Category Archives: Everything Else

More Answers

4 Comments Posted by on August 9, 2011

I’ve been offline for a couple of days at the Society of Children’s Book Writers and Illustrator’s national conference, which was conveniently located in Los Angeles. It was a power-packed weekend, but the absolute pinnacle of the experience (which was an excellent experience even without this) was meeting the person who inspired me to become a writer and whose excellent books carried me through good times and bad: Judy Blume.

Why didn't I bring a REAL camera instead of just my phone???

Meeting my idol was a transformative experience. And also, she’s 73 years old. SEVENTY-THREE!!! I hope to look that great at 43! Anyway, I left the conference with a whole new perspective on writing and life. It’s been a great summer.

But back to my Mousing…

From Caroline:

What is the tackiest/goofiest/Goofy-est Disney accessory or piece of clothing you’ve ever bought or worn? Bonus points for photographic evidence!

Girlfriend, you know if I had pictures I would be loud and proud to post them here. However, I don’t really think that I do. I’m trying to think of what the tackiest accessory/clothing I’ve purchased or worn, and I’m coming up blank. Which is really incredible, because when it comes to fashion I’m hopelessly inept and it’s just a matter of time before someone reports me to that reality show where they throw away all your clothes and buy you new ones that all match or whatever. I don’t count walking around in Mouse Ears to be tacky or goofy/Goofy, by the way. I think the ugliest item I’ve ever owned was a pink sailor hat. Prior to 1993, Disneyland had the Motor Boat Cruise in Fantasyland. In celebration of the ride, you could buy a sailor hat and get your name embroidered on it. When I was growing up, Shelby was not a very popular name, so I never got any of those personalized stickers or license plates or everything else that they sold with people’s names on them, so I think out of pure lack of access, I became a little obsessed with finding things with my name on them (which still persists to this day, actually). Even if they had to custom-embroider it, like a Disneyland hat, for example. So this little hat had a couple strikes against it. One, it was a sailor hat, so it was the round kind with the brim folded up, which was very campy. Two, it was pink. And not just a little pink either. I mean, it was A LOT pink. Think late 70s/early 80s pink. And three, back then you could only get embroidery in yellow thread. Now there’s nothing wrong with that per se, but yellow thread on the very, VERY pink hat looked odd, and slightly nauseating. I loved the hat, but in retrospect it probably wasn’t my fashion high points. And I don’t know whatever happened to the hat either. Sad.

And a Mouse-in-Law question: If you could stay in any Disney World hotel and cost was not an issue, which would you choose?

I honestly can’t answer this one because the only hotels I’ve spent any time in was the Dolphin for the conference (which isn’t even owned by Disney) and the Ft. Wilderness Lodge, DVC suites, where we were this past trip. The Lodge was fabulous and the boat to Magic Kingdom was pretty handy, but all in all, I have very little to compare it to. I would like to stay at the Animal Kingdom lodge or whatever it’s called with the room that looks out over the watering hole so you can see real lions eating real elephants right outside your door, but that’s basically because I’ve heard it was cool and it sounds cool. So the short answer is, I don’t really know.

mmax13 asked several questions, so I’ll break them down:

Would you go to Disneyland with me sometime? Hahahaha, you don’t HAVE to, ha ha.

Sure, m’dear! Send me an email at MyYearWithTheMouse@gmail.com when you’re coming and if our schedules match up, I’ll try to make it over to the park for a meet and greet ;).

And What’s your favorite disney movie? Why?

Out of the animated movies, my favorite is The Lion King. I love it because it’s a great movie, but also because I have a lot of really awesome memories attached to it, and it came out at a particular point in my life where things were going very well for me, so I associate it with all kinds of happiness and pleasantness. It was also the first movie I actually went to see by myself, and that was because even though it was the discount theater near my college, my friends just eventually refused to go with me repeatedly. To be fair, I think I saw it in the theater at least 10 times. Oh, and funny story–I loved the soundtrack too, and of course it starts with the “MMMMMAAAAAAAAMAWENMAAMAMAAMEEMAMAAA” (you know what I’m talking about). So my stereo at time would use a CD as an alarm, and I thought it would be a fabulous idea to stick that CD in and have the song play so I could feel refreshed and inspired at the beginning of the day. What ended up happening instead was that song started playing and both me and my roommate were so startled that we both screamed and pretty much leaped out of bed. After that we used a regular alarm.

And could you do a blog about the animation studio in California Adventure- the one with the ever-infamous Loop of Disney Movies? Its my favorite place in California Adventure.

