Timeline

Often, the periods between my blog posts are either filled with negative things I'd rather not talk about or negative space -- nothing at all to talk about.

This time, it's been absolutely crazy around here.  I kept thinking, "I need to blog this," only to decide that sleep was a more effective use of my time.  But so much has happened and is about to happen that I feel I need to document.  So here is a timeline of the past two weeks and the next five weeks:

The Past Two Weeks:

May 10: Graduation Day!!  Celebrated by Park Hopping with Mom

May 11: Mother's Day -- celebrated with Mom

May 13: Got a call to schedule a job interview

May 14: 14th Company anniversary -- celebrated by going to the doctor. (I'm fine)

May 15: Job interview

May 17: Return to Magic Kingdom, this time to get a sneak-peek of the new Seven Dwarfs Mine Train ride with Cindy, a former intern who worked on the project over the past year. (that's her screaming next to me in the photo to the left. Kat, who was an apprentice at DAK a few years back, is behind my right shoulder)  The ride is great, and I'd say a wait of up to 40-60 minutes is acceptable.  The queue is shaded and has activities.  While at MK, I also did the Hall of Presidents, Haunted Mansion, TTA, and had a Dole Whip.

May 19 (morning): First day of grad school! 

May 19 (afternoon): JOB OFFER!!

May 20-23: Flurry of work-related activities, including trying to wrap up projects, tell people I'm leaving, make sure my area's training compliance doesn't crash & burn while there's no one in my position, learning about my new position... and of course, still trying to get through my normal daily tasks while my head is 8,000 other places at once!

Today/Tomorrow: 

Homework for week one. This includes 2 essays, a quiz, reading 4 chapters in textbooks, and watching a 40-minute movie.  

Next Week:

Monday: Memorial Day; planning to spend it getting ahead on next week's homework so that next weekend I can knock out as much of the following week's homework as possible

Wednesday: getting fingerprinted. 

Some other day: take my car to the dealership to get her road trip ready

Weekend: lots of homework, laundry, and maybe try to start packing

Week of June 1:

Last week in my current job!  Currently, my plans are to work Sun-Thurs (or work 4 10-hour shifts Mon-Thurs).  I'm going to need to pack and move all of my personal stuff out of the office.  There's a lot, including a large metal zebra, race bibs, and a bunch of stuff on the wall.

Thursday: Last day at DAK.  Potluck with my team. I'm planning to be a soggy sobbing mess by Thursday afternoon.

Friday: Leave for vacation early morning*

Saturday: Arrive in Philly in time to pick up my race packet for ODDyssey, spend the night in the city

Weeks of June 8 & 15:

Sunday 6/8: ODDyssey Half Marathon, head over to Jackie's house (my home base for these weeks)

Rest of the time: Bum around PA/NJ, catch up with as many friends and family as possible, do homework, possible trip up to NYC, eat LOTS of pizza, bagels, Chinese...

Week of June 22:

Traveling to Penn State for week-long summer intensive "Seminar in Employment Relations" class on campus.  If not for everything else going on in my life right now, this would be the highlight of my summer.  I'll be staying on campus (in a dorm building that wasn't there when I left 14 years ago), spending most of each day in class, and actually interacting and networking with my classmates.

June 28-29: Drive home

June 30: Start my new job

It's far too much to process logically.  The best I can do right now is to keep breathing, make lots of to-do lists as things pop into my head, and do my best to stop and enjoy the ride whenever possible.  I'm sure I'll check in between now and the end of June, but at least now you know where I'll be!

*Yes, I'm leaving home for three weeks.  Scott is going to be staying here, enjoying some roommate-free living and cuddling with the kitties.  I'm so glad our friendship is "ok" enough that he's willing to do that for me.

Actually Park Hopping!

If you've been reading the blog recently, you might have realized that I haven't actually been doing much park hopping.  Perhaps after 14 years of living in the shadow of Disney, I've had enough "magic."  Actually, I don't think that's true at all.  Life has been pretty busy, and I genuinely enjoy my couch!

That said, I decided that the best way to celebrate my graduation (by the way, "Hi, my name is Jamie. I'm an alum of Penn State University, and a grad student.") was to "hop" to all four Disney parks in one day.  And the only person brave or crazy enough to play with me was my mom.

As you can see, we did it!

AK, Studios, Epcot, and Magic Kingdom: all in one day!

We got into Animal Kingdom around 9:45 (because I left my ticket in the car.  rookie move!), took our selfies, and then headed to our designated ride, Kilimanjaro Safari.  Unfortunately, the wait time was 45 minutes, and that wasn't on my agenda.  We walked through the gorilla viewing instead, and then left AK for the Studios.

