Don't Stop - the Pocono mountains section COMPLETED - Page 17 - PassPorter - A Community of Walt Disney World, Disneyland, Disney Cruise Line, and General Travel Forums
As of January 1, 2019, we have closed our forums. This is a decision we did not come to lightly, but it is necessary. The software our forums run on is just too out-of-date and it poses a significant security risk. The server software itself must be updated, and it cannot be without removing the forums.
So it is with a heavy heart that we say goodbye to our long-running forums. They came online in 2000 and brought together so many wonderful Disney fans. We had friendships form, careers launch, couples marry, children born ... all because of this amazing community.
Thank you to each of you who were a part of this community. You made it possible.
And a very special thank you to our Guides (moderators), past and present, who kept our forums a happy place to be. You are the glue that held everything together, and we are forever grateful to you. Thank you aliceinwdw, Caldercup, MrsM, WillCAD, Fortissimo, GingerJ, HiddenMickey, CRCrazy, Eeyoresmom, disneyknut, disneydani, Cam22, chezp, WDWfan, Luvsun, KMB733, rescuesk, OhToodles!, Colexis Mom, lfredsbo, HiddenMickey, DrDolphin, DopeyGirl, duck addict, Disneybine, PixieMichele, Sandra Bostwick, Eeyore Tattoo, DyanKJ130, Suzy Q'Disney, LilMarcieMouse, AllisonG, Belle*, Chrissi, Brant, DawnDenise, Crystalloubear, Disneymom9092, FanOfMickey, Goofy4Goofy, GoofyMom, Home4us123, iamgrumpy, ilovedisney247, Jennifer2003, Jenny Pooh, KrisLuvsDisney, Ladyt, Laughaholic88, LauraBelle Hime, Lilianna, LizardCop, Loobyoxlip, lukeandbrooksmom, marisag, michnash, MickeyMAC, OffKilter_Lynn, PamelaK, Poor_Eeyore, ripkensnana, RobDVC, SHEANA1226, Shell of the South, snoozin, Statelady01, Tara O'Hara, tigger22, Tink and Co., Tinkerbelz, WDWJAMBA, wdwlovers, Wendyismyname, whoSEZ, WildforWD, and WvuGrrrl. You made the magic.
We want to personally thank Sara Varney, who coordinated our community for many years (among so many other things she did for us), and Cheryl Pendry, our Message Board Manager who helped train our Guides, and Ginger Jabour, who helped us with the PassPorter-specific forums and Live! Guides. Thank you for your time, energy, and enthusiasm. You made it all happen.
There are other changes as well.
Why? Well, the world has changed. And change with it, we must. The lyrics to "We Go On" for IllumiNations say it best:
We go on to the joy and through the tears
We go on to discover new frontiers
Moving on with the current of the years.
We go on
Moving forward now as one
Moving on with a spirit born to run
Ever on with each rising sun.
To a new day, we go on.
It's time to move on and move forward.
PassPorter is a small business, and for many years it supported our family. But the world changed, print books took a backseat to the Internet, and for a long time now it has been unable to make ends meet. We've had to find new ways to support our family, which means new careers and less and less time available to devote to our first baby, PassPorter.
But eventually, we must move on and move forward. It is the right thing to do.
So we are retiring this newsletter, as we simply cannot keep up with it. Many thanks to Mouse Fan Travel who supported it all these years, to All Ears and MousePlanet who helped us with news, to our many article contributors, and -- most importantly -- to Sara Varney who edited our newsletter so wonderfully for years and years.
And we are no longer charging for the Live Guides. If you have a subscription, it's yours to keep for the lifetime of the Live Guides at no additional cost. The Live Guides will stay online, barring server issues and technical problems, for all of 2019.
That said, PassPorter is not going away. Most of the resources will remain online for as long as we can support them, and after that we will find ways to make whatever we can available. PassPorter means a great deal to us, and to many of you, and we will do our best to keep it alive in whatever way we can. Our server costs are high, and they'll need to come out of our pockets, so in the future you can expect some changes so we can bring those costs down.
Thank you, thank you, thank you for your amazing support over the years. Without you, there's no way us little guys could have made something like this happen and given the "big guys" a run for their money. PassPorter was consistently the #3 guidebook after the Unofficial and Official guides, which was really unheard of for such a small company to do. We ROCKED it thanks to you and your support and love!
If you miss us, you can still find some of us online. Sara started a new blog at DisneyParkPrincess.com -- I strongly urge you to visit and get on her mailing list. She IS the Disney park princess and knows Disney backward and forward. And I am blogging as well at JenniferMaker.com, which is a little craft blog I started a couple of years ago to make ends meet. You can see and hear me in my craft show at https://www.youtube.com/c/jennifermaker . Many PassPorter readers and fans are on Facebook, in groups they formed like the PassPorter Trip Reports and PassPorter Crafting Challenge (if you join, just let them know you read about it in the newsletter). And some of our most devoted community members started a forum of their own at Pixie Dust Lane and all are invited over.
So we encourage you to stay in touch with us and your fellow community members wherever works best for you!
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Oh my gosh, that's hysterical. Running out of gas in the Poconos. Great writing, Mark. Love your description of the jumper seat. I can imagine how exhausted you were at the end of the day.
