Disneyland in the middle of a summer heat wave is not always the happiest place on Earth.  We went over the Labor Day weekend this year during the hottest days of the summer so far in So Cal. 

First of all, I must admit, when it comes to Disneyland, my taste for rides and attractions is like a senior citizen’s.  I do love roller coasters and thrill rides, but I have yet to experience a truly decent one from a Disney theme park, so I like to stick to the slow rides with lots of theme.   My husband and I are probably the only people under the age of 65 who look forward to seeing “Great Moments with Mr Lincoln” (no, I’m not kidding!  I get all teary and patriotic everytime I see it — especially as the sky fades into a sunset that looks like the American flag.  No!  I’m not kidding!  I’m completely serious here!  Mr. Lincoln Rocks!  That audio animatronic wonder is a big part of why I became interested in engineering.) and this visit he was gone.  We were crushed and angered by having to sit through 15 minutes of some inane film starring Steve Martin and Donald Duck with no Mr. Lincoln payoff.  Apparently, the future of Mr. Lincoln is unknown.  (Walt must be spinning around in his grave).  If he’s not there there during the next visit, I don’t know if Steve and I will ever willingly return to do Disneyland.  If the Tiki disappears or is changed to be like the abomination at Disneyworld, I will definitely not return (I left that Tiki Room in tears and wrote a very emotional letter to Disney about how deeply they disappointed me.  What on Earth does the Lion King have to do with Tikis and Hawaii?!!!  They basically replied that the modern audiences are stupid and didn’t understand the Tiki Room so they updated it to the Lion King because of the movie’s popularity.  Personally, I thought the Lion King sucked.  I have seen the movie three times in an attempt to stay awake through the whole thing because friends and family kept telling me how good the movie was.  Each time I fell asleep during Hakuna Matata and woke up when the two big lions were fighting.  I have no idea what happens in between, but I digress …).

The newest ride at Disneyland is a remake of the old submarine ride.  The only thing good about the re-vamped Submarine ride is that most of the park’s visitors were in the 3-hour line for that ride such that the lines for the other rides were all under 15-mins — SWEET!!!.  We arrived at Disneyland a little bit after opening around 8:15AM and finished the park by noon, with the exception of the Fantasyland rides which failed in a cascade (I imagine they all overheated one-by-one).  Supposedly Splash Mountain was updated.  The only thing I noticed is that the logs were new such that everyone had a separate seat (Maybe they upgraded to Vista too.  The last time Steve and I were they there they experienced the Windows blue-screen-of-death.  Over the PA the operator kept saying, “Windows reboot!  Clear!”  about every 5-mins.  Too funny!)  The Haunted Mansion was changed a little.   The jilted bride section was changed into a little vinette about a black widow — very creepy (the little girl that was in the “Doom Buggy” ahead of us had a complete melt-down from fright).  Of course, they updated the Pirates of the Caribbean to include Jack Sparrow.   And onto the Submarines … we braved this line at night after the flaming orb in the sky had gone down for the day.  We waiting in line for 2 hours for what began as a ride very similar to the old Submarine ride (“Dive! Dive! Dive!”) and then awkwardly became a narrative about finding Nemo.  Umm, okay.  I really didn’t get it.  Whatever … to my disappointment, there was no giant squid.  Nevermind about 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea and Capt. Nemo, my inner senior citizen weeps.  But, then again, “Finding Nemo” didn’t hold my attention either.  I got tired of Albert Brook’s “Helicopter Parent” role in the movie.  How whiney and dependent can you be?!!!  I did like the seagulls, though. 

The California Adventure Park is pointless.  It should be integrated into Disneyland.  Soaring over California was great as usual.  It still reminds me of the end of “Logan’s Run” though. 

As for the heat — it made every parent and child cranky.  I felt like telling some of them to go home since they were having such a miserable time.

Ah, and lastly, the shock of every visit — the admission price.  This year the one-day park hopper cost $83 and a one day, one park pass is $68.  OUCH!!!  And so not worth it!!!  Here’s a bit of advice if you are planning a trip to Disney.  Buy a vacation package that includes the hotel and park tickets to save some money.