At the Studios, our one and only activity was sitting at the bar at Prime Time Cafe and enjoying a peanut butter & jelly shake.

From there, we took the car to the TTC and then the monorail to Epcot.  We got there around 1:00 and bee-lined to the World Showcase.  We split an avocado margarita, had lunch in Japan, and then split a Gran Marnier slush.  Hooray for Epcot!

Our park hopping day ended at the Magic Kingdom, where we finally rode an actual ride (the People Mover), plus enjoyed the air conditioned entertainment of the Carousel of Progress.  It was a lot of fun, though exhausting, and we got a bunch of fun photos.  Plus, the bonus of not riding rides is that we basically waited in no lines all day!

That evening, mom and I had dinner at Red Robin with two of my work friends.  We ate and talked and laughed... It was a wonderful non-conventional way to celebrate my non-conventional graduation.  And then we wrapped up the weekend with Mother's Day brunch at TooJay's.

BONUS: more photos from our weekend-o-fun

WDW Marathon Weekend Recap #2: Running

Did you already read part one?

All week last week, people who work in my building kept asking if I was running this weekend.  "Nope, I'm just cheering this time" became my standard response.  My next scheduled race is Celebration in two weeks, so my weekend plans included cheering for the 10K and full marathon and an 11-mile training run of my own on Saturday.

Fate, however, had other plans!  A friend (who was also not planning on running) acquired a race number from someone else, and then decided at the last minute to pass the number along to me.  And in case you were wondering my definition of "last minute," I didn't know at 2pm on Friday when I left work that I'd be waking up 12 hours later to run in this race!

Cat planned to run, but failed to train.  She decided that her lack of training meant she'd be at my pace anyway, so we decided to run together.  This is the first long race I've run with someone else, and I can't even tell you how much better that made the whole experience.

The course for the WDW Half is the same as for the Princess Half - start on the highway near Epcot, run to and then through Magic Kingdom, run some more highway, trudge up the on-ramp of death, tackle some more unexpected hills, run through the front half of Epcot, finish in the Epcot parking lot.  When I ran Princess, I just didn't understand what all the fuss was about.  People seem to love running toward Cinderella Castle and talk about how special and magical it is.  Last February, I was unimpressed.  There was a great cheering crowd, but I thought the whole park was a choke point and I would have been happier running in a wide-open space instead.

Cat was just as thrilled as I was...I swear!

This year, EVERYTHING was more magical.  We ran through the parking lot, into Town Square, and rounded the corner onto Main Street, USA.  And I actually got a little choked up when I saw the castle.  It was...for lack of desire to come up with something original...absolutely magical.

Did I mention magical?

The rest of the Magic Kingdom was just wonderful - through Tomorrowland, past the Tea Cups, through the Castle, past Liberty Square and Frontierland, and out through the back vehicle gate.  Before we knew it, we hit the halfway point.  Halfway ALREADY?!?

Cat and I talked the whole time, about family and friends, work, life, how the race was going, how long we'd make it before we would have to stop to pee (4 miles)... occasionally we'd high-five for silly reasons or chat with strangers.

I particularly loved the water stop manned by Disney Cruise Line workers.  It was great to hear the different tunes that the ships' horns play, and there was a lady with a PA announcing groups as they ran past - "Disney Cruise line welcomes the Team in Training!!" - which made me long to go on another cruise.

My absolute favorite part of the entire race is going to take a few sentences of flashback to explain.  Back in 2009 (I think) when Scott still worked at the Magic Kingdom, he had a 3am shift on a Marathon Sunday.  His car battery died, and he woke me up to drive him to work.  As we pulled into the MK gate, there was a giant marker for Mile 10.  I laughed and asked him to take a picture of me fake-running past the sign in my pajamas and flip-flops.  He declined, and I've pretty much reminded him about that every race weekend ever since.  The photo that got away...

Fast forward to this past Friday:

I found myself alone with the Mile 5 marker for the 10K (featuring Nemo, Dory, and Marlon), and took a picture of it and posted it to Facebook with a comment about wishing someone was there to take a picture of me fake-running past it in my jeans and boots.

perhaps for my next race my signature
move should be *actual* running
instead of just faking it for photos!

During the race yesterday, Cat and I found the Nemo marker and I HAD TO get the picture.  It wasn't until she took the picture and we started running again that it clicked -- Nemo was at mile 10!  This photo was four years in the making, and was even more special because I was actually fake-running...past mile 10...and Nemo during an actual race!  (if that doesn't just tickle you, I guess I understand. but it instantly became my favorite race photo ever because of all of the history wrapped up in one picture.

