just skip a huge portion of the stand by line which is quite substantial for a ride like Indiana Jones. From my photographers perspective I wish that we had gone through the stand by line at least once over the course of the week. The detail that goes into every area be it a bathroom, a stage, or a ride queue is just amazing and I have nothing to show of it. So sad, right? Our wait ended up being about 25 minutes, but that's still at least 10 minutes time we had to do something else. But it was a fast 25 minutes. We passed the time pulling on the ropes they warn you not to pull on (which still didn't make the ceiling start to drop) and what not.

Have I mentioned how much I absolutely love this ride? Especially when you're seated in the last row. For some reason you're just thrown around so much more back there that it makes it that much more exciting.

On our walk out of Adventureland, back towards Main Street, we got a little side tracked by a couple of things:

The first being The Enchanted Tiki Room. Even if you don't particularly like being serenaded by a bunch of audio-animatronic birds, you have to admit that the air conditioned attraction is a must-see during the middle of summer (or the tail end of it). It was only minutes to go until the next show so we wandered our selves into the Tiki Garden as the stories of the Hawaiian Gods came to a close. When the show finally began, wouln't you know I was right there singing along with the Glee club and all.

That second distraction (at least for me) was the appearance of Aladdin and Princess Jasmine right in front of the Oasis Theater where they used to have a little story time show that I actually enjoyed watching when I saw it back in 2007. They had a PhotoPass Photographer with them and I was all for jumping in that line for my first character photo of September 2009. This marks the first time I have ever seen Aladdin anywhere in the parks that wasn't up on stage, and Jasmine somewhere that wasn't the Princess Fantasy Faire over in Fantasyland. There was no way I could pass that opportunity up.

If by any chance you are thinking to yourself, "Where is Andrea?" right about now, I'm curious to know the answer myself. I had to go search for her, which led me to the drawbridge of Sleeping Beauty's Castle where I had no luck finding her. Maybe you can help? I searched high and low, you know you have to check in those pesky little cracks because we wouldn't want her to get lost in the compass rose, and she was nowhere to be found. Go figure.

Trip Report Part IV

2009-09-19T11:18:00.000-07:00

Friends of the Hundred Acre Wood

A bear, however hard he tries, grows tubby without exercise.
- Winnie the Pooh
How fitting of an idea: after a wonderful lunch with a friend, enjoying a wonderful visit with our friends of the Hundred Acre Wood. You know (sing with me), "Pooh Bear, Winnie the Pooh Bear", and friends. Pooh, Eeyore and the bouncy, trouncy, flouncy, pouncy Tigger have the silliest little habit of hanging around to take photos during the better part of the day over in Critter Country, and that is just no something that you can easily pass up.

And wouldn't you know it, everyone's favorite "stuffed with fluff" bear has a ride to call his very own. I always keep forgetting that it's safely tucked away in Critter Country which feels so remote from the rest of the park because of the solitary access route as you pass by the Haunted Mansion. Then again, there is a very good reason why I usually avoid Critter Country at all costs and it's name is Splash Mountain! Let's just put it this way: I sucked it up and went for a splash back in March for the first time, and as far as I'm concerned it's a once in a lifetime kind of deal! There is absolutely no need to purposefully get too close to something that would literally make your hair go white in seconds.

But Winnie the Pooh is perfectly harmless in every way, and I can now add it to my list of 'have-riddens' at Disneyland.

I absolutely love that you get to enjoy the entire ride through your own personal beehive. The name of ours? Kanga, of course.

But the fun doesn't stop there. Anyone with a sweet tooth (and we all know this includes me) has got to stop by Pooh's Corner, no questions asked. I wouldn't know what to do with myself if I could just walk in and start picking what special treats I wanted to try. I behaved myself on this occasion, however, knowing full well that I would regret any rash decision to start indulging in the sweets full speed ahead. I could look, but I just couldn't touch. I'm getting teary-eyed just thinking about it. And as you'll see, Halloween at Disneyland really is just around the corner!

Talk about a delicious afternoon!

Coming up: A final tour through Adventureland.

Trip Report Part III

2009-09-18T19:58:00.000-07:00

A Date with Pirates
Under normal circumstances any other time during the year that little run through of the Haunted Mansion would have been third in line, following another fan favorite (and favorite of ours). I'm sure somebody could take a stab at guessing which attraction I'm talking about. Here's a hint for you:

Yo Ho Yo Ho
A Pirate's life for me
I'm sure you guessed that I'm talking about a ride based off the Veggie Tales "The Pirates Who Don't do Anything". Am I right?

No, I suppose that answer wouldn't be correct after all. Of course I am talking about the ride turned three-peat of the film industry, Pirates of the Caribbean!

"Psst! Avast there! It be too late to alter course, mateys... and there be plundering pirates lurking in every cove, waitin' to board. Sit closer together, and keep your ruddy hands inboard. That be the best way to repel boarders. And mark well me words, mateys... dead men tell no tales!"

"Ye come seekin' adventure and salty ol' pirates, aye? Sure ye come to the proper place. But keep a weather eye open, mates, and hold on tight, with both hands if you please... there be squalls ahead, and Davey Jones waiting for them what don't obey..."
It never gets old saying this, but the ride just keeps getting better and better. I couldn't begin to guess how many times I have crossed those waters but I still love it now as much as I did so many years ago. If there is any justice in the world the excitement will never go away.

In a wonderful display of perfect timing, we found ourselves exiting the ride just as we needed to check in right next door at the entrance to our favorite place to eat in the park: the Blue Bayou (although now that she has dined at the exclusive Club 33 it may just be Andrea's second favorite).

We needed to be there early to check in to be sure that we got our beloved water side tables, and we're glad that we were. Between the time that we got there and the time hat they started letting us into the lobby to be seated I can't even tell you how many more parties showed up. And of course everyone is trying to tell the Hostesses that they have an early 'reservation' and they should be at the head of the line, but we all had the same time so the little argument would get them nowhere.

The wait wasn't bad however. It was still a good 20 or 30 minutes before our priority seating time (which is Disneyland speak for reservations, but it's not quite the same) but we managed to find some entertainment for ourselves. Andrea and I took turns going in and out of the shops and even found some roaming and performing pirates!

By the time we were actually seated we were the third party in to get a table. I'm very happy that we chose to do an early lunch because they always fill the water side tables first so we got our water side table no problem. I've always loved the ambiance of the restaurant but those tables only add to the experience. You really feel as though you are eating outdoors at nighttime. And if you didn't already know this the restaurant is inside of the Pirates of the Caribbean ride and you actually pass by the dining area not long after you launch from the loading docks. It's not as though the ride is passing directly next to everyone trying to enjoy a nice meal, but they are there. Because it is so dark it can be tricky to get photos from inside the restaurant without flash (which you don't want to use too much since it will likely blind everyone seating near you), but I did my best.

And just in case you were wondering, I ordered the same thing that I order wherever I go: the salmon. And their Blackened-Cajun Salmon is almost as to-die-for as that Mediterranean Salmon I had back in Texas this summer that I have been craving ever since. I just wish I could have eaten the whole thing but I was so hungry I had already stuffed my little face with the salad before we even got to our entrees. But it was delicious nonetheless. And it being my birthday and all, we even got a little extra treat in the form of a delicious little chocolate mousse desert.

Yes, that is a birthday candle in my iced tea!

It was a great lunch and put us in an even better mood for the rest of the afternoon. I don't know how happy we would have been with each other after such a long morning if we hadn't decided to add this meal into the mix for our first day.

Coming up: We meet Winnie the Pooh & Friends

Trip Report Part II

2009-09-17T17:20:00.000-07:00

Here you leave today
And enter the world
of yesterday, tomorrow
and fantasy
- Walt Disney
Our first day in the park was just amazing, and a much better all-around experience than we had on our first day back in March. If you haven't heard me tell you the tale of what went down on that not-so-Magical day, you'll have to keep waiting. That is a story for another day.

While Andrea was busy changing into something that wasn't sequin-color-contaminated, me and my own two legs walked along Harbor Blvd. just enjoying the sights and sounds that took me closer to Disneyland inch by inch, step by step. I'm a fast walker so I would venture a guess that the walk from the hotel to the park gates takes me just about 5 minutes (or longer if I decide to slow it down which is not very often). I am a speed-walking fiend I tell you!

Here's an awesome image that I found that shows you the very simple and straightforward walk from that I have made more times than I can count this year:

The best (and really the only entertaining) part about the walk is all the little hints that you are getting closer and closer to Disneyland. The lamp posts proudly display banners advertising the latest and greatest that Disneyland has to offer. Back in March they were the same "Celebrate Today" images that were used with this year's "What Will You Celebrate" promotion (that included the free admission on your birthday) and matched the park hoppers (a.k.a. tickets) we held in our hand. The lamp posts were sporting a different look this time around, advertising the D23 Expo that would be taking place at the Anaheim Convention Center from September 10th - 13th.

