Canadian Buffoon's Disney With a Teen Vacation - 08/13 - The Wrap

[franandaj]

Well, it's already written and waiting to go.
(Although I'll probably tweak it some more...)
Plus Ruby will be asleep before then, so I know I'll be free.

I stay a day ahead of my TR (writing wise), just in case I get slammed. But usually if I get slammed I don't have time to kee up with the "shout-outs" either. Still I'm always sneaking in my DIS time. Like right now, she's napping.

 

[jandlinz]

Oh, I'm so sorry to hear about your dad.
How is he taking it? I can't even imagine.

Geez! I don't know if my update will live up to your expectations!

Thank you. I talked to him today and he said he was frustrated. He's just been through so much and to see him go into retirement this way is just disheartening. He always told us growing up to go to college no matter what so we wouldn't struggle like him. Unfortunately he couldn't get more than an associates degree and for a young boy on his own at 15, raising his younger brother, I think he accomplished so much. I just love him so and it's really hard to see him upset. I just wanted to share what a great person he is. He truly is such an inspiration. I can't believe how positive he is being with the news. He'll claim unemployment tomorrow, but he said this week won't count. Next he'll file for Medicare. Bless his heart. He's always the first person to help anyone. He truly is a funny, sweet, kind hearted person. Thank you for reading my rambling. Can't wait for a good laugh!

 

[jandlinz]

Here's some pixie dust. I hope the best for you dad. Can he get any unemployment pay to get though the next six month?
I know the feeling. My husband was laid off from a job he had for 36 years. He had a small 401K and being 59 1/2 we could use it without penalty. Finding work and going out of his comfort zone wasn't easy so he took SS at 62. I have a good job but we still needed steady income with two kids still at home in HS. So he's officially retired (that was 5 years ago). Because he has a younger wife, I'll still need to work about 5-10 more years. Some how you find a way to make things work

Thank you so much for your concern and story. It helps to hear others stories. I appreciate the positive outlook. I wish you and your family the best.

 

[pkondz]

Not the first time I've heard that!

Of this I have no doubt.

I think he knows I have fun on this TR and tell him about the contest. Usually I refer to you as the Candian guy.

Good. It's a big country.
He'll never find me.

Steppesister is the "going to be a nurse" one

He's about 6'1" ,thin on top and glasses....I mean my husband is.

Good point. After the Monday I had at work, a margarita sounds pretty good. A guy I work with can be a real (another name for) a donkey.

Burro? Mule?

Hopefully Ruby has another opinion.
See what you did? Got me thinking non-DIS comments.

My nefarious plan is working.

 

[pkondz]

And you KNOW I did! Read a ton, made some study charts, tried to understand a lot of heart stuff- that I didn't think would be that hard.

Shouldn't be that hard for you. You've got a good heart.

 

[pkondz]

I stay a day ahead of my TR (writing wise), just in case I get slammed.

I've never kept a day ahead.
Because of the holidays, I've delayed it.
But usually it's write, proof and post.

But usually if I get slammed I don't have time to kee up with the "shout-outs" either. Still I'm always sneaking in my DIS time. Like right now, she's napping.

I'm here.
That means Ruby's asleep.

 

[Steppesister]

Shouldn't be that hard for you. You've got a good heart.

 

[pkondz]

I talked to him today and he said he was frustrated.

Sorry to hear that.

He's just been through so much and to see him go into retirement this way is just disheartening.

He always told us growing up to go to college no matter what so we wouldn't struggle like him.

I like that.
I may have told this story before, I don't remember.
When I was on summer break between gr. 9 & 10,
I got a job working for our neighbor across the street.
I was pretty much general labour on a house he was renovating.
There was another guy who was older and stronger who also was hired.
One day, he told us to dig two trenches
so they could pour concrete foundations.
Each trench had to be six feet long, by three wide,
by five deep.
The first foot is easy. After that you're digging in clay.
Hard work.
My co-worker and I grumbled about how it would be
so much easier and faster if he just rented a backhoe
for an hour, instead of paying two wages for a day.
(Day and half for me since it took me longer.)
We were about 3/4 of the way done when the neighbor
came over to see how we were doing.
I don't know if he'd heard us griping, or just guessed.
"You know why I have you digging by hand?" He asked.
We shook our heads.
"It's because I want you to stay in school and get an education."
"I want you to remember how it was digging these ditches."

