The Scooter Strikes Back-A F&W 2017 TR- Bonus Features, Link to new TR 3/22

[pkondz]

OK so there must be a story behind that....spill the beans....

To put the lights up, the easiest thing to do is pull out the extension ladder, go on the roof, and hang them that way.
Of course if its snowed already, then... no way in heck I'm doing that. I'd just slide right off.

Anyways... So my back is feeling better. I've got a day off.... I better get this done. Cold... but not stupid cold. But.... very windy.
I climb up and start hanging the lights. All of a sudden...

sshshshshshshhhhhhh.... crash!

A really big wind gust came up and blew the ladder over. I have never seen that before.... um....... how do I get down?
I didn't want to break my phone by accidentally crushing it as I put the lights up, so I left it in the house..... can't call anyone.

Whelp.... guess I have to wait until someone comes by and..... here comes a car now!
I start waving my arms like crazy and...

They don't even slow down.

Um. This might be problematic.

Luckily, a couple minutes later, a couple of young ladies (house cleaners I think) pulled up and saw me waving. They could just lift the ladder high enough that as I reached down, I could grab it.

Saved.


Was kinda glad the wind didn't blow it over again. Would've been embarrassing (well..... more embarrassing) to be trapped again.

I think I might be OK with that.

Cabin fever is a real thing.

No it's a Phillips, but it's the length of the screwdriver is problematic, it needs to be long enough to access all of the screws.

Ah. Gotcha.

Some of them have a really long shaft to get to them.

I'm sure you will come up with something eventually.

I don't know.
I do remember thinking in DL when I gave Ariel the fork (that's what she said) that it would probably be the last time I do that.
Kind of a natural progression and end to that series.

 

[Steppesister]

I'm sure there will be a TR. We have taken several trips with my parents, Vegas, Cape Cod, WDW in 2010. It's for March 2019, my Mom likes plants so we're going during F&G.

I had lobbied for Spring of that year so I could do F&G, but my daughter and her DH can't until Fall. So I guess F&G will have to wait until next time around.

I can see where they need it for slum lords, but it kinda sucks with honest folks like us.

Yes, it does. And here in Portland they've pretty much regulated the honest folks right out of being property owners at all, thus completely defeating the purpose of creating more affordable housing. Morons in government. The single owners who rented like us gave up and sold off.

I would crack up if he (the tenant) used us as a reference for a future apartment. He seems that stupid.

It certainly seems that way.

I was trying to be funny while putting it in perspective that DIS folks could appreciate.

It worked!

Yeah. Having a scooter sucks. Only two can ride on any given bus.

Even with that factored in, an hour is a heck of a long time to wait!

To put the lights up, the easiest thing to do is pull out the extension ladder, go on the roof, and hang them that way.
Of course if its snowed already, then... no way in heck I'm doing that. I'd just slide right off.

Anyways... So my back is feeling better. I've got a day off.... I better get this done. Cold... but not stupid cold. But.... very windy.
I climb up and start hanging the lights. All of a sudden...

sshshshshshshhhhhhh.... crash!

A really big wind gust came up and blew the ladder over. I have never seen that before.... um....... how do I get down?
I didn't want to break my phone by accidentally crushing it as I put the lights up, so I left it in the house..... can't call anyone.

Whelp.... guess I have to wait until someone comes by and..... here comes a car now!
I start waving my arms like crazy and...

They don't even slow down.

Um. This might be problematic.

Luckily, a couple minutes later, a couple of young ladies (house cleaners I think) pulled up and saw me waving. They could just lift the ladder high enough that as I reached down, I could grab it.

Saved.


Was kinda glad the wind didn't blow it over again. Would've been embarrassing (well..... more embarrassing) to be trapped again.

Okay, in all seriousness, that truly sounds very dangerous and frightening. I'm glad the ladder didn't get blown over with you ON it!

And you tell me about this "Family Board" business on MY thread?!?!!!

 

[franandaj]

Love the kitties!

They are cute, aren't they?

Tenants can be quite the headache at times! We have had the most awesome tenant the past two years and are worried what will happen when she is no longer able to live on her own.

For the most part, we have good tenants, we try to screen them well and weed out the ones that are a PIYA.

