The age of the child in your party? Uh, 34...Dad's new hat, 3/25 About This Page:

[GFHoneymoon1194]

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Between my Dad and his neverending need to record things in his palm pilot (for example, he writes the title and personal rating for every movie they've ever seen in his palm pilot so that the next time they go to the video store they can make sure to not rent the same movies because they can't remember if they've seen it or not)

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Hey I think your Dad sounds like a really cool and nifty guy!!! Does he want to see my book database??? Or all the files I put in for our recent Disney trip?? LOL

(yes I do take pride in my geekiness)

[KimandMark]

I slept soooo well! These new beds at POFQ are really comfy. My alarm went off at 5:45 and I again was pleased with the curtain that separates the room. I changed, got my key and attached my GPS monitor. I had to wait a few minutes once I got outside for the GPS to link up, it always takes awhile when you've moved to a new location. The map stated the distances, but with this thing I can double back, take unplanned turns and check my per mile pace really easily. The GPS links up and I'm off.

Its still dark and I'm planning only 4 miles at my recovery pace. Basically that means really really slow, its just a run to work out the kinks and cover some miles without straining yourself. Boy, was I not straining myself! This was my slowest run in weeks, I was so stiff from walking around in flip flops yesterday and my calves were like little balled fists. It was warm, sports bra and shorts warm and I saw a few other runners as I wound my way through POR. I ran over to the pool on the island to look around, came back through POFQ and looped through the parking lot access road. I had to make up about 1/4 mile when I got back to building 7, I just did some laps of the parking area til my GPS said 4. Its was a great run, dark out, warm, quiet, all the things I like about running in the summer, except it was February, WOOHOO!!

I got back to the room and Mom and Dad were ready, so I took a quick shower, put on my favorite skirt (pink and corduroy) and we hit breakfast at the food court. For $30 we had biscuits and gravy, pancakes, two orders of bacon, 2 bananas, a bagel, some V8, OJ and a diet coke (who do you think that one was?) We ate pretty big, mostly because we planned to skip lunch today as our PS at Mama Melrose is at 4. I wonder if they have an early bird special?

Again I note that the walk from building 7 to the food court is not long, not long enough to make me not stay there anyway.

Epcot opens at 9 and we pulled into the first row of parking! I guess we were a little early. Dad had to take a few minutes to look at truck we parked near. See, they've decided to get a bigger camper, a 5th wheel style (camper envy!) and now need a pickup truck to pull it. Dad wants an F350 king cab. When we saw a new one he just had to look it over. I stood next to the truck and the top of the grill was at my chin. I'm 5'9". I could barely see over the hood of this thing, getting into it must be like mountain climbing, not to mention the gas! For the price of driving their house around they could buy one in Florida AND keep the one they have in NY. Good God!! Am I the only one who knows that petroleum is not a renewable resource?

We left the gas guzzling showcase and waited for entry to Epcot. We were quit early and ended up at the front for the rope drop. Our plan is to fast pass TT and do MS first. The character bus comes out, the dude on the segway comes out, the MS and TT cms come out. The tension is building, it feels like the beginning of a race, with everyone sort of crouched over and ready to run. We count down from 5 and the rope drops...and they're off, its a foot race to the two best rides. We leave Mom in the dust, she's just going to sit on a bench anyway, can't have any dead weight during this event. Dad and I decided that we can't waste the time to get FPs first, we'll just get on MS while there is no line at all and suck it up when we get to TT. Now that I think about it, we should have discussed this sooner and had Mom go get fast passes, but the excitement got the better of us.

The MS line is so short it doesn't exist, we walk right into the briefing room where we hear the first of the bajillion warnings about motion sickeness, blah blah blah. Dad's excited, he doesn't know what to expect, but knows that Ory, his neighbor buddy at the campground didn't feel so good when he did this. Ory also ate a double cheese burger and fries before he rode MS, so I think we all need to take his experience with a grain of salt. I'm the commander, and I didn't pay attention to what buttons I push. The first time I went I was so conscientious about my buttons, like I was really controlling the thing. You can't help it, they get you so worked up and your convinced you might screw everything up and ruin the ride! The ride goes smoothly, except for the crash landing of course and Dad and I both feel fine when we get off. He really liked it! We agree that it makes your equilibrium a little off for a few minutes, sort of like you've had a strong drink, but it goes away quickly.

We head straight to TT and find the line at 25 minutes. We get in, rationalizing that we'll waste time trying to come back for the FP time. The line moves fairly well, until...breakdown. We stand still for about 10 minutes and then the line moves again. We made it the briefing room but then when we were leaving it there was another hold up as they added cars to the track. As the line starts moving again I notice that the CMs here do a terrible job of filling in empty seats. Cars with four people going regularly, why not put two more in, one behind the other? So what if you don't sit together, were you planning on giving a lecture during the ride? Were you going to have an important discussion? No, probably not. When our turn came and the CM was about to send another of these 1/3 empty cars away I told him we would sit there. My own little revolt against poor seating arrangements. I would say this is my number one complaint on this trip. I saw it on TT alot, but later I'll notice it on ToT and on RNR, particularly the train that went out with 5 empty seats while the line was 45 minutes long. I just don't get it. Are the CMs that lazy or do people really not want to sit with someone they don't know?

