I never really got into Minecraft, but this seems pretty neat!
D&D Adventuring Fun! – Despite being a man down, we still managed to get ourselves into a world of trouble wandering around the Shadowfell, but hey, any session that ends with the party still being alive on that plane is actually a pretty good one, am I right?!
Saturday Studios Fun! – Spent the day bumming around Disney with Sara as planned – hit a lot of old favorites, not to mention got two passes at Toy Story Mania, plus we watched Fantasmic, where I apparently got some pretty sweet looking photos of the finale! Looking forward to posting those shortly over on that Disney site of mine…
Puppy Pool Party Fun! – Cleo had one of her brothers over to celebrate their birthday, as you can see quite evidently below with their joyful romps in Cleo’s new pool! And people say that we spoil our puppy… 
Good times, good times…
Something I kind of hinted at in a post earlier this week – I’m actually taking a break this weekend!!! 
It was actually supposed to be a well-deserved break for finishing a project that I abruptly started mid-February, but it’s actually taking a little longer than I had anticipated, as just about everything that I’ve ever done seems to end up doing. Nonetheless, Sara and I have both really been yearning to go over to Disney and we’ve missed out on a couple of other opportunities for financial reasons, so it was time to just bite the bullet and put the work on hold for a weekend.
On top of that, Sunday is actually our puppy’s first birthday, so we’re having some of her doggie friends over for her to play with and it’ll end up being a relaxing day to get other stuff done around the house to boot…
Friday Night – D&D
The continuing adventures of the bi-weekly campaign that I’ve been playing in for the last 8 months now – the anticipation is actually kind of high right now because we just recently had a pretty major turning point in that mysteriously as of our last session we found ourselves on another plane, so tonight’s game should be especially interesting as we try to figure out where in the heck we actually are and even more importantly, how in the world we’re supposed to actually get back home again!
Saturday – Disney’s Hollywood Studios
I honestly can’t even remember the last time we’ve been to this park, which is kind of sad! I know we didn’t end up making it over for the Osborne Lights last year, and it seems like some of the best rides were down when we came before that, so I’m kinda just looking forward to doing everything in the 8 or 9 hours that we’ll be over there tomorrow. The park is open until 10pm with two showings of Fantasmic, so hopefully we won’t have any problems hitting everything in addition to seeing fireworks at the end of the day, too. Should be lots to do – Toy Story Mania (obviously), the new Star Tours, Coaster and Tower, I’d even like to sit down for Indiana Jones … looking forward to a fun day!
Sunday – Cleo’s 1st Birthday Party
I can’t believe that we’ve had this puppy for almost a year already! I say almost because I guess technically we didn’t really get her until 6 or 8 weeks or something, but it’s still crazy to think that there was a time before that when she wasn’t a part of our family because she’s very much loved and feels right at home with us. For me, it’s especially neat to see the personality that she’s developed over the last 12 months … granted, sometimes a bit obnoxious (but who isn’t?!), but also very eager and curious, protective and sometimes sensitive, and generally at least what I’d like to consider overall pretty happy, too. Plus, for the most part she’s completely stopped peeing and pooping in the house, so if that’s not cause for a celebration, then I don’t know what is… 
So Disney caught some flak last week over a new Innoventions exhibit at Epcot called Habit Heroes, aimed at teaching kids about childhood obesity and why it’s important even for kids to eat right and get a moderate amount of exercise every day.
Let’s face the facts – it’s a real problem these days, with more than 1/3 of our kids either overweight or obese, rapidly catching up with the adult statistic that over 35% of adults in America are obese.
Of course, it doesn’t help much when we’ve got Congress arbitrarily decreeing pizza to be a vegetable for the purpose of planning school lunches…
Now I get what the, ummm, National Association to Advance Fat Acceptance is gunning for here – it’s never nice to make fun of people or discriminate them for anything, but what I do have a problem with is sort of an ulterior motive to their agenda in that their actions here seem to want to halt any efforts to teach kids that being health-conscious is important because in their eyes, anything that depicts fat people in a negative light is demeaning to them … but pray tell, how are you supposed to teach someone that being obese can have devastating results to ones health if you’re not even allowed to show cartoon characters being overweight without worrying about offending anyone???
Frankly, I think this is where I would have to err to the side of “Sorry, but you’re just gonna have to be offended by this then…” because like it or not, obesity is a problem and it’s not one that we can afford to be overly sensitive about in light of actually helping people to not become obese in the first place. And yes, I know that some people are obese for purely medical reasons and that there are entire movements organized about fat pride where those involved simply have no desire to shed a single pound … and for those people who make that decision for themselves, that’s all fine and dandy, but considering that 1 in 4 deaths in America today are due to heart disease, it’s irresponsible for educational efforts like these to be swept under the rug simply because somebody is insecure enough to consider them harassment.
If you’re so accepting of your own obesity, then what do you care what other people even think about it???