Fingers crossed for your empty rental!

Yeah, this is a bad time of year for people to move. Except another one of our tenants.

Beautiful pics of ROL. I still have not made it there!

It's nice enough, but I wouldn't go out of my way to see it.

Hope it goes soon!
And considering what you've been telling me.... yes you could!!

Yeah, and another one just gave notice when paying their rent this month.

lover?
trucker?

But, yeah. What a jerk.

How's she doing today?

She's really getting sick of us squirting stuff down her throat!

Uh, huh.
"pkondz hears about a restaurant at Disney with chara....." <slams door on way out>

I don't see why, but to each his own.

Never been a fan of the character meals. When I brought the kids?
Absolutely!
But... when I'm solo? I just want to enjoy my meal without the interruptions.

I can see it if you're solo, but I like the photos and it's an easy way to get them without having to wait in a huge line.

I've told you how much I like her, right?

How spicy was it?
Just wondering if my fam would like it.... they're real spice wusses.

I could send you my recipe. A friend of another friend posted it on FB and I modified it to take out the peas and the jalapeno so there was pretty much no heat at all in the recipe.

Okay... I'll try it then.
It just sounds and looks unappealing.

Stems from reading a novel with "tasteless pap" I presume.

Poi, now that's tasteless goo, but this had cheese and something else melted into it. It was almost like grits, but then we already covered that in great length on your TR!

Oh, too bad. That place is so much nicer at night.

Which is why we have decided to go back at some point and stay at AKL so that we can explore in more detail.

That's good! A really good photographer will take the time to get the shot they want.

Well I'm not a really good photographer, but I am nothing if not persistent!

Interesting.


I said "interesting"!! Not intriguing!

I extrapolated.

 

[pkondz]

Yeah, and another one just gave notice when paying their rent this month.

what?????

She's really getting sick of us squirting stuff down her throat!

Can you blame her???

I can see it if you're solo, but I like the photos and it's an easy way to get them without having to wait in a huge line.

Good point. But... don't need character photos, unless I have some sort of theme or something in mind.

I could send you my recipe. A friend of another friend posted it on FB and I modified it to take out the peas and the jalapeno so there was pretty much no heat at all in the recipe.

Sure!

Poi, now that's tasteless goo,

I disagree. I don't find it tasteless at all.



I find it disgusting.

but this had cheese and something else melted into it. It was almost like grits, but then we already covered that in great length on your TR!

hmm... Okay. I'll try it.

Which is why we have decided to go back at some point and stay at AKL so that we can explore in more detail.

Yay!

Well I'm not a really good photographer

I (and others) would disagree.

 

[franandaj]

You gotta love your pets. Last update I mentioned that Amelia had been hospitalized with Pneumonia. She went in around midnight Sunday night and Fran left a deposit equivalent to what you might pay for lodging for a week at WDW in a Moderate Resort. We visited her on Wed and that seemed to improve her spirits. We also left another deposit around what you and your SO would pay for park hoppers for that 7 day trip at a moderate resort.

Even after being in an oxygen chamber and taking two types of Antibiotics, by Thursday she still wasn't really improving to the doctor's liking. The doctor wanted to transfer her to a speciality vet where they handle only emergencies and severe cases. We picked her up and they had put her on a catheter and done a few other procedures to prepare her for the half hour journey to the new vet. I was hoping that with the deposits we had left she would be covered.

Nope.

Cancel the week at WDW, and the park hoppers. By this point we could have taken a cruise on the Disney Fantasy in a Verandah stateroom!

So we plotted our GPS to this swanky new state-of-the-art facility with bright lights, a huge parking lot and a waiting room the size of the queue area for the Attraction in the American pavilion. They took her to the back immediately and we filled out forms for admitting. Soon we were in a treatment room talking with a doctor. She explained how she planned to treat Amelia and that her assistant would be back with an estimate so we could leave a deposit. And BOOM! There it was, another cruise on the Fantasy in a Verandah stateroom!

We visited her the next day and luckily she had improved substantially.

The good news is that Amelia came home two days later after admission to the super vet, and she has been quarantined in the Olga Suite. Fran and I are trading off sleeping with her every night. But since she had her follow up today, she's no longer contagious and can mix back with the rest of the herd. She still has to continue her meds and report back in two weeks.

