http://www.idkfa.com/v3 idkfa: syndicated http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4883 I spent my whole childhood in Alaska and my first trip to Disneyland was as a early teen, which is a shitty time to do anything as a family really. More so when your family is poor and you cant spend any money at all while in the park. By comparison going to Disney World and then Disneyland again as an adult, when you never had good childhood experiences in theme parks, has been great. Sure John had fun this last trip, but deep down I still feel like I had the most fun of everyone. So screw you guys and you grown up negativity, I don't need magic to enjoy the hell out of rides. I never knew what the magic was anyway. Also I'm cool with waiting in lines so maybe that helps a bit in the end. MrFood@idkfa.com (MrFood) Indiscernible from Magic Mon, 07 Jan 2013 17:31:50 -0900 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4883 http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4876 Resolutions? Hmm. Maybe to publish one of my programming projects as an open source project. Could be fun. Also, humbling. kaiden@idkfa.com (kaiden) Indiscernible from Magic Fri, 04 Jan 2013 12:31:02 -0900 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4876 http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4874 Yeah, the magic seems to go away once you grow up. And then you want things like incest and infanticide in your fantasy worlds. Or just a ton of sex. Or extreme complexity. Disneyland is none of these things. I think if the kids had to pay, they would understand a bit better. Good synopsis in any case... but do you have any resolutions?? Or booze. It makes those negative feelings just go away. I'm pretty sure it's why Vegas is such a popular vacation spot... and I still don't understand why people would bring children there. Scrotor@idkfa.com (Scrotor) Indiscernible from Magic Fri, 04 Jan 2013 03:07:37 -0900 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4874 http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4861 She (the paid caregiver) had been dropping him off to use the library by himself while she took her dinner break every Wednesday The job description of "paid caregiver" seems to preclude the notion of dropping off somebody at a library so one can swing by for a meef quesarito. (unrelated) Glad he was a friendly bee. A librarian filled Disney would have been amusing. I could have tolerated some more orderly lines, and maybe some rational compassion for strangers. I couldn't get to sleep last night because I was reliving a moment in the fast pass line where, in trying to help out some confused foreigners, I inadvertently invited them to cut in line in front of me (thinking that it was less than a minute wait, and the line had just rearranged itself around them). The guy behind me asked, "Hey, you know you just let them cut?" to which I responded, "We're all going to the same place," to which he responded, "Yeah, but not as fast." I shrugged, and he proceeded to heat the back of my head with hate rays for the rest of the 45 seconds we shared personal space. I fell asleep trying to calculate the approximate inconvenience of the ~12 or so people behind me to the slight help I gave to strangers. Then I remembered it was the fucking fast pass line, and went to sleep. kaiden@idkfa.com (kaiden) Indiscernible from Magic Thu, 03 Jan 2013 12:33:44 -0900 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4861 http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4858 Funny and slightly related story (re not hugging Minnie Mouse). I may have told this before, it is one of my favorite library stories. When I was a teenager, I was a "page" (shelver) in my hometown library. About once a week, usually on Wednesday evenings, a man in a bee mascot-style costume that completely covered his face would come in and wander around the library spending most of his time in the children's section. Kids would hug him, parents would comment on the nice reading bee, he would never say a word. I was officially tasked with following him around, keeping kids from hugging him, and telling parents he was not an official library mascot. After about a year of this, his handler came in to get him. He was a severely autistic man who used the suit as his way of coping with the world (apparently it deadened the noise and lights, I've worn one it's true) and not having to interact with people. She (the paid caregiver) had been dropping him off to use the library by himself while she took her dinner break every Wednesday. Probably the best way that story could have ended. I last went to Disney as a teen. I'm good until I have my own children to take. My mother hated Disney and only took us there because her company paid for most of it. She raised us in a fairly anti-Disney household. The last librarian conference I attended was in Anaheim, literally across the street from California Adventure (could see the rides from my hotel room) and I went to one party in Downtown Disney (it was awful, if you walk too slowly through what is basically a glorified strip mall you get glitter bombed). I was surprised at how many librarians had extended their trip to go to Disney. A librarian filled Disney would hav been amusing. lizinthelibrary@idkfa.com (lizinthelibrary) Indiscernible from Magic Wed, 02 Jan 2013 21:14:56 -0900 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4858 http://www.idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4857 Disneyland Synopsis, Christmas 2012 My family took a trip over Christmas this year, first flying to Arizona, then driving to Anaheim, and visiting Disneyland and Calfornia Adventures over the course of three days. Here are my findings. We Need a Good Plague I remember the first time I went to Disneyland we got a special pass that let us get into the park an hour before opening. We took that opportunity to hit Indiana Jones three times in a row, seeing all three alternate tracks. It was awesome. Yet, I didn't understand why there was such a huge line that I had to run through in order to get back from the entrance to the start of the ride. I couldn't imagine there ever being a time where there would be that many people. This time, apparently, we decided to visit at a time of predicted high park attendance. And, as predicted, it was insane. If you can avoid it, avoid peak seasons. Or holidays. Or really any time you can guess somebody else might want to also go to the park. I overheard a cheerful Disneyland Castmember, rolling a trashcart through a throng, say to somebody "Come in February. February is better. Nothing happens in February." I say this not out of my own dislike of crowds, or people, but out of consideration for return on investment. At peak times, ride waits are upwards of 2 hours (not including breakdowns), which means that despite the park being open from 8am to 11pm, if you only chose to wait in line, took no bathroom or food breaks, and were able to travel from ride to ride instantaneously, you'd only be able to ride ~7 rides/day. You can, of course, prioritize to only hit main attractions, but in the course of three days, with stops for food, bathroom breaks, and kid-related catastrophes, we were barely able to hit all of the big ones. A lot changes in... oh man... 18 years? Last time we went, we think it was 1995. A number of things have changed. Notably: Fast Passes. Fast Passes are an kaiden@idkfa.com (kaiden) Indiscernible from Magic Wed, 02 Jan 2013 17:32:14 -0900 http://idkfa.com/v3/v_thread.php?thread_id=4857&msg_id=4857