Do I really need to tell you that just seeing them put the spring right back in my step?

It would have been awesome to be able to attend the Expo. I keep in touch with a few people who went to different events throughout the weekend and it just seemed like so much fun, and there was so much Disney history to be found there, along with exciting new announcements (and a preview of The Princess & the Frog that I would have loved to see). Heck, Johnny Depp even made an appearance decked out in full Captain Jack Sparrow attire. You had better believe I would have done anything to be there if I could have. Did you know that they are making a 4th Pirates of the Caribbean movie? Well, you do now.

The most important part of the walk however, is when you reach that turning point and get ready to cross Harbor Blvd. (without getting hit by a swiftly moving vehicle, which is why we have traffic lights). For any Disney fanatic, this is a beautiful sight:

The plan was for me to get their first since I am the faster walker between the two of us and stake out spots in line to get ready for the glorious moment that they start letting non-Magic Morning regular entrance folks like ourselves in through those green gates with that wand waving sound that tells us we've been granted a Magical day (if you have no idea what I mean by Magical Morning, you will in due course, I promise you this). Of course if I had remembered that they start letting people onto Main Street en masse 30 minutes prior to the rope drop that will open up all of the different Lands of Disney we may have reworked our strategy somewhat. So I was into the parks before Andre managed to meet me there, which was all fine and dandy. I needed to swing by City Hall to get that all-important birthday badge to let everyone know exactly what I was celebrating!

Once my birthday badge (which sported my naickname, Jazz, because it's just so much fun) was securely in place and visible for all it was time to start off the real Disneyland adventure.

First we would venture into the world of yesterday and the 1950's exotic adventure of Adventureland! There I met up with Andre outside the entrance to the world famous Jungle Cruise. It's tradition that this ride always be our first stop. Always. And no matter how many times I have heard the jokes I think I will always love this ride. They are so full of cheese, but that's why we love it. Our Skipper wasn't the best that I've had, but she wasn't the worst either. But I was expecting a little more from her first cruise out on the day.

Shh! You're supposed to attack the next boat!!

There's old Trader Sam, head salesman of the area. Business has been shrinking lately, so this week only, Sam's offering a two-for-one special: two of his, for one of yours! Either way you slice, you always come out ahead.
Going back even further into yesterday, we made our way into what is hands down our favorite 'land' to just chill in: New Orleans Square. What is there in New Orleans Square that we don't love? Pirates of the Caribbean? Love it! Blue Bayou? Love it! Haunted Mansion? Love it! Do you know what else we love? The Jambalaya Jazz Band! And they certainly got a kick out of my beloved nickname. It would be a memorable one for Cast Members all over the park.

And let that photo just go to show you just how bright it was that morning. There was so much sunlight everywhere! We got some Mardi Gras beads out of the deal. I wish we could have stayed to watch them perform a little while longer because they're awesome, but we were on a mission to get our Haunted Mansion fix in before they closed it on the 10th for the Haunted Mansion Holiday that opens up just in time for the Halloween season.

Coming up: We have a lunch date on the Bayou

Trip Report Part I

2009-09-16T19:58:00.000-07:00

The very big day of our departure from home and arrival at the 'Happiest Place on Earth' was Tuesday, September 8 2009. After as much sleep as I could get between an early birthday dinner with the family and Andrea at Fudruckers and my wake up time of 1 a.m. I was all packed and ready to go, go, go, go, go! Our luggage was packed and waiting for us to load it into Andrea's car and all that was left to do was shower and dress, eat and just be amazed that we were finally on our way out the door.

We do not know how to pack light.

We're letting the excitement get to us. Can you tell?

It's time to get down to business. We're leaving NOW!
I'm not joking when I said I was back up at 1 a.m. The goal was to be out on the road at 2:30 a.m. and not a moment later. We did pretty good for ourselves, we had the car all loaded and were officially on 680 at 2:30 exactly. Heck, that put us ahead of schedule if you wanted to get technical about it. But what is there really to say about the drive from Northern California along I-5 to Southern California.

It's very boring.

It's very long.

Luckily, we managed to stay awake.

We did pass the time with a lot (and I do mean a lot) of music. I do believe the final playlist that we made had over 9 hours of songs on it and we proudly sang along with every one that came on. But what would a road trip be without a classic? Sometime around 4 a.m. Andrea decided it was the perfect time to start randomly singing "99 Bottles of Beer". Classy, right? I still think we should have found a way to incorporate something Disney into it, like those delicious Disneyland Mint Juleps our mouths had been watering over for in anticipation for months. I hope that you feel very privileged, because I am going to share with you the video that we made, capturing the final 87 bottles of beer. Well, at the very least you should be glad that we didn't start it all over again once we hit zero.

And if by some miracle you actually watched all 9 1/2 minutes, you must be insane. Or bored.

And while I'm sitting here sharing video, why not share this one as well? It is the whole reason we took the Flip camcorder in the first place. The only time I ever find the drive along I-5 somewhat pretty is when the sun is still rising. Otherwise it's enough to put me to sleep, almost literally.

The sad part is that, unlike our experience back in March, we actually hit traffic in L.A. It was depressing, but it has to be expected, right? I was starting to get worried that we would never make it to our hotel of choice in time to check in, stow our luggage, and walk along Harbor Blvd. to the parks before the gates opened. But in the end it all worked out.

We did manage to get to our hotel of choice, the Howard Johnson Plaza Hotel, in decent time. In fact it only ended up taking us 6 1/2 hours to get there, so it was only just after 9 a.m. when I checked us in to find that our room was already ready to go. That was some great news! We could actually take our luggage to our room, lock away some of the important valuables (like my laptop) and do a little refreshing before heading over to the park. It really helped in Andrea's case because somehow the totally awesome sequin lanyards that we found weren't as awesome as we would have liked. We noticed that she had a line of purple along her neck, and shirt. Bah-humbug!

The HoJo as we like to call it.

And a couple of photos of our room:

Coming up: We enter the world of yesterday, tomorrow, and Fantasy!!

Day one is done

2009-09-16T19:53:00.000-07:00

I have finally done it, all of my Disneyland photos from our first day at Walt's first park are officially edited and ready for sharing. This is a process that started while we were still in Anaheim and it took me until tonight to complete. Crazy. Look for a link to the Flickr album in the side bar! And so now I move on to the trip report! Keep your eyes open for it. There will be plenty to share about our day.

Home Sweet Home

2009-09-13T20:16:00.000-07:00

It's been an exhausting 6 days, but completely worth it. No doubt about that. The drive home today was looooooong, let me tell you. For some reason the drive home felt about 500 times longer than the drive to Anaheim itself. Maybe it was the fact that there were more drivers on the road in the middle of the day than the middle of the night. Who knows. What I do know is that my back is killing me. 6 hours is far too long to be sitting down in such a confined space like that.

As much as I loved every second of this vacation I am glad to be home. I missed my cats. I missed sleeping in my own bed. I missed having wireless internet!!

Now comes to hard part. Editing the photos I took and writing a little more about what went down this week. It will get done in time. I think. Can you take a guess how many photos I took while at Disneyland? I just counted. Drum roll, please!

.
..
...
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.......
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...
..
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2,760 photos. And I am not joking in the slightest. That doesn't even include the ones that I deleted while I was there because they didn't come out. The number will go down a bit once I start editing them, but that's still a lot of photos to go through. I'll be busy for years I'm sure. Between work, school, and now this? Maybe I'll never finish. On top of the photos I did take a whole bunch of video throughout the park whenever I got the chance. Maybe I'll share those tomorrow!

Murphy's Law

2009-09-11T22:51:00.000-07:00

Anything that can go wrong will go wrong
Or not. We've been lucky enough that the majority of this trip has been full of nothing but the happiest positives of all. It's a complete 180 to how we started off our last visit to Disneyland where everything truly did seem to go wrong. This morning was a little rough, but hey, everything went uphill from there. The end result is the only one that matters.

On to a completely new topic! Tonight was a night Dre and I had been waiting for with more anticipation than I can describe. One of our favorite 'attractions' at Disneyland is their nighttime show Fantasmic! There were a few upgrades done since the last time I saw the show back in March, and one of them in particular had a really big bump in the road! There is a brand new dragon who was dubbed Murphy due to all of the bad luck associated with her (and the dragon is a her). Well, she finally arrived fashionably late (by a couple of months) earlier in September.

Boy, oh boy! Murphy was amazing!

I absolutely love some of the photos I got tonight, but I am definitely getting more tomorrow. The shots are great, but very grainy because of the settings I had my camera on and I know I can get some better shots tomorrow night if I just tweak a couple of things beforehand.