Other fun news has to do with my health. About a week ago I woke up to find a dull ache in my jaw. It wasn't too bad, and I was hoping that I'd just slept on it wrong. The dentist office is closed Fridays so I couldn't have done anything about it anyways. I decided that if it didn't go away over the weekend, I'd call the dentist Monday. Turns out the nerve is dying in a tooth that had a crown put on many years ago. So I get to have a root canal next week. Yay me! The pain is getting close to unbearable, so I've been taking some pretty heavy duty pain pills. It's a wonder I was able to write up this little prologue coherently.

The apartment I've been talking about is still available, winter is the worst time to get new tenants, so no luck yet. But to throw more salt in the wounds, another tenant and her brother have chosen to separate their living arrangements and are moving. At least this is one of our most favorable properties. It's one block from the beach and when I say beach I actually mean the Bluff as most of Long Beach has a very high bluff that separates most of the town from the water.

When this place rented in 2015, I must have priced it well below the market price because it rented really quickly, so I'm hoping we can get several hundred dollars more per month for the place. I'm also hoping that they took fairly good care of the place so we don't have to do much to get it ready to rent again.

The only other update is for our trip in August. At the 7 month mark I was able to swap out our existing reservation for an accessible Grand Villa at Old Key West. Since our plans include one evening of hosting a potluck in the Villa with the friends from the cruise, the larger kitchen, dining area, and patio at OKW will come in handy. We'll have more space to eat, relax and have fun!

So back to the Trip Report!

Day 8


We woke up. Today was the last full day. One thing I had to do before we could get going, was to ship the battery from the dead scooter home. We had just purchased new batteries for the inside of the battery pack and those suckers are expensive! And to purchase a new “shell” with batteries inside is over $200.

So after getting dressed, I made coffee and drank half a cup before heading up to the front desk. As I left the room I saw this hanging on the door.

Jeremy, a helpful CM, found me a box, assisted me in wrapping the battery in padding and bubble wrap, before sending me over to the concierge desk to ship it.

Because I am very familiar with shipping services, I knew that the FedEx service (Express) that they were trying to get me to use would be really expensive. But when I asked about the more affordable service, the lady behind the desk offered to put me on front of a computer and use my own FedEx account to send the battery home! Turns out that it only cost about $41 total to send it home!

That accomplished I went back to the room for more coffee, V8, and cereal.

Fran was up and moving around and I made her a bacon sandwich, and an English Muffin with American cheese melted on top. We left the room just after 10AM and didn't wait long for an AK bus.

I had made us both FP+ for Flights of Passage and when we got to the park our FP had just opened up, so we headed directly over there.

When I entered the ride it was 11:15, technically the FP is up at 11:50, but Pam says they give you 15 minutes grace period on the end. So 12:05 would be the very end. The queue was pretty long and a somewhat steep climb. Then once you get placed on the ride there are two rooms with a somewhat lengthy “prep” that get you ready for the ride and what to expect. In the first room, there was a little extra spiel because there was some sort of delay (I know this because that part of the spiel didn't happen the second time I rode). I was afraid that it would take so long I wouldn't get a second ride.

The ride itself was incredible! I won't give away too much for anyone who hasn't been on it yet, but the premise is that you are assuming the body of an Avatar like the humans did in the movie. Then that Avatar takes a ride on an Ikran or Banshee (as we call them).

It's a very unique ride, a bit like Soarin’ but you stay in one place. The motion or action is almost like Star Tours except without the star speeder around you. All in all it was an awesome experience and I can't wait to do it again! Fran would not have been able to ride, she would puke. I even felt a little nauseous after my first ride, but not enough to keep me from a second ride. I was back in the FP+ queue by 11:45. After my second ride I realized that I was hungry even though my stomach was a tad bit queasy. I’m pretty sure that in the week we had been at WDW, I hadn't eaten any burgers, so we decided to go to Restaurantaurus. But before heading over there I did take a few more shots around the area.

We headed to Dinoland.

My Dinosaur! FP+ was open so I rode that.

