Dorkapalooza 2006 - EPILOGUE on PAGE 15!!

[Minnie_Moo]

Looking good, Gram!

Thanks for the new chapter, Ash!! Delightful and de-lovely.

 

[LaLa]

Originally Posted by kpk89
On first glance of the Troll picture, I was confuzzled. Where am I? I know I was there.

Look just over Sher's right (as you look at her) shoulder. See that splotch of pink? That's me.

With no pineapple available, she plunked her whole self right smack on me. LY Sher! Photo hog.

DED. I am so DED. That's almost funnier than Grammy's belt story.

Ash! I LOVED reading the low down on the meet. It sounds like yall had such a good time. Can you imagine what those CMs must have thought when yall all busted in there?

The pics are all great. All my Maelstrom girls have got it goin' on! Seriously. Yall are all beautimous!

Keep it comin Woman.

 

[UtahMama]

THAT skirt wouldn't make it up past my knees! (NOT for long though!)

I only didn't recognize the lady in the red shirt with the black bag towards the right in the ship shot??? Who is she?

Ugh! I woulda LOVED being there! At least for the meet!

 

[Yzma and Kronk]

Ash - I'm just now getting caught up.

All I can say is thanks for the memories!!



You are making it so much easier for me to write this chapter....when I get to it

And Kimmie:

And GRAM:

And everyone else that was there that day:

I'm not sure about Frickles first time.....but it was mine too. I was sitting beside Rhonda and Mark. You can see my arm!

Thanks!

 

[byoung]

Love your report.

 

[jamal]

My dear Ash-friend!!

I loved this installment. I read it three times.

Why did no one stop me from going to Cali Grill as Farm Girl?? White lace + Splash Mountain = wardrobe issues at 1:00 AM.

I loved closing down the park with you friends. I'll neverever forget that feeling we shared that night or the next day in Norway. KIMMIE!!! I SE YOUR EYES! And Grammy. I nearly fell over laughing when you walked up in that belt. The look on the owner's face is the #1 missed photo op of the week!!!!!!

 

[MyTalula]

Here’s a good group shot:

You guys look awesome for coming off splash at midnight!! How fun to be in the park dressed up like that... I'm just guessing you all got a few curious looks?
I bow to you Ash for being able to wear those heels with a sprained ankle!

Grammy was hysterical, wearing Chris’ extremely short skirt, aka “belt”, that she had stolen from her room (I guessed). Chris didn’t know she was wearing it. Hahahaha! It was very funny. And, if I may say, Gram looked damn good in it. Pulled it off better than I could’ve. It wouldn’t have made it past my knees! Chris arrived shortly afterwards, and got a good laugh out of it. Then they headed to the ladies room to make a switch.

That is a riot, and I bet even funnier in person!!!

I must say that you and Jay are a stunning couple, I love that picture of the two of you!

 

[NAB]

Ash another great installment.

Grammy --great legs woman. You could have worn that skirt for real. If it was a skort. Then you could sit down

Can't wait to hear more......

 

[AshClan]

Bumping my own TR. BUT, I wanted to say, that I have only ONE holiday party to attend this weekend. SO, I will hopefully be able to squeeze in a another chapter. And I think it'll be a good one. Especially if I can find the good pics I'm looking for.

So thanks for reading, and for posting your delightful comments. I am continually amazed at your encouragement and amusing (ok, often hilarious) contributions!!! Stay tuned......

 

[kpk89]

You guys look awesome for coming off splash at midnight!! How fun to be in the park dressed up like that... I'm just guessing you all got a few curious looks?

heheee, we MIGHT have, if anybody were still there! Or maybe we did but were all running/rolling too quickly to notice.

Get going, Ash!!

 

[cazzie]

This has been a fun read, it sounds like you all had a blast.

 

[AshClan]

My memory is fading......what did we do when we got back from Epcot? As I said at the end of the last installment, I remember something about soft serve ice cream. From Roaring Fork (yes, ZZUB, I, too, have finally caught on that there is no “s” at the end of “Fork”). And we went to the pool for a little bit. I figured that it’s now been about 48 hours since the unpleasant episode in the pool. It has to be chlorined enough now, right? I also think I took a tiny nap. Actually, I now remember that I did. Because I was dozing when the frickin’ (NOF) geyser went off at about 3:07 p.m. and sprayed ALL the way over to where I was sitting and woke me up. And it was far. Strange. That’s the only time it did that. Can’t imagine why. I don’t think it was windy.

I am sure I iced my ankle some more, either before or after the pool. I forgot to mention earlier that Jay bought me an ace bandage that morning and wrapped my ankle before we headed to Epcot. It did help with support, and to keep the swelling down, I guess, but boy did it feel good to unwrap that sucker for a few hours.