Happy Birthday to me!!

2009-09-10T20:22:00.000-07:00

This is my birthday song
It isn't very long
We've been celebrating my birthday since we got to Disneyland on Tuesday, but today was my actual birthday! And there is no doubt about it, it's the best birthday I have ever had - well except for that actual birth day. That one seems kind of important.

The kicker in why I made the decision to come for my actual birthday rather than celebrate my birthday any old time I came down here was because of the "free admission on your birthday" promotion that has been going on in 2009. Or in my case a $72 gift card since I already had admission for 5 whole days.

Of course I already spent the full gift card! And I still have more shopping to do tomorrow with the rest of my birthday money. I don't know what to do with myself!

And yes, those are my awesome birthday cards on display in our hotel in the background. I bought a purse, a necklace (shock, right?), and a Precious Moments Snow White figurine that I have had my eyes on since March! She wont be alone by the time I come home either.

Hello from Anaheim!!

2009-09-09T20:08:00.000-07:00

Greetings from Disneyland!!

Dre and I have already been here for 2 whole days - and in case you are wondering, we're having the most magical time! Heck, even better than that. And we're still going to be here for 3 more days before spending the 4th just taking our time on the way home. The fun is just never ending.

And it is just awesome being told happy birthday every time you turn around. We all know how much I love to be the center of attention! And heck, it's not even my official birthday just yet. That would be tomorrow!!! Big day that will be.

I'll be 23!

To hold you over until we get home and have the chance to tell (and show) you all about what we've been doing, here are a few photos from our first 2 days:

It's Jazz & the Jazz Band

Before an amazing lunch at Blue Bayou

My favorite Princess!!

Maybe you can settle this for us. We were debating who's taller: me or Pan?

It's D-Day!

2009-09-08T02:00:00.000-07:00

And by D-Day, in case you were wondering, I mean Disneyland Day. Dre and I are just about to pack up the car and high tail it out of here! I-5, here we come! But I do have on question for you: How many suitcases does it take 2 girls for 5 nights and 6 days in Disneyland?

Why, this many of course!

It's early, but we are ready!

1 day to go

2009-09-07T15:14:00.000-07:00

As of 10:30 this morning, I am officially on vacation!! In less than 24 hours Andrea and I will actually be in Disneyland! And in just about 12 hours we'll actually be hitting the road.

It's finally here.

And we're busy with the last minute preparations. I swear, every five minutes or so I keep thinking of something that I left at home. And of course the plan was to be here at Dre's for the rest of the day until the small scale birthday dinner with my parents at Fudruckers. But we'll figure it all out somehow, right?

2 days to go - and a Meme

2009-09-06T17:16:00.000-07:00

Considering it's already 5 p.m. right now, I really think it's safe to say I only have one day left. I'm hoping to be asleep no later than 7:30 tomorrow so I can be ready to wake up around 1 a.m. or so on Tuesday. It's crazy! I'm finally almost done with the packing. I just have to round up all of the electronics that we'll need. There sure is a lot! When did it start to take over our loves, huh? There are the chargers for the cameras, my cell phone, my laptop and of course all of the countless cords necessary to transfer all of my photos over every day. It adds up pretty fast. You almost need a whole suitcase dedicated strictly to electronics.

And you can't forget the iPod! Dre and I have spent the past couple of days gathering all the music we want for the drive and it's got me stoked. We even added some songs from the Glee Cast to the playlist. I'm sad we'll be missing the season premiere of Glee on Wednesday after So You Think You Can Dance, but may be if we haul you-know-what back to the hotel we may still be able to catch it. I can't help it. FOX is working it's tail off to promote this show and I have fallen into the trap headfirst, but I don't mind.

I am a Gleek.

And because I'm bored, here's a Meme my mom filled out on Facebook and I was too lazy to do then:

Yes or No - Share
You can ONLY answer Yes or No.

You are NOT ALLOWED to explain ANYTHING unless someone messages or comments you and asks. -- and believe me, the temptation to explain some of these will be overwhelming nothing is exactly as it seems.

Shot a gun? No

Skinny-dipped? No

Gave someone stitches? No

Ridden a surfboard? No

Drank straight from a liquor bottle? Yes

Had surgery? No

Taken by ambulance to hospital? No

Peed on a bush? No

Donated Blood? No

Grabbed electric fence? No

Eaten Alligator/Crocodile meat? No

Killed an animal when not hunting? No

Snuck into a movie without paying? No

Written graffiti? No

Still love someone you shouldn't? No

Been in handcuffs? No

I am completely uninteresting, huh?

3 days to go

2009-09-05T15:01:00.000-07:00

3 days to go now. That means there are only 3 sleeps and 2 shifts of work (totaling 12 hours) standing between me and the Happiest Place on Earth.

And I still haven't packed.

But at least I started. That's what counts, right? That leaves me tomorrow to finish my laundry and set aside the clothes I'll need for Monday and then the real progress of packing can start. It just feels so weird to have so little done already when we're leaving so soon - if that makes any sense. I have a plan, now all I have to do is stick to it and we'll see where I go.

I just can't wait to get the birthday celebrations started. It's going to be weird not being home for my birthday this year, but it's going to be awesome. But there wont be any birthday cards in the mail to look forward to until we get home next Sunday. All I had in today's mail was a statement from the credit union. No more mail until Tuesday afternoon now, by which time we will be long gone.

Sigh.

Well, at least I have one. Thanks to Karolina. We went out to lunch at CPK today (a favorite of mine and Bamma's) and it was delicious as always. I don't know what I would do without a BBQ chicken pizza every now and again. And seeing Karolina is always a plus. I miss being able to see her at work every day.

Speaking of work ... I have that dreaded overnight shift tonight. But at least I wont have to do it again until September 19th.

4 days to go

2009-09-04T16:54:00.001-07:00

I'm so excited - and I just can't hide it
I'm about to loose control - and I think I like it

I have a Disneyland Park Hopper, and I know how to use it!!

I don't think I really need to tell anyone, again, just how excited I am that I'm now only 4 days away (less actually) from my Happiest Place on Earth. And I just want to do a little happy Goofy dance every time I look at my PH. My PH in March had Mickey & Minnie Mouse. I guess I need to go back again so I can get the one Dre had with Huey, Dewey and Louie. I wonder if they has any more, haha!

It's time to start the countdown

2009-09-02T06:53:00.001-07:00

6!! Only 6 days until all the fun of my birthday extravaganza at Disneyland begin. And now, because you haven't had enough of me telling you how many days to go, you get to read all about it. I'm going through some major planning withdrawals right now, and I'm falling too far behind. Why on earth haven't I started packing anything yet?! Aren't the obsessive compulsive pack rat who takes close to two whole weeks to pack everything to make sure nothing is skipped over because she got tired of winding up down a toothbrush and pajamas wherever she went? Today will be the day, I tell you.

I know we're getting together on Thursday so I can catch up on the end of season 2 of True Blood, but we also have to tackle the all-important playlist on my iPod to make for the drive to Anaheim as well as the drive home, which is guaranteed to include a couple of Dre-Jazz staples like "the man song" which is our affectionate term for a track off the Mulan soundtrack better known as "I'll Make a Man Out of You". Speaking of, we were recently asked by someone what it is about that song and why women seem to like it so much. It turns out that his wife has pretty much the same reaction we do whenever we hear the song. In the words of Dre ...

Donny Osmond + Machismo =
I know that outside of the packing and the playlist there isn't a whole lot to do, but I'm just antsy and feel like I should be doing something. I keep going over everything in my head:

- Park Hoppers? Check. Thanks to Disney's summer promotion we get 2 days free with the purchase of our 3 day hoppers (Disney speak for tickets). Getting them through the Credit Union also ended up saving us another $20-40 if we had purchased them through Disney.

- Hotel Reservation? Check. We're staying at the Howard Johnson on Harbor Blvd. again, which is a few minutes walking distance to the park gates. We even scored on their entertainment rate this time. What is an entertainment rate? It's a 50% discount that they offer on select dates if you have a valid Entertainment Card, which is the discount card that comes with the Entertainment Book. So we've got our room booked at $57/night.

- Entertainment Card? Check. This is one that I almost let slip my mind. Oh, how sorry I would have been! But a quick search on eBay, $1.50, and 3 days later I officially have our little piece of plastic that is saving us so much money.

- Priority Seating? Check. Here's another Disney term that you probably haven't heard before. Priority Seating is similar to a typical dining reservation, and can be made 60 days in advance. Rather than waiting until I could call and make them all at once I had so much fun calling each day that we reached 60 days out from when we had planned our dining! We made a total of 4 different PS: Blue Bayou (the restaurant that is inside Pirates of the Caribbean), Ariel's Grotto (character meal), Goofy's Kitchen (character meal), and Minnie & Friend's (character meal).

