The "Victory" Garden (?), 04/17/09

I pretend to be a gardener sometime..it's in my genes. I have to thank my grandfather for this as he was known for, among many other things, an avid gardener. To give you an idea, here's a photo from '74, when I was just 2:





that would be my father and my grandfather in there. I'll forgive them for what they made me wear...it was the 70s. The garden extends a good 20 feet to the left and at least 100 more feet to the right of the picture. To give you a feel for the depth, the corn in the background...those rows went back a good 100 feet. If I had to guess, I'd say it was around 150 feet wide and over 250 feet deep.

I've got the green thumb from him...it's probably a good thing, because Sheri has a black thumb (every plant she touches tends to die...at least it includes weeds that she just reminded me that she pulls). The houseplants think she's a stranger most of the time. So, when we bought our first house, I immediately bought a sod cutter and made a tiny little garden to sow my seeds (groan). Since there was no room for anything, I did raised beds, made tripods, and had moderate success.

We moved from the first place, where I have a little more room. No, it's nothing like what my grandfather had - I think our entire town could have fit in his garden (there are only 600 people in our town, so it's not that far of a stretch). I've got a 14X17 plot...have tiller, will plant!

Since today was our first really nice day where the soil was relatively dry, I decided to get started. I'm switching gears and am going to attempt to do a lot of inter-cropping this year, which means placement and timing are going to be extremely important. This could be a major disaster (and it almost was...I very nearly threw a rake and a hoe across the yard today), but we're going to see how the garden grows.

So, here we are...Friday, April 17th:







The plot is tilled, and I have the early crops put in (onions, cabbage, lettuce, spinach, and radishes). More goes in next week, so I'll try to update this every Friday or so.



With my luck, we'll get a hard freeze next Thursday, accompanied by 2 feet of snow, just as the veggies emerge.

2005 WDW Trip Report Index

Well, the first trip report is finally all over here in the blog. This post is here to help you navigate through the various posts throughout the blog without having to scroll through miles of lines in the blog to figure out where one day starts. Hopefully you enjoy (enjoyed) reading it!

The next trip report will start appearing on here in the coming month.


Pre-Trip


Day 1: A Day of Firsts


Day 2: Timing is Everything


Day 3: Disney's Revenge


Day 4: Birthday de l'Aaron


Day 5: Donald and Daisy and Elves (Oh My)


Day 6 (Part 1): Verrrryyyy Interesting


Day 6.1 (Part 2): Oh Solo Me-o


Day 7: Finale

2005 Trip Report, Day 7: Finale

Thursday, December 22nd...our last day. We still have a day left on our passes to hit a park, but we chose not to head out this morning before departing. It was originally in our plans, but American Airlines shuffled up the schedule at our home airport, and we lost over 3 hours of touring. Instead of trying to run to a park opening and spending just a short amount of time there (and potentially risking a tight connection to get on the Magical Express), we'll just take it slow.

 

No alarm (sorry, Stitch), but we're up by 7 again. We lounge around for a few minutes and then get dressed for breakfast. I started telling everything "Goodbye" yesterday, and I find myself doing it again around Movies.

 

As we head out to the food court, there's definitely a different feeling in the air...more people and more stress. We open the door to the food court and are wondering where the heck all these folks came from (what, did Music and Sports decide not to do breakfast this morning?) It still wasn't packed, but there were noticeably a lot more people there.

 

We have TONS of snack credits left (I tried to burn a couple the night before with Debbie's and Mare's crew, but it didn't pan out) so, on top of getting breakfast, we start loading up the trays with water, Mickeyrice krispie treats (the ones with the chocolate ears…a final nyaahhhh to South Beach), and fruit. Yes, Robin, I got yet another Mickey Waffle to eat. I swear I'm going to break the scale the next time I get on it as I enjoy the hell out of that last waffle.

 

I look around the food court, and there are a lot more kids crying...a lot more angry parents...a lot of things that I didn't notice until just today.

 

Yep...definitely ready to get back.

 

We head back to the room for a while. I turn on the tube and watch Stacy on the top ten a couple of more times. Despite what I have read...she's not that annoying and actually kind of cute.

 

I decide to start taking the bags to the Magical Express check-in so we can just relax and enjoy the last hour or so here. I head down with the first load and get in line for the M.E. check-in. Of course, they won't let me keep the bags down there...SOOOOOOO I drop the bags off with the baggage service for the hotel and head back to the room for the rest of the bags. I then get the first load of bags (that I had JUST dropped off) and get in line for M.E. again.