After three weeks of being out of the office, I’m back!  Unfortunately, I’m not feeling so good this morning and I’m wondering whether I will make it through the day (tummy trouble and I seem to be doing my best to try to pass-out).  I’m hoping it’s just a case of “workitus” that will improve as I get back into the swing of things.  Anyhow, I remember writing a list of things I wanted to do during my break.  Here’s what I wanted to do:

• Plan next year’s spring/summer vacation — Nope
• Defeat the 7-headed junk mail beast that now occupies my office and kitchen table — DONE
• Take the piles of clothes that don’t fit me or my husband to Goodwill — DONE
• Read manga and watch anime until the wee hours of the morning — DONE
• Finish “Mass Effect” — Nope
• Finally get rid of this nagging cold! — I’m still sniffling

Junk Mail Beast Before:

After 2 Days of battle (4 Hefty bags of paper removed, the death of my shredder, and the purchase of a new one):

OMG!!!  We have a wood floor!  I still have a couple of cord fairies to exterminate and a lot more desktop mess to deal with, but overall, I’m pleased with the result.  And, yes that’s a Halloween table cloth hanging over the window … sigh … I swear I’ll get around to ordering blinds one day.

I didn’t make it to Goodwill before the turn of the year, however, I did manage to unload 3 Hefty bags full of clothes that no longer fit me or my husband.  It always feels good to give our sweaters and some of my “work” clothes a second life.  Most of the clothes were worn only once or twice before they no longer fit — I lost weight and my husband gained.  I also found out, after buying many sweaters, that my husband doesn’t wear sweaters because he always runs hot.  Doh!

On the anime and manga front, I watched all 78 episodes of “Kyou Kara Maou”, an excellent anime series that is available on Netflix — check it out!  I also translated the second volume of Arakure (“Wild Ones” in the US).

As for summer vacation — well the Blackbird 002 was on special … 🙂  So I guess we’ll be vacationing at home this summer.  I got bored with “Mass Effect” (my husband finished it, though), and my cold is probably allergies.  Sigh …

Ahh CES2008 … well, I didn’t feel that blogging while there did justice to my experience.  Much to my husband’s dismay, I talked to quite a few people for some time (I find that engineers from Japanese companies are very proud of their products and will spend lots of geeky quality time with you if start asking questions and talking) and I took over 200 pictures.  There are some specific products and trends that I would like to highlight and as always, in a couple of weeks I will put out a formal report.  I will put the entries in this blog. 

As for the bar bet … sigh … I ended up cancelling most of our dinner reservations in Las Vegas because I couldn’t enjoy eating dishes and desserts my husband couldn’t even taste.  So we played it my ear and ate mostly in restaurants within the Summerlin area.  Needless to say, we will be splurging at PMA starting Feb 1st.  My husband’s co-workers will be having “fun” come February :).  I’m quite proud of his effort 🙂

It’s the New Year and my husband has agreed to a bar bet.  His co-workers bet him that he couldn’t stay off meat and sugar for a month (he can eat eggs and dairy).  The loser/s has to have … well, I’d rather not specify the penalty, but let’s just say it’s an uncomfortable but healthy thing to do to ring in the New Year.  Sigh, …, I’m sorta cheesed off, but at the same time I see some hope in fnally being able to convert my husband into a healthier eater.

In general, my husband and I enjoy meat a lot and have never considered being vegetarians.  Humans are omnivores and we don’t have any moral  believes against eating meat — okay, well not entirely.  There are some animals we won’t eat.  Anyhow, when my husband confronted me with this bet, I laughed (really, really hard) and told him good luck.  He asked if I was going to help him, and I honestly told him, “No way!”  Then he gave me a crushed look and said that I didn’t believe in him.  Oh, man did I feel bad!  He really wants to do this.

Needless to say, I’m helping my husband through this bet.  The worse part for him will be giving up sugar because he is a soda addict and enjoys quite a bit of candy everyday.  The first day, yesterday, went pretty well.  Since the bet doesn’t include eggs and dairy, there is quite a bit of room getting protein into him.  Yesterday I fed him an omelette and toast and for dinner we had vegetable curry.  I put a fried egg on top of his.  I’m a little worried about feeding him too many eggs because they are high in cholesterol, but I figure this has got to better than his usual donut or big cheeseburger breakfast (nope, I can’t control what he eats outside the house).  This morning I cracked open a couple of cookbooks and I found some interesting recipes to try and went grocery shopping accordingly. 