Dre and I did the Minnie & Friend's Breakfast in the park back in March:

Fairy Godmother loved the color of my nail polish.

Dale almost knocked my ears off.

- Free admission on my birthday? un-Check. I may not be getting the free admission on my birthday because we already have 5 day Park Hoppers, but that doesn't mean I am not loving this year's birthday promotion!! I've registered and printed out my voucher, now all I have to do is take my ID and Park Hopper to get my Birthday Fun Card. So much better than the free admission. They give me $72 to go spend in the parks. How awesome is that?! It's going to be so hard to decide what I want to buy, but I'm sure that I'll manage. I wonder if I can also use my 10% coupon. Hmmm.

Be prepared. I am not done talking about Disneyland. Not by a long shot!

Oh, and remember! I wont be home on my actual birthday or a few days before - but I will shamelessly beg for some awesome voice mail on my cell phone of everyone singing me happy birthday.

Procrastination schmastination

2009-08-26T19:25:00.000-07:00

Me? Procrastinate? NEVER! And I'm sure you believe me, right?

Everyone procrastinates, everyone, and I am no exception. To be fair I haven't been as guilty as I have been in the past, but I still have my moments. The good news is I've been getting all of my school work done. The not-so bad news is that I've been a little too focused on a couple of other things.

1. Blood Promise. A brand new book in a series (yes, more Vampires that aren't Twilight related) that I read was released yesterday. It was one of those moments where I actually love Tuesdays, which is usually never seeing as it's the one day out of the week that I have to be at work at 5 a.m., but I get first dibs on all of the new releases (Tuesday is the big release day for entertainment: movies, music, books, games, etc). I couldn't wait until I could get my hands on my copy and dive in as fast as I could, but remember that whole school thing? Being the good girl that I am I went to my biology class straight after work and sat there from noon to 4:50 p.m. Just think, if I had actually gone home and read I probably would have finished the book by then!

Once I got home it was a different story though. Lily and I curled up in my bed, I cracked that sucker open, and it was a 5-hour straight reading frenzy from cover to cover.

On a side note, the author is doing a reading & signing in S.F. tomorrow and I really, really, really want to go!!

2. Haircuts. This happens to me every single time without fail. I always wait until the last minute to give Lisa a call and set up an appointment to get my hair cut. I've been meaning to give her a ring because I really want my hair cut and looking pretty before I skip on over to the Happiest Place on Earth, but guess who kept putting it off until it was too late? That would be ME in some bright neon flashing lights over here. The only reason I remembered to actually make my appointment today was after chatting with Bamma on the phone while she was on her way to get her hair all done. So will I be getting my hair cut? Yes. Will I be getting my hair cut before Disneyland? Heeeeeeeeck no. This will sure make for interesting mornings in the hotel, trying to straighten my too-long hair.

What is it they say? Even the best meant intentions mean nothing without actions.

So, like I said, I've been very good lately. Unless I'm just blocking something out of my mind entirely ...

Mommy, do I make you proud?

2009-08-18T18:10:00.000-07:00

I did it! I survived my first day of the new Fall 2009 semester. Whew!! I was worried there for a second, you know.

Alright, so that's not quite so true. I have not been nearly as nervous as this semester started approaching as I have in the past, and it was especially easier compared to last semester and I'm feeling good about it. I had the first day for each of my three classes between yesterday and today and here is my breakdown of how things went:

Introduction to Dance
I just know I am going to L-O-V-E this class. We haven't done anything other than talking about the new flooring that was installed in the dance studio very recently and what type of dance shoes would be appropriate for class. The other option is to go barefooted, so I have to weigh the pros and cons of my hatred of bare feet or the cost of dance shoes. We'll see. I think I will suck it up and show off my little piggies tomorrow and we'll go from there. We're actually going to start dancing tomorrow, which I am tres-excited for. Based on the outline we received we'll be covering the basics of a wide variety of dance (including some ballet, jazz, modern, latin, and even some hip hop) that may end up incorporating some Hula!! I can just picture it now in my head. That would make for an interesting class.

I don't think I'll have to worry because this kind of P.E. sounds right up my alley, but I really do hope I enjoy this class. I know I love to watch dance, now it's my turn to see if I can dance.

So you think you can dance? Haha! I can't help myself =D

Introduction to Drawing, Color, and Two-Dimensional Design
It is going to take me some time to get into a comfort zone here. I have never been good with a pencil in my hand when it comes to writing, let alone drawing something. But this is a required course for my current study focus. It's time to suck it up and learn from the experience. Our instructor may not have the best English, but he sure makes up for it in energy. He's like an energizer bunny, almost, and we spent a lot of the class period laughing - but let me say we weren't goofing off. It was all entirely on point!

To my dismay we did do some impromptu sketching where he wanted us to focus on continuous lines to separate the space and we were given roughly 5 minutes to complete each one. I am going to go hid my face for eternity for showing you these, but I guess I should document my progress. Here goes nothing:

I call them my melting figures, because that's about all I get out of them. At least they were better than some people sitting near me.

I still have a few supplies that I need to get before class tomorrow. I'm lucky enough that heather has some leftover supplies from her Art class a few semesters ago. Really, all I think I need at this point is a new drawing pad and pocket sketchbook. And in other good news, since art supplies do not come by cheap there are no required textbooks to read!

Fundamentals of Biological Science
Confession time! This is my 3rd attempt now at taking this class. The very first semester I enrolled in Biology just happened to coincide with my first full on panic attack that landed me in the E.R. I ended up withdrawing that semester. I enrolled in the section again just last semester, but my day was packed far too full and I needed to cut myself a hole to breathe. So bye-bye Bio attempt 2!

Third times the charm!

I'll be having lecture on both Tuesday and Thursday and my lab will be on Tuesdays. So that means I already had my first lab today. All together it wasn't a bad class. Lecture was your normal "let's discuss the syllabus" monologue and a brief introduction to "What is life?" And the lovely lovely lab that I have no completed 3 times. So hard, right? It didn't matter how smoothly all of that went. There's something about being in a lab that just gets me panicking. I hope I can get through every lab day without having to take an Ativan. That stuff really slows me down.

Bio would be the class I'm holding back judgment on. I'm confidant I'll make it through the semester this time though. That's good news, right?

Alright! Alright! That's all there is folks. I'm sure you're just dying to bust out laughing at my wonderful art.

Mom's birthday dinner

2009-08-05T14:49:00.000-07:00

We went to Claim Jumper (aka home of too much damn food) for mom's birthday dinner on Monday. I swear one plate could feed a whole family. I just wish my meal had been more appetizing. I love salmon. I love BBQ sauce. I love putting BBQ sauce on just about everything. Wouldn't it make sense that I would like BBQ sauce on salmon? I don't know if it was just because of everything else I had eaten but to be honest it was disgusting. Then again, when I ate the leftovers the next day it tasted better. I had a good afternoon with mom though. We went to lunch, the bookstore (bought her a couple of books), and went and saw a movie together (which brings the count to 3 times I have seen The Proposal now). One last Happy Birthday to you, mom!

For the love of a working laptop!

2009-08-05T11:52:00.000-07:00

Maybe it's a sign that I am an addict (whoddathunk it) but the past month or so without my laptop has been an absolute nightmare! It was great of Heather and mom to share theirs but it just wasn't the same. I think what hurt the most was having no Photoshop. Having no PS meant that I couldn't really even open my photos since I shoot in RAW and I need a special application in PS to even be able to open them, let alone editing them how I need to. No I have hundreds of photos from Texas alone that I finally have a chance to go through and edit. It's like the Disneyland experience all over again. Now the only trouble is finding the USB cord for my card reader. I haven't used it in so long that I forget where I put it last.

And just because mine is officially "next" in the house, my birthday is in 36 days!! One month from Monday. It's so exciting. More so than any year before seeing as I will actually be spending my birthday at Disneyland!! I can't help it, I will be writing about it a lot. Heck, Dre and I will actually be setting foot at the resort in only 34 days. That really isn't very far away when you think about it. I just have a month of school and work (complete with a new process in how to do my job rolling out this month that I have to learn) to get through. I can do it! Yes I can!

Now it is off to Dre's to catch up on True Blood!

Happy Fourth!

2009-07-04T14:23:00.000-07:00

I haven't quite found a moment to write anything since I got home from Texas last week. Have I really been home for one week already? A big part of me wishes I was still there. I don't miss the insane heat, and I certainly don't miss the humidty that made me feel like I was swallowing trying to breathe through a fishbowl, but I was nowhere near ready to say goodbye to everybody - not by a long shot. But I am home again. I'm back where the roads are the right color and traffic lights are standing on their own rather than hanging from wires. I'm back where the days may be hot, but the nights can still be pretty darn cool and I can actually dry off in the sun.