Like most races, the last 5K of this race kicked my butt.  I didn't think the on-ramp and hills were quite as bad this year, but I was still pretty winded and exhausted by the time we made it into Epcot.
Right before the park, we passed a girl with a poster that said "2 LEGIT 2 QUIT," and I asked her if she was old enough to understand the reference on her poster.  Her answer "I'm 35," followed by the hand gestures that go with the song.  "Oh, then I guess you are."  I hope she was flattered and not annoyed!

After running the entire race together, Cat and I stuck together all the way to the finish line.

...but I slowed down and veered left to high-five Goofy and she ended up crossing the finish a few seconds before I did.

My bad!

There was more high-fiving, and I found myself choking back tears for the (at least) third time.  Even if we had planned for this and trained together and worn matching costumes, I doubt we would have had a better race together.

Friends with medals (and balloons oddly positioned behind our heads)

We might go weeks without talking sometimes, but my friendship with Cat is one of the most enduring and constant of my life.  Frankly, the fact that we're still friends after 13 years (including one where we shared an apartment) is kind of mind-boggling.  And sharing this moment with her might have been the best moment of our whole friendship.  It's in my top five for sure.

My Race Stats:
Clock Time: 4:23:53
Chip Time: 3:29:08
Pace: 15:36
Overall Place: 17761/20242
Division Place: 1035/1254

My Splits (according to RunKeeper):
mile 1: 14:06 min/mi
mile 2: 14:04 min/mi
mile 3: 14:28 min/mi
mile 4: 14:15 min/mi
mile 5: 15:18 min/mi
mile 6: 14:28 min/mi
mile 7: 14:43 min/mi
mile 8: 15:16 min/mi
mile 9: 15:02 min/mi
mile 10: 15:41 min/mi
mile 11: 16:09 min/mi
mile 12: 16:13 min/mi

mile 13: 16:28 min/mi

I don't think I mentioned that heat and humidity were definitely a factor in this race.  And talking slowed us down a bunch.  But neither of us were in it for a PR, and we had an awesome time.

A More Legitimate Review of the Year

I haven't been really great about blogging this year, so you might not know what a great year it's really been around here.

Travels

We started the year with a quick weekend trip to Ft. Myers to visit the O'King side of the family, and then did a two-night mini cruise on Disney's newest cruise ship, the Dream. 

In September, we took a road trip that included the Georgia Aquarium, the Penn State campus, Philadelphia, the NJ shore, and Hilton Head.  We had such a wonderful time... I can't believe I didn't blog about it.

We wrapped up the year with another cruise, this one our "last hurrah" before I start school.  We celebrated our anniversary and Christmas in style, and got to see the new Muppets movie onboard rather than get off the ship in Nassau.



The Cousins doing "jazz hands"



Family Visits



In addition to our January trip to FoMo, it seems like 2011 was the year to reconnect with family.  Mary and Richard's 50th anniversary party in August turned into the biggest family reunion in probably 20 years.  We spent two days in the parks with different groups of family and had a great time at the actual party as well.

I also got to spend Thanksgiving with Mom and Michael.  This was the first "family" holiday we've had in what feels like a million years.  Sadly, Scott had to work, but I brought home lots of leftovers for him.

Changes...in Shades of Blue

I got a new car, we painted an accent wall in our bedroom, and I decorated the garage.  (well, I decorated half the garage.  I really am planning on finishing that one day!) Blue was definitely the signature color of 2011.

Culinary Adventures

I'm getting much better at cooking big chunks of meat.  My favorite cut of pork is the "butt shoulder," which is the butt or shoulder, and makes a darn fine spaghetti sauce and/or pork roast.  I'm a huge fan of beef short ribs, and made a new cut - horseradish-crusted brisket - for Christmas.  We also killed a pair of lobsters this year.

Entertainment

We finished up our second subscription series at the Straz Center in Tampa and decided to not renew for a third.  Shrek and Billy Elliott were wonderful, but overall we were disappointed in the shows we saw and this season's shows were mostly outside our interest.  We put some of our theater money into Sea World annual passes.  We haven't really made use of them as much as I'd hoped, but I've used the time we spent practicing photography.  I also got Scott a subscription to GameFly for his birthday and he's played about a million shoot-em-up games so far.  He'll also get a lot of use out of it once I start school.