 

A few minutes later, I give them my information, and something in the computer blows up. Though they can see all three of us flying out, for some reason they can't access all three of us.

 

The blood pressure is starting to rise in me. For those who don't know me, I'm prone to have somewhat of a temper. For those who do know me well, you're probably moving to take cover. This isn't how I was hoping to end one of the best vacations I've been on.

 

After the third try, they tell me I'll have to check in at MCO.

 

WHAT???!!!!!

 

Dumbstruck, I ask them what exactly that means...I'll have to take the bags with us and check in at the airport.

 

 

SOOOOOOOOOOOOO....The bags go BACK to baggage service (3rd time I've talked to them today...running out of tip money), and I head back to the room...not so much in a good mood (I fit right in with the rest of the folks at the resort).

 

I tell Sheri what happened, and she asks if I spoke to a manager or someone. I look at all the carry-ons and Aaron, and I realize that it ain't gonna be fun at MCO if we have all these bags. I tell her to hold on, and I'll go back.

 

 

SOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOO....I go back to the Magical Express counter and wait my turn. I am helped by someone different this time, and I plead my case that they try one more time...trying to get checked in at MCO with 5 checked bags, 4 carry-ons, a stroller, and a 3 year old was going to be not-so-fun. They make one attempt, and the computer laughs and tells them I have to check in at the airport (I think I read on the monitor something like "what, like the moron didn't understand the first time??!!!"). I ask about the logistics...what will we have to do with the bags? I look over to the baggage service folks, and they run away as fast as their feet can carry them. I'm told that they'll bring the bags out to the bus, the bus driver will load the bags on the bus and unload them at MCO...after that, we have to get them to the American check-in.

 

 

 

Say What?

 

 

 

GRRRRRRRRR...this was one of the reasons we chose to stay on-site...being able to check in at the hotel and bypass the lines at Orlando International Airport. I'm thoroughly pissed off at this point. [img]http://community.the-underdogs.org/smiley/angry/letitallout.gif[/img].

 

I leave the line and start muttering to myself...

 

Son of aB****I CAN'T BELIEVE THIS!!!!

 

 

On "BELIEVE", I slap all my paperwork with my hand and realize that I didn't have as good of a grip on the paperwork as I had thought.

 

Papers went in all directions.

 

Time stood still for an instant as I realized that this was going to be a mess.

 

Crap...they're gonna call security because they'll think I threw this stuff at them. I'm going to end the best vacation I've ever had with an assault/battery charge.

 

Someone walking by helps me out with picking up the papers, and I apologize to those around me. Nobody had any paper cuts, and I don't see anyone with a white straightjacket heading my way, so I count my blessings and, rather embarrassed, head out of the lobby with my head down. Did I over-react? Of course. Having worked in the service sector as a server at a restaurant, front desk at a Holiday Inn, and as a whole slew of things for Frontier Airlines and AirTran, I know that 85% of the time, the problem is not a result of the person in front of me. I, at least, remembered that when I talked to the folks at the resort check-in. I should have kept my cool afterwards, though.

 

Okay...so this sucks...but those who are using Magical Express without a partner airline are in the same boat...they just didn't have their expectations deflated in the process. Not a major biggie in the grand scheme of things. I head back and tell Sheri the good news (and the news that I didn't get arrested).

 

We head down and meet the bus. I'm starting to feel a little better, though I'm still embarrassed at the paper shower I caused. On the bus, Hook is playing on the monitors, and I love this movie (I have a thing for Julia Roberts as Tinkerbelle , so I watch that on the ride to the airport.

 

We get to the airport and collect the masses of suitcases that belong to us. I head in and start looking for a cart to load all these bag...huh?

 

Is that an American Check-in counter about 50 feet away?

 

Yep

 

Is there only one other person in line?

 

YEP YEP

 

Is this a good thing?

 

HELL YEAH!

 

We lug our bags over and get checked in. Our longest wait of the entire vacation was to ride the security screening ride.

 

We grab a bite to eat, and I realize how weird it is to pay money for food. I almost considered trying to use my Key to the World to pay for it.

 

We get on the plane, arrive late, and race through O'Hare to our connecting gate.

 

And we're home.

 

And Aaron's great streak of doing well on potty training comes to an abrupt end as soon as we open the door. I guess this means we'll have to live at WDW for a while to get him trained.

 

I could think of worse ways to do it.