And I never forgot.

Your Dad's like that.

Unfortunately he couldn't get more than an associates degree and for a young boy on his own at 15, raising his younger brother, I think he accomplished so much.

I'm impressed. That's not easy.

I just love him so and it's really hard to see him upset.

I can clearly see that.
It'll be okay.

I just wanted to share what a great person he is.

You did. Your love for him is pretty evident.

He truly is such an inspiration.

He certainly sounds like it.

I can't believe how positive he is being with the news. He'll claim unemployment tomorrow, but he said this week won't count. Next he'll file for Medicare.

See? He's already starting to take care of things.

He's always the first person to help anyone. He truly is a funny, sweet, kind hearted person.

He sounds like a wonderful man.

Thank you for reading my rambling.

I like to think that's what this TR is really about.

Can't wait for a good laugh!

Oh, God.
This update is going to suck. I just know it.

 

[pkondz]

Going off grid here for a bit.
Gotta get the update ready to go.
Still needs a title.
Sometimes I find that's the 2nd hardest part.

No. The writing isn't the hardest.
Keeping track of the contest is!

 

[Steppesister]

Going off grid here for a bit.
Gotta get the update ready to go.
Still needs a title.
Sometimes I find that's the 2nd hardest part.

No. The writing isn't the hardest.
Keeping track of the contest is!

YES! On both accounts. Title hard! Contest points: WAY harder. See you on the flip side.

 

[orangecats2]

Well gosh darn, I came to read the next chapter. You're late!

 

[pkondz]

YES! On both accounts. Title hard! Contest points: WAY harder. See you on the flip side.

Title done!
Points tabulated!

Well gosh darn, I came to read the next chapter. You're late!

Coming right up!

 

[pkondz]

Jersey's empty!

So only 3 of you knew the reference about the finger on the hot grill.
Completely different from Cat on a Hot Tin Roof.

A few years ago, not too long after joining the DIS,
I stumbled on these things called "Trip Reports".
I started to follow a few people.
(Most of whom are now gone or seldom post.)
Then I heard about some guy named "Nebo".
Might have been in the "You might be a DIS-er if........" thread.
There was this post:
"If you lie awake at night wondering what safety precautions you can use
in order to not "pull a Nebo" the next time you are at Disney, you might be a Dis-er."
What did that mean?

It turned out that Nebo wrote TRs.
And darned good ones too.
Albeit accident prone ones.
But that's (in part) what made his TRs so funny.

I started reading his TRs and we became friends.
And it's because of his TRs and his encouragement
that I write mine.

i.e. It's his fault!!!

At one point, he and his wife Smidgy were at Teppan Edo
and he decided to "test" the hot plate.
Only Nebo would do that.

Unfortunately, due to health issues,
Nebo hasn't posted in a year or two.
I miss him on here.

So that's the reference.
I was curious to see how many of my readers were familiar with him.
And with that story.
Now I know.
About 14 percent of you. (3 out of 21)

And that surprised me.
I guess I was under the mistaken belief
that most of you had followed me from there.
I'm a little shocked... and humbled too,
that so many of you have joined me in
this little adventure.
Thank you from the bottom of my heart.



One last thing before we get this cattle train a-rollin'.

We didn't take too many pictures this day.
I think the heat had something to do with it.
Or maybe it was the last day blues.
Or maybe we were just too busy having fun.
Or moving too fast.
In any event, pics are few and far between this chapter.
Sorry about that.

Mooooooving on.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------


Morning came bright and early on August 26th.
Well, maybe not "bright".
At least not for me.
And maybe not all that early either.

Isn't it wonderful when the writer starts off
by basically lying to you?


For some reason, it had taken me a while
to get to sleep the previous night.
Maybe because I was out gallivanting around taking pictures.
Maybe it was the three or eight mugs of Coke I drank
before going to bed.
Hard to pinpoint a cause, here.

The things I do for you, dear reader.
(The pictures... not the Coke.)

So while I didn't get to sleep that early,
I still woke up at 8:30am.
Not Disney early, but early enough.


Hmm.... Something is different.
There's a disturbance in the Force.
I popped open the door and...
Yep. There IT was.
Hanging from the door knob like a garrotted condemned criminal.