Because the problem with sensitivity in such a diverse country as ours is that there’s the potential for people to be offended by just about anything. We have groups of people who think that environmentalism is a waste of time and money, so should we just scrap all of those efforts in the parks because we wouldn’t want to offend anybody who believes that climate change is a farce? We have people who think that no animal should ever be held in captivity, so to appease them we’ve got an awfully big fish tank over in The Seas that might as well be drained. I’ve seen people that pay the money at the gate just so that they can walk around complaining all day about how expensive everything is – should we maybe just scrap the whole thing because a few people feel slighted that they can’t still buy a cheese burger and fries for the same 49-cents that they used to spend at the malt shop down the street after school on Tuesdays?
Disney does a lot to help educate its guests during their stays in Orlando, from promoting energy saving practices at the hotels, switching to biodegradable shopping bags, and even doing a lot to clean up the kids menus in their restaurants the last couple of years, believe it or not. They’ve increasingly cut back on the areas in which smoking is allowed at the parks and resorts, and especially they use the exhibits around Epcot to really share new ideas and get people thinking about better ways to live their lives through technology, ecology and conservation, and imagination and creativity, though one that I’ve really felt has been lacking since they shut down the Wonders of Life pavilion back in 2007 is health and understanding the human body.
Though we say that no one should ever be picked on or discriminated against for the things that they say and do, there has to come a point where overwhelming evidence leads us to ease up on our sensitivity just enough so that we can adequately help the people who will actually still listen to the voice of reason. We run ads and print warnings right on cigarette containers that smoking is bad and causes cancer, we do our best to remind patrons of alcohol that their actions have consequences even when inebriated, and these days even restaurants are becoming more open about the actual caloric contents of what they serve, with some even putting those often cringe-worthy stats right there on the menu to help you make your choices. So in that same vein, what’s the harm in a Disney attraction aimed at teaching kids that sitting around all day doing nothing but watching TV and eating Twinkies can have a negative effect on their long-term health?
Good for you if you’ve opted to cast aside the medical evidence and just blindly embrace your obesity, but let the kids make their own decision regarding the same – it’s their future that’s at stake when you’re shielding them from the truth that the habits they form today are going to be a hell of a lot harder to break when they’re 31 years old and still struggling to work off a gut that has been haunting them for the better part of the last decade…
Today they’re doing something a little special over at Disney World – the Magic Kingdom is staying open for 24 hours straight.
The latest I think I’ve ever still been in the park is maybe 1 or 2am, during the summer months combined with Extra Magic Hour Evenings when the place is sometimes open as late as 3:00am. It tends to really clear out that late, with the occasional exception of the headlining attractions, so we just never felt the need to stay until the very last minute because we had already ridden pretty much everything we had our hearts set on well before that anyways … but I still would’ve liked to attend this year, if only the 29th hadn’t been on such an inconvenient day right in the middle of the week!
The next leap year will have February 29 falling on a Monday in 2016, but 2020′s will be on a Saturday, so if we can’t make the arrangements to schedule it in advance in four years, I suppose I could always just wait until I’m 40?! 
Woof! I don’t even want to think about that just yet, so here’s a pretty picture of the castle instead…
By my clock, it should be turning this shade over there just about any time now! For all those lucky enough to be running around the park another 10 hours from now – enjoy it! Here’s hoping that maybe I’ll be able to tag along next time…
I came across this rather interesting announcement earlier today and frankly, was a little surprised that Disney wasn’t making more of a big deal about it – President Obama will be giving a speech (presumably about new travel policies to support tourism) at the Magic Kingdom on Thursday!
I suppose the more I think about it, it’s actually a rather fine line for Disney to walk, though – on one hand, it’s pretty awesome to be able to play host to the President for just about anything and I know that I for one am looking forward to watching live on Thursday just for the sake of seeing Main Street USA in the background, but at the same time it’s also certainly going to be at the very least mildly inconvenient for anyone who happens to be visiting Walt Disney World this week, particularly if they’re planning on going to the Magic Kingdom that day or are staying at the Contemporary nearby, where apparently there will be staging areas for the press and whatnot. Not only will guests have to contend with the mind-boggling concept of Main Street USA being closed as the primary thoroughfare into the park … something that I’m still trying to wrap my head around myself because funneling tens of thousands of people through backstage areas to keep Main Street clear just seems kinda crazy … but also, keep in mind that guests visiting that day will not have any access to see the President whatsoever, as only those with official press invites from the White House will be permitted at his speech.
To their credit, I do think that Disney has probably done just about all the can, assuming that they weren’t able to give more notice to guests for security purposes or whatever. But they’ve said that letters will go out to everyone staying at the Resort this week, and hours have been extended at pretty much all of the other parks in an attempt to deter folks from visiting the Magic Kingdom altogether that day, so it’s not like they’re just corralling off the streets and saying, “Deal with it…”
I remember a few years ago when President Bush came to Tampa for some big speech or something. I worked in one of the skyscrapers downtown at the time, so I had kind of a bird’s eye view of the whole ordeal, and I’ve got to tell you it seemed a little eerie to look out on the freeway where the Prez would make his exit and see it completely devoid of traffic because the Secret Service had shut it down! Although I have absolutely no desire to fight the insanity Thursday morning, I’d also be kinda curious to see the measures that are put into place between Orlando International Airport and the Magic Kingdom while the President is in transit between the two – just knowing that there will be people allowed in the park at all shows that this might be treated a little differently.