2005 Trip Report, Day 6.1 (Part 2): Oh Solo Me-o

As I walk out to the busses, I'm really torn between heading back to the room or heading out. As I mentioned before, this is probably going to be one of the only chances I'll have to do this, and Sheri did insist that I go. Okay…rationalizing here…it's okay to do this.

Soooo…which park to hit...hmm. I'd really like to head over to Epcot one last time to see if I can sneak on Mission Space. I don't want to get there late and have to fight the masses leaving, however. I'll let the busses decide where to go.

Two minutes after I get there, here comes the Epcot bus. There were only about ten of us on there. We head to the big golf ball one more time…and I'm glad…I get to tell it goodbye. As I step off the bus at Epcot, I realize for the first time I don't have a stroller. Hehehehehehe…this could be fun! I head to the bag check and WAIT…NO BAG. :woohoo:. This could be really fun (Aaron who?). I make a beeline for the nearest ticket line, and they aren't even doing the finger scans…you got a ticket? COME ON IN!

I run through the Legacy cemetery, pass Spaceship Earth, and look at the wait times. Mission Space: 8 minutes. Hmmmm…I may be able to handle that. I'm now at a fast trot as I make the left turn towards the attraction. Epcot seemed rather quiet this time of night. I hypothesize that either A) everyone is over in the World Showcase for Illuminations; or B) everyone is at Magic Kingdom. WHO CARES??!! I'm here now, and I'm going to have some fun!

I make it over to Mission Space and walk and walk…I didn't even think of the single rider line (I'm a newbie doing it by myself…mind out of the gutters, folks). While waiting in line, they start filling one of the prep rooms and are short 1. Oh Yeah...I'm in! I become navigator and am with a family of 3 (only the 12 year old daughter had been on it, so I'm worried that we're gonna crash). Now, I start to remember what my brother-in-law said about this ride when he was down here back in August…claustrophobic, and you just ain't right after the ride. I quickly discount him as a wuss and harken back to my days at the Air Force Academy. Hell, if I can spend a classified amount of time in isolation during my survival training…if I can hold my cookies while screaming through a narrow canyon in a Huey doing 45 degree banks…if I can live through one of my own landings in a Cessna, then I sure as Hell ain't worried a bit about this ride.

And I was not disappointed at all! Absolutely awesome ride!!!! I had to be grinning from ear to ear when whe blasted off. I haven't felt 2+ Gs for a long time YEEHHHAAAAAAAA! Everyone in our capsule did their tasks exactly as planned, and I'm glad to say that when we went to manual control, I got us safely on the ground :cool:.

Okay...so maybe I didn't. Now, as for my wuss brother-in-law…well, he WAS on his honeymoon, so he may have been tired for some reason or another.

Okay…on and off in about 20 minutes. It's 8:55…perhaps Soarin' won't be too bad this time of night. Okay…all you WDW veterans can go ahead and laugh at me…it was still a 1 hour wait. I stand in line for a minute or two and decide that I'll wait to ride this with my lovely wife next time we're here.

By the time I get to the monorail, it is about 9:15, and I can see Wishes wrapping up. Good...I didn't really want to see Wishes without the family. I call Sheri on the ride over to MK to see how they're doing, and things are great. Sheri's packing, and Aaron's watching Toy Story on the DVD player. I hang up with her and sit back for a few minutes. I look at the MK parking lot as we near the TTC…still a lot of cars. I get off at the TTC and make the run down the ramp and the run back up the other ramp for the MK monorail. As I get there, one of the monorails arrive, and about 250 people sardined in the cars pop out…and about 20 of us get on. I'm starting to feel good again. Stitch hits his head again trying to get out at the MK, and I give Debbie a call to see if they're actually here. Yep! They're in Adventureland but heading to Fantasyland. She sounded fairly excited, so last night must not have gone too terribly bad. I'll meet them at Philharmagic. I head to the bag check (old habits are hard to break) and get in…

Now I know what it feels like to be a salmon swimming upstream. Folks numbering roughly the population of Maryland were heading out of the park, while I was trying to get on Main Street. I turn past the confectionary towards the castle and IT'S SNOWING!!!!!! I thought they only did that for MVMCP…this is so cool!

I run through Cindy's Castle and start looking for them.

CHRIS!!!!!!