Our DUD* info.

*Disney's Un-magical Depress
(Full disclosure: Magical Depress is a Nebo invention.)

Okay.
Step one. Panic.
"Last day! Last day! Barricade the door!
You'll never take me alive!"

Step two.
Breathe.


Step three.
Pretend it's not real.


Did you ever notice that the last day in Disney
is equivalent to holding your fingers in your ears and yelling "la-la-la!"

"You have to go home, now."
I can't hear you!!! La-la-la!!

<sigh>


It didn't help that I was still groggy from my poor night's sleep.
Oh well I'll catch up on sleep tonight.
Let's see...
What time do we need to be at the front desk tomorrow?

2:45am.

oh.

Sleep is overrated anyway.



At 9:30am, Kay woke up.
I was surprised.
9:30am is pretty early for her.
Then again, it may be because I screamed
"WAKE UP!!!!!" at her.

I'll never know.


An hour later,
(interspersed with me running to the food court for drinks)
she was ready to go.
We set out and got to the bus stop at 10:40am
The bus arrived at 10:41am.
One minute.
It was longer than we were used to.
But I am nothing if not understanding.
I let it slide and chose not to berate the driver
for his tardiness.
Am I not gracious?
Of course I am.
Tell me how gracious I am and get free bonus points.

Minutes later, we were being disgorged onto the pavement at Epcot.
There was a fairly long line at bag check.
How to pass the time?
"Dad? Are we going to do Sum of all Thrills today?"
"Well, we can try. But we do have our FP to catch."

Pause.

"If the ride was cold, it would be Sum of all Chills."
"If you ate pickles while riding it would be Sum of all Dills."
"If you had a prescription it would be Sum of all Pills."
"If you died on it, it would be Sum of all Wills."
"Put a feather in it. Sum of all Quills."
"It goes really high, but not too high. Sum of all hills."
"Costs money. Sum of all Bills."
"Lots of garbage in it. Sum of all Fills."
"Underwater. Sum of all Gills."
"Makes you sick. Sum of all Ills."
"Worse, you die. Sum of all Kills."
ad infinitum

Unfortunately, like I said, it was a long line.
Pretty much exhausted every possibility.

You can try one if you like.
But I guarantee we already said it.


By now, you may have guessed what our first ride was.
And yet, not many of you guessed it when it counted!

We wanted to try this ride, but not if the line was too long.
We had a FP that we didn't want to miss.
When we got there, the wait was about 30 minutes.

"Do we have time?" Kay asked.
"I think so." I said.
"Let's get in line and if it takes too long, we'll leave."

So that's what we did.

For those of you not familiar with this ride,
it's a motion simulator ride on steroids.
Most motion simulators are basically boxes that you sit in
that can move a little up, down or side to side.
Star Tours is one.
This ride is a two-seater attached to the end of a robot arm.
(You can see one on the right side of the above photo,
and also one in action in the next photo.)
The robot arm can swing you up, down and side to side
in a much greater arc than traditional rides can manage.
It can even flip you upside down.

Before you ride, you get to design your own course.
You also chose your ride vehicle:
Bobsled, coaster or jet.
Only the coaster and jet will allow you to do loops.
So naturally we chose the jet.

Designing the course is a bit frustrating for newbies like us.
We had to figure out just what the heck we were supposed to do
before we could even design a course.
And you have a fairly short window of time as it is.
Here's the course we came up with:

Like I said... we didn't know what the heck we were doing.

After you design your course, you are guided to some lockers
where you are instructed to put everything
that might fall out of pockets, etc. that you'd actually like to keep.
(Indeed, the people before us lost a hat.)

We boarded our... uh... seats? car? device?
And got strapped in.

Hoooooey! That sucker is fun!
Might just be one of the best rides in Epcot.

When the ride was over, we caught our collective breaths,
collected our belongings and headed out for our FP.
You know it's a good ride when you excitedly talk about it afterward.
Which we did.


Time for the FP.
We swiped our bands and entered.
Shortly thereafter, Kay had designed this:

Feminine... yet bad-a... uh.... mean looking.
Dad approves.

Moments later, we were zipping through the ride and
screaming around the building at 60MPH.

I dunno.
We've all driven (or been driven) that fast on the highway.
Yet with the banked track, it seems faster, doesn't it?