Eventually, we started to get ready to head back to Epcot for our ADR at Alfredo’s. We were following that with an Illuminations meet, on the bridge by the Int’l Gateway. Then a little hop, skip and a jump over to Jellyrolls. ‘Cause we had a pianoman to see about a t-shirt. Or Sher did. And we all wanted to watch. Anywoo, our ADR was late-ish. 7:30, I think. So it was a good thing that we had friends saving us a spot for Illuminations. I was not overly psyched for Alfredo’s. We had been there years ago and didn’t love it, but Jay is tough to please. My first choice would probably have been Le Cellier. But we went there last April and he wasn’t blown away. He loves him some Chicken Parmesan, though, and I knew he could get it at Al’s. So that’s where we went. It was about what we expected. Okay, not great. That, I suspect, will be our last visit there.

We finished up our dinner pretty promptly, and headed over to the bridge by the International Gateway. Where the ever-reliable “Mrs. Silly”, along with YAK and K, was saving spots for our crew. As we approached, lo and behold (sorry, I’m listening to Christmas music....words like lo and behold are weasling their way into my brain), our wonderful friends had discovered that the awesome area below the bridge where they often have private events was not occupied! We ended up having a great area to gather, with just about the best view of Illuminations that you can get. This was to be our last night together, so the cameras were flashing. Here are some of my favorites:

Jay and me (why so small...again?!):

Jay and Doug:

Jay with #1, #4 and #7:

Hmmm, all my favorites seem to have the same person in them. Wonder what that means??

Here’s another. Not as good, but it’s the only group shot I have:

And me with a few of my girls (YAK, Jam and Kim), courtesy of Jami:

BTW, I wouldn’t swear to it, but I’m fairly certain all but the last of these pics were from Kimmie’s camera.

Illuminations was tons of fun. We had lots of recaps of the events of the day, and of people’s meals, and we got to wish Happy Birthday to Sher’s friend B and Grampy, both of whom were wearing their birthday buttons. I benember something about a special dinner that Sher and Horsey and B had at Le Cell, but can’t recall the details. Haley and her kids were laden with about a bazillion light up neckaces and bracelets, and Max and Sophia had a great time handing them out to everybody. Several bar runs were made to various F&W spots nearby (mostly France, methinks), and lots of general merriment ensued. Once the show started, we ended up with several teary eyes. Not only because it was Illuminations, but because we were all so happy to be together, and all so sad that this magical meet was coming to an end. But, by no means was this a sad evening. In fact, I truly feel that this was the LEAST melancholy “last night” that I’ve ever had at WDW. I was so happy that we had decided to do this, and so thrilled with what a fabulous time we'd all had. And I had no doubt that I had cemented some very, very special friendships. PLUS, we still had much fun ahead. The night was young! Well, for this crowd, it was. Normally, I would be ready for bed. But we had a mission.

So, Illuminations ended, and a big group of us headed out the International Gateway. I was with Jay, of course, and Gram and Grampy, and Sher. I know that because I have a picture of us waiting on a bench for the rest of the crew. If I had to make a guess, I’d say that Horsey and YAK and K and Jami and #1 & #7 were right behind us. Kim and Doug, too, because I know they were with us later. Steph and Crashdad, too. I think that’s it. Apologies if I’ve forgotten anyone. The Silly’s, of course, had the kids with them, so they couldn’t very well head where we were going. Anyway, I know we waited a bit on that bench. Probably so 1, 4 & 7 could go to the ladies’ room. Because they did that. A LOT. Don’t know if it was the drinks, or the fact that there were three of them, or just that they have small bladders, but they seemed to need a ladies’ room stop every 10 minutes or so anytime we were with them. Seriously. Not that we minded. They never held us up much, and they are all so great. How could you hold something like that against them?!

But, I digress. Much of the crew wanted to just walk to Jellyrolls, but I was still babying my ankle a bit (I actually wore flats!), so we agreed to take the boat over to the Boardwalk. I’m so glad we did. Because it was fun! As I think of it, I realize our whole meeting at the exit, and the ladies' room trips and the gathering together to head out must’ve taken awhile. Because it WAS the end of Illuminations, and yet there was no crowd on the boat. There were some other people with us (bless them), but not tons and tons. Anywoo, we got on the boat. And started to move. When all of a sudden, this booming (but good!) voice starts singing. I think it was “Michael Row the Boat Ashore”. I KNOW it was Grampy. Horsey joined in. Then the rest of us. We put on quite the concert! Every boat song we could think of....Rock the Boat; Row, Row, Row the Boat, etc. The Captain was, um, a little annoyed. Well, not really, but he cajoled us to stop. Then he tried bribery. He promised to get us there faster if we’d just quit the singing. He may have even made a good-natured threat or two. But everyone was having fun! Even those not with us were enjoying it. We ended, I think, with a rousing rendition of Kumbaya (sp?). We had to get warmed up for Jellyrolls, y’know?! It was very entertaining!! And I think the Captain may have been won over by the time he dropped us off at the Boardwalk. Then again, maybe not. Whatever.