Lexie and Austin get their eagle-eyes honestly. Debbie spotted me from about 70 yards. We give each other a real quick hug and start talking about a mile a minute. I explain why Sheri and Aaron weren't there, and Renee takes it really well...besides, no stroller means we can go a LOT faster. We talk about what to ride first. Mark had already ridden BTMRR but says he can be convinced to ride it again, and I start twisting his arm. Nah...let's see what the kids want to ride. We decide to head over and do It's a Small World first. On the way, Debbie tells me that she talked to RootmanDan earlier today.

RootmanDan?

In my mind, Dan (the "Main Moose"…the owner of lodgeboards) has always been ROWTmanDan, so it took me a second to figure out who she was talking about. She says that Dan asked what I was like, and the twinkle in her eyes told me that something was coming.

"Ohhhh, Dan" she said, "it's a good thing you aren't down here. His wife is sooo stuck up..."

"And you told him I'm a real ass, right?" I say, smiling.

"Nah...I told him you are just like you are online!"

I bit my lip...I very nearly said "great...so he thinks I was staring at your chest the whole time, then, right?!" I was worried that Lexie would have dropped dead from embarrassment had she heard me say that.

We get on IASW in no time, and I'm seated between Debbie and Mark. Renee warns me that I may need to wake her Dad up on this ride, and Debbie jokingly puts her head on my shoulder, pretending to sleep. I immediately start removing my clothes...I took off my sweatshirt (hey, it was starting to get a little warm in there...cue the porn music). We go through the ride, and I contemplate drowning myself in the water about half-way through to end the singing. Now off the ride, we talk about where to go next.

We start walking towards Tomorrowland and having a good time just walking and talking when Lexie (I think) notices the line for the Speedway was short (in relative terms). We hop in line and inhale near-lethal amounts of carbon monoxide. The girls are worried about being able to steer their cars, and I crack a joke about women drivers.

Yeah…the lodge ladies were preparing to attack for that comment.

We get in the cars, and I'm the last in line (behind Mark, who's behind Mare, who's behind Debbie...) We go around, and I enjoy the (cough) gentle breeze and the (gasp) sights. As we get toward the end of the ride, the others get out of their cars, while I'm first in line waiting. There's a little incline where I'm at, so I try finding the "friction point" where I can stay on the hill without moving.

Almost got it......alllllmooooooosssttttt goooooottttttttttt itttt....

FLASH

WTF?

I look over and see Debbie with this big grin on her face, and her and Mare (with an equally-evil smile) looking at the picture that was just taken:

Apparently, I didn't quite have the car stopped on the hill yet.

Debbie hollers out to me "You had such a serious look, I couldn't resist!" I wonder to myself just how soon that one would be posted on the Lodge (it was on there in less than a week). Hell, I've had a pic with a penis on my head in front of the word WOOD, so this won't be too embarrassing (I hope...unless she caught me picking my nose or something). I start up the ramp after them trying to look mad...

DEBBIE!!!!!

I don't think she was too scared of me.

We head over towards Buzz and see the line, so we decide to hit the TTA (I had never ridden it before, so I think they appeased my interests). Austin works his way toward me and tells everyone that I was riding with him. Debbie starts smiling...her son has a new bud. We ride it, and the trip through Space Mountain was really neat! While on the ride, we talk a little bit about what Debbie's husband does and other things and try to offer solutions to Mare's possessed digital camera.

Off of the TTA, we have a little fun on the escalator going down and then head over to Buzz. Again, I'm claimed by Austin. Cool...I'm sure he knows the secrets and where to shoot for the big points. Being the competitive freak that I am, I size up the competition. Mark was by himself, while Mare and Debbie were in another, and Lexie and Renee in another. I figure the Lodge Ladies would be the competition. We start the ride and

FLASH

AGAIN??!!!!!

I look right a Debbie and start shooting her with my laser (I think I got 100 points for it).

We're going through, and I realize really quick that Mark is the one to beat, although Debbie closed her eyes and got a 100,000 target as soon as she got on the ride. Austin and I both start shooting Mark, who returns the favor. I start wondering if one of us could be blinded if we caught a laser in the eye (but I continue shooting him).

We save the universe and get off the ride. At the exit, they have a station to view yourself on the ride (and can purchase a souvenir pic, of course!). Again, I've got this serious look on my face, and I'm grateful that nobody comments on how stupid I look.

We exit and start making our way towards Adventureland for the Carpets and for Pirates. Debbie gives us a tour of the Tomorrowland Terrace Noodle Station and sings praises about it. Hell, if nothing else, it's a short-cut to Main Street that nobody around us knows about.