Ah, a Mouse-Next-Door request! I don’t want to commit. I have a lot left to do at Disneyland before I hit the MND, but I’ll see what I can do.

And is there a limit with questions?

Nah, ask away!

Wendy (who just left my house a few minutes ago) asked:

Where are your favorite photo spots at Disneyland?

You just can’t beat the castle. Even though it’s always crowded and difficult to get a picture there, my heart always quickens a little when I walk into Town Square, look down Main Street, and see the castle. So that’s probably my favorite photo spot. And actually, I like to take castle pictures from the side, near Snow White’s Wishing Well. You still get a view of the castle but don’t have the crowds. This was from last Christmas:

This picture also showed up in one of my earliest blog entries

My other favorite photo spots are looking down the length of Main Street with the castle in the background and the facade of Small World

What is your favorite line and least favorite line?

I already mentioned that I don’t like Indiana Jones, but I actually do think it has the most interesting line. It’s got secret code on the walls and when the ride first opened, they were handing out little decoder cards. When the line was nice and long, it was fun to decode everything. My least favorite line is any bathroom. And Peter Pan. That line zig zags for.ev.er.

What is (in your humble, yet so respected) opinion, the most underrated attraction at Disneyland?

I’m going to have to go with Captain EO. And not because Theo has been referring to himself as “EO” since he can’t quite pronounce the “th” part. Captain EO was pretty remarkable when it first came out. Plus it had Michael Jackson on whom I had a massive crush. It opened in 1986 when MJ was at his peak, then closed in 1997, and re-opened as the “Captain EO Tribute” in 2010. And yes, the effects are hopelessly outdated and all of that, but you know, it’s nostalgia at its finest and it makes me happy to see Michael Jackson that way rather than his sad decline. If you are only at Disneyland for the day before you go back to Scotland or Canada or Albuquerque, then I wouldn’t call it a must-see, but if you’ve got some time on your hands and want to appreciate all the 80s had to offer, give Captain EO another try.

Shira asked:

What was your favorite thing at The Mouse in Law that they don’t have at Disney Land?

EPCOT. The entire park. Minus Circlevision. Also the Rockin’ Roller Coaster from Disney Hollywood Studios. And I’d like to swap out our Winnie the Pooh for the MIL’s Pooh, and while I’m there I’ll grab the Peoplemover and Country Bear Jamboree and bring them back too.

Shira also asked what my beef is with Roger Rabbit, but I’ll cover that when I do its blog entry :).

In less than 2 weeks I’ll be back in the parks! Woo hoo!

Everything Else , , , ,

Let’s Play “Ask Shelby”

8 Comments Posted by on August 3, 2011

Here it is, folks–your opportunity to get an answer for all of those burning questions you have about me or MYWTM or Disneyland in general. It’s an open forum, so ask away! Leave a comment using the link in the upper right hand corner of the post. I’ll gather all of the questions and answer them to the best of my ability. It will be like a Search Engine Roundup except they will be your questions and chances are good you’ll actually stick around to read the answers.

So hit me with your best shot. Fire away!

Also, happy birthday to my brother and dad!

Everything Else

MYWTM Greatest Hits

Leave a comment Posted by on July 31, 2011

Every good band needs a greatest hits album*. Even the ones where you buy the “greatest hits” album and you have never heard of 3/4 of them and truly wonder what the standard is for “greatest” or “hits.”

*(yes, album. I mean, practically nobody buys CDs anymore either so we might as well go back to the original terminology, because it sounds all hipster-y retro)

Anyway, I’ve added a bunch of new readers lately (welcome!!) and I know it’s difficult to sit down and read an entire 6 months worth of past entries, so I’ve compiled a list of some of my most popular posts. Enjoy! Or enjoy again, if you’ve already read them!

Star Tours: The Adventure Continues…in which I describe rather frenetically what it was like to preview this totally awesome new ride (or I should say, new version of this ride).

Pinocchio’s Daring Journey…in which I forever traumatize my young son by forgetting how weird the story is and how terrifying the actual ride is.

My Awkward Social Situation…one of my earliest posts in which I describe how becoming a blogger also inexplicably turned me into a pathological liar.

It’s Snack Time–Popcorn and Churros!…in which I lay down an extremely compelling argument (or not) for eating these amazingly scrumptious treats. Especially churros.

The Many Adventures of Winnie the Pooh…the search terms people use to find this one are a little disturbing.

The Little Mermaid–Ariel’s Undersea Adventure…climb into your clam shell and take a brief ride through this newest of Disney California Adventure attractions.

Fruit Carts, Lockers, and a Surprise!..in which I write about the fruit cart, lockers, and a surprise on Main Street.