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Oct '99: CSR ~ May '02: CR ~ Nov '04: SOG ~ May '06: SOG ~ Dec '07: Solo @ Pop ~ May '08: Pop w/friends ~ Oct '08: SOG ~ Dec '09: Pop w/LeAnn ~ Sept '10: Solo @ Pop ~ Spring '11: AKL ~ Jan '12: Pop for 1/2 Marathon ~ Sept '12: 1st trip for DL 1/2 Marathon? ~ Feb '13: Pop w/pals? ~ Mar '13: Tokyo Disney w/PP's?
Thursday 31 December – part one: wow, is that white outside?
Wow, we slept well last night and didn’t even wake up until 9.00, having been in bed for nearly 12 hours. I guess we needed the sleep.
I eventually noticed that there appeared to be something white outside the window and it was snow. I was so excited, it was like being a little kid again! I had really hoped that we might get to see the Pocono Wilderness Lodge in the snow and now I had.
I got some photos through the windows first and we got as far as opening the back door, but it was a little too cold outside, certainly for someone like me in a T-shirt.
Breakfast was the next order of the day, with eggs and English muffin bread, which was very nice. Somehow, during this, we got on to discussing Sapphire and Steel, a British TV series (I think it had come out of a conversation about who the best Bond was) and Steve was sitting there, Googling it at the breakfast table. He found it and ended up watching it. He’d be lost without that BlackBerry, me thinks...
Now I’m tired... Yes, Steve went outside in his slippers!
Mark and I decided to go out in the snow and get some photos. It was beautiful out there and so, so peaceful. I couldn’t get over how quiet it was outside. No sign of bears either, which was a relief to me! I did want to build a snowman, but I got told by Mark that I couldn’t, as I would just get cold. I don’t think that’s necessarily true, as it was probably the warmest that it had been outside all week, even if the thermometer did say that it was 25 degrees Fahrenheit out there. It didn’t feel like that out there. It felt much warmer than that.
Next: we don’t have anything like this at home... :
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Finally caught up. Can you tell I don't get on here much during the weekends? Anyway, Mark's part of the trip report was very interesting, and I'm so sorry you got stuck on the side of the road, but I have to admit, it was a little funny. Great photos of the snow...just beautiful!
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Thursday 31 December – part two: we don’t have anything like this at home... :
We came back in and Sue and Steve got photos of us hanging our ornaments that we had got for them on the Christmas tree, as part of our platinum membership of Charley and Joe’s. We felt very honoured as we were only the second platinum members there and I was very impressed when we saw the photo up on the ceiling of the bar.
Guess who? Not so reclusive cat of course!
Then Mark suggested we try and get a photo of Cody and Belle by the Christmas tree. Well, that took quite a few attempts, I can tell you, because Cody just didn’t seem to understand the concept of sitting still and, as for poor old Belle, Steve practically had to drag her to the tree, although in fairness, at least once she was there, she did stay there.
We’re tired after our photo ops... At least there was a treat for the trauma!
Not long afterwards, Sue and I headed out, as she had various errands to do with Mark staying back to re-pack the cases. I have learnt that there is no point in me getting involved with this process, as Mark tends to tell me off for packing things in the wrong place. As we headed out, we got to briefly meet one of Steve’s sisters, who arrived just as we were leaving.
Off we went, with me snapping lots of shots of the beautiful scenery, as we drove along. It all looked so lovely, after the dusting of snow that we had had earlier.
You never see these at home! :
Our first stop was to go to Lowes. I had only seen the exterior of this store before, but had never been in. Sue and Steve had already said that they preferred it to Home Depot and it’s very nice and I was particularly taken with the snow blowers that they had. They were awesome and, as for the tool holders they had, they were so big, I had to get a photo for Mark, as I knew he wouldn’t believe me when I told him about them....
It was then into Kohl’s and the poor girl on the till was calling and calling for extra help, but none was coming, with the line getting longer and longer all the time.
We headed next for Sue’s work, so she could pick up her paycheck.
While she was in there, my parents called, so I chatted to them and wished them a happy new year. As I did, I had my first experience of a drive through bank. I have seen them before, but of course, without an American bank account, I have never actually used one, so it was interesting to see Sue do it.
It was time for lunch and Sue picked a great place called Panera Bread. I went for the cheese and broccoli soup in a bread roll, which I had had before in Chicago last year and it had really intrigued me, as to how they do that. I rounded it off with pineapple upside down cake, which is something you don’t find at home very often these days. Both were really good. Sue was telling me that Steve wouldn’t come here, which is a real shame, as it’s a lovely place to eat.
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Yum! Love Panera's (formerly named St. Louis Bread Company until they expanded)
__________________
ºOº ~*~
Oct '99: CSR ~ May '02: CR ~ Nov '04: SOG ~ May '06: SOG ~ Dec '07: Solo @ Pop ~ May '08: Pop w/friends ~ Oct '08: SOG ~ Dec '09: Pop w/LeAnn ~ Sept '10: Solo @ Pop ~ Spring '11: AKL ~ Jan '12: Pop for 1/2 Marathon ~ Sept '12: 1st trip for DL 1/2 Marathon? ~ Feb '13: Pop w/pals? ~ Mar '13: Tokyo Disney w/PP's?
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Running out of gas in the Poconos. 
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I was so excited, it was like being a little kid again! 
: 
As we headed out, we got to briefly meet one of Steve’s sisters, who arrived just as we were leaving. 
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