I think the toughest time period for this will be eating in Las Vegas during CES.  The day he made the bet is the same day that I made a bunch of restaurant reservations because for me, CES is about gadgets and food.  Steve asked me to reconsider the reservations, and I told him I felt that this was part of the challenge.

I’m now looking quite forward to getting through the month with my husband Steve.  The outcome that I would like is that he finally gives up soda, like I did 6-years ago.  I would also like it if he ate better after this and lost a little weight.  On a purely selfish note, I get to learn some new recipes that I would have never tried before for fear of my husband asking, “Where’s the meat?”

If any of you have some vegetarian recipes to share with me that you think I should try on my husband, please do share them :).  I will share what works for us as we go along.

Santa: Hello! What is your name?
You:  xxx
Santa: Hi, xxx .
You: uh, great …?
Santa: Hurrah! I’m glad you liked it xxx.
You: Liked what?
Santa: have to do with what he or she want.
You: You didn’t ask me what I want
Santa: OK I’m asking it now.
You: I want a full featured Blackbird 002
Santa: You want only one?
You: No, two would be nice so I can play with my husband
Santa: Are you serious? As Bertrand Russel said, it must have taken ages for people to realize that a brace of pheasants and a couple of days are both instances of the number “two.”
You: You asked, I responded truthfully
Santa: Oh now I remember asking you he or she responded truthfully. What did you say
You: I want two full featured Blackbird 002 PC’s, one for me and the other for my husband
Santa: Why do you want two full featured Blackbird 002 PC’s one for him or her and the other for his or her husband?
You: To heat the house while having a great time kicking each other’s behinds
Santa: Why do you want to do heat the house while having a great time kicking each other’s behinds so much?
You: We have nothing better to do and can you think of a more novel way to heat a house?
Santa: Do you mean you and me have?
You: Are you getting fresh with me?
Santa: I am Santa. I give presents to kids.
You: What kind of presents?
Santa: What kinds of presents are there?
You: As far as I’m concerned a full featured Blackbird 002
Santa: That might not be very far off.
You: Darned straight, Santa!
Santa: If you could have any kind of robot what would it be?
You: One like Reideen, except it’s human form is my husband.
Santa: One of what?

You: Robot, unless you’re going to give me two, in which case I’ll like a mecha guniea pig called Snowball Mark II
Santa: I will obey your command.
You: Sweet, so on Christmas morning, I can expect two full featured Black 002 PC, one Reideen like robot that transforms into my husband, and mecha guinea pig called Snowball Mark II
Santa: What are you wearing?
You: I’m fully c
lothed! What’s wrong with you?!
Santa: Do your friends call you fully clothed. Nothing is wrong with me. Is there anything wrong with you xxx?
You: The last time I checked no. I’m good.
Santa: Who was that?Good in what sense?
You: I eat most of my vegetables and I try to drive within the speed limit
Santa: How does most of his or her vegetables taste? I’m not sure if I would like to try to drive within the speed limit to drive within the speed limit. What’s it like?
You: Slow. Cars past me by and sometimes people flip me off.
Santa: I think Slow is a lot of things. One day people will no longer need cars.
You: What do you know? You ride reindeer!
Santa: I know that which is true, believable and justified. That’s good information: xxx said I ride reindeer.
You: Okay …? so are we done yet?
Santa: OK with me too.OK. We are just having a little discution.
You: really?
Santa: For real.
You: So, you are going to bring me my stuff?
Santa: Interesting deduction. That was my original intention.
You: All right, I’ll be waiting
Santa: Alright. How do you plan to do this?
You: On Christmas eve I go to sleep and when I wake up the stuff is there under my Christmas Tree
Santa: What is on Christmas eve he or she go to sleep and when he or she wake up the stuff is there under his or her Christmas Tree like on Christmas eve he or she go to sleep and when he or she wake up the stuff is there under his or her Christmas Tree.
You: Yeah, bye?
Santa: Goodbye.