I think that's most of the highlights.  I'm looking forward to finding out what 2012 will bring.  I'm expecting big things...

Between Vacations

I spent August 24-27 in a whirlwind of family fun.  Of course, I'm a terrible blogger and didn't bother to record anything of note at the time.  Now on the eve of another "memory maker," I'm going to throw up a random list of things I want to remember about how wonderful it was to be with everyone again.
August 24 - evening - dinner at Downtown Disney with Rose, Gary, Mark, Dawn, and Scott.  Good food and wine, followed by a trip to Goodings to pick up ponchos for the tourists!

August 25 - Magic Kingdom with a ton of people! 

Our original plan was to meet up with Dawn and Naomi and their respective spouses and children, sign them in, and go off with just Dawn and Mark.  Then 7 others showed up, including Jenn and her family, so we stuck with the crew long enough to ride Pirates (not a good idea with a tiny baby...she wailed through the whole thing, and everyone on the boat was throwing me the "bad mommy" look because I was holding her!), Hall of Presidents, and Haunted Mansion.  By the way, the new and improved Hitchhiking Ghosts at the end of Haunted Mansion blew my freaking mind! I want to go back again and again and again!  After that, we bailed on the family fun and headed home... with a Dole Whip pit stop.  Mmm...magical Magic Kingdom treat...

August 26 - Happy Birthday Scott!

The day started with a little birthday brunch for my halfway-to-70-year-old.  Actually, it started as a little brunch and ended up being me feeding 11 people and trying to keep the stress away from Scott.  Note: I've never even really participated in Thanksgiving dinner (besides the pies).  I was so proud of myself - sticky buns, a bread casserole (with pancetta...that I fried...with splattering oil), individual chicken pot pies... and the only thing we didn't do from scratch was mashed sweet potatoes from our local favorite BBQ place.

Then we napped.  I needed it!

The evening was spent in celebration of Aunt Mary and Uncle Richard's 50th anniversary. In addition to the planned activities - dinner, musical performances by some grand kids, and a DVD of 1950's home movies that made me laugh and cry - we brought a little entertainment of our own.

I bought these 2 11x17 picture frames on clearance a few months ago, for the purpose of using them as silly photo props.  I brought them with me and stashed them in a corner until I saw a photo op.  As soon as the frames came out, they were like catnip for the kids, even the camera-shy ones.  People were squeezing as many faces as they could, going 3D and popping out of the frames, and generally laughing and having a good time.  I got major brownie points for bringing them along!

Alicia as Richard, and Richard as Mary

I was also a (small) part of the night's most fun surprise: "Flat Mary" and "Flat Richard" - customized masks of their faces, perfect for taking even more ridiculous pictures!

After the evening's fun and frolic, we asked everyone to take a pair of masks home with them, and to take pictures where they live.  Our plan is to create a travel diary of The Adventures of Richard and Mary.  I hope people remember to take pictures!



August 27 - Another day of Park Hopping, this time with Rose and Gary, Laura and Richard, Alicia, Alex, and Megumi.  We did almost all the "E-Ticket" rides at the Studios and at Magic Kingdom, got caught in a monsoon, and had lunch at Prime Time Cafe.  Some of the highlights for me:

Laura and Richard's 10th Anniversary Hoop-La!  We got them bride and groom mouse ears and anniversary buttons. Everywhere we went, people congratulated them.  They got up on stage for the Indiana Jones show, got shout-outs from parade performers, and generally got a lot more attention than they were probably comfortable with.  It was awesome!

The new Star Tours was so much better than I expected it to be!  There were 9 of us, which apparently qualified us for our own private ride.  I was the "rebel spy," (you'll understand when you ride it) and Alex was yelling back at the screen that he wanted to turn me in.  Our tour saw Chewbacca, Yoda, and JarJar Binks.  The 3D is great, and the simulator motion matches the image on the screen pretty seamlessly.

Riding Big Thunder Mountain with Alicia and literally laughing until I started to sob.  Because the lap bar was set to my legs and she's so much skinnier than I am, she got tossed around a lot.  The first dip, I thought she might fall out.  From then on, I just couldn't stop laughing.  By the time we pulled into the station, I had tears streaming down my face. When I recounted the story to Scott, people were looking at me to see who the sobbing freak was!

Laughing to tears again on Space Mountain. I was in the front of our rocket, and every time we went through a jarring turn on sharp drop Alex would yell "woah, Space," as though he was trying to get a horse to stop. It just got funnier and funnier.  Honestly, I can't remember the last time I had so much fun on Space Mountain!