Then we went to Restaurantaurus. We split a bacon cheeseburger with fries and Clam chowder. They have an awesome toppings bar with a bunch of things like grilled onions, sauteed mushrooms, guacamole, and all the normal things like lettuce, pickles and onions, which is what I added.

The burger was good, ⅓ lb and rather thick. Half the burger was plenty for me! Especially since we planned to go back to Epcot for F&W.


[Continued in Next Post]

 

[franandaj]

[Continued from Previous Post]

When we had finished lunch our FP for the safari opened up so we headed back to Africa to ride. Rumors say that the best time to ride is early in the morning when the animals are most active. However I have to say that this 2PM safari was one of the best I have taken.

The animals were out in force and posing for pics.

@Steppesister’s guide Shofana was there, but didn't offer to guide me in the same fashion.

I'd never seen the cheetah so close on the safari before.

The animatronic lion had new moves programmed and was pretty impressive!

I don't often see these little fellas. They're usually hiding.

There was a parade of ostriches that wandered by our safari vehicle.

Soon it was over and time to head out of the park.

 

[tiggrbaby]

Poor kitty! So glad she's finally home!

Fingers crossed that this new rental will go quickly!

Isn't the new ride amazing? And the the entire land is just so beautiful!

Great safari pics!

 

[cruisehopeful]

I hope your kitty is still on the mend. It is so distressing when our pets get that ill. Thank God you had the resources to cover her medical.

And sorry to hear about your dental pain. I've been wondering why the updates have been so sparse, but didn't want to ask because I thought maybe something difficult was going on. Sounds like you are able to keep your wits about you in spite of all the real life stress. Keep up the good work!

 

[ljcrochet]

Glad the kitten is on the mend. I can’t imagine the vet bills.
I spent my morning at the vet with 2 foster puppies. I’m being optimist that I’m getting them back Monday, but last time I had to leave a puppy their it wasn’t good. And I heard 3 different reasons of what was wrong. Once when I called to check on him, one from rescue director and a new reason today.

 

[dolphingirl47]

I am glad that Amelia is feeling better.

I hope that your painful tooth gets sorted soon.

Because I am very familiar with shipping services, I knew that the FedEx service (Express) that they were trying to get me to use would be really expensive. But when I asked about the more affordable service, the lady behind the desk offered to put me on front of a computer and use my own FedEx account to send the battery home! Turns out that it only cost about $41 total to send it home!

That was really nice of the cast member. I am glad that shipping the battery home did not break the bank.

I loved all the safari photos. You really were spoiled that afternoon.

I have resigned myself to the fact that I will not be able to ride Flight of Passage. From what I have read about it, the restraints seem to be the same or at least very similar to Tron Lightcycle Run and I was in absolute agony when they engaged the restraints. I am not going to try that again in a hurry.

Corinna

 

[pkondz]

She went in around midnight Sunday night and Fran left a deposit equivalent to what you might pay for lodging for a week at WDW in a Moderate Resort. We visited her on Wed and that seemed to improve her spirits. We also left another deposit around what you and your SO would pay for park hoppers for that 7 day trip at a moderate resort.

Ouch.... sorry to hear that. Both the cost and that she was ill. (And yes, I know I already knew all that... but still... )

I was hoping that with the deposits we had left she would be covered.

Nope.

Double ouch.... You're bleeding cash!

Cancel the week at WDW, and the park hoppers. By this point we could have taken a cruise on the Disney Fantasy in a Verandah stateroom!

She explained how she planned to treat Amelia and that her assistant would be back with an estimate so we could leave a deposit. And BOOM! There it was, another cruise on the Fantasy in a Verandah stateroom!

Yay! Another cruise! You must've been so happy!!!


No?

Awww.... poor thing...

Whoa! That doesn't even look like the same cat! She certainly looks much happier!

About a week ago I woke up to find a dull ache in my jaw.

"Fran had been less than impressed with my substituting pickles with jalapenos and had slugged me."

So I get to have a root canal next week. Yay me!

Yay!
Why are we celebrating?

he pain is getting close to unbearable, so I've been taking some pretty heavy duty pain pills. It's a wonder I was able to write up this little prologue coherently.