The big things that are going on right now involve one of my favorite places in the world and one of my least favorite places in the world: Disneyland and DVC. Take a stab at guessing which one is which, I'm sure it wont be that hard.

1. Disneyland. The folks on the DIS have a saying for what I'm going through. It's called the Disneyland Snowball Effect (or as dad said the other day, it's a Snow-White Effect): even the smallest of trips will snowball into an even bigger and better Disneyland vacation. Throw in the free admission on your birthday and is it any suprprise that I'm planning to go back for my 23rd birthday in September? Of course not!! I am now exactly 66 days away from our arrival which means just over 2 months until I'm there! Planning is going to start kicking into a higher gear in 6 days when I can start making our reservations for dining options while we're there. Right now 2 other friends will be joining me with another possibly along for the ride if she can get the time off from work approved. I really can't wait, and I'm sure everyone else can't either - even if it's just because me being there will stop me from talking about it for a short while. I can't help it!!

2. DVC. I finally registered for the Fall 2009 semester the other day. It's really hard to find the right time for classes with my work schedule, especially when you take into consideration how long each class is. I'm taking Biology with a Lab that's a good 3-4 hour chunk out of the day and doesn't leave any time really for another class, and the same thing with the Art class that I'll be taking now that I know I'm working towards my Associate's Degree in Digital Media. I've also added in a dance class to start taking care of me P.E. requirements all thanks to one of my favorite shows - So You Think You Can Dance. It's something I would love to give a try and I've got my fingers crossed that I'll enjoy it.

I wish I could say that I was doing something fun today, like watching fireworks tonight. But unfortunately, that wont be the case. Mom and dad went downtown to watch the parade this morning but I didn't go and since I have to be at work all night tonight I will be trading in a little sleep and time to get ready for my shift for the chance to watch fireworks again. At least I got to see some while I was in Texas right? On the bright side, we're supposed to have food provided for us overnight since they are BBQ'ing for the dayside team. I'm really looking forward to that. I love free food.

Fun day Friday

2009-06-26T16:05:00.000-07:00

There's really no other way to describe today other than plain old fun! Everybody hit the boardwalk today for rides, games, and food. I'd been to the Kemah Boardwalk briefly before the last time I was out here in 2004 but we never hit the rides side of the boardwalk, only the food and shopping. Heck, I don't even know if there were any rides there the last time I was here; who knows?

I really wish I was more of a thrill-seeker. There wouldn't really be much for me to do if I had been on my own since I don't do those kinds of rides at all. Disneyland rides I can do; carnival rides I cannot do. But of course with a whole gaggle of little kids tagging along there was plenty for me to do. The whole bunch did ride this little train though. And what a long train ride that was - it wasn't just a quickie let's all go in a circle real fast kind of train ride. We went all around the boardwalk and even doubled back at least once. The kids really loved these little tunnels and caves that had a kind of Old West theme to them.

Uncle Brian, Bamma and I ended up going off on our own for a little bit to go through the shops at the other end of the boardwalk while Denise, Heidi and the kids went on a few more rides and then dissapeared into this little water-spout play area to cool off. I do want to know who's brilliant idea it was that there should be thousands of options in souveniers as far as shot glasses are concerned, but can I find a single water globe? Of course not. I'm really bummed about that. I need to find one somewhere. The Zoo had a couple of really dinky ones and that's all I've been able to find so far. In case you can't tell, I collect water globes (or snow globes, if that's what you prefer to call them). When we were done we met up with the gang to watch the kids running through the water, having the time of their life.

And shocker alert. I took Austin off Denise's hands for a little bit and fed him his bottle.

So much fun already and the day wasn't even half over!! Austin wasn't the only one who needed to eat so we all made our way over to Joe's Crab Shack for some yummy-yummy lunch. It was very good food, and believe it or not I actually ordered something that wasn't salmon (which I've had no less than 3 times since I got here). The only downside was that they didn't have an BBQ sauce that wasn't super spicy. I love my BBQ sauce with just about anything, but I can't take the heat!

The plan was to head back to Bamma's house after everyone was done with their last round-about with the rides so we could all enjoy some time in the pool before the dinner with everybody followed by a night out on Uncle Mark's boat to watch the fireworks out in the bay at the boardwalk. It's cray how warm the water in the pool is just from being heated by the sun all day long. Going swimming in a pool is more like taking a nice long bath in the biggest tub you've ever seen than anything else. Denise took a lot more photos than I got. I can't wait to see them.

I think anybody who knows me also knows that I am not a fan of boats; they probably also know that I'm not a fan of fireworks either. This whole idea of going out on Uncle Mark's boat to watch the fireworks wasn't really my idea of the best way to find entertainment for the night, but I was along for the ride. It turns out there's somebody else who doesn't like boats: Mikala. I think I have now witnessed first hand what it must have been like those very few times I ever went on a boat with my family when I was younger. I vaguely remember them, and I just remember that it didn't go over very well for me. I will admit, the rocking of the boat on the itty bitty waves was not my highlight of the night, but I didn't freak out. To be honest, I enjoyed it a lot. We got to watch the sunset, the fireworks, and it's not a bad view at all!

Everybody is here!

2009-06-25T19:12:00.000-07:00

Today was even hotter than any other day that I've been here. Bamma, Aunt Heidi, Jayden, Anika and I all went into Houston to go to the Zoo and I am not joking - it was about 104 degrees!! You know, just a little hot, nothing we can't handle ... NOT! I was sweating up a storm, but I made it through the day. The heat meant my camera stayed packed away for most of the day. It was just too hot to keep that straped around my neck the whole day long. It's a pretty neat Zoo, if I do say so. It's so much different from the Zoo in San Francisco though, but with some beautiful landscaping. Too bad the heat meant that a lot of the animals were M.I.A. and fast asleep, trying to beat the heat.

The flamingos are Anika's favorites!

But the bigger fun today happened later! Uncle Brian arrived with Denise, Travis, Mikala, and little Austin (what a cutie) just a few hours ago. I can't even tell you how long it's been since I've seen Brian, and I think the last time that I saw Denise and the kids (minus Austin) was right after I graduated in 2004. Back then Mikala was repeating everything I could get her to say and Travis was still scooting around on his back. My, oh my! Things have really changed in the past 5 years. They're both so big. And then there's little Austin. He's 8 months old. How wierd is it to think that I have a little brother who's only 8 months old! But that's alright. He's just a cutie and it just melts your heart to see his big baby-grins! Oh, and he's just the spitting image of Denise!

Travis and Jayden have been inseperable since Denise pulled up and everyone got out of the van so it's been pretty impossible to get a photo of him. I can't wait to have a full day of fun tomorrow. Mikala and Ana had some fun putting on some little dance shows that remind me of when I was a little girl. Any moment I could get another cousin or even my sister to go along with it we would put on a little dance show or game show for the family to watch. There's nothing like being the center of everyone's attention when you're little!

A day in photos

2009-06-24T06:07:00.000-07:00

Let's take a look back at the fun we had with Heidi and the munchkins yesterdy!

Anika really, really wanted her picture taken.

Then she wanted to get one with her tongue sticking out.

We can't forget about Jayden!

They both wanted me to take one of myself.

Anika was completely passed out when we got to Fudruckers.

Jayden got his hands on some silly whistle teeth.

Let's not forget about Bamma.

Or Aunt Heidi with a silly Jayden.

Anika really loved her cookie.

Bamma took one of me with Anika!

Anika wanted her own pair of silly teeth.

Anika and her rotting teeth!

Jayden showing us all what happens when you don't brush your teeth.

Anika really wasn't too sure about the mist screen at first, but she really loved it by the time we left.

Jayden was waiting in line for an Indiana Jones bouncy-maze.

There wasn't much for Anika to do there, but she spent a lot of time in this Martian-Matrix ball pit thing.

Anika and Aunt Heidi while we all waited for Jayden to go through the bouncer a second time.

Anika gave me a big hug before we went through some virtual reality tours.

Jayden and Anika trying to land a space shuttle without crashing (I crashed).

Anika and Jayden took me through a display of what the shuttles look like on the inside.

We even landed on Mars.

Back at the house, we made some new ears for Anike.

After that we all went swimming, but it's kind of hard to get pictures with an expensive camera when you're in the pool!! Jayden even got a haircut, but I haven't gotten any pictures of it yet. Today we're off to get pedicures and have a movie day!

Laptop-less

2009-06-23T17:28:00.000-07:00

For some reason I am having horrible luck with electronics these days (among other things). Ever since my vacation officially started it's been one small thing after another. The big, big error though involves my laptop. After my flight, on my first morning here in Texas, I went to turn on my laptop so I could upload the photos that I took on the plane and nothing happens except this weird clicking noise.