Having great seats for both the Electric Light Parade and Wishes. Thanks to this, I was able to learn about what I'm now calling the "shaky shaky" feature on my camera and get some killer pictures of both without a flash.

And of course, we brought Flat Mary & Rich along for some killer photos "where Magic lives," but I won't be previewing those quite yet.

Driving home after a marathon day in the parks, with sore wet feet and total exhaustion setting in, it was hard for me to not get emotional.  I miss them all already - not just the ones I had a chance to "play" with, but the ones I only saw at the anniversary party.  I met some new extended family members, made a baby cry in terror, and took a zillion pictures (of which, about 50 came out).  We had a fabulous time - even better than we were anticipating - and look forward to seeing everyone again.

All Scott, All the Time

I just noticed that all of the pictures in the gallery at the top of the blog currently contain Scott.  I can definitively say that I have never seen this happen before!

 

Also of note: only one picture contains any sort of booze.  It seems most of the time when there is a camera-worthy occasion, there is also beer and wine.  Or a mojito.  Or a margarita.  Refresh the screen a few times and you'll see what I mean.  I guess we're both special occasion photographers and special occasion drinkers!

And in case you were wondering, the photos would be labeled "cruise, cruise, cruise, Epcot, Sea World, Studios, cruise."  Or more specifically, "Disney Wonder emergency drill, Castaway Cay/Disney Dream, Castaway Cay/Disney Dream, Epcot parking tram, Sea World penguin building, Mama Melrose's at the Studios, Disney Magic atrium."

I often find myself refreshing the blog whenever I'm blue or bored and wanting to jog happy times back into my brain, so that's why I'm so sure I've never seen this happen before.  It's like I won the Flickr slot machine or something!

Dinner

Tonight for dinner I had cheese soup, escargot, bison chili, and a sausage in a pretzel roll.

Thank you, Food & Wine Festival! I look forward to hitting the other half of the world on another visit!

Announcements for Family and Friends

please stick around to the end (or just skip to the end) if you are just here for the tickets

For Sale: Two fabulous tickets to see Irving Berlin's White Christmas at the Straz Center for the Performing Arts in Tampa. The show is on Thursday, December 2 at 7:30 pm. Face value of the tickets is over $60 each, but our price is very negotiable. This was part of our season ticket package, and we aren't going to be able to go. E-mail me if you're interested.

If you are planning on coming to see the Candlelight Processional this year, please let me know when. Show preferencing and sign-ups start soon, and I have no idea what to sign up for! The show description and narrator list can be found here. I won't be available for shows until December 7, but after that can do the 2nd/3rd shows Mon-Thurs or the 1st show on Sunday. Friday/Saturday I'm only available if Scott wants to go. (my decision, not his, we're working opposite shifts right now and his days off are the only time we see each other) If you're coming, I strongly recommend the dinner package. That way you have guaranteed seating and won't have to wait in line for an hour or more just to get a crappy seat in the back. I'm planning on trying to sing when Jodi Benson, Thomas Gibson, and Marlee Matlin are narrating, but can certainly be available on another date. Please let me know ASAP if you might be coming.

What about park admission? Thank you for asking!

For anyone planning on inquiring about free or discounted theme park tickets in 2010 or 2011, please keep the following in mind: I am given a limited number of free admits every year, and I have to physically go to the park with you in order to use them. For discounted tickets, I need to have your money in advance and have to go buy them during my time off. While I am more than happy to go out of my way for my friends and family who treat me like friends or family (especially the ones who come to see me performing in Encore or Candlelight), I am disinclined to do so for anyone who never calls, e-mails, or even contacts me on Facebook until they need something.

I'm not saying I need my ego stroked or hand held, but a Christmas card or the occasional "hello, how are you?" is a great gesture.

And if this has somehow offended you, I apologize. Setting boundaries is an important part of life, and this is my boundary.

Thanks, and I look forward to seeing you for Candlelight or in 2011!

Lots Done

Floppy hat shopping at the mall was an epic failure. This time of year, unless you want a ski cap or a dressy hat with feathers, you're basically out of luck.

We did, however, stumble across a doorbuster sale at JC Penney. I found an 80% off rack in the men's department with Scott's short-sleeve button-down shirts on sale for $5 each, got him 2 polo shirts, and bought an argyle sweater for myself (also men's...but with purple in it). The bottom of the receipt says we saved $185.12, and when the cashier read that out, I literally high-fived Scott.