And yet.
Maybe it's because I've driven more than twice as fast
in Germany on the Autobahn.
It seemed to be not as fast as I remembered it.
Oh, well.
Still a fun ride.
But. We weren't gushing about it afterwards
like we were after Sum of all Thrills.

Oh, yeah.
And afterwards, this happened...

Hmmm... Maybe she's trying to tell me something.
Sheesh. Some things never change...

Exiting Test Track, it was time to make tracks to our lunch ADR.
Kay asked if we could take a boat again,
and I agreed since I wanted to save her feet as much as possible.

We crossed the bridge to World Showcase and as is just and right,
a boat was waiting for us.
I must admit that the previous day's two 5 minute waits
had shaken my confidence.
I kept urging Kay to hurry so we wouldn't miss the boat.
Finally, exasperated, she told me to go ahead and see
if they were leaving right away without us.
I did and they weren't.

I stood there watching as Kay leisurely made her way up the pier.

Shortly after we boarded, the boat set out for Germany.

"Hey! You said you weren't doing Biergarten again!"
Settle down. Boy you people really want those contest points!
We did not go to Biergarten.
We quickly walked
(quickly, because our ADR time was fast approaching)
over to Italy and announced ourselves to the host at Via Napoli.
Within moments we were seated.

There! Are you happy?
Most of you guessed we'd eat here.

Shortly after being seated,
a lovely young lady named Gabriella asked us if we'd like some water.
We chatted with her for a bit and she was an absolute delight.
This was only her third day working unsupervised.
And the only thing she was allowed to do was serve water.
And boy! Did she serve us our water!
Any time a glass was down to 3/4 full,
she'd walk briskly over and take the glass away.
Moments later she'd return with another full glass.

It got to the point where I was a little afraid
to take a sip of water for fear of running her off her feet!

A few minutes after getting our first of many glasses of water,
our server arrived to take our order.
I had told Kay that a lot of people on the DIS
had raved about the pizza here
so that's what we both ordered.
I also wanted a Limonata,
but was told that it wasn't covered by the DDP.

Really? I can get a $6.00 shake at 50s Prime Time,
but can't get a $4.50 lemonade?
(Those prices are insane when I look at them
from outside the WDW bubble.)
Weird.
Whatever, I wanted one so I ordered it anyway.

Soon our pizzas arrived.

Kay had the Pepperoni

While I had the Piccante (Italian sausage) Pizza.

For all you Via Napoli fanatics...
prepare to be disappointed.
I did enjoy the pizza and, if memory serves,
(it seldom does) Kay did too.
But.
Was it amazing? No.
You want amazing? Try Chicago.
Or heck, come to Winnipeg.
This was good, don't get me wrong,
but it wasn't as good as I thought it might be.


However, it did remind me of a documentary
on pizza I watched on TV years ago.
At one point, the show goes overseas to Italy.
A bunch of school kids are being asked if they know
where pizza was invented.
One little boy, about 10 or 12 I suppose,
pipes up "America!"
Which is swiftly followed by one of the nearby adults
swatting him in the back of the head for his ignorance.


We finished our pizzas and chased them with gelato and sorbet.
I think Kay had the vanilla gelato while I had the lemon sorbet.
Now normally I'll take gelato over sorbet any day.
But lemon trumps non-lemon gelato.

We got our bill (and when I say "we" and "our", I mean "I" and "my")
and I noticed that we weren't charged extra for the Limonata.
Either they forgot, or someone pointed out that it actually was included.
I suspect the latter.
I tipped well and hoped Gabriella would get a cut.


Lunch complete, Kay was ready to spend some cash.
So we moseyed back over to Japan.
She didn't take as long this time,
since she had already made up her mind
on the things she wanted to purchase.
She didn't buy much, just a few water bottles
and a few sundry items.
But she was happy, so I was happy.
Obviously.
Because when she's not happy, oh boy.
You'll definitely not be happy.


We then retraced our footsteps and headed
over to Germany.
There I bought a shirt for my Dad,
which he just got the other day, for Christmas.

We also had worked up a bit of an appetite from the walking,
so a visit to Karamell Kuche was in order.
Well, we didn't really have an appetite worked up,
but who cares??? It's Karamell Kuche!
We snagged some popcorn and caramel filled chocolate.
We kept the caramel corn for later,
but I don't think the chocolate lasted very long.