On the way, Debbie comments about how Austin has taken a liking to me. I tell her that I had three little sisters, so I'm fine with it. Lexie turns to Austin and says "just think of what it would be like if there were three of me around!" That got me laughing again. Gotta love siblings!

We make it to Pirates and walk on (absolutely no wait). Renee isn't big on this ride, so she stays behind with one of her parents (I don't remember which one...HEY!!!!! IT WAS LATE WHEN I GOT BACK TO THE ROOM, AND I DIDN'T GET ANYTHING WRITTEN DOWN, SO THIS IS ALL FROM MEMORY...DEAL WITH IT!!!!!!! (okay...I feel better now). Not having to worry about Aaron jumping in the water, I take in the ride and notice a lot more of the animation this time.

We get off and head through the gift shop. Debbie, Mare, and Lexie gush over posters of Orlando Bloom and Johnny Depp. I tried to make a comment about Keira Knightley, but it fell on deaf ears.

It's nearing Midnight (closing time), so we start heading back. The kids want to go on the Magic Carpets, so we get in line. I then notice that I'm the only one above the age of 13 that's riding this. Debbie looked surprised that I actually wanted to ride it. I didn't care...it was the Magic Kingdom!

We get on (one guess who I rode with), and we head up to the top. I see Debbie with her camera out, so I crouch down every time we fly near where she was standing until the carpets lose their magic, and we get off the ride. There is a little pin-trading going on with the CMs that are manning the attraction, and we spend a couple minutes trying to find a black pin-back on the ground at 11:55 pm (the latest report is that the back is still escaped and should be considered armed and dangerous).

We keep on walking back and stop at the Treehouse. Everyone but Mark and me head up (I've walked enough for one day...I didn't feel like doing a stairmaster). Mark and the CM have a really good talk about pins, and I'm just nodding my head like I understand.

They come down and look somewhat tired (can't imagine why). I look at Renee and marvel at how her legs have held her up this whole time...she's a trooper.

We cross the Adventureland bridge and arrive at the hub and...WOW! There are probably 15-20 characters out signing autographs and getting pictures taken..WHOAH! Not just the usual ones, either. Suzy and Perla were there, and Mickey and Minnie were together. Helluva way to end the visit to MK, if I do say so myself.

We stop at the Confectionary for a bit, and, after looking around for a couple of minutes, I tell Mark I'm going to head out to the street for a bit. I walk out and just absorb my surroundings. I hear one Mother telling her daughter (about Aaron's age) that she was so glad they came out and did this. I take in the lights...the smells...the music...the castle...and create an image in my mind that I don't want to lose. After about 5 minutes, I head back into the Confectionary and wait for the rest to finish paying for their items.

We head out of the Magic Kingdom for the last time of the vacation. Before the last goodbyes, we talk for a few more minutes. Mark shakes my hand, and Mare and Debbie give me a hug. I tell the kids goodbye, and I make my way to the bus stop.

Yeah, I'm glad I came out and did this too. 3 hours is nowhere near enough time to really get to know someone, but I earnestly hope that I cross paths with these folks again sometime.

I didn't realize I still had one ride yet this night. I get on the bus near the front and then give up my seat for a mother with a kid that was absolutely zonked on her shoulder (I got a nice comment from the bus driver for that act). We get on our way, and the driver says that it's X minutes and that she wants to get us there quick so she can get home too. in unison, the bus tells her to go faster. She says she can make it to the hotel in 5 minutes.

"DO IT!!!!"

She asks if we will all kick in some money in case she gets pulled over.

YEP!

We broke the sound barrier around the TTC and absolutely flew past the other busses. We were in the middle of passing a bus when our usual exit flew by. "No problem...this other way is faster!" we hear from the front. I have visions of the Knight bus from Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban and briefly look for the shrunken head (Take it away, Ern!).

We pulled in around 7 minutes after we left.

She got a huge round of applause!

I take my time going through the hotel lobby and walk down toward the Fantasia pool. As I enter Andy's room, I'm ready to go home and ready to come back already (weird how one can have those conflicting feelings at the same time). I get into the room, kiss Sheri goodnight and drift off for the last time in room 720 of the All Star Movies.

All we have to do is check out and get on the Magical Express for the ride home. Insert ominous music here.

December 2005 Trip Report, Day 6 (Part 1): Verrrryyyy Interesting

Mush's note: I had planned on doing my "what it means" post here, but I'm still working on the right words. I figured that I had better get back to the Trip Report before people started sending out the hounds...

We had a wake-up call set up for 7:10, and, damnit, Aaron had better answer this one!