After the mall, we swung by Target, where I found a floppy hat last week but didn't buy it. I got one (on clearance, 1/2 price) that works for me, and bought a big pair of sunglasses to go with it. Paired with the cover-up I ordered from Old Navy, I'm going to look so fabulous walking to and from the pool/beach during our vacation...right up until the hat flies off my head and into the ocean!

After Target, we grocery shopped, came home for a little while, and then headed off to the park formerly nicknamed MGM (now DHS) for dinner. We made good time, so we had time for a quick ride on the Great Movie Ride, where we were treated to a surprise show by my Encore friend Melissa, playing the part of the gangster who hijacks your car. She's really good at it.

And then dinner at Mama Melrose's was spectacular as always. I had tomato & mozzarella salad and goat cheese ravioli and Scott had clams and the pork chop. Mmm...delicious!

And now we're home and my feet hurt. It was a great day, and I think we both really needed a great day. Tomorrow Scott's back to work and I've got some laundry to do. Back to the real world!

Poop

(literally)

Scott and I pulled out of the garage on Sunday afternoon only to discover that someone had let their dog crap - twice - on our driveway and made no attempt to clean it up. We were both annoyed, but decided to leave it until it dried a little so that we could sweep it out of the driveway.

Imagine my surprise the next day when Scott told me that he swept the poop out of the driveway, and whatever animal it came from, it was most definitely not a domestic canine! The poop had chunks of fur and sections of intestine in it. He showed me this morning. I would've touched it, if not for the fact that a) it's dead animal, and b) it's poop. Still, you can't help but laugh about it!

The following photos have nothing to do with poop. But they were taken on Sunday. That makes them relevant to the post, right?

Food! Glorious Food!

I made reservations a few months back to spend Scott's birthday night at the limited time only Wishes Dessert Party at Magic Kingdom. What could be better than a dessert buffet with a reserved spot to watch the fireworks? Well, maybe a dessert buffet with a reserved spot to watch the fireworks AND an insulin shot!

Here's a selection of what we ate:

LEFT PLATE (clockwise from top): cheesecake, cannoli, glazed donut hole, banana tart, raspberry tart

CENTER: creme brulee

RIGHT PLATE: raspberry tart, creme brulee, chocolate-covered strawberry, chocolate peanut butter tart

TOP: tiramisu

It's safe to say we ate well. Sadly, Tinkerbell didn't fly because of the weather. She would have gone right over our heads though. And the view of the fireworks, though off-center from the castle, was amazing.

What a great event. If they resurrect it after the Halloween/Christmas Parties, maybe we'll go again some time.

Gatorland

Scott and I went to Gatorland last week, mostly to see the white alligators and to take advantage of the $9.99 Florida resident tickets. I like it there - it's definitely worth 10 bucks. This time we didn't see any of the shows, didn't ride any gators (sadly, the link to the slide show seems to no longer work), and didn't toss any hot dogs. We took lots of pictures and fed the birds. Most of the photos are up on Facebook, but here's a few:

The white, or leucistic, alligators are in a dimly-lit habitat with glass walls. There's four of them, each in their own little pool. It's a nice display, but terrible for taking pictures. This was my best attempt.

Scott assures me this isn't what it looks like. Even still, the photo makes me giggle!

Best action shot of the day. Sadly, I can't claim it as my own. We were the only people in the aviary, and the lady who works there came in and took my camera.

When the photographer becomes the subject. By the way, these little guys are heavier than they look!

I love this guy, content to sun himself, and calm enough for a perfect reflection in the water. It was COLD that day, so we didn't see a whole lot of alligators actually moving. Most were either snoozing on the ground or mostly submerged in the water.

Picture from Yesterday

Scott rides the Caro-Seuss-El at Islands of Adventure. There was an equally embarrassing photo of me, but I was terribly back-lit. That's a shame, because my "horse" was much cooler than Scott's!

Full Day

I had my annual visit to the girly doctor today (and was a little hurt that he didn't comment on my pink-on-pink knee socks). Nothing to report there.

After that fun was over, Scott and I went over to Universal. We finally got to try out the Simpsons ride (fun, but it made me a little nauseous). We did three rides in Islands of Adventure, and just the one on the Universal side because Men in Black went 101 right when we walked up. Oh well... we still had fun and got sore feet. :)

Then, trip trip to Publix to buy a pound of butter... and some other stuff. Scott's got cornbread in the oven, which means that Thanksgiving food preparation has officially begun. Mmm... gluttony...

Skulls & Bones

"I don't know, doc. All of a sudden, it felt like my skull was being crushed..."