My heard drive is dead. Insert really bad word here. I am not happy at all because until I can get it fixed and get Photoshop/Camera RAW up and running again I won't be able to view any of my photos. Not to mention if I run out of space on my memory cards with my camera (which I will) I have nowhere to transfer them to so I can take more. Big, big headache, and an even bigger downer. It's a shame, because we're having so much fun and I wish I could share photos of what all we're doing.

Today we had lunch at Fudrucker's - the layout of the restaurant we went to and the decor is so completely different that what I am used to at home, but it was so awesome. It almost reminds me a little of Red Robin with all of the framed photos and art on the walls. But the burgers and fries are just as tasty as I remember them. Then it was off to the Lyndon B. Johnson Space Center for a very full afternoon of fun. My little cousins Jayden and Anika were pulling me left and right to show me everything that they could.

Throw in a couple of hours in the pool and you have yourself a pretty awesome day!

In air commentary

2009-06-21T23:45:00.000-07:00

Going Away, Coming Home, by Oakland artist Hung Liu
** 6:36 (8:36)
The fasten seatbelt sign was officially taken off! I can’t really hear what the Pilot is saying when he makes announcements but I’m sensing a slight southern drawl if I’ve ever heard one before. I'm really enjoying his many apologies for not being on time after getting held up in San Diego. Darn those San Diegoans!!!

Took a couple of photos from the window. Beautiful view, and I can’t believe I’m actually looking at how high up we really are. I even watched from the window during takeoff! You had all better be proud.

** 6:45 (8:45)
-Snack time, ya’ll! The Flight Attendant (Stewardess, whatever they are now called) just came by to take our drink orders. It was very tempting to get me some alcohol, but I’m thinking that wouldn’t go so well with the Ativan. And now I have a nice little baggie of animal crackers. Not my favorite snack by far, but better than Ritz cheese sandwiches and some 100 cal. Oreo packs.

** 7:00 (9:00)
There isn’t really anything going on at the moment. Drinks are just now starting to make their way around to all of the passengers. I was going to take a nap but that isn’t happening just yet. I think I’ll get my soda (yes, I did ask for a coke, so sue me). Did I mention where exactly I’m sitting? I’m actually in the front of the plane pretty much; just above the engine I am guessing. You can see part of the big blue thing out of the window. I don’t remember previous flights being this loud, but if we are indeed sitting next to the engine and that could be a big reason why it’s so darn loud. But I’m not really complaining about it. I’m simply making an observation n the matter.

** 7:28 (9:28)
What I want to know is why do you get turbulence when you fly through a cloud. They’re all light and fluffy, like marshmallows, right? Wrong. Somebody please research and give me the exact cause of it, because we sure are experiencing it. And I’m still not stressing out. But I am tired out of my mind. Waking up at 7:00 yesterday morning (which is sleeping in for me) and then only getting that quick 2 hour nap before heading to Target at 10:00 at night for my overnight shift was a real bummer. I was so sore when I got home this morning. But I do have to say that the additions on my brand new Crocs were absolute lifesavers!! My feet have never felt that good after 8 whole hours or running too and fro throughout the store to get all of my work done. Then after getting home at 6:15 this morning I found out that I wasn’t going to get the chance to go straight to sleep. Nope, no siree! One of my cats (who shall remain nameless since I did not catch her in the act) pissed in my bed again. And I didn’t even notice this until I actually climbed under the covers and stuck my feet in an icky wet spot. **Enter shrieking Jazz here** Oh, it was so disgusting. Running everything off to the washing machine was no fun either. But Heather let me borrow a sleeping bag that she had, and I was finally able to try and get some semblance of a nap. I woke up again at about 10:00 and that’s when things swung into full gear. Shower time, packing time, let’s act like a fool on drugs time! Then we finally left the house and got me to the airport and the whole 1 ½ wait for our flight. Stupid San Diegans.

**8:00 (10:00)
The seatbelt lights have turned back on and the Captain has lowered the lights. It’s definitely dark out. I’m sitting here watching Mamma Mia (it felt more upbeat than Twilight, and it’s doing the trick so far – I love it!!). I’m going to lean back and relax and see if sleep comes to me. There shouldn’t be too much further! It’s 8:00 my time, which means it’s about 10:00 in Texas. At the most I think we are now 2 hours away. We’ll see!

‘Nighty ‘Night!

**8:44 (10:44)
This whole sleep thing is just not happening! Mamma Mia is just too fun to start watching that I just have to finish it. Besides, there will be plenty of time to sleep-sleep-sleep! But I’m still going strong. No anxiety to speak of. Every now and again we’ll get a little bump in the road, but otherwise it’s been completely smooth sailing. Ha! I’m flying in a plane and making comparisons to driving a car and sailing in a sailboat. Three very, very different things from each other – beside the fact that they can all be used as modes of transportation.

The annoying thing is that I am drop dead tired. I can feel it when I take a deep breath; each breath is coming pretty slowly. I’m going to actually count this out now …

Saturday 7:00 a.m. – Sunday midnight

2 ½ hours before work
3 hours after work

^ That has been my life of non-sleep since Saturday morning. It could be a nightmare, couldn’t it? What on earth made me think that getting on a plane with no sleep after pulling an all-nighter could possibly be a good thing?

AH! My favorite line from Mamma Mia a la Christine Baransky – “little boys who play with fire get their fingers burned!” She’s awesome.

Oh, and one very big crap should be listed here. My battery died on my camera! I really wanted to get a few as we start our descent and the city lights get brighter, and not to mention going out to Baggage Claim and get the first moments on camera. This is really not ideal. It was a big mistake not charging the battery pack last night while I was at work. I was just afraid that if I didn’t have it packed then and there I would end up forgetting it altogether and leave it at home, which would be even worse. At least I will have access to the charger as soon as we land!

**9:02 (11:02)
Now, I am no expert (not by a long shot) but I am getting the feeling that we are in the beginning stages of our final descent into Houston. It’s hard to explain but there was a definite shift going on and it felt like we went down ever so briefly. I really, really hope that this is it, even though I know that the entire descent can take up some time. We’re really almost there!!

**9:09 (11:09)
Officially 100 miles away from the airport!! Captain’s orders, we should be landing in about 20 minutes!!

Oh yeah, I can feel it. We are definitely going down (in the good way)! Lots of twisting, turning, and dipping. It’s so weird that I’m actually enjoying this. I’m so close to seeing Bamma I can just taste it!!!

Live from OAK

2009-06-21T15:01:00.000-07:00

** 3:00

Does it surprise anyone that I'm sitting here at the airport - a full hour and a half until my flight is supposed to depart? I like getting to places early to give me a chance to mellow out. We did a drop & run. Mom and dad dropped me off, said goodbye, and then I was on my own! So far we're good on the anxiety levels I've been taking my Ativan since about 6 this morning so I'm hoping to keep a cool head for quite some time. Mom says it's I'm totally loopy and she now knows what I would be like drunk. But I'm just enjoying mellowness. I don't get to feel like this very often.

So what am I doing right now? I'm sitting at a little island they have for fliers with laptops and the wonderful world of free WIFE and I figured rather than wait until tonight when I will be exhausted, I'm going to start this trip report now!!

I was so, so, so bad this time. Normally I start packing 1-2 week prior to my actual departure date. It gives me a chance to be absolutely sure that everything is in its place and make sure I have everything I need. As of this morning I was barely packed at all. I had stuff thrown into my luggage with absolutely no rhyme or reason. It was interesting trying to make sure I had everything I need, and I am almost positive that I forgot something. Only time will tell though.

There was a surprise stowaway though ....

There will probably be more to come in a short bit. I am desperate for some food, so it's off to find a bite to eat.

** 4:22

Joy, oh joy. My flight was supposed to depart at 4:20 and that so did not happen. Our plane has been delayed about an hour. You know, I would really, really love to make it to Texas before it officially becomes Monday. In my head that just makes it all feel like one less day. I want all of my bamma-bonding time. All of it I tell you.

So I'm bored now. Bored and calm. Dang, I love Ativan when it's working. I'm doing good with now freak outs to speak of. Just breathing in and breathing out. I did grab something to eat (they have a CPK express here - I am in heaven) and picked up a new crossword puzzle book because I just devour those. Chomp chomp.

I've taken a few photos of the airport that I'll get around to putting up here at some point. I like taking photos of random things from different perspectives. But as it stands I have about 3 hours of battery life here. I've got my screen on it's lowest setting so I can milk that battery for all she's got but no way am I opening Photoshop. My battery will be G.O.N.E. before you know it.

I really want to go to sleep right now *insert yawn here*

** 5:24

And we have a plane! We ahve a plane! Better be boarding soon or I'm going to pull my hair out. I want to land in Texas before Monday.