 

Aaron's awake at 7:05. Fingers are crossed

 

 

RING

 

 

NO MORE SLEEPY!!!

 

Aaron:

 

Finally!

 

 

We get dressed and prepare for MGM today with the possibility of meeting up with DaisyDebbie and the Badelves clan for EMH at the Magic Kingdom. I notice the Magical Express tag on our door...no problem...I'm starting to be ready to get home.

 

While we're getting ready, Aaron just chills out on the bed:

 

 

 

We head over to the Movies food court, and I take particular pleasure in eviscerating Mickey in the form of a waffle with strawberries acting as blood.

 

Time for the all-important timing check with the busses. We head out and get on a bus within 5 minutes (luckily, it was going to MGM). We arrive and do the finger squeeze thingy and then pile in to wait for whatever opening ceremony they have here.

 

About ten minutes later some characters start walking towards us from the big hat along with some CMs. The rope is dropped, and the masses take an immediate right to head for the Tower of Terror and the Rockin' Roller Coaster.

 

We head for the hat. Nice and peaceful...no mob scene.

 

And who do we run into?!

 

 

We were second in line :-D.

 

 

After the autograph and pics, we head over to Mickey Avenue, and it's completely deserted. We are a bit early for the first showing of the Voyage of the Little Mermaid, so Sheri snoops out a pressed penny machine. While destroying some Government property, we talk to Ahmed, one of the CMs working nearby. He looks like he's near hypothermia.

 

We still have around 20 minutes before the show starts, so we head down Mickey Avenue to see if any characters are out. We stroll by WWTBAM (Who Wants to Be a Millionaire), and, though I know Aaron won't enjoy it, I decide that I'm going to try to make one of the games today. I need my revenge on the game. This thought was short-lived, because Jo-Jo and Goliath were right across the street. Aaron's really excited while in line, but I think his excitement was split between seeing Jo-Jo or seeing an ad for Little Einsteins.

 

We head back to see my hottie, Ariel (refer to day 2 for more information), and I'm not disappointed. Aaron watched with a lot of interest and asked a ton of questions throughout the show (my apologies to all around us). Still, I think I liked the show better than him.

 

 

We exit the show, and Sheri heads over to get the stroll...

 

What, honey? The stroller's not there? Sheri is trying to hide what she's dreading, but she's nearing the panic stage. I drop Aaron off with her and have them get in line for Playhouse Disney (due to start in ten minutes). I look around for a couple minutes...TADAAA...the CMs had moved it to another place. I move it to yet another place (where a couple hundred other strollers were parked) and join them for the show.

 

It was definitely a cute show, and we thought Aaron would love this one. For some reason, he was just kind of eeehhhh with it. I don't know if he was starting to get tired or not feeling well or what, but he just wasn't into it. This gets us to thinking that perhaps we should cut this day short a little and let him unwind at the hotel. This pretty much axes seeing Beauty and the Beast and jeopardizes Millionaire.

 

We leave Mickey Avenue and make our way over towards where Muppetvision 3-D is. On the way we see Stitch! . Of course the line for him is about 40 deep, so we decide to try to catch him before we leave.

 

Suuuurreee, Chris...that plan really worked at Animal Kingdom on Day 4, didn't it?! Fool me once, shame on you...fool me twice...

 

 

We keep on walking past the ABC Commissary and Sheri asks me where Mike and Sully from Monsters Inc hung out. Mare (Badelves) provided some great directions last night when we met up with her group at Epcot on where Mike and Sully were, but I'll be danged if I could remember what she said. I knew we were in the general vicinity, but I didn't know exactly where.

 

At that exact moment, we pass an opening to our left and see a CM and a line forming. A couple of seconds later, a garage door opens, and there they are! Good God, Sully is friggin HUGE:

 

Heck, I'm even a little scared going up to him, but Aaron runs right up. Considering this is one of his favorite movies, I shouldn't have been surprised.

 

 

We finally get to Muppetvision (after a detour for Aaron to play in the car in front of the 50's Prime Time Cafe). The Muppets have always been one of my favorites. I remember watching the Muppet Show all the time growing up, and I think my sense of humor falls right in line with them. Plus, I used to do a lot of their voices for my sisters when they were growing up (I can do a mean Fozzie Bear, Miss Piggy, and Gonzo as well as a decent Kermit and Swedish Chef, PLUS I have this hilarious perverted Grover routine, but I digress). Needless to say, I'm excited to be here...much more so than Sheri is. I'm busting up at the pre-show show on the screens, while Sheri considers disowning me. We experience the show, and Aaron enjoys his second 3-D movie, though not as much as Philharmagic. While I love the Muppets, I have to agree that the technology is better at Philharmagic.

