Odd Ends

Here are a few things floating through my head today that are too long for Twitter and too short for their own blog posts.

* When I was in the fourth grade, my family took a vacation to England.  I distinctly remember being disappointed when we returned to the US and not only did we not get to disembark the plane via staircase to the tarmac, but there was no marching band.  Apparently my only exposure to international travel had been the evening news and seeing the President and/or US Military members returning to much fanfare.  I thought of that today because this morning my friend Margaret floated into Port Canaveral aboard the Disney Fantasy, to a throng of well-wishers waving at the ship, plus media coverage and fireworks!  My inner fourth grader is very jealous indeed!  (the rest of me is jealous of the transatlantic voyage and the stop in NYC)

* Experiences (most) men don't understand:  Forgetting that you're wearing high heels, until the toilet seat is 3" lower than you're expecting it to be.  That might not sound like a great distance, but when you're falling bare-assed through space wondering who moved the toilet and bracing for impact with the ground, it's just enough for a mini adrenaline rush!

* We learned this morning that Robert Sherman died.  Even if you don't know the name, you know his music.  He and his brother Richard worked directly with Walt Disney to create music for movies from Mary Poppins to Chitty Chitty Bang Bang, plus the ol' theme park classics "It's a Small World" and the theme to the Tiki Room.  The Disney Parks Blog had a lovely write-up that started with a Mary Poppins reference that made me tear up: "Today, the wind has changed and Disney Legend Robert B. Sherman has had to leave us. But the immeasurable gifts of song he has given — in that magical partnership with his surviving brother, Disney Legend Richard M. Sherman — will stay forever."  It's true - their legacy will outlive all of ours!