For anyone interested in watching along with me, President Obama’s speech from Main Street USA will air live on Thursday at 12:30pm EST at http://whitehouse.gov/live.
Yesterday my wife, her sister, and I spent some time over at Epcot mostly getting absolutely drenched, but also partaking in another holiday activity that I’ve come to enjoy called the Candlelight Processional. It’s a live performance that they run 3x a night throughout the month of December, featuring celebrity narrators that, along with a choir of professional singers, cast members, and high school students as well as a professional orchestra and conductor, tells the story of the birth of Christ in a stellar presentation that even a not-so-religious guy like myself still enjoys quite a bit!
To date this was the 3rd time that we had gone – the other narrators being Kirk Cameron (of Growing Pains fame) and another whom I can’t for the life of me remember, but this year’s was extra special because we got to see none other than Neil Patrick Harris, who has been doing the show for years and is apparently also a big Disney fan! We both love him on How I Met Your Mother, so getting to see him narrate was an extra added twist that made the wet and soggy night all the more fun…
This one is another little treat that I found over at the Progress City, USA blog, and it dates back to 1990 just days before Jim Henson passed away. I vaguely remember this when it first aired – I was probably only ten years old at the time, but we specifically subscribed to The Disney Channel (back when you picked channels individually!) so it would probably be a safe bet that we caught it at some point! What was particularly interesting re-watching it to me was that although they spent time at the Disney-MGM Studios, their own attraction hadn’t technically been built yet.
It definitely makes you wonder how much different Hollywood Studios would look today had Disney actually completed their purchase of the Muppets back in the ’90s instead of more than a decade later – it seems like areas of the park dedicated to the Pixar, Disney, and Muppet Studios would’ve been a pretty cool direction for that park to take!
Still, you never know – if Kermit & the Gang can make enough of a splash with their new movie to truly get them back on their owner’s radar, maybe someday… 
As you can probably tell from the last couple of posts, I’ve been thinking a lot about The Muppets coming out in theaters next week, and more so wondering exactly what to expect from it. On one hand, I’m really excited to see that Disney is attempting to revitalize The Muppets after they’ve more or less sat in the corner untouched since 2004 … but on the other hand, I’m admittedly also a bit nervous of what the final product is actually going to be like – especially considering that I wasn’t all that impressed with The Green Album, the collaborative release of classic Muppet songs covered by modern artists that came out earlier this year.
It also makes me curious because I’ve stumbled upon various articles citing that some of the Muppet veterans like Frank Oz were unhappy with the direction that the script was going and didn’t want to be a part of it.
Now as for the comments, I’m trying not to read too much into them because I do still have a lot of respect for Frank Oz for also tacking on that he didn’t want to elaborate on it for fear of hurting the movie, so it’s not like he’s ready to cast them off and say “To hell with them!” but instead is clearly still attached, as would only be expected for someone who performed a character like Fozzie for 20+ years of his life! In fact, it’s probably kind of weird to look on now and see somebody else performing “his” characters to boot, so it’s probably not even worth giving that angle another thought…
At this point I almost think I’m likening it to the perspective that a lot of folks have of The Simpsons lately because even though I’m still as much as a die hard fan as I always was growing up, there are a lot of folks that pretty much despise anything created after about season 7 and are convinced that whatever is airing now 15 years later is complete and utter crap. And I have a hard time processing that because as much as I love Mr. Plow and Who Shot Mr. Burns? and all of those other classic episodes from the early ’90s, I also recognize as a writer that you have to constantly be trying new things and reinventing yourself or you’re never going to survive to produce your 500th episode 22 years after first going on the air!
I see the same thing happen over at Disney World all of the time, and although that one’s admittedly a little bit harder for me because I’m not always the greatest person with change myself, you have to allow something to grow and evolve over time or eventually instead of Disney World being this happy place where millions love to visit each year, it would become old and dated because the people who first saw the classics like Snow White and Pinocchio are 70 years old now! Jim Henson first started working with puppets in 1955 and debuted The Muppet Show in 1975, making them 36 years old as the prepare to hit the silver screen again this week. If we want The Muppets to survive and continue to contribute their fun brand of whimsical entertainment to the world, the powers that be need to be able to try new things and push them in different directions that may not have originally been considered decades ago when the characters were first conceived.
And for what it’s worth, whoever made the comment that Fozzie would’ve never stooped to the level of fart shoes must not be familiar with the bear that I grew up laughing at because really, aren’t “fart shoes” just whoopee cushions that you wear on your feet???
Being there during the daylight hours also finally gave me a chance to take some pictures of the new displays around the updated LEGO store…
It’s kind of hard to hold a candle to the Sleeping Beauty scene that’s literally as tall as the building next to it, but I think my favorite might just be the LEGO Buzz Lightyear and Woody because I kinda like how they’re the actual minifig versions from the Toy Story sets that came out last year.