 

Aaron donates a few pennies to the Muppet fountain, and we seek out lunch at the Pizza Planet. Aaron was hungry...he ate about half of his pizza by himself. After eating, we head down to play a bit and find an air hockey table. As I fish out a couple of quarters to play, a girl hands Aaron a little Pooh toy she got from one of those machines that you put a quarter in and turn the handle...you know guys...like the ones we used when we bought the engagement rings...they come in that plastic bubble thing. Her Mom said she already had that toy and wanted to share.

 

All together now....aaaawwwwwwwwwwwww.

 

Aaron has tried playing air hockey before, and I think he likes hearing the sound of the puck being scored against him. I nearly pulled a muscle trying to miss the puck to keep the score even.

 

 

Aaron's definitely getting tired, so we head out after one game and seek out another elusive character...Buzz Lightyear. We find him nearby and snap a picture. We then make our way to Millionaire. Of course Aaron crashes as we get there. We have about a half-hour before the next show, so I grab some bench and keep Aaron company while Sheri looked around a little in a shop or two.

 

Then I got to thinking...am I actually eligible to play this? I ask a CM if contestants on the actual TV show could play. The best way I could describe his reaction is a combination of , , and . He asks another CM, and I see them pointing my way.

 

Why the Hell did I even bring it up?

 

We kind of agree that I can play, so we go in (me holding a snoring kid) and watch some of the highlights from the show. I'm starting to get a little excited now. We get into the studio, and immediately I start comparing it to the actual ABC studio in New York. First off, there are a LOT more seats at MGM than in the actual studio. Second, the keypads are different. Even though I was in the "ring of fire" for the actual show, we did get to try out the keypads in New York. Third...there was no boom camera (a very annoying camera mounted on a long hydraulic arm that moved all over the place while you try to answer a question worth a lot of money) here at MGM. There were other differences, but, in its defense, the studio DID look a lot like the real one. It was much brighter in the MGM one, and the New York studio used some "smoke" to diffuse the lights to create a neat look.

 

A couple of minutes before it is supposed to start, Aaron wakes up. I try to hand him off to Sheri, but he wants Daddy. He finally goes to Sheri before the fastest finger question. It's up, and it's a geography question (one of my stronger areas!). I go against Zurg's (Bennet's) recommendations on how to do this and think it out. I get the first two with no problem...pause a second, then put the third and fourth one in...DAMN...the third one didn't go in, so I enter it last and search for the "submit" button. Then I realize that there is no submit button (like on the real show).

 

Ummm...I didn't make it in the hot seat. Some really cute nursing student makes it in there instead. Sheri comments on how her pants were so tight they had to have been painted on her. I agreed a little too quickly for her liking. As the contestant talked, I started thinking that, despite her looks, I don't think I would want this girl as my nurse (unless we're talking naughty nurses). The game starts, and she burns a lifeline on the 100 point question.

 

UGH!!! At this rate, there won't even be time for a second person to get in the seat. She burns her second lifeline at the 300 point one (the host accidentally helped her out on the 200 pointer). Finally she gets to the 1000 point level, and I get to see how I'm doing.

 

3rd from the top

 

She blows the 2000 point question, and I know I answered it really fast...I've got a chance....

 

Still 3rd from the top.

 

Damn close, but someone else heads down to the seat. This guy is a restaurant manager and seems to know his stuff. I pause for just an instant on the 100 point question and never could get back on the leader board. He blows it on the 4000 point question, but the horn honks and we're out of time. I actually cringed a bit when I heard that horn. The last time I heard it was in New York, and six of the folks I was playing against realized that they weren't going to have their chance when that horn sounded. Some of the stories of these folks were really touching too...one guy was hoping to win at least $64,000 so he could go to China and adopt the sister of the child he had already adopted.

 

I gave it my best shot, and it was fun. Hey...third from the top ain't too bad, and I guess I have the actual show as a substitute to the MGM version .

 

 

 

We leave Millionaire and make our way back to see Stitch. YES...HE'S STILL THERE!!! We get in line and have a CM tell us that the line is closed.