We were headed to Jellyrolls to see a man about a t-shirt. No, not really. Sher had a t-shirt that she had made just for the occasion. It had a special Maelstromer message on it. A kind of “inside” joke. She had taken it out of her bag a few times to show people earlier in the night. As we approached Jellyrolls, she went to get it out of her bag, and realized that she had LOST it! We couldn’t believe it! This was part of a big plan. To get a picture taken at Jellyrolls wearing that shirt. But, unfortunately, no shirt. It was difficult to deal with. But we all forged on. Presented our IDs. Paid the cover. Got our hands stamped. Headed on in to Jellyrolls.

The place was dead. Not a crowd, at ALL. One other group came in right in front of us who claimed to be a barrel of fun. Yet they sat down and we heard nary a word from them the rest of the night.

We were still pumped. And determined to liven things up. On the stage were two piano players. Don’t know who the first guy was. But the second was Scotty. We had heard of him. Heard he was “the best”. And he was just who we were looking for. It didn’t take long for Sher to make that known, TFI. I am stealing again from Kimmie here, even the narration, but this just needs to be shared.....

The approach:

(notice the cheerleader arms flapping? She does that when she runs, too, TFI.)

On the stage:

(if you look real carefully you can see the other piano man calling for security.)

The pose:

(Dazed with terror.... or starstruck? You decide!)

We were DED. Really and truly. It was quite the event. Poor Scotty. He didn’t quite know what hit him. But I think, ultimately, he liked the attention. In fact, a little while after he got off the stage, he came over to us to get to know us (or Sher!) better:

(I think this one’s from Sher’s camera.)

It was all very fun. And funny. And we certainly livened the place up. Here’s another group shot:

(None of us can remember which song this was, but I think it was Bohemian Rhapsody.)

And finally, one more candid that I stole from Sher because I love it.

Sher & Doug:

So, lots of laughs at Jellyrolls. BUT, it was still a little dead, despite our herculean efforts to liven up the place. PLUS, it was evening EMH at MGM. So a few of us (Horsey, Sher, Jami, #1, #7, and Jay and I) decided a trip over to ride RnRC and TOT was in order. After all, we had started a bit of a tradition the night before. And Jay and I hadn’t made it to MGM at all this weekend. And I never get to ride TOT because no one else in my family will ride it. SO, we left the others and headed over to MGM. NOTE: I had to say goodbye to Kim, Doug, Grammy, Grampy, Steph and Crashdad at this point, because we were leaving in the morning. Again, it was sad, but I knew it wouldn’t be our last meeting. And I knew we’d be “talking” plenty. Both on the phone and online. So, we said a little bittersweet goodbye and flew out to catch another boat. There was some waiting for some people (were Jami & crew in the ladies’ again??). And some bargaining between Jay and the boat captain. To make sure the boat waited. (Only a couple of minutes, though, and we all hustled. Not like that family on LaLa’s TL bus. Just so you know.) And we were off to MGM..................

UP NEXT: Late night adventure - Part Two.

 

[horsegirl]

I have to say, for a bunch of dorks, we sure know how to have a good time! This night is a blur to me, as is the whole trip. Your mind is a steel trap! You remember everything. Poor Scotty was truly scared and did not understand our interest in him. I think we traumatized him. That place was definitely not rocking, except in our tiny corner! Thanks for the telling this tale. It really was just so much fun.

 

[Backstage_Gal]

Ash, too funny! Dang about the shirt.............

 

[nicolemarie]

Ash!

What a great installment! I love all the pics - love, love, love them. Especially the one of Sher "approaching" Scotty. That's so...well, Sher.

I have enjoyed living vicariously through each of you as you told your tales. What a special meet with special people.

Thanks for letting us share it with you!!

NM

 

[FSUMARCHIEF]

Just trying to get caught up! SOrry it's taken me so long! Thanks for the reminder of how much fun the big meet was. I love the pictures!

Blessings!
MarkyMArk

 

[HaleyB]

I finally caught up with you. Inbetween batches of cookies

I love the details you remember. It is all pretty fuzzy for me. Except it was so much fun. And Illuminations was just perfect, magical.

Thanks for bringing it all back for me.

 

[Minnie_Moo]

Thanks for clearing up the mystery of the missing shirt, Ash!

Love your reporting.

 

[kpk89]

Ash!!!!!!!!
That was the bestest, funnest night. Except for Cali Grill and Splash night. And except for the Poly pool bar and Wishes night. OK, they were all the bestest night.

Benember the "fun crowd" who was right in front of us in line to pay the cover? They out and out SAID they were a fun crowd. Ha. That was taken as a challenge, and we out funcrowded them at every turn.

I benember something VERY funny that YAK said ...

And wishwishWISHing we had been up for joining you on the run to close MGM. But given that we had OPENED MGM with double RNR and a TOT, followed by major ill feelings, it seemed prudent to end our trip on a high note. So to speak.


You are still going to write about the MGMing, right? I want to hear allllllllllll the scary details. ALL.

 

[tink38]

Great report, Ash! I so wish I could have been there. I get teary every time I read about the meet. I know y'all had a great time.

If I don't talk to you between now and then (which is doubtful) Merry Christmas!