Ups & downs

2009-06-17T20:42:00.000-07:00

It's now less than 4 days until I will be in the air on my way to Texas. So far, the week has already been full of the good, the bad, and the ugly - mostly the bad and the ugly, unfortunately.

(1) The good.
There have been a couple of pluses thrown in here and there this week, sprinkled into my days. Probably the best part of the week though was opening my mail yesterday to find a little check for $74 - as it turns out I overpaid on my taxes this year and after an adjustment, that is what I got back. Whoddathinkit, really. The money went to my lovely new hair cut (aw, Lisa is so awesome), an early dinner with my cousin and Heather, and the rest is being put away to be saved for Disneyland in September!!

(2) The bad.
Work this week has been terribly frustrating. I repeat: work has been sooooo frustrating!! It doesn't help that I haven't been able to sleep very well the past few nights, or that I put so much pressure on myself at work that it backfires in my face a lot. Tuesday was really the pits, though. I was absolutely up to my ears in my tasks for the morning, and trying to delegate what needed to be done first and what could be put off until the end because I can't do everything at once - especially not by myself - and someone has to act like it's the end of the world that what she seems necessary to be done the second she says it is at the tail end of my priority list (because in the scheme of things, it was). I know I can't stop her from fretting about getting everything done, but I was working my butt off that whole morning trying to make everything go as smoothly as possible and making sure all of her work is up to her standards and nothing is ever good enough. Never. I'm not kidding when I say I had to step outside for a few minutes to just cry.

(3). The ugly.
A picture is worth a thousand words.

My first official accident. How joyous. The good news? I'm not at fault. I was in a parking lot, coming to a stop sign next to a parking space where the other person was starting to back out. The bad news? The estimate on repairs is about $1200. And only $150 of that is for the actual parts. We're still waiting to hear if their insurance company is going to accept liability so we can get it fixed. If not, well, it will probably be left as is since it doesn't hinder the performance of my car. So now it's just a waiting game. All of this insurance stuff is really annoying.

Recycling

2009-06-14T15:03:00.000-07:00

Yesterday mom and I took in our recycling - that we've been stockpiling in the side yard for months and months and months ... No joke, it's been longer than I can remember since the last time anyone has taken in our recycling. We had to load everything up into the Blue Bus, which ended up being pretty packed. Dad helped us round everything us so we could get it in the car. Mom and I had fun though, sorting everything into the different trash cans so they could be weighed. What wasn't so fun was all of the caps still on the plastic bottles which we had to remove. We had about 10 times more plastic than we did anything else so taking off every single cap took forever! I learned a lesson there; take off the caps as your sorting them in your house! Your hands will thank you for avoiding the abuse.

Two other downsides to the fun:
(1) There were too many slugs and snails mixed in with everything for my liking, I screamed like a girl.
(2) My shoulders got burned, which made work last night a real pain!

How much did we rake in? Over $90

Graduation night

2009-06-13T08:19:00.000-07:00

Last night was my cousin Haley's high school graduation. She's the last cousin on this side of the family to reach the end of the high school years. How crazy is it that it also means that I graduated a whole 5 years ago (as of June 10). Heather had the great idea of making some posters for her name for us to hold when it was her turn to receiver her diploma, so that's how she spent the afternoon while I was taking Ella to the vet so she could finally get rid of her stitches.

I worked on the E. I should obviously not be a painter.

I ended up taking a lot of photographs, and as soon as I'm done editing them I'm going to try and make sure I can get them to my cousin and the rest of her family before I leave for Texas in 8 days!!! 1 week from tomorrow, wow. But I'm on a roll with the photos, so she'll get them in plenty of time. But just to share a few ...

Me and the Graduate's big sister.

Me and my little sister.

The four cousins!

Broken Glass

2009-06-12T07:49:00.000-07:00

This would be the handy work of one of the 'kittens' this morning, playing in our bathroom.

Errand Day

2009-06-10T17:11:00.000-07:00

Today was day #1 of running errands in the final preparations of my Texas vacation! I had to work half of the day, and then another good portion of the day was spent going through old Disney photos (which I tend to do a lot). But I did manage to get a few things done that I can cross off of my handy-dandy to-do list.

For starters, I saw Lisa driving along in her low-riding sporty-thingy and waved hello before remembering that one thing I desperately need to do in the last week and a half before I leave is fix my hair; both color and cut. So I called her at the studio and set up an appointment (Wednesday - 2:45) and then drove myself off to Longs/CVS/whatever it's called now to see if they still carried my hair color because a certain store that shall remain nameless at this point in time discontinued the shade that I love. Stupid Target! At least I was able to find it. Yay - go me.

And yes, I do color my hair. I got tired of being that dishwater blonde and I found a color that I liked, so there you have it.

I also took a dive into the Dollar Station to just take a gander at what they had. Someone needs to remind me to get a Happy Birthday banner to hang up in my hotel room for my birthday - they had a Mickey Mouse one!! There's also this totally awesome green-sequin lanyard that I really want to get. Or maybe I should go with the purple. Hey, better yet! I should get both, they are only a dollar. Oh, and I need to remember to stock up on glow sticks because wearing those at night at Disneyland is genius. Especially on Indiana Jones.

Last but not least, since I am in need of shoes other than my Converse, I went to Payless to take a look at flip flops. Flips flops seem like must haves to me when you're in super-duper hot Texas. I found these two adorable pairs that I love - perfect since it's BOGO time. There's some Teal, then there's some and yellow polka dots. You can't go wrong there.

One impatient cat

2009-06-09T19:06:00.000-07:00

Ella had a little surprise for me when I got home from work this afternoon. I went to take a look at her stitches to see how things were healing and make sure everything looked good and to my surprise, half of her stitches had come undone and the thread was just hanging there. I'm pretty sure that's not a good thing if she then tries to get at the loose bits. I gave the vet a call in too see what should be done and they had me take her back in to check on the stitches and see if we could even get them completely removed a few days early.

Poor girl did not want to go back into the carrier, but she really had no choice in the matter. She kept voicing her objections frequently until we got back home.

She was a good girl when we actually got in to see the vet, but it was also a very quick appointment. We were in and out of there in just about 5 minutes, really. They just took her weight and temperature and then took a little look at the incision and where the sutures had come undone. She said it looked like she was healing very well and everything looked good but she wanted to leave what was left of the stitches in to give the skin some extra bonding time, but she did cut off the part that was dangling so she couldn't pull at it.

So she's halfway there, just a few more days until the rest of it comes out.

I thought I got a picture of her with half of the stitches pulled out, but I must have deleted it on accident. I tend to do that now and again - unfortunately. But I did get one after the stop by the vet.

So she's home. I just have to keep an eye out to make sure that without all of the stitches there isn't and separating or shifting of the skin. At the very least, I'm pretty sure she didn't pull the stitches out on her own. She's been very good about not licking or scratching at the area but today she was a hyper-active little nutcase and I did see her fall and slide down something that could have caught on the stitches. So I'm pretty sure it had more to do with her activity than anything else.

The countdown starts ...

2009-06-08T19:48:00.001-07:00

... Right now!!

I will ofically be en route to Texas in only 13 days. Normally, not something to be excited about, but this is no ordinary stop in the lone star state. Nope, I'm visiting family - and not just any family either! I'll be seeing my most favoritest Grandparents in all the world (not that I don't love all of my Grandparents, because I do) and more family who I haven't seen in a long old while.

My flight leaves on June 21st (Sunday), which also happens to be Father's Day. That's my gift to dad, going away for a full week! I wont be arriving in the Houston area until sometime after 10PM. Wonder how that is going to work out seeing as my flight is less than 12 hours after I get off my overnight shift at Target. I always have a hard time getting used to normal hours again and now we're going to throw in a 2 hour time change into the mix. Oh boy, this should be fun!

I'm trying to make a list of things I need to do before the end of next week so I'm all prepared and ready to go. The sooner I get my butt in gear, the better.

- Re-stock my supply of shorts and tank tops. Texas in the summer is HOT!!
- Make an appointment with Dr. H to talk about getting more Ativan and a nasal spray for my allergies.
- Become a master at packing and unpacking my luggage.
- Make an appointment with Lisa to get a trim. My hair is too long for long and hot days in the sun.
- Find someplace that still stocks my hair color. I am in dire need of a touch up.
- Brush up on my lyrics to all songs from Grease, Chicago, and Mamma Mia for the sing alongs I intend to have with the Lady.
- Get Ella's stitches taken out on 6/12.
- Go to cousin Haley's high school graduation on 6/12.

Speaking of that first bullet point, Heather and I hit up Ross and Marshalls today to see what kinds of things we could find for cheap. I didn't get too lucky in that department though. I only ended up buying two shirts (one tee and one tank), but that was about it. Well, we did have an exciting outing to the Dollar Tree to find what awesomely fun cheap junk we could. It's where I discovered strawberry scented bubbles!! Too bad they didn't smell strongly of strawberries; they were just a touch on the sweet side.