 

@#$(^(#!#@$()%(^(&(&^%#$@#!#@!$@

 

No, I didn't actually swear out loud. I do however recall a discussion from the previous night while talking with the Lodge folks. I modify the punch line for the current situation, and Sheri nearly slaps me. Oh well...at least the Photopass pictures had Stitch in one of them (he's popping out of the street).

 

We make our way out to the busses for the nap that likely wouldn't happen. As we leave, Sheri and I both agree that MGM was probably our least favorite park this trip. We can tell that Aaron is nearing his limit, so we modify our plans. Originally, we were going to eat at Cape May, tour the Yacht/Beach Club, walk over to the Boardwalk and tour there, take the boat to MGM to see the Osbourne Lights, take the boat to Epcot to see if we could get on anything, then possibly take the monorail to MK for extra magic hours. We decide that we'll just eat at Cape May, look around the Yacht/Beach Club, and then decide on whether to do MK or not.

 

As if it were planned, Aaron bounces around the room and falls asleep a mere twenty minutes before we planned on leaving for dinner at Cape May. For some reason, he's a grouch on the bus over to MGM. He falls asleep when we get off the bus. We head over to the boat launch and watch the ducks. He wakes up long enough to see a few of the ducks and hopes that they follow the boat that we are about to get on. We make our way over to the Swan and Dolphin (though I still think it looks NOTHING like dolphin) and then over to the Yacht/Beach Club.

 

We enter the Yacht Club and WOW...Thurston Howell III area again (I think I actually saw him there). We wind our way around and around and around until we find the entrance to Cape May. We park the stroller and are seating immediately (about 5 minutes before our ADR time). We're seated, and our server immediately comes and introduces himself. He asks where we're from.

 

"Central Illinois" I reply.

 

"What part?"

 

Now I'm interested. "Right in the middle...Bloomington/Normal."

 

"Really?!" He says. "I got kicked out of a college in Bloomington/Normal."

 

This conversation just took a turn south. "Illinois State?" (he nods) "I teach economics there."

 

He fires back with "I had some Chinese guy trying to teach me economics there...he showed me graphs that I had no clue about and no use for."

 

GULP

 

"I've got two strikes against me, don't I?" I say, trying to smile.

 

He promises not to spit in our drinks, and we make our way to the buffet line. Considering the fantastic array of fresh seafood we get in central Illinois, I was really looking forward to eating mussels, clams, etc...but the lines were pretty long. Aaron didn't really want to be there either, so that didn't help out much. Yep, we'll be heading home at just the right time I think. Most every table service meal was, for lack of a better term, "orgasmic" down here, and I'll give the climax award tonight to the desserts at Cape May. They had some cheesecake that was absolutely awesome!

 

While drinking some coffee, both Sheri and I agree that Aaron has had enough. Then Sheri says something that I would never have expected in a million years.

 

"Why don't you go out on your own tonight?"

 

"No...I'm not going to do that...this is a family vacation!"

 

"It's fine...Aaron and I have had enough, and I know you still want to see some things and meet up with Debbie and Mare. We'll watch movies and pack. Go ahead...it's fine."

 

"But..."

 

"It's fine...otherwise I wouldn't have brought it up" (as she smiles).

 

Even the slightest breeze would have had me . Some of me still resisted, but more of me realized that this is win-win for everyone involved, and I probably won't get a chance like this anytime soon. I agree, but I continue to ask her if she's sure about this.

 

After eating, we walk around a bit and appreciate the decorations/ambience of these hotels. We love the chocolate carousel (looks just like the one Samantha Brown helped build on the Travel Channel special we saw last week!) As we walk back to the Yacht Club to watch the model train set, Aaron has...well...how do I put it tactfully...the runs (so much for tact). Nope, he's definitely done for the night. I change him, and we start to make our way out to the water.

 

We hop on the boat to MGM to catch the bus to Movies. We hoped to get on the bus at MGM before Fantasmic ended, but it finished right after the boat docked. The line for Movies was easily 100 deep. In my mind, I had been processing several itineraries for what to do that night. I really wanted to try Mission Space, but the timing would have to be really good. With the lines waiting for a bus, chances are I wouldn't be able to make it to Epcot in time. Just as I was about to nix Epcot from the plans, two more busses arrive for Movies, and we're on our way!

 

I'm starting to feel like a little kid...bouncing with anticipation. We get off the bus at Movies, and I jokingly head right in line for another bus. We head to the room and drop things off. I tell Sheri my possible plans and give her a long kiss and then ask her one last time if she was okay with this. She kicks me out of the room, and I begin my first solo journey in the World…