Jedi Training Academy Part 1–Selection and Training…kind of self-explanatory, but wondering how you can get your kid into the Jedi Training Academy? Try my tips here. And you should check out Jedi Training Academy Part 2: Confronting the Dark Side as well.

Wonder where you can catch a Princess for a meet and greet that isn’t crowded? Try the Castle Secret Passages Part 1: Frontierland and Part 2: Tomorrowland.

Have you ever taken some time to just Look Up?

Okay loyal readers–what are some of YOUR favorite entries? Leave a note in the comments!

 

 

 

 

Everything Else , , , , ,

Nostalgia Corner (Also, the Missed Knott’s-Disney Love Connection)

2 Comments Posted by on July 20, 2011

Kevin here, again.  It’ll only be a little while longer until Shelby comes back home from Vermont and starts producing hot and fresh content for your delectation (yes, yes, you’ve been reading her posts this week — she wrote them before she left and put them away to be republished later, like carefully-wrapped casseroles in the freezer).  Until then, here’s a mini-post from me.

Last week, Theo and I spent four days up in our local mountains at my grandparents’ vacation cabin.  Like any vacation home worth its salt, the cabin has a stash of ancient National Geographic magazines — emergency intellectual nourishment, I suppose, to be read after you’ve exhausted all other possible options.  (The literary equivalent of those 2004-vintage cans of Dinty Moore stew that are in our garden shed earthquake kit.)

One issue is of particular interest to fans of Disney and Disneyland: August, 1963.  This issue is basically a love letter to the Walt Disney Corporation, with pages and pages devoted to activities at the Studios and Disney’s relatively new theme park, Disneyland.  The reader gets a National Geographic-quality photo tour of the park.  Coming attractions, like the Tiki Room and Great Moments with Mr. Lincoln, are introduced.  Things that are now commonplace cultural knowledge have to be explained (“Sprouting mouse ears testify that this young Disneylander is a Mousketeer, a fan of Mickey’s”).

At the end of the article, the author asks Walt “What happens when there is no more Walt Disney?”  Walt essentially dismisses the thought, saying that while he’s handing over more responsibility to others, he’s “61.  I’ve got everything I started out with except my tonsils, and that’s above average.  I plan to be around for a while.”  Since we know now that Walt would die of lung cancer just three years after this article was written, this brings the piece to a bittersweet close.

The “Modern Mechanix” blog has scanned in all of this giant fifty-page article, in three parts:  One, Two, and Three.  Part two contains a particularly nice fold-out map of 1963-era Disneyland.

Two ads elsewhere in the magazine caught my eye:

The Disneyland Hotel -- This IS Southern California (Click for a larger version)

The Disneyland Hotel has had the same basic appearance for my entire life; much like Disneyland itself, it’s hard to think of a time when it was actually brand-new.

PLAY and LIVE in ANAHEIM -- home of Disneyland! (Click for a larger version)

Living in Anaheim, you pretty often hear it referred to pejoratively (Anacrime, Anaslime, etc., etc.) by the kind of people who prefer the spic-and-span planned communities of South Orange County.  While I quite like our town, even I think of it as ‘old’, probably because we live in our 1920s house in the historic Anaheim Colony (founded by German immigrants in 1857) area downtown.  So, it’s a little mind-bending to see it advertised nationally as the progressive and balanced (and atom-powered, no doubt) City of Tomorrow.

The Knott’s-Disney Connection That Almost Was:  I can’t believe that I forgot to mention this in my article on Knott’s Berry Farm.  In the days of Walt Disney and Walter Knott, there was a spirit of friendly competition between Knott’s and Disneyland, with each man visiting the other’s park to check up on the latest developments.  In the 1990s, the two parks almost became much closer, joining the same family in a theme-park version of The Brady Bunch.  Essentially, the story is this: before developing California Adventure, Disney was exploring ideas for a “second gate” in the Orange County/Los Angeles area.  At the same time, the Knott family was looking for a buyer for their amusement park.  In response to both of these, Disney’s Imagineering staff came up with an idea for how Knott’s could be rethemed and expanded into “Disney’s America”.  In the end, the deal was scuttled because of logistical issues (how to move thousands of people between Anaheim and Buena Park?), Disney execs not wanting to refurbish someone else’s dirty ‘ol park, and (O the irony) the Knott heirs’ fear that Disney’s retheming would wipe out their parents’ legacy.  You can read more about “Disney’s America” here.

Everything Else, Nostalgia, Not Disney , ,

← Older posts

Newer posts →