Yep, this is what happens when you set me and Scott loose with skulls and a digital camera with fresh batteries. Of course, while we were horsing around, we missed the hippo swimming right along the glass wall behind us.

And for anyone with Facebook who saw my status yesterday and wondered what 1-2-3 Whee is, here's a blurry action shot to help explain:


From left to right, that's Trip, Molly (in the stroller with her tongue out), Jenn, Kara and Scott. It's hard to tell who is having the most fun!

We had a whole lot of fun at Animal Kingdom today, despite a little afternoon shower and the humidity that followed. The whole park smelled like Vo-ban, which was a little disgusting, but we made it through. In addition to everyone in the photos above, Aunt Mary and Uncle Rich were also around. Anyone with Facebook will see pictures in the coming days. For now, you'll just have to believe me that they were there.

I love my family a whole lot. We're a whole lotta fun!

Farewell to W

We heard that the Hall of Presidents was going to be closing until July 4, 2009 (hopefully so that they can move Bush 43 into a barely visible corner) so we made a special trip to the Magic Kingdom to take one last look.

Be proud of me - I made it through the whole thing without booing or walking out. It was hard though, especially when I realized W's entire speech and Abe Lincoln's speech were built around the premise of the Declaration of Independence - that all men are created equal, that we have certain unalienable rights, and that if we can not grant people rights that we should not set out to take the rights away from anyone. **cough**unlessyouaregayorMuslim**cough** Oh yeah - and he didn't mention plans to drag the country into a war with no end, torture captives, listen in on my phone calls, or destroy the economy. I guess those were all prizes we won in the '04 bonus round!

But I digress. Today is the start of NaBloPoMo, which means 30 days of posts that will probably be more like this:

Dole Whips for President!

Actually, I think that caption is rather lame. How about "Registered Voters: Thanks, ACORN!" Anyone have anything better?

Table for Three

The bug man came and went Wednesday afternoon around 3:00. He was here for five minutes. I asked him what the "big infestation" was that the office manager had alluded to the day before, and he said he hadn't seen anything at all in this building. Though perhaps it would be on the second side... What really got me about the whole process was that he was squirting his little gel syringe in the front of the cabinets - like right at the hinges. I never once saw him reach all the way back.

I won't complain though. We did get 7 bags of crap thrown out. And to celebrate, Scott and I took off right after the bug man left for an early dinner at Mama Melrose's. (originally made a 4:10 reservation so that we could go see Fantasmic, but were so exhausted we just came home after) We were seated at a table in the very last section of the restaurant, next to the wall, which happened to be decorated thusly:

I don't know about you, but I'm not sure I want Placido Domingo watching me eat. I wanted to take a picture of him and Scott together, but Scott wouldn't cooperate. We pigged out on an assortment of artisan breads and mozzarella/tomato salad, Scott had the steak with gorgonzola butter (and red pepper polenta...ick!) and I had pork marsala with mushroom risotto. We split a piece of cheesecake for dessert, along with a glass of port.Scotty likey dee port. Jamie likey the tiny glass - like the size you'd give a six-year-old his wine in, if you were so inclined. Anyone else think Scott should totally make this his Facebook profile? Aunt Rose would be so proud...

The next 2 weeks are going to be pretty nuts for me. I'm working every day next week except Wednesday, training Friday and Saturday (training someone else - not me being trained), a 2-hour class this Tuesday and an 8-hour class next Monday. And then ELECTION DAY the next day. I'll be hosting an election night party for myself, similar to my Emmy party, with random appetizer foods and a bottle of rosé I got from my boss last week. And I certainly pray that I'm not drowning my sorrows in bubbles by the end of the night.

So if you don't hear from me, assume I'm fine, just working or sleeping!

Food & Wine Part Three

Don't skip ahead! Start with part one and part two!

Louisiana

Seafood Gumbo

Scott: 3.5

Jamie: 1 - *gag* tasted like rotten fish to me!

Crawfish Etouffée

Scott: 4

Jamie: 4 - I thought it would be too spicy, but I found it delightful.

Abita "Purple Haze" Beer

Scott: 3 - It was good, but no Sam Adams

Praline Bread Pudding with Bourbon Caramel Sauce

Scott: 2.5 - cloyingly sweet

Jamie: 2.5 - what he said...and way too many pecans

Free Mini Tabasco Bottles: Priceless!

Turkey

Manti with Yogurt Sauce

(Note: manti is a spicy beef ravioli)

Scott: 4 - sour to the point of being sweet

Jamie: 4 - would've been a 5 if it didn't look like a pile of vomit! I really enjoyed it!

