Disneyland Anniversary Trip (Part 2)

Disneyland is hyping their "Year of a Million Dreams" promo this season and I think the programs they've come up with are pretty cool.

Here you see some pictures of the Jedi Academy where volunteers from the crowd get to take part in a little scenerio where they learn some light saber moves and then get a chance to fight either Darth Maul or Darth Vader. It's kind of cool.



We also saw some parade floats where winners of the Million Dreams promo get to be honorary parade marshalls. It's a pretty clever idea to allow visitors and fans to have more interaction and participation.



One of the best, most interactive rides at Disneyland is the Buzz Lightyear Astro Blaster ride. Last time we were here, I scored 120k. This time I scored some 130k or so. Not that much of an improvement.



After we left the Astro Blaster ride, I started hypothesizing about what I would do if I were a big famous rich guy... like John Lasseter. I thought that if I were him, I'd arrange to have a private evening for the rich and famous (and their children). I'd close the park, charge $6000 a head, have minimal staff, and open the park for other celebrities who don't want paparazzi following them everywhere they go.

"This way," I said to Annie, "People like... I dunno... Noah Wiley and his kids could enjoy Disneyland too." I assumed, of course, that people like that just avoid theme parks because they don't want to be pestered. But while Annie stood in line to order food and I stayed with the kids/reserving a table, lo and behold! There was Noah Wiley in all his derby-lidded glory. True story. Strange coincidence.

Annie said, "Try thinking of another celebrity and see if they appear!"
Here are some pictures I decided not to sell to TMZ.

Here are some more random pictures. Autopia.

Disneyland Anniversary Trip (Part 1)

Every year, Annie and I usually go on an overnighter to celebrate our anniversary. Sometimes we get on a plane, sometimes a long drive, and sometimes a short one. Over the last 8 years, we've gone to Seattle, Monterey, Jack London Square, Los Angeles, Napa Wine Country, Santa Rosa, and other fun places.

This year, because of our busy schedules, we weren't able to go somewhere too far for too long. We ended up going to Ruth's Chris Steakhouse in Walnut Creek.

The food was a 3.5 stars out of 5. Not terrific, but not bad. The prices were a little steep for the quality of food, but the ambience and service made up for it. Personally, I think a good ol' Texas Roadhouse ribeye steak beats the fancy Ruth's Chris version. But I digress.



After we celebrated our anniversary, we realized that we still had two tickets for Disneyland that were set to expire by the end of the year. One thing led to another and we decided to make a weekend trip to Anaheim with the kids and call that our anniversary trip.



The first ride we got in line for was the brand new Finding Nemo ride. Disney has revived the old submarine ride and gave it a modern twist. Much like the movie this ride is based upon, it's much ado about nothing.

The lines were long (although, our 60-minute wait was nothing compared to Annie's cousin, Peter's reported 150-minute wait) and the ride was hardly worth it. I was expecting some sort of new animatronics technology that would allow cute and cuddley clown fish to swim up to your porthole and interact with you.

But no, it's pretty much the same, pseudo-3D, reflected screen technology that's been around since 1976's "Sea Wolf" arcade game by Midway. (Think ballroom dancing ghosts at Disney's Haunted Mansion.)

At least the park managers thought enough about madenningly long lines to give people activity worksheets with which to occupy themselves during the wait.



Honestly, we couldn't complain too much. Amusement parks are partially amusing because we are amused by the length of each line. It's part of the self-depricating fun.





Here's us enjoying our time in line:





And here is us in the submarine:



Stay tuned for my next post where I reveal which famous television actor was also at Disneyland!

Marley and Mei

Here is a picture of Hannah and her class pet, Marley.

The "Star of the Week" gets to bring Marley home and write about the experience of taking him places.

This picture was taken the weekend of November 3.

Barracuda Spam Filter Working Overtime

Anyone else get this? Over 400 threatening spam-rejection emails from Hemming?

I guess Ray's work email REALLY hates spam.

Catching up on House Updates

I've been slow to update my blog and even slower to provide house updates. (My friend, pictured below at his birthday/daughter's Red Egg party, was the one who said he had been eagerly awaiting more house updates.)

So, Kerman, here are the latest updates.

Let's get to the pictures:

These were taken 10/09

Granite counters going in.

Cutting marble for the master bath.

Installing marble tile in the master bath.

These were taken 10/16

Faux exterior shutters go in.

Our door arrives.

Porcelain "goods" get delivered (toilets, sinks, what-have-you.)

Banister is stained.

Wolf range top / stove fan hood whatever you call it installed.

Mantle is stained.

These were taken 10/19

Each water outlet (sink, toilet, showerhead, etc) has it's own water source and is controlled by this panel in the garage. You can shut off each individual unit independently of the others which is good for troubleshooting or maintenance.

Kitchen appliances go in.

These were taken 10/25

View from upstairs loft window.

Exterior landscaping and masonry is installed.

Ornate powder room sink and fixtures installed.

Toilets and sinks throughout the house are installed (but not yet working! Go use the outhouse or hold it in!)

Tile flooring installed at 45 degrees finally completed.

More to come!...