TT was fine, I don't really get a big charge out of this and it too needs rehab badly. We exit throught the GM dealership, and find Mom, do what else? Sitting on a bench talking with another Mom who won't go on these rides. She gets to meet alot of people that way.

Our next stop is living seas because Mom wants to see the Manatees. I'm also interested in Turtle Talk, just because I've heard so much about the cool techno features. We decided to watch the video, I'd forgotten about it. Its pretty good. We take the hydrolators to sea station alpha and I right away notice that there is more going on here than in the past. I know some people are bothered that it has become Nemo heavy in there, but I think it probably gets kids interested in looking at everything when they see fish and hear voices they are familiar with. We check out the small tanks and then head over to Turtle Talk. We were next in line when they cut off the room and were told that we would have to wait about 30 minutes for the next show. We decided to go see the Manatees instead. This was fortuate timing. There was no one there except the girl feeding them romain lettuce (they eat something like 80 heads a day). More people came and we had the best view of the manatee lady's speil and question and answer period. I already knew quite a bit about the problems in Florida for the manatees but it was interesting to hear the stories about the two that we were looking at. One had been in a very bad collision with a boat and had almost no tail at all, the other had been orphaned. The trainer/keeper/person explained how they move and handle them, how the water parks and coast guard and state agencies kind of work together. I was surprised when I heard that the orphaned one had been at Sea World before come to the Disney tanks. And boy did they eat!!

After that speech Mom was pooped again. It wasn't even noon but she wanted to go back to the hotel and nap. I'm telling you its the shoes, her legs get sore and tired and then she has to sit for a long time. No matter, more pool time for me, I need all the cancer causing sun rays I can get!

[LizardCop]

[katspjs]

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[Tara O'Hara]

Great update, Kim!!

[kimdisneynut]

Great report

Thanks


Kim

[luvnwdwgal]

Great updates Kim!! Can't wait for more!!

[magic mickey]

This TR cracks me up. Can't wait for more.

[jakenjess]

Great update! Looking forward to more!

[DrDolphin]

Fantastic update (and you are not the only one that recalls petroleum is a non-renewable resource....I gag when I see the Hummer at TT).

[KimandMark]

The plan is head back and no lunch because we are going to leave at 3 for MGM. Of course, no lunch to me means I should have a granola bar and some crunch n munch. MMMM, popcorn covered in sugar, MMMMMM. I plow my way through a bag of this and then take my bloated self over to the pool. Mom and Dad say they are coming, but I think they are really pooped. Before I arrived they has a whirlwind week of RV shows, Disney, and get this, Mardi Gras at Universal. I can only imagine how my mother got all those beads. We are also planning on PI tonight, so I think Mom wants to be ready to roll.

The pool is very crowded and its hard to find a seat in the sun at noon. I end up next to a garbage can. Why won't anyone sit next to the garbage can? I could see if it was stinky or full or just out in the open all by itself, then you would look stupid, but at the pool? Please, people barely use it. Plus no one wants to sit near me, so I get to throw things away fast and be ignored, its a double plus. I take out my book and my water and diet coke and read for about 10 seconds. Then I fall asleep. I manage to wake up long enough to visit the pool, roll over and fall asleep again. Seriously, the best sleep ever comes in the warm sun when you aren't used to it. I'm going to hate going home. I briefly entertain myself watching people. The pierced couple with two kids in life jackets (the mother doesn't have a bit of pooch or cellulite on her), the really heavy man who I'm convinced will bust the chair and refuses to swim with his kids, the woman who is talking on her cell phone so loudly that I'm sure the person on the other end must work on a weapons test site (why else would she yell into the phone that way), the chubby kid eating cheetos and drinking a coke, I swear, I'll never finish this book with this kind of distraction. I noticed a man reading Faithful two seats down, I finished it a couple of weeks ago and as I'm leaving stop to tell him he'll love the end. He laughs. See, for the uninitiated that was a joke. Faithful is Steven King's chronicle of the Red Sox season last year, the one where they won the World Series, yeah, he kept track of his thoughts and the action of every game, his ups and downs, basically his faith in them and got lucky that this was the year. Of course the guy reading it knows what happened!! I knew what happened and still read it with excitement, like I could live it again. I'm a Red Sox fan, since I was a kid and my parents took us to lots of ballparks in the summer time. Fenway is the one that speaks to me.

Anyway, I left the pool to wander around the gift shop thinking I should pick something up for Mark. Didn't really find anything I was interested in. Maybe some chocolates. I briefly contemplate the hair wrapping station then remember that I have to go back to work and look like a responsible adult in a few days and that would be a waste of $1.75 x 12 inches of hair.

When I got back to the room I found the happy retirees snoozing away. I changed, redid my ponytail and told them to get a move on, Tower of Terror is waiting for us!!!

[wendydiz]

Kim,
Great report so far...you have me cracking up with every post
I am running Johnny's this Saturday with a newbie runner friend, so we should be at the back of the pack
Michelle

[DopeyGirl]

OK . . . the part about mom and how she might have gotten the Mardi Gras beads . . . NOT a vision anyone needs to have!!!

On to ToT!!!

[DrDolphin]

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OK . . . the part about mom and how she might have gotten the Mardi Gras beads . . . NOT a vision anyone needs to have!!!

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I am glad I am not the only one that had images flash through my mind on that one!!!

[MontiMouse]

Great updates Kim! And I agree with Sarah about the Mardi Gras beads