Canada

Chateau des Charmes Riesling

Jamie: 4 - I got carded when I ordered this! The first wine I had at the Festival, I can't tell you a thing about it, but I remember that I liked it!

Cheddar Cheese Soup

Scott: 4.5

Jamie: 5 - A festival favorite every year, though the predominant flavor in the soup is bacon, not cheese!

Vidal Icewine

Jamie: 5

Scott: 5 - Thick, sweet, with a honey after-taste. "Scotty like dee expensive wine!"

And Last But Not Least...

Puerto Rico

(left) Mofongo

(beef with green plantains, pork cracklings, shrimp and something like salsa)

Scott: 2.5

Jamie: 2 - the salsa was a redeeming feature. Both of us could see how this could be tasty if made well and served fresh, but this wasn't.

(right) "Gypsy's Arm" Guava Jelly Roll

Scott: 5 - tasty! I don't usually like guava, and this was very sweet, but sweet in a good way.

Jamie: 5 - first thing I had on day #1, last thing I had on day #2.

Plantain and Beef Casserole

Scott: 4.5 (once we scraped some of the diced red peppers off the top)

Jamie: 5 - Scott wants to learn how to make this, and I'm going to let him!

Frozen Mojito

Scott: 5 - Even though it was a "slushie" it was very well balanced. They used Bacardi Limon, which I usually don't like, but in this case it worked!

Jamie: 4.5 - I was shocked that you could still taste the mint so well without any actual pieces of mint in the drink!

So that's our culinary world tour. We hope you are drooling on your keyboard right now.

...and I would like to leave you with two photos of Scott - a study of mojitos - taken at the start of day #1, and the end of day #2. That's how you know we were on vacation!!

Food & Wine Part Two

Have you read Part One? If not, start there!

Ireland

(left) Frozen Irish Coffee

Jamie: 5 - Yum! It's an alcoholic Frappuccino!

(middle) Boxty with Bacon Chips and Kerrygold Garlic & Fresh Herb Butter

Scott: 4

Jamie: 4.5 - picture corned beef and cabbage wrapped in a potato pancake with herb butter on top. Only, you know, there wasn't actually any corned beef.

(right) Guinness Draught

Scott: 4

Irish Cheese Selection: Cheddar, Dubliner, Ivernia with apple chutney and brown bread

Scott: 2.5

Jamie: 3 - There was nothing wrong with the
cheeses, but they all tasted the same and were served cold. The cheese booth put this plate to shame. And that bread... doesn't look brown to me!

Potato Leek Soup with Dubliner Cheese Stick

Scott: 4 - Very creamy, light with a leeky undertone. The cheese stick was light in texture but intense in flavor.

Jamie: 3 - I didn't find it nearly creamy enough.

Time for a photographic interlude from the "Pearville Fair" section. Nothing to eat here but whole pairs, but still a fun photo op!

Hops and Barley

a.k.a. "The Beer Booth"

a.k.a. The booth with the mile-long line

Sam Adams Cherry Wheat

Jamie: 3 - which for a beer is pretty darn good!

Scott: 5 - It's his favorite beer, and can currently be found in our fridge

Sam Adams 13th Annual Festival Lager

Jamie: 2.5 - I didn't like it, but the flavor was layered and complex

Scott: 3.5

San Francisco, USA

Seared Beef Medallion with Cheddar Cheese Polenta

Scott: 4 - The polenta was very creamy. Beef had a little too much rosemary on it.

New Zealand

Lamb Slider on a Brioche Roll

Scott: 3 -Liked the roll, meat cooked well, the gravy was "eh."

Jamie: 3.5 - Tasted like pot roast on bread. I wouldn't have known it was lamb.

Bay Scallops with Baby Greens and Cranberry Vinaigrette

Scott: 3

Jamie: 3

Villa Maria Private Bin Merlot/Cabernet Sauvignon Blend

Jamie: 4 - this was the first red I tasted on night #1, and I don't remember anything specific about the flavor, but I remember that it was delicious and really enhanced the mini pot roast sandwich!

Morocco

Grilled Beef and Hummus in a Pita Pocket

(note: that's the description in the festival guide, but there was definitely no hummus on there. instead, there was a salsa-like garnish)

Scott: 1 - It had been sitting at least an hour. The pita was soggy, hummus was missing, and the "hamburger" didn't have any flavor.

Mint Iced Tea

Scott: 4

Jamie: 5 - I love mint tea, and at this point of day #2, I needed something cold and refreshing. Hooray for countries without alcohol!

We're still not done! Part three will be here before you know it!