How do you know it is coherent?? Hmmmm????

But to throw more salt in the wounds, another tenant and her brother have chosen to separate their living arrangements and are moving.

Oh... crap. Hopefully, given the location, it'll go quickly.

It's one block from the beach and when I say beach I actually mean the Bluff as most of Long Beach has a very high bluff that separates most of the town from the water.

So that's what a bluff is! Heard the term for ages, but never really knew.

Since our plans include one evening of hosting a potluck in the Villa with the friends from the cruise

Wow! That's really nice of you.... and sounds like it'll be a lot of fun!

We had just purchased new batteries for the inside of the battery pack and those suckers are expensive! And to purchase a new “shell” with batteries inside is over $200.

But... at least you'll have a reliable scooter.

Nooooooooooooooooo...

the lady behind the desk offered to put me on front of a computer and use my own FedEx account to send the battery home! Turns out that it only cost about $41 total to send it home!

Not bad. Any idea what it would've cost otherwise?

Gorgeous shot.

When I entered the ride it was 11:15, technically the FP is up at 11:50, but Pam says they give you 15 minutes grace period on the end. So 12:05 would be the very end.

Had to re-read that... then realized that you'd be riding twice.

The ride itself was incredible!

Isn't it???

I even felt a little nauseous after my first ride, but not enough to keep me from a second ride.

And doesn't that speak volumes for the ride?

we decided to go to Restaurantaurus.

Really! This place has never been close to being on my radar.

My Dinosaur! FP+ was open so I rode that.

Is that why you decided on Restaurantasaurus? Location?

Then we went to Restaurantaurus. We split a bacon cheeseburger with fries and Clam chowder. They have an awesome toppings bar with a bunch of things like grilled onions, sauteed mushrooms, guacamole, and all the normal things like lettuce, pickles and onions, which is what I added.

Holy crap! All that and clam chowder????

This place is going way up on my list!!

The burger was good, ⅓ lb and rather thick. Half the burger was plenty for me!

yum!

When we had finished lunch our FP for the safari opened up so we headed back to Africa to ride. Rumors say that the best time to ride is early in the morning when the animals are most active.

That's what I've found, but...

However I have to say that this 2PM safari was one of the best I have taken.

... really! Well, I'm certainly glad you had such a great experience!

@Steppesister’s guide Shofana was there, but didn't offer to guide me in the same fashion.

Aww! Best photo of the bunch!

I'd never seen the cheetah so close on the safari before.

Lucky!!

The animatronic lion had new moves programmed and was pretty impressive!

There was a parade of ostriches that wandered by our safari vehicle.

Must've been 3pm?

Perfect shot!

 

[jedijill]

Poor Amelia. I'm glad she is feeling better even though she was expensive!

Fingers crossed that the root canal goes well!

I can't believe you shipped that heavy battery for only$41!!! that's amazing.

You got some great pics of the safari!

Jill in CO

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

She went in around midnight Sunday night and Fran left a deposit equivalent to what you might pay for lodging for a week at WDW in a Moderate Resort. We visited her on Wed and that seemed to improve her spirits. We also left another deposit around what you and your SO would pay for park hoppers for that 7 day trip at a moderate resort.

Cancel the week at WDW, and the park hoppers. By this point we could have taken a cruise on the Disney Fantasy in a Verandah stateroom!

But since she had her follow up today, she's no longer contagious and can mix back with the rest of the herd.

Ugh. That's crazy how much this has cost you! I'm glad Amelia has taken a turn for the better. At least there's a happy ending.

Turns out the nerve is dying in a tooth that had a crown put on many years ago. So I get to have a root canal next week. Yay me!

I'm so sorry. That must be awful!

Turns out that it only cost about $41 total to send it home!

Not too shabby for sending it cross-country.

Neat photo! That looks pretty cool.

The ride itself was incredible!

Can't wait to try it! I just hope Fastpasses are available when it's my time to book.

However I have to say that this 2PM safari was one of the best I have taken.

Wow, go figure. I didn't think the animals would be that active in the hottest part of the day.

The animatronic lion had new moves programmed and was pretty impressive!

Wow, that's definitely more than sleeping!