Well, I think we've done everything that we wanted
to do in Epcot.
Time to zip over to another park.
There's a boat dock right at Germany,
and naturally, as we strolled over to it,
there was a boat that was just starting to load.
So we got to the dock at 2:32pm and had zero wait.

Of course.

We saw there was room for us to sit
beside a woman who had boarded ahead of us.
Well, since we're now officially shipmates,
might as well be polite.
"Hi." I brilliantly began. "Mind if we sit?"
"Sure." She replied.
After we sat down, we spoke for a bit.
I don't know who asked first, but inevitably the
"where you from" question comes up.
"We're from Canada." I said.
I know to just leave it at that.
I've found that if I say "Winnipeg",
I get blank stares.
If I say "Manitoba" the province that has
Winnipeg as its capitol... I get blank stares.
So I usually go with the safe "Canada"
and expound if asked for more details.
"Where are you from?" I politely enquire.
And she, of course, replies:
"A small town in Jersey, just outside Philadelphia."


Again?!?!?!?!?
I talk to three random strangers,
on three separate days.
And they're all from "A small town in Jersey, just outside Philadelphia"???

Of course.
I have it now.
Everyone, with the exception of Kay and me,
is from Jersey.
I get it now.
But it begs the question.
If everyone from Jersey is here now.
Who's minding the store back in Jersey????

I decided not to ask the question and kept my mouth shut.

Moments later, we disembarked and headed off to the bus stop,
passing New Jerseyites and New Jerseyans left and right.

As we made our way, I glanced up at the sky.
Clouds were forming.
It was starting to look like... rain.

We arrived at the bus stop at 2:52pm.
The sky was darkening noticeably,
but still no rain.
There was a family from (I assume) New Jersey already waiting.
While we waited, we were joined by other Jerseyans.
The bus rolled up at 2:56pm.
I was so agog at how many people there were from Jersey,
that I didn't even complain at the four minute wait.

Looking back, it's inexcusable.
Four minutes!
But at the time, I think I was just too bemused to notice.
Or worried about the weather.

So, where were we headed next?
Sounds like a question for the...


Contest!

Disney Transportation Wait Time to date
(12 busses, 5 boats, 2 monorails): 35 minutes
Average wait time just over 1 3/4 minutes.


TheLittleKatie - 26 (-15 pts)
Steppesister - 33 (-10 pts)
jandlinz - 34 (-15 pts)
Saturn23 - 36 (-15 pts)
Gracefulskinny - 40 (-15 pts)
vrajewski10513 - 43 (-15 pts)
irene_dsc - 44 (-20 pts)
DizzneyDi - 48 (-10 pts)
DISNEYMOON10121991 - 49 (-10 pts)
orangecats2 - 52 (-10 pts)
cinderkelly - 60 (-10 pts)
afwdwfan - 63.5 (-10 pts)
Mac Brew - 69 (-10 pts)
MAGICFOR2 - 72
Mrs T 2009 - 75 (-10 pts)
Captain_Oblivious - 84.375 (-10 pts)
DonnaBeeGood - 94 (-10 pts)
franandaj - 97 (-10pts)
ForeverDance - 105
SnowWhiteOz - 123
Thumper_Man - 170
chookie94 - 172
SimplyGoofy - 180 (-10 pts)
Terra Nova guy - 204
ougrad86 - 210
GoofyIsAsGoofyDoes - 221
Tracy161 - 224
DisneyAndrew - 232
TGM - 240
Kiren - 256
Mr. lncredible - 270
Kiotzu - 273
Backstage_Gal - 310
queenbetsey - 315
TruLovesKiss - 323
BibbitybobityLu - 358
Curiouser&curiouser! - 363
Susan R - 600


Feel free to change your guesses if you wish.
Last update was supposed to be your last chance,
but you may do so up to (but not including) the next update.
(Since I forgot.)
So get your guesses or changes in before the next post,
otherwise... you're stuck with 'em!


Bonus question and answer:
Just tell me if you get it or not!
I'm giving you these things! 4 free bonus points to the following:

SnowWhiteOz, DonnaBeeGood, orangecats2,
queenbetsey, irene_dsc, Steppesister,
Captain_Oblivious, afwdwfan, franandaj,
DizzneyDi, Steppesister, Gracefulskinny,
Saturn23, GoofyIsAsGoofyDoes, Mac Brew,
jandlinz, MAGICFOR2, TheLittleKatie,
cinderkelly, DISNEYMOON10121991,
vrajewski10513



Bonus questions, point values and answers from last round.

1. AM or PM? Do we get out of our room in the morning or afternoon?
Answer: AM. (2 points)

2. We have an ADR... in Epcot. Third time's the charm? Where is it?
Answer: Via Napoli (4 points)

3. Speaking of Epcot, what's our first ride?
Answer: Sum of all Thrills (6 points)

4. Of our three Epcot FPs...
a. Which Tier one FP? Soarin', Test Track or The Land?
Answer: Test Track (3 points)
b. Do we use 0, 1, 2 or all 3 of our FPs?
Answer: 1 (3 points)



You're guesses and points won:
SnowWhiteOz - AM, Via Napoli, 3 Caballeros, TT, 2 - 9 points
DonnaBeeGood - AM, Via Napoli, Circle of Life, Soarin', 3 - 6 points
queenbetsey - AM, Via Napoli, Circle of Life, Soarin', 2 - 6 points
irene_dsc - AM Via Napoli, Nemo, Soarin', 3 - 6 points
Captain_Oblivious - AM, Via Napoli, 3 Caballeros, The Land, 2 - 6 points
Mrs T 2009 - AM, Via Napoli, Ellen, Soarin', 2 - 6 points
afwdwfan - AM, Via Napoli, Imagination, Soarin', 3 - 6 points
franandaj - AM, Via Napoli, 3 Caballeros, Soarin', 2 - 6 points
DizzneyDi - PM, Via Napoli, Nemo, TT, 1 - 10 points
Steppesister - AM, Via Napoli, Circle of Life, Soarin', 2 - 6 points
Gracefulskinny - PM, Via Napoli, The Land, Soarin', 1 - 7 points
Saturn23 - AM, Via Napoli, Imagination, TT, 2 - 9 points
GoofyIsAsGoofyDoes - AM, Via Napoli, 3 Caballeros, TT, 2 - 9 points
Mac Brew - AM, Coral Reef, boat, nil, 0 - 2 points
SimplyGoofy - AM, Via Napoli, Land, TT, 3 - 9 points
jandlinz - AM, Via Napoli, 3 Caballeros, TT, 3 - 9 points
MAGICFOR2 - AM, Via Napoli, Land, TT, 2 - 9 points
TheLittleKatie - PM, Via Napoli, Sum of all Thrills, TT, 1 - 16 points (high score!)
cinderkelly - AM, Coral Reef, boat, TT, 2 - 5 points
orangecats2 - AM, Rose & Crown, Sum of all Thrills, TT, 2 - 11 points
ursalita - PM, Coral Reef, 3 Caballeros, TT, 1 - 6 points
DISNEYMOON10121991 - AM, Via Napoli, Land, TT, 3 - 9 points
Mr. lncredible - AM, Garden Grill, Sum of all Thrills, Soarin', 1 - 11 points
vrajewski10513 - PM, San Angel, Sum of all Thrills, Soarin', 1 - 9 points



Flattery points (aka suck-up points)
SnowWhiteOz - Knows I'm beautiful. 4 points.
queenbetsey - Adores me. 4 points.
Captain_Oblivious - Thinks I'm excellent. 4 points.
Squishley - I'm her first. 6 points. Loves me. 4 points.
Saturn23 - Brings in the family. 5 points.
afwdwfan - Thinks I'm great. 4 points.
DizzneyDi - I make her laugh. (What woman doesn't want that?) 4 points.
Steppesister - Got four A's. 4 points.
Saturn23 - Loves me. 4 points.
jandlinz - Calls me darling. 4 points. Knows I'm the greatest. 4 points.
TheLittleKatie - I'm her dearest. 4 points. Knows I'm a pro. 4 points.
SnowWhiteOz - I'm #1. 4 points.
cinderkelly - Thinks I'm lovely. 4 points.
ursalita - Loves me. 4 points. Thinks I'm gorgeous. 4 points.
Thinks I'm beautiful. 4 points. I wow her. 4 points.
DISNEYMOON10121991 - Thinks I'm cool. 4 points.
bbjunkie - Thinks I'm fantastic. 4 points.
vrajewski10513 - Thinks I'm wonderful. - 4 points.




Miscellaneous bonus points
SnowWhiteOz - 2 points for frozen kitties. I said "(K)itties!! 2 points for Frogger.
DonnaBeeGood - 2 points for flying by the seat of her pants.
queenbetsey - 3 points for knowing her video games.
irene_dsc - 2 points for swims in sugar. 2 points for Osborne1.
Steppesister - 4 points for Geese a laying.
Captain_Oblivious - 3 points for knowing where pixie dust comes from.
afwdwfan - 2 points for Ralphie.
franandaj - 2 points for Tempest in a teapot.
DizzneyDi - 4 points for making Ruby smile. 2 points for prophecies.
3 points for going up in flames.
Steppesister - 2 points for not causing too much trouble.
Gracefulskinny - 2 points for high standards.
Saturn23 - 3 points for genetics.
GoofyIsAsGoofyDoes - 2 points for cat lamps. 3 points for moving outta Philly.
2 points for "Brothers in (fat) arms". 2 points for digital memories.
Mac Brew - 2 sympathy points for working on Xmas.
SimplyGoofy - 2 points for where have you been all my life.
jandlinz - 3 points for sharing her blankie. 4 points for happy days.
MAGICFOR2 - 2 points for knowing the answer to everything. 2 points for breakage.
TheLittleKatie - 3 points for knowing the integral parts of SE.
cinderkelly - 2 points to help her up. 1 point for guessing the boat.
orangecats2 - 2 points for the math help. 2 points to help her get her there.
ursalita - 6 points for binge drinking... reading! I mean reading! (Or do I?)
2 points for thievery. 2 points for navigation.
2 points for drinking like a fish, $10 at a time.
2 points to help with squirrel fever.
2 points to help with general klutziness.
2 points for smoothness.
DISNEYMOON10121991 - 2 points for knowing my Dad. 2 points for research.
4 points for not dumbing.
Mr. lncredible - 2 points to help your bum.
bbjunkie - 2 points because It's my party but she'll be late if she wants to.
2 points for running with the sharks.
vrajewski10513 - 3 points for blaspheming.


Points standings:

Saturn23 – 160 points
jandlinz – 159 points
DISNEYMOON10121991 – 156 points
DizzneyDi – 139 points
franandaj - 137 points
SnowWhiteOz – 136 points
GoofyIsAsGoofyDoes – 135 points
TheLittleKatie - 135 points
Steppesister – 133 points
cinderkelly – 116 points
orangecats2 – 116 points
queenbetsey – 113 points
ForeverDance – 112 points
Captain_Oblivious – 110 points
DonnaBeeGood – 108 points
irene_dsc - 101 points
Gracefulskinny – 100 points
TruLovesKiss – 93 points
Mrs T 2009 – 91 points
afwdwfan – 87 points
MAGICFOR2 – 87 points
Curiouser&curiouser! - 80 points
Terra Nova guy - 75 points
Mac Brew – 62 points
Mr. lncredible – 53 points
vrajewski10513 - 53 points
SimplyGoofy - 45 points
chookie94 – 40 points
ursalita - 40 points
BibbitybobityLu – 33 points
Kiotzu - 30 points
DisneyAndrew – 28 points
Susan R – 23 points
Thumper_Man - 23 points
TGM - 22 points
misssullyinc - 18 points
Dentam - 14 points
ougrad86 – 13 points
Mrs Thumper_Man - 12 points
Backstage_Gal – 11 points
Squishley - 10 points
pookersmom - 7 points
Kiren – 5 points
KathyM2 - 4 points
Dreamer & Wisher - 3 points
MHSweb79 - 2 points
Tracy161 - 2 points

Please double check your scores and let me know if you've been missed.

Still some points available in future updates!


Bonus questions, round 10!

1. Obvious one. Which park are we heading out to next?

2. Remember we have to be at the lobby for check out at 2:45am.
So... Is the next park our last of the day? Or not?
Number of parks done this last day, 2, 3 or 4?

3. I experience yet another first time snack.
And it's another fairly common one.
(I had to. I promised I would.) What is it?

4. Oh, take a wild guess on what time we leave the parks for the night.
And just to make things extra easy for you...
(in order of lateness open)
MK open til 11, DHS open til 9:30, Epcot open til 9, AK open til 5

5. We've been lucky with the weather... so far.
So, do you feel we stay lucky?

6. What do you think? We've done one ADR today already.
Do we have a dinner ADR?


Good luck!



Coming up!
Last half of the last day.
Plus...
In the eyes of my child... I'm the MAN!

Chapter 12 - Not Singin' in the Rain​

 

[jandlinz]

I don't know if he'd heard us griping, or just guessed.
"You know why I have you digging by hand?" He asked.
We shook our heads.
"It's because I want you to stay in school and get an education."
"I want you to remember how it was digging these ditches."

And I never forgot.

Your Dad's like that.

Wow! Great story and lesson. I'm sure it made an impact on you. When I refer to my kids' future I always say, "When you go to college...". I never say, "if". I once asked them what is the worst job someone can have? The oldest child, said "a garbage man." I think he was five at the time. So now I always tease about how school is so important because you don't want to be a garbage man when you grow up. No offense to any garbage men reading this. Without you my life would stink, literally, so kudos to you!

See? He's already starting to take care of things.

Thanks for that positivity it made me feel better.

He sounds like a wonderful man.

I like to think that's what this TR is really about.

Oh, good. I was hoping you wouldn't feel hijacked. Sometimes strangers on the Internet can be great friends and supportive.

Oh, God.
This update is going to suck. I just know it.

It'll be wonderful!

Going off grid here for a bit.
Gotta get the update ready to go.
Still needs a title.
Sometimes I find that's the 2nd hardest part.

No. The writing isn't the hardest.
Keeping track of the contest is!

I bet it is. I don't know how you do it.
Whoo Hoo update soon!

 

[pkondz]

Wow! Great story and lesson. I'm sure it made an impact on you. When I refer to my kids' future I always say, "When you go to college...". I never say, "if". I once asked them what is the worst job someone can have? The oldest child, said "a garbage man." I think he was five at the time. So now I always tease about how school is so important because you don't want to be a garbage man when you grow up. No offense to any garbage men reading this. Without you my life would stink, literally, so kudos to you!

Yep. We need garbage men and general labourers
and all manner of workers who don't have post secondary education.
But the ones with degrees, statistically make a better wage.
And don't tend to dig back-breaking ditches!

Thanks for that positivity it made me feel better.

I'm glad!

Oh, good. I was hoping you wouldn't feel hijacked. Sometimes strangers on the Internet can be great friends and supportive.

I encourage sharing on this TR.
Always.

It'll be wonderful!

Judge for yourself.

I bet it is. I don't know how you do it.
Whoo Hoo update soon!

Nope. Update two posts ago!

 

[Steppesister]

Tell me how gracious I am and get free bonus points.

You are the KING of graciousness. Adding more would be superlative... oh wait, there is no limit to your graciousness. So I will say that above you there is no other with such graciousness.

You can try one if you like.
But I guarantee we already said it.

"If it were in the hills of Kentucky, it'd be the Sum of all Stills".

Might just be one of the best rides in Epcot.

Rate it on the Puke 'O Meter.

But.
Was it amazing? No.

Verbatim of all the other recent reviews I've read.

If I say "Manitoba" the province that has
Winnipeg as its capitol... I get blank stares.

Better than I had done earlier chatting with Carrie online. I thought you were WAY east of there. My bad. Now I know.

I'll be back later with guesses; need to think on them...

 

[Steppesister]

I like to think that's what this TR is really about.

They should all be like that.

 

[orangecats2]

Yay! I'm tied for 10th!

Tell me how gracious I am and get free bonus points.

Gracious you are!

I think the free bonus points for last round were for saying if you knew about touching the hot surface at Teppan Edo. You said gracious but that's for the next update. I'm like your assistant! It's an easy job, since you're the best TR writer!

 

[orangecats2]

Better than I had done earlier chatting with Carrie online. I thought you were WAY east of there. My bad. Now I know.

See...I'm even good at Geography!

 

[pkondz]

Thanks Carrie!
(I actually had it right.... then changed it just before I posted it. )