Tuesday, October 24th - It's So Cold I Can't Think of a Cliche to Describe How Cold It Is.
**Author's note - Sadly I am not enjoying a tasty adult beverage this evening while I finish this installment, which probably should have been subtitled
The Longest Day. Considering the medical procedures which are looming on the horizon too much alcohol would have been a bad thing tonight. If you find that this episode is lacking a certain sparkle or flair, it may be due to one or both of the following:
1) You now know the horrible truth: non-drinking Brenda is dull and boring with even less personality, if possible, than a sheet of plywood. If you are disappointed by this discovery, please see point # 2;
2) Perhaps you should consider drinking and reading...you may actually find me much more amusing this way (recent studies have shown that 9 out of 10 readers actually think this report is more amusing after at least one cocktail).
Thank you for your attention - we now return you to the mindless dribble**
Finally! After three years of begging and pleading Jason and I were going to attend Mickey's Halloween party in costume! As I previously mentioned, Jason's mom was kind enough to make both of our costumes, which we modified a bit based on our weather expectations (derived from four straight years of Octobering in Florida). Said modifications included Jason's substitution of red workout shorts for long pants and my decision to forgo tights. Before we left St. Louis we expected that this evening at the MK would be warm and humid, especially in costume, and we wanted to keep things as light and comfortable as possible.
Here's Jay and me all dressed up, because if I do say so myself, I think we look pretty cute.
Well, we kept things light, but Mother Nature had the last laugh by sending a blast of Arctic air all the way down to Orlando...if this hadn't been a hard ticketed event you can bet that Grimace would have snuggled up in bed early to watch Game 3 of the World Series. Not that she's a baseball fan, because she isn't.
Grimace didn't wear a costume. She really didn't need to, did she?
Jon, however, decided to get in on the fun and dressed up as...himself!!
We decided to get to the MK before 7PM, which is the official start time of the party. At the gate we were all awarded a piece of Disney flare for the evening: a colored plastic wristband similar to the kind that a hospital uses to identify its patients shortly before losing them. Upon returning to the villa later in the evening we would discover that something almost as powerful as the jaws of life is required to cut through the plastic.
We took a few pictures before the party started, but for some reason our camera doesn't take very good nighttime pictures (operator error, no doubt) so we didn't even try.
I just love these illuminated Mickey ghosts!
I don't really care for the new manner in which Disney decided to handle admittance to the party this year. In years past the park closed at 6PM on nights when it was hosting
MNSSHP and then it re-opened at 7PM for those guests with tickets. If guests were already in the park who held tickets for that evening's party they could go to designated areas, or holding pens, within the park until the party officially started.
In 2006 someone decided to leave the park open and make periodic announcements to guests that they would have to leave by 7PM if they didn't have a ticket for the evening's event. That worked really well.
We saw people in the park well after 7PM who weren't wearing wristbands and who were still trying to get on rides. We got behind one family where the mother was arguing with the CM..."We didn't know there was something special going on this evening."
CM: "I'm sorry about that, but the park is closed to everyone who doesn't have a wristband at this point. Announcements were made throughout the park beginning at 6PM. I can't allow you on the ride."
Mom: "This will be the last ride we go on and then we'll leave...look at my kids, Buzz Lightyear is their favorite ride..."
Tough spot for that CM to be in and I felt for her. On the one hand you've got a manipulative guest who's trying to get around the "rules" for the evening and on the other hand you've got a queue full of people who paid $40 per person for the "privilege" of attending this party and participating in all the special events that went along with it.
That CM stuck to her guns and got a huge round of applause for the effort.
And I called that guest manipulative because we saw her later trying to get her kids in one of the treat-or-treat lines in Tomorrowland before being turned away.
Anyway, would you like to see how our Buzz Lightyear photo turned out?
Isn't this picture great? I suck at rides like this - I can't see the targets very well and my aim is terrible. But I am determined to kill something - look at the way I'm gritting my teeth. And then look at the smug superiority on Jay's face. He seems to be thinking, "I could spot her 100,000 points and still beat her with one hand tied behind my back."
A few more pics of the evening and then I've got to cut it short.
We did a lot of trick-or-treating because surprisingly enough that's what Grimace wanted to do. As we went through the lines for candy, many of the CMs referred to Jay and I as "The Boss and The First Lady." We thought that was really cute.
There was one CM, however, who rather sarcastically told us that we lacked imagination. And while he might have been on to something there, I think he failed to notice the mulitudes of other guests who were all dressed like pirates.
We stayed through Hallowishes and then went back to the villa to thaw out - it was just too cold a night to last at the MK any longer. Even Jay was cold and when the human furnace gets chilly you know that it's frosty outside.
Back in the room we were excited to see that the Cardinals were beating the Tigers in Game 3, and Plankton was excited about all the candy we received.
Mine, It's All Mine!
Snuggling inside my jacket for the night - even power-mad mascots get cold sometimes.
I got chills reading this! Nothing worse than a cranky Grimace!
Thanks for your review of the food and wine pairing at Restaurant Marrakesh... I don't think we'll be trying this one. In fact, I have to admit, we've never eaten at Marrakesh. Don't plan to either. Not my cup o' tea.
It's good you have a positive attitude about it. "Always look at the bright side of your life..."
) After all, what if this is as good as it gets?
Totally familiar with the mentally ill inducing job - that's why you take mental health days!
The Dilbert tie! He looks like a mad scientist, and Plankton was a result. 
(really, and every day. Who couldn't use extra pixie dust?