 

[Captain_Oblivious]

Good luck on the dental work! Hope it goes smoothly and you're eating what you enjoy soon.

 

[Steppesister]

The good news is that Amelia came home two days later after admission to the super vet, and she has been quarantined in the Olga Suite. Fran and I are trading off sleeping with her every night. But since she had her follow up today, she's no longer contagious and can mix back with the rest of the herd. She still has to continue her meds and report back in two weeks.

Yay for coming home!

It's a wonder I was able to write up this little prologue coherently.

But how do you know?

Since our plans include one evening of hosting a potluck in the Villa with the friends from the cruise, the larger kitchen, dining area, and patio at OKW will come in handy. We'll have more space to eat, relax and have fun!

That sounds like a really fun time! Love this!

The WORST kind of paper work. I'd rather get jury duty.

The ride itself was incredible!

OH it so totally is!!! My new fave hands down!

Gorgeous shot! Love this one!

Then we went to Restaurantaurus. We split a bacon cheeseburger with fries and Clam chowder. They have an awesome toppings bar with a bunch of things like grilled onions, sauteed mushrooms, guacamole, and all the normal things like lettuce, pickles and onions, which is what I added.

So, they took the (former) amazing toppings bar from Pecos and simply moved it here. If I'm ever in the want of a burger this is now my go-to place!

I wonder if it was one of these that had to have the emergency amputation the other day? I'd have LOVED to have been at Conservation Station when that went down.

Perfect shot, Alison!!!!

 

[Pinkocto]

What a pain having to go to court. Great news the judge rules in your favor.

The kitties are soooo precious!!!

I don’t think I’ve seen the inside of Tusker House, its really pretty. Food looked yummy too. Great character photos. I had no idea they were in cute safari outfits.

Awesome about the front row seats at RoL. Sounds like you had the same feelings as mom and I about the show.

Gracious about waiting an hour for a bus

 

[Pinkocto]

All caught up. Poor little Amelia. So glad she’s home and on the mend. That must have been beyond stressful

No good about your tooth, I’m so sorry. A root canal is something I never want to repeat, ever.

Yay for getting FoP and being able to do it twice!

That CM was quite nice about letting you use your own Fedex account.

Such a fabulous safari, wow! When I see the rhinos I’m happy but you got everybody out and posing

Awesome about OKW!!!

 

[Pinkocto]

Yes! You can set your account to private and just join our group. We aren't very scary!

Jill in CO

I wouldn’t know where to start, I don’t have a FB account

 

[pooh'smate]

I hope you are feeling better. I have had some issues with my teeth and have had a few surgeries so I know how painful it can be.

 

[franandaj]

So I know I owe replies to, well, everyone, but at least I think I'm mostly caught up on everyone's threads. That whole tooth thing was not fun, and it's not completely over. They still have to replace the crown on the tooth, but at least the pain meds are over. I don't like feeling that woozy. I don't mind the feeling after a few glasses of wine, but those pain meds are, well, different. My last update was 5 days before the procedure and every day the pain got worse. The day of, I took a sleeping pill an hour beforehand and then a second one half an hour later. He also gave me a local so i didn't feel much. I was totally groggy once I got home and fell asleep in my chair quite a few times. It took two more days for the pain to go away enough to go back to ibuprofen. It's been about a week now since I've been feeling better and playing catch up is tough. Laundry, dishes, and all those other household things that got neglected have been consuming most of my time, but I've been able to squeeze in reading TRs while waiting at the vet or other places, from my phone, of course.

Amelia continues to improve, and O’Malley went back to the vet, he's having xrays as I write this. He was the first of the kittens to develop an upper respiratory condition, but his wasn't as severe as Amelia’s. His cough has really lingered.

The apartment is still vacant. It seems that no included parking is the problem, but until we get the front unit ready, we're kinda stuck. So still crossing fingers.

As far as our August trip, airfare has been booked, and it was free! Southwest gave us 60,000 miles for using their credit card and since we did spend on their card, we had enough miles for a trip less than a year after opening it!

I'll try to get to responses and the next update, but it may be another week or more because a week from today, Fran and I check into the Grand for the opening weekend of DCA F&W festival, and celebrating Jenny’s 21st birthday!