Now I'm curious to know if the still make edible bubbles anywhere.

Anywhoo! The bubbles inspired another impromptu excursion for Dre and myself. Playing with bubbles is fun. We really need to get some Disney bubble necklaces and where them everywhere so we can have impromptu bubble wars anytime and anywhere.

This would be me, attempting to do a heel click.
It would also be me failing to do a heel click. Miserably.

4 days later

2009-06-06T15:53:00.000-07:00

It's been 4 days since Ella got her stitches, and so far so good. She hasn't been scratching or licking at the wound so she's been E-collar free since she came home from the Vet. It's funny to see her walk around with a big old bald spot that takes up a big chunk of her right side and belly right behind her front leg. She's a tortie (tortoise shell) and her skin is just as funny looking as the color of her fur - and super soft!! She's been a big cuddle-bug though, which was how she was as a kitten when we first brought her home up until about a year ago, so I'm really enjoying it. That is as long as I am not wearing shorts. A cat laying on you with stitches feels really weird to the bare skin.

The shaved spot looks a lot smaller when she's sitting like that because her leg gets in the way! It goes all the way to her belly.

She'll get her stitches out on Friday, June 12th.

Watermelon cookies

2009-06-05T15:49:00.000-07:00

Just one of the many treats offered at our desert party at work today. I have never heard of such things before - Watermelon Cookies! They smell and taste like watermelon. Very sweet!

One expensive cat

2009-06-02T19:13:00.000-07:00

My cat is more expensive than a trip to Disneyland. No joke.

Sometime this weekend my cat, Ella, got herself a pretty nasty slice that runs from her shoulder to her belly. I couldn't tell you how she did it - whether she got caught on something or got into a fight with someone. I tried cleaning it out after I first discovered it, but haven't been too successful in that department since.

My nursing skills = fail.

I made the call to get her into the vet today because the last thing we need right now is for it to get infected really bad and something worse develop out of the incident. My sister had to say goodbye to the cat she's grown up with attached at her hip last week and it's made me really paranoid about Ella. I love her. She's so much more than a pet to me. Luckily by the time I called they still had one open appointment time today so I was able to get her in without too much delay. Just a lot of frustration on my end.

Guess what happened on the drive there? I get lost. Of course I get lost. Why wouldn't I get lost? I get lost everywhere. Nothing new here; my sense of direction is dismal. I printed directions beforehand and I still got lost. I'm sure my mother appreciated my frantic calls to her to try and figure out how to get there, and Heather must have loved them even more because I was in full-blown panic mode by that point.

Keeping my cool under pressure = fail.

To make a long story short - or at least short in my world - she got the cut cleaned out and it was a pretty minimal procedure. She didn't need to get an IV which would have been necessary if the surgery took more than a certain period of time and would have run us close to $800 total. I don't think I've ever needed any medical procedure that cost that much. Then again, I did have one E.R. visit that I'm aware of and I have no idea how much that cost my parents. Keeping the ones you love healthy sure isn't cheap.

So in the end $662 covered
- exam
- blood work
- surgery
- stitches & follow up appt. to get them removed
- feline leukemia testing
- 2 vaccines
- pain medications

She's home, safe and sound now, although she's got to stay in the kitty-carrier until she can calm down. She's still going a little berserk at the moment, which is sad to watch. I've got to keep an eye out on her when she comes out to make sure she doesn't lick or scratch at the stitches. She's also got a good portion of her right side shaved. Makes me thing we could turn her into a cat-poodle! I'll take a photo of her tomorrow if she'll let me.

Now the funny thing out of all this? I can spend less than that of a trip to Disneyland. I did spend less than that on a trip to Disneyland this past March. I don't know whether I want to laugh about this fact, or cry.

S.F. Zoo

2009-05-25T09:45:00.001-07:00

OK, this blog has been used for the sole purpose of my Photography class up until this point, but now that the semester is over I think I'm going to keep this one going rather than start a new blog altogether. It will probably end up with a lot of pictures though!

So .. Saturday was a fun day with Karolina! It's so sad, we don't get to see each other as much now that she's not working at Target anymore. We were talking about going to San Francisco and we narrowed our choices down and decided to either do Pier 39 or the S.F. Zoo. We ended up going to the Zoo since we did Pier 39 last time and it's been ages since either of us have gone.

In true San Francisco fashion it was cold and windy! My poor little fingers could barely hold my camera steady five minutes in!!

Karolina right before we started off our day on an African safari!

I lost my headband in the hood of my sweater like an idiot.

Look who grew a set of antlers!! It was great, they have tons of these boards up around the Zoo where you can turn yourself into a whole herd of different animals. Karolina has the rest of those photos so I can't share them just yet.

Watching these two was pretty entertaining. They really looked like they were dancing some sort of routine and every time they squaked or whatever it is they do the sound their bills made reminded of me of all those plastic animated toys with the clamping sound they make every time they move.

Oh, and they are Marabou Stork, in case you were wondering. Fitting for the Mother's Day theme the Zoo is working with for the month of May.

I couldn't help myself when this kid decided to shove his fist in the lion's mouth. He's lucky he didn't end up with nothing but a bloody stump when all was said and done.

Lucky Lemurs! They get heating lamps!

That sure is one big kitty!

And lazy too!

Ever wondered how a Tiger would get into a pool? Well, he backs in so he can test the tempertature with his toes - of course!!

Karolina got to pet a little Hedgehog - and so did I. Their little spines feel so weird.

Believe me, I have so many more photos. When I get them all added to Flickr I'll post the link.

My final and more

2009-05-18T17:45:00.000-07:00

So I think I have decided that this Blog isn't going to disappear with the end of this semester. It'll give me something to do over the summer, that's for sure.

Now, for my final. I decided to use a series of shots that I took while I was in Disneyland for a few days back in March. Let's just say I took a lot. I had it in my mind while I was there that I would shoot the final project while we were there but I got a little distracted and didn't really remember until the one night that I stayed in the park until closing with my tripod because I wanted to do some night shots which have never been my strong suit. I really wanted to do something that I wasn't used to so that was the solution. Of course it was also the one night we were there that it chose to rain. How joyous, really. Anyways, here are my four favorite shots (if you click in the images you should get the full-size).

A Day of Fun

2009-04-26T18:38:00.000-07:00

I went out with a friend today to have a silly day outside and we found a hidden stash of bubbles in her garage so we decided to have some fun them today.

I have also finally finished editing the 1500+ photos I took at Disneyland and figured I would share a few of my favorites.

it's not always easy taking pictures while spinning in the crazy teacups

My Grandmother

2009-03-23T17:43:00.000-07:00

The assignment that we're working on right now is to retouch a damaged photograph. I was on the verge of having to distress and image all on my own because we seem to have zero old photographs in my house! All that we have are old oil paintings it seems like, but no pictures. I didn't find any until about an hour before our first open lab. I don't even know what possessed me to look into an old lock box, but I did, and guess what I found?

It's a photograph of my grandmother (on my step-dads side) that I am absolutely in love with. Now the question is can I give it any justice?

Corruption & Sunshine

2009-03-09T18:26:00.000-07:00

I always seem to get hit by some little mess when it comes to these assignments! This week I got struck by the corrupted files - what a mess! I haven't had a lot of chances to get night shots because of my work schedule, and the one time that I did I completely lost all of my images. I went to retrieve them with my card reader and my laptop wouldn't recognize the device and I couldn't figure out why until I troubleshooted with our PC. Sure enough I got that lovely little pop up message that said something along the lines of: Sorry! You're SOL today, the files you are trying to reach are corrupted. Fun times.

I'm going to see if I can get one more night in before turning in everything on Wednesday so I can have them on my contact sheet at the very least, but we'll see.

We did have some nice weather today though, so I had a little outdoor craft day. I love the sun!

Sharks Hockey

2009-03-04T20:04:00.000-08:00

Just a couple of extra shots from last night's game of HP Pavilion and the boys on the ice. I played around with the levels and curves on these for the first time.

HP Pavilion

2009-03-04T18:37:00.000-08:00

Last night I went to my first hockey in roughly 2 months. As much as I love hockey and the San Jose Sharks, let's just say that it was long overdue. I've been taking my cameras to games for roughly 3 years now, but until last night's game against Dallas, I've never challenged myself by shooting the whole game manually. It's not that easy. Actually, it's nowhere close to being easy. But I also got to test out my newest lens (55-200 mm), which was very much needed with my seats far away from the ice. Sports are never easy to shoot because of how fast the action can be, especially when you have shaky, cold hands! Too bad you can't take tripos in!

I had fun going around during the intermissions after each period of play (that is when I wasn't busy eating something) and here's what I shot: