CONSIGNMENT SHOPPING

Last week, Sister and I had an opportunity to spend an entire day trolling consignment stores in my town.  For those of you not acquainted with this term, a consignment store takes items from clients and offers to sell those items.  The client must agree to abide by the price assigned by the consignor and usually receives around forty percent from the sale.  Most stores have “sales” on their inventory and prices are reduced until the items are sold or given to charity.  Once the client has committed items to the store, said items become the property of the consignor with the exception of high-ticket items such as furs, couture clothing or jewelry.

Consignment stores differ from thrift stores in that thrift stores are donating their funds to a charitable institution such as the humane society, hospice or a myriad of others.  Consignors are in the business to make a profit for themselves, while sharing a minimal amount with the clients.  Thrift stores will take anything.  Really, anything from used underwear to appliances to used toilets, you name it.  Consignment stores tend to be a little more particular and follow a theme. The majority cater to women and feature clothing, shoes and accessories.  Some offer children’s items and home furnishings.  Then there are the ones dedicated to furniture.  Within all these categories are sub-categories where you will find only designer items or professional and evening attire or jeans…  The one thing I have noticed in lurking through consignment stores is that I have yet to encounter one for men.  Perhaps, that will be my next venture??

Anyway, now that you have an idea, let’s get on with the tale.  Sister and I met early for a hearty breakfast and then hit the road. (Excuse me; did you think this adventure would begin without food for the Zappo Sisters?)  We had mapped out our trip by selecting six shops from a local magazine.  I had never been to any of the six and was interested to see how they compared to the shop where I “took” my gently used clothes.  Sister was on the hunt for jeans.  Why pay $100 or more for a pair of designer jeans when you can find them often under $20? 

Forest was our first stop and was having a $1.00 sale.  Hmm.  The $1 items were a mismash of pants, jeans, tops, skirts that were all a little dated.  The store was small but limited to ladies’ clothing, shoes and some accessories.  The accessories were made by a local “beader” and the clothes were just okay.  Based on the area, which caters to “earth mothers”, the store probably leaned toward that clientele.  Back in the car…

Next store on the list, we missed on the first pass because I was driving too fast and it was on the second level of a building. So we drove about five miles off our path and encountered a store not on the list.  Bea’s looked a tad questionable from the outside with the name duct taped on the awning.  However, you can’t always judge from the exterior so we decided to look.  Almost two hours later, we both had jeans.  Sister’s designer pair still had the original tags and she scored for $3.00.  That’s right, $3.00!  This place had more jeans than I have seen in any store other than department stores.  Most were in excellent condition and were high-end.  I scored one pair of jeans, two cord pants, one lined suede pants and an adorable linen top, all for $40.00.  I should mention that this store was jammed full of clothes, shoes, jewelry, purses, hats and “nick-nacks” (crap that was probably in your grandmother’s house).  There was a very offensive odor of some potpourri but even that didn’t stop us from trying on jeans.

Now to find the store we missed, Seconds.  This was on the second level of a building with other offices and looked really small from the outside.  It was really small on the inside but for a reason.  The owner only wanted a certain clientele, those who had expensive “seconds”.  Again, ladies’ clothing, shoes and purses.  Everything had a “label”; think Chanel, Pliner, Dior.  The selection was pure country club meets Boca.  In fact, the owner said most of her items came from out-of state clients.  Didn’t make a purchase but saw potential for the future.

Fourth store, the Hangar, was snuggled back from the main road but we bounced through some potholes into the parking area.  The windows were tastefully done and then plastered with signs stating 50% off EVERYTHING! It looked clean, neat and modern and once again, carried only ladies’ clothing.  A LARGE poodle greeted us at the door and then wandered back to her oversized bed.  In addition to the usual clothing, this store carried beautiful wedding gowns.  The prices were okay but the inventory was pretty picked over.  Also, there was this horrible odor in the store that smelled like a full toilet/sewer line back-up/ or someone who had a full adult diaper.  Since the odor started around the time an elderly lady entered, I am going with the adult diaper theory.  It was enough to make us leave, quickly.

Zipping across town, we stopped for tea at McDonald’s and then threaded our way through the traffic to the fifth store, Everything. The store was in a good location with plenty of parking and the interior was clean.  This one carried children’s stuff from clothes to toys, men’s clothing and shoes, ladies clothing, tires (yep, you read that right) and home furnishings.  Their pricing was on the sliding scale:  every two or three weeks, the item is reduced.  The dates and the reduced prices are noted on the tag.  So, should you find a dream item and be willing to wait for the lowest price, this is a good deal.  Of course, you will have to hope that it is still in the store on “best price” day.  Sister found another pair of designer jeans and some cute linen crops for our beach trip.

The final stop of the day was at C’s.  We were getting a tad tired by now but this was no time for the weak, as we would case out this store.  Without a doubt, C’s was the most original of all the stores housed in an upscale strip of stores.  Everything about C’s screamed New York City from the ultra-modern façade to exposed pipes, minimal décor and a lot of steel and glass.  But were we in for a surprise, this was the mother-lode of chic, designer fashion from the closets of the very wealthy.  The store with the Boca-type items suddenly seemed garish.  The shoes were French designers, Bally, Manolo Blahnik, Louboutin, Jimmy Choo, Marc Jacobs. Purses were by Chanel, Gucci, Dior and others.  The rack of leather goods had North Beach and names I never knew existed but Sister did.  Cashmere by TSE and vintage items were also displayed.  All the items were in style and couture.  Pricing started in the $150 range and only went up from there.  The vendeuse, for sales associate would be insulting in this situation, was not only charming but extremely savvy about the merchandise under her care.  Prices were based on the original retail, quality, label and current demand.  Many clients were rejected simply because a garment was “dated” but not vintage or just not couture enough.  If you are tiny, like Sister, then you are in luck.  Not only was there a good selection but designer fasions always look better on the thin ones!  Sister bought the most glorious pair of North Beach leather pants.  They felt like butter and fit her like skin.  I tried on a pair of Manolo Blahniks that had seen almost no wear and were a size 5.5. Can you say one of the sexiest pairs of shoes I have ever had on my feet?  Unfortunately, they were just a bit too big even though the price was a steal at $285. Wow!  I wanted those shoes. 

Which store was our favorite?  Well, obviously C’s and its location will remain a closely guarded secret.  For jeans and pants, go to Bea’s.  Seconds would be a possibility for the country club/professional look but only when the season was ending and heavy reductions were offered.  We still have two other areas of town to explore and will take that on when Sister returns.

The Way of Tea

A few Sundays past, Sister spent the afternoon at a Japanese Tea Room in her town.  She recounts her experience in detail, explaining the nuances of the ceremony.  The link is to a video of the tea ceremony and is provided by Robert Moran and Vimeo.  Please enjoy.

http://vimeo.com/2843872

"Inside the jar, the moon and the sun continue…"  (this is what I remember of Ritsuko’s description of the scroll today: 2.7.10)  She said that the tea room is ‘the jar’ and when inside, it is like time stands still because your focus is on every single movement and symbol of ‘tea’.  Ritsuko said there is a Chinese story of a man who crawls into a jar and lives for many years.  The story tells of his encounters while away from the busy world. 

Since my last visit, Ritsuko’s tea room has been completed and I had no idea what to expect.  The addition is beautiful and simple.  It was explained that the son of a local builder, who was integrally involved with the Japanese Tea House in the Botanical Gardens, built the room for Ritsuko.  He visited the spot when it was almost complete and then died suddenly a month later.  When the garden area is complete, guests will enter this way leaving their shoes (and swords, if we were in Japan) outside the entrance.  The door to the room is about 3 x 3 and yes, everyone crawls into the room. This is VERY Japanese in that it equalizes everyone;  no one is greater than another.  Tea rooms are small limiting the number of guests to 3 or 4 and there is a seating arrangement, like everything else of which I have no grasp. 

Ritsuko’s room is 4 ½ tatamis.  In the center of the room is a brazier sunken in the floor.  The bottom is covered in sand; in the center you place special charcoal (which she reminded us can cause carbon monoxide poisoning) and there is a whole ceremony for laying the charcoal.  The charcoal is placed within the confines of 3 iron stands onto which is placed the pot with lid for the heated water.   

Once you enter the tea room you remain on your knees and sort of slide from one point to another.  If you walk in, as we did, you are reminded not to step on the seams of the tatami mats (course I’m thinking, ‘step on a crack…’) the reality is that the seams are fragile and are also markers for the ceremony.  Each person wears clean, white socks and you sit on your knees or pillows.  If frail or fragile (as I am, I couldn’t fold my foot under me) you may sit on a stool. This is a bit embarrassing since now you are higher than others in the room and Japanese expend an awful lot of effort trying to make one another comfortable and at ease.  There are times when you talk and times you simply try to become one with the making of the tea.  I wanted to ask lots of questions and during the first session a friend whispered constantly, explaining what was happening. 

When the hostess is ready she enters the room, bowing on entry and then turning to bow again to the doorway – hhhmmm…  She may have to make several trips into the room with her instruments and this will require her to get up and down from her knees as many times as needed.  She brings in a container with a lid which holds cold water and places it JUST so (one student actually physically counted the number of strips of tatami before placing the vessel in what she deemed the correct spot.)  She will bring in a vessel or bowl which will be used to clean the other items, a ladle, stand, wooden whisk, the actual bowl or setting she has chosen for her tea.  Some tea is as thick as mayonnaise and other is thin and frothy but as far as I can tell all tea is served in what we could call bowls – not, tea cups.  Finally the tea itself, in a special container and the implement used to measure tea into the bowl.  This seemed to require 3 trips since you don’t use a tray and you don’t try to make it all in one fell swoop, as I would do (the lazy man’s load as mother would call it). 

Beyond the entrance the hostess uses, there is a beautiful area of shelving and a sink at floor level.  On the shelves are several tea bowls and the implements one uses to prepare the tea.  Ritsuko has a wonderful combination of pottery and china as well as larger bowls or platters that may be used for the sweets you share prior to the tea. 

The ritual is so involved that even parts of the conversation are always the same,  like asking about the particular type of tea, etc.  When the sweet is passed you remove the papers and pick you carry in your kimono or tea ‘bag’ (like a flat purse) and you place your sweet onto your paper wiping the chopsticks on the corner of one piece of the paper after serving yourself.  In a kimono one carries a fan. This is never opened but used to indicate beauty and to welcome the hostess and other guests into the room by its placement on the tatami mat.  I don’t recall what Ritsuko was wearing at my previous visit but I think perhaps just regular clothing.  Today she had on a beautiful kimono the color of cinnamon.  On the back was a small symbol about which I wish I had asked.  I love how they stick things in the giant sleeves and again in the surplice where it crosses over the chest and their fan and silk pieces ride along tucked into their belt.   

Of course before serving you bow. There’s a great deal of bowing and the placement of your hands on the mats is also ritualistic.  You eat your sweet with your pick . When finished, you wipe your pick with your paper; remove the upper most piece of paper from your stack and return the unused pieces to your kimono.  I’m not sure what you do with the soiled piece; my friend took mine; folded it very small and sequestered it somewhere.   

NOW, you focus on the tea.  The hostess has been symbolically cleaning items using a piece of silk that is folded in a certain manner and rides around inside her belt.  Even if you don’t wear a kimono you wear a belt which serves as a holder for this cloth and for another beautiful piece which you use beneath your tea bowl so that the bowl is separate from the tatami mat.  The silk piece with which you symbolically clean and present items to your guests must be handled in particular ways for each type of tea. You open it one way for thick tea and another way for thin tea.  The folding and replacement of this piece of cloth is a very big part of the process and during both sessions Ritsuko would work with her student directing them to use their thumb sometimes and their forefinger at other times.  All of this begins with a ritual examination of the piece of silk and ALWAYS begins with the edge with no seam at the top. This edge symbolizes harmony and the hostess proceeds from here to closely examine each edge of the cloth.  When satisfied, the cleaning begins. 

After the symbolic cleaning, comes the ritual rinsing of the tea bowl and the whisk. This too is a process and the water used is discarded into a special bowl which is partially hidden behind/beside the hostess.

The angle at which the hostess sits (on her knees), the placement of her arms and hands all figure in to the overall picture.  Ritsuko regularly indicates that the student should move a tad this way or that. Wiping the edge of the cleaned bowl is done with your fingers at a certain point with a sort of flourish.  Finally, it is time for the tea to be prepared. The preparation of one bowl of tea, which will be shared by as many as three guests can take a full hour.  Again there are times when it is appropriate to talk and times when it is only appropriate to focus on the hostess.  Her one goal is to make you, the guest, feel honored by her efforts.  Every sound you hear or don’t hear, every smell and every sight are all significant parts of the service.  There are times when an implement is intentionally touched to the side of a vessel and there are times when the same implement may be used with the no sound at all.  I became a bit mesmerized watching the steam rise from the heated water.

From my seat, I was looking directly at the pot in the brazier.  Behind the pot closest to the opposite wall was the hostess.  In the corner of her area is a screen, today’s screen was plain and stood about 3 feet high.   Ritsuko has several screens and interchanges them depending on mood, theme, season, etc. The screen seems to have no use other than beauty; there is nothing behind it since it sits flush with the wall.   

The tea is measured into the bowl using a skinny little implement whose name I do not know. Water is added from the heated pot using a wooden ladle and the replacement of the pot’s lid and the placement of the ladle, after use, are all part of the ceremony.  At one point, maybe at its first use, the ladle is held in front of the hostess in the ‘mirror’ position – as if you are reflecting on what is about to happen.  Once the water and tea are together the hostess uses the wooden whisk to combine the elements to the correct consistency.  Ritsuko explained that normally a whisk would only be used once but due to monetary constraints her students clean and use the whisks over and over.  They are lovely little accessories and it was all I could do not to touch it.  I have only seen green tea being prepared but perhaps there are other types and blends.  The tea is in powder form and the flavor reminds me of grass.  When the tea is ready, the hostess sits it near you, not right in front of you.  The guest then bows to the hostess and fetches the tea in a specific way.  You must turn the bowl 2/3rds of the way around so that the part that was facing you is no longer doing so and you must place the bowl on the stiff, silk napkin you carry in your belt.  Each of these tasks is completed while holding and placing your hands in a certain manner on the bowls sides (more than I could grasp during my 2 sessions). 

Drinking the tea is done in 3 sips and the last sip should include a type of slurp.  During my first visit I wanted to be sure I slurped approvingly and of course, I choked resulting in a coughing frenzy that lasted until I got home that afternoon,  very embarrassing.  This time I was careful NOT to slurp in any way, shape or form since I didn’t want a repeat of my past performance but I was careful to try to drain my bowl with 3 drinks.  There isn’t much tea in the bowl but the prospect of insulting the hostess haunted me!  During the second session, three people drank from the same bowl one after the other.  Even though they wipe their area and turn the bowl I still find this habit repulsive.  I was glad that I was not included in this session as I do not want to drink after another, especially since we were all sniffing due to the weather! 

Once the tea is finished the service is not over.  The bowl and implements are cleaned again with the hot, little pre-folded cloths. The tea and the implement used to measure the tea is placed on a mat for the guest’s perusal.  Finally, everything is put in order and the hostess begins the process of removing all her items from the area.   

Can you imagine?  An entire tea ceremony may last 4 to 5 hours.  There is a full meal and more symbolism than I can imagine.  Guests are on their knees, (if healthy) with the exception of a break near the end, the entire time.  During the break the food items would be removed and the prep for the actual ‘tea’ portion would begin.  The guests would be allowed to be excused into the garden area for a smoke, a bathroom break, or a stretch.  

Ritsuko instructs both men and women in this ritual and it is a lifelong learning process.  For years there was nothing written about the ceremony – every piece had to be explained and taught from one person to another.  I cannot imagine the patience this would require from both parties, the teacher and the student.  Now, even though there are written descriptions, some of the aspects must still be taught, rehearsed, practiced and learned simply by ‘doing’ over time.  Ritsuko and a couple of students travel to watch others perform and were discussing things they had seen and heard during a recent trip to Atlanta to watch a man who is considered one of the greats!  (Whatever that means…)  They shared a laugh when Ritsuko repeated a question that someone in his audience asked: “if I drop the ladle when I am dipping water, what should I do?” It seems the great one replied: “you pick it up and proceed” – I mean I’m not Japanese but what else could you do? 

Two books were suggested that I might enjoy which give some insight into ‘tea’. One by the anthropologist, Jennifer Anderson: An Introduction to the Ritual of Tea and another, an essay by Tanizaki: In Praise of Shadows, both of which I was able to find  as used books thru Amazon. Now I look forward to deepening my very limited understanding of this ceremony that is so like meditation to me. 

When leaving Ritsuko’s home, I noticed the flow of water in front of her driveway.  We had experienced a couple of rainy days prior to this and a stream of water was making its way down her street in front of everyone’s house.  The water was moving quickly enough to have tiny wavelets. After being immersed, so to speak, in the watery aspects of tea I was thrilled that I was mindful enough not only to notice the water but to notice the curls and imagine that I could hear the sound it might be making.  Starting my car and heading back into reality was tough but I chose to be appreciative of the hours I been fortunate  enough to spend in Ritsuko’s little sanctuary.

Sister does Disney!

Grab a hot drink and enjoy Sister's adventure.  She did the half-marathon at Walt Disney World and is now telling her tale.  

January 2010 

Patti is responsible for igniting the spark that made me want to be a part of the WDW Marathon weekend.  It took 2 years to make the cut simply because the half marathon registration fills so quickly.  During that period I read blogs, articles and as much miscellaneous info as I could with the hope of being prepared as possible for the experience.  Sally,the friend with whom I walk regularly, even introduced me via email to her friend (Jodi) who has finished 6 marathons and a dozen or more half-marathons AND who planned to jog the WDW Half with her 14 year-old son. I am very grateful to Jodi for her advice and support. 

To say that WDW is overwhelming is a gross understatement.  There are some 28,000 acres and not all of this has yet been developed so get ready for more parks as time passes.  Old Walt and his brother Roy bought this land under 100 different fictitious names for approximately $185/acre.  And sadly, Walt died before the opening.  

Having no idea what to do with our limited time on location I made a corporate decision to purchase “regular” passes (as opposed to Park Hopper passes) for 3 days.  Regular tickets are $79 EACH per day and Hopper passes are more. After much online study I decided we would spend ½ day at Epcot after the Half-Marathon, a full day in the Magic Kingdom, beginning with a “Keys to the Kingdom” tour and a full day back at Epcot.  This gave us no opportunity to see either the Animal Kingdom or Universal Studios parks.   

Who could have guessed that Orlando and WDW, which is at least 30 minutes from the Orlando Airport, would be experiencing the coldest weather in 80 years? And cold, it was. At my arrival on January 8^th the weather was wonderfully mild, mid-50s and overcast.  THIS would have been perfect race weather and it was pretty much perfect weather for Friday.  The weather geniuses predicted that the Arctic front would push through that evening and sure enough, the later it got you could almost see the cold coming, a sort of fog that seemed to actually move over the entire area.  Upon arrival I was pleasantly surprised to find that my room was available so I could unload what I was carrying and head back out to the Expo for my race number and goody bag.  But I’m getting ahead of myself… Since “the husband” and I had passes to ride the “Magical Express” one simply had to make her way from one end of the Orlando airport to the exact/opposite OTHER end following the signage.  Once you found the area you could pretty much turn off your brain. The “cast members” (as all Disney employees are called) basically direct you to the correct line for your motor coach (the word “bus” is considered offensive) and you can begin practicing for all the other lines you will experience while visiting Mickey, Minnie and their friends.  You better believe that the motor coach is equipped with sound and video to begin your indoctrination and it is all timed so that as you get to “this point” the commentator is talking about what you are seeing.  Because your luggage is marked with a Mouse Ear tag, you do not see it until it arrives ‘magically’ in your room.  Luggage is sorted by hotel or resort and then ferried to and from the airport in large trucks, so even on arrival by bus, you do not have to bother with it. The driver was friendly, maybe a tad overly so, and gestured a great deal while driving.  I noticed about 15 minutes into the ride that his gestures, interestingly, regularly pointed to the sign that read:  Driver Gratuity is appreciated for excellent service… HHhhhhhmmm…   

You are allowed to check-into your hotel up to 10 days prior to your arrival. At this point you no longer get more than ½ your money back and believe me; you have already paid in full.  We had to pay IN FULL by November 24 in order to keep our reservation.  Of course prior to that, we had made a $200 deposit when I made the reservation in July.

As part of online check-in, you are asked for earliest arrival time so it was really no surprise that I was able to get an available room.  If you ride the “Magical Express” BACK to the airport at departure, you leave 3 hours prior to flight time so folks vacate hotels and resorts early.  Since the M.E. is included in the price you pay, why wouldn’t you take advantage of the service? 

We had a room on one of 2 Concierge levels in The Contemporary Resort, on floor 12.  Floor 14 was all suites and floor 15 was their pricey restaurant: $30 or more per entrée. Arriving on our floor, I was greeted by the 2 concierge on duty and found that neither was particularly friendly, my first surprise.  There was no cursory “letter of greeting” and I didn’t realize this until asking about times for breakfast, etc.  This info was in the letter that should have been given upon arrival at their desk.

Our floor was lovely; the room was lovely and large; the bathroom was GREAT and our view was of the bay or lagoon.  The pricier rooms look out toward the Magic Kingdom and give guests front row seats each evening for the fireworks spectacular.  The monorail zips right through the hotel, on level 4, which fascinated me because it meant that the hotel was wide-open in that area. This is probably fine 99% of the year but when the temp dipped below freezing you could feel the effect of this “breeze” all the way to level 12 and beyond. 

After dumping my excess baggage I headed off to find the bus to the Expo some 20-30 minutes away but still very much on Disney property, where I was introduced to some serious “waits”!  Getting my bib and chip proved to be the easy part; from this point you exited this building and headed outside to the Expo line. Once I found the line and realized I had NO idea where it was heading but continued to follow the folks in front of me for 30 minutes or so until we entered another building where you had to go to get your shirt and goody bag.  In retrospect I could have blown this part off because it was in the very BACK of a large convention center type space and by now I was very, very hungry.  Knowing it was less than 24 hours from a 13.1 mile walk and not very prudent to wait much longer before eating “something”, I opted for a giant pretzel.  The other items were scary – hot dogs, etc AND expensive.  My pretzel was $4 (do I sound Jewish, here?).  There was a volunteer who allowed me to go up the wrong way to get the pretzel and said she would allow me to do so if I brought her a pretzel as well.  Imagine her surprise when I came back down with a pretzel for her, as well.  She was blown away but hey, I was feeling faint so it seemed a fair deal.  Holding a pretzel the size of a cat kept me from handling everything in the Expo area and limited what I could do and/or say.  Besides, by now exhaustion was setting in so I zipped thru the area, purchased “Body Glide”, at Jodi’s recommendation coupled with that of a Family Physician, who was standing near the display, ate 2 sample Lara bars (love these) and a Cup of Gold bar I happened to find in my purse.  No sooner had I boarded the bus back to the hotel than it began to rain. Getting back to the room I decided a tall water and a short nap would do me good.  I needed to hydrate and had to get on with it – daylight was burning.  After my nap, there were several hours before Ron would arrive, so it was time to familiarize myself with the monorail system. I still had this fantasy that I would be in bed by 8:30. So with all the potential clothing for race morning laid out and my phone alarm set for 2:30AM, I passed the time waiting for Ron to call from the Orlando airport by opening the sliding door every 30 minutes or so to check the weather.   

Since Ron’s arrival was later than planned, I ordered room service for both of us and decided that perhaps we would be in bed by 9:30.  Ron arrived at 8:30, dinner arrived at 9 and I was in bed by 10.  The choice of items ordered was just okay and had me a bit worried about the food in Disney World.  Coming out from shower and hearing Ron on the phone with a local drugstore made me realize that Saturday was going to be ‘busy’ for both of us.  I was all snuggy in my bed when suddenly we heard what could only be described as calliope music.  Thinking about this for a minute or so, I remembered that each evening we were to be feted by the ‘electric light show’ on boats.  What they don’t tell you is that the show is at 10PM and is ALWAYS the same!  Ron had his face pressed against the glass like a kid and more than once said, “You’ve GOT to come see this!” Ok, so I did and I did and then I said – “I” have got to get some sleep.  I was as nervous as a cat about the race simply because of the predicted weather and for once – they got it right – totally, completely right. 

 RACE DAY!!!!!!!!!

At 2:30AM, I ripped open the drapes and found that it was neither sleeting nor raining, which was great but NOT what was predicted.  The prediction was that it would be very cold in the AM and that as we closed in on ‘morning’ (not 2:30AM) the sleet would begin and then turn to rain later in the morning. BINGO! That is exactly what happened.  Since the powers that be require you to be on a monorail or bus by 4AM to get to the starting line so that you can wait for 90 minutes or so, I was at the bus-stop at 3:50. The resort’s info sheet said there would be NO bus but a man in charge of buses had told me the day before that there WOULD be buses. There were no people and no buses, so after about 8 minutes I high-tailed it back into and through the hotel to catch the monorail with hundreds of my new, best friends.  It turns out that of the 23,000 registered, 17,000 crossed the Finish Line and at some point I felt like I saw most of them – passing me. 

You don’t ride the monorail directly to Epcot. Oh no… you must change trains at the Transportation Center so by the time we stepped off ‘that’ train at Epcot it had begun to sleet and it wasn’t 5AM.  I was warm enough, thankfully and had this Pollyanna-type idea that if it continued to sleet all would be fine.  Long before race time the wind had reached it’s predicted 15 mph (or more) gusts, which resulted in driving the sleet into our faces like needles.  Ha!  I laughed at the sleet since I had slathered MY face with #7 Intense Serum, lotion and Vaseline.  I had never put Vaseline on my face and they say ‘race day’ is NEVER the time to try something new but I did it and was glad, at least until I got some on the lenses of my glasses about 4 miles into the race.  Let the record reflect, you cannot get Vaseline OFF your lenses with a damp, fleecy item!  Another first for me was the use of a product called: Body Glide.  Sounds a bit like a sex product but it is actually used to protect your feet from blisters and for large folks, their thighs from chafing!!  (So, in retrospect, I guess this could be a sex product!)  Again, I was a bit hesitant to try this on race day but figured what the hell?  I am here to say I will use it as I go forward, maybe even on walks locally. 

13.1 miles gets long, especially around mile 7 or so and since my Zone bars had frozen solid that kept my mind occupied for a mile or so just trying to melt small pieces of the bar with my own saliva.  I imagined myself in Alaska and wondered if I would allow my dogs to die simply because it would be too freaking cold to go out or stay out and feed them.

One of the stranger parts of this race was beginning in the DARK and continuing in the dark for the first couple of miles.  Passing tons of clothing on the sides of the road was also disheartening since there is nothing I enjoy more than scavenging but that morning I remained focused on trying to keep dry and warm.  My layers were superb with the exception of my feet and I learned, on the way back to the airport, that one can cover the mesh part of their shoes with duct tape and keep your feet dry that way. I hope I remember this nugget. 

Ron was wet and waiting in the stands at the Finish Line and I have never been in such a hurry to get away from an event.  Having had quite enough of wet and cold, little did I know that it would take me another of hour of waiting in lines to get back to the hotel.  Ron found a cab and headed off in search of a pharmacy 10 miles from Disney proper and actually got back to the hotel as I was coming out of the bathroom following a very, lengthy hot shower.  The shower itself was an attempt to thaw my feet, which a couple of hours later finally warmed up – just in time for us to head back outside for our first walk-about in Epcot. 

Now remember Epcot is not just out the door.  It was out the door, down to 4, ride the monorail to the Transportation center where you changed trains to ride to Epcot.  From that station you still have a hike into Epcot and since we were just going to ‘check it out’ we had no plans – a very bad idea when you are tired AND hungry.  Epcot is divided into 2 very large zones: Future World and the World Showcase.  The majority of the restaurants are in the WS by country: Norway, Mexico, China, etc.  I don’t know who chose the way they were arranged but it certainly wasn’t someone familiar with a map or globe.  Each country had at least one ‘nice’ (read expensive or semi-expensive) restaurant and one or more kiosks or cafes and most of these have outside or no seating – I mean it’s FLORIDA!  Whoduvthunk that it would be 34 degrees with a brisk wind and drizzle???  Getting from the entry of Epcot to the showcase takes 15 or 20 minutes and then to walk around the countries, plan on 30 to 45 minutes if you just keep moving.  Well, I was on a mission and STUPID ‘cause I thought we could just cruise in somewhere and eat – NOT!!!  YOU MUST have reservations, even during the slow season, and places were packed. Where the hell were these people when they weren’t eating?  Poor Ron was starving and he remained pleasant as long as he possibly could and suddenly I lost him.  I literally couldn’t find him.  I remember we had watched this little kid chase a Donald Duck wearing a serape thru the Mexico village screaming, “Donald, Donald…” and I kept walking. Ron had pulled over at a Funnel Cake stand and was happily waiting for a giant hunk of fried dough while I was seething trying to find a place for real food.  Mind you I had had NOTHING to eat with the exception of ½ a turkey sandwich and a Zone bar and had put 17 or so miles on my dogs already that day.  When I finally found him I just gave up, ripped off a large chunk of funnel cake and joined in the sugar party.  Not long after this we managed to find a café in “Morocco” where we were able to snag a seat so we could eat our pita-type meals.  It was almost as cold inside the café as outside and by the time we exited, I was ready to haul my ass back to the hotel and hit the sack. Never mind that we had paid about $72 each for a ticket to walk thru Epcot and eat but hauling one’s ass back home is not as easy as it sounds ‘cause you have to get back OUT of the park. There is only ONE WAY IN and ONE WAY OUT and if you recall – OUT was about as far away as it could possibly be at the moment (check the map!).

As we made our way out of the Showcase area and re-entered Future World, Ron seemed to pick up steam. Perhaps it was the combination of sugar and couscous but he got his second wind and who was I to put a damper on anyone’s Disney enthusiasm?  He made what I can only call a “B”line for a ride called “Test Track” where you could hear and see (I should have paid more attention to the “see” part of this) GM looking cars zipping around on a track which must have been above our heads.  As usual I wasn’t paying 100% attention so when we saw that there was no one in a line labeled ‘single riders’ we just shot thru the opening.  Yep, we could have waited 2 minutes and walked in behind some folks to our left who were in the group line but hey, we wanted to be FIRST!!!  Single riders means JUST that…you do not ride with anyone in YOUR group. So Ron and I were assigned to 2 different cars and we encountered our first Disney maze.  Once you are in a maze, forget getting out. You become one of the herd.  Just like a cow, I had no idea what was about to happen but I was watching the faces of folks as they disembarked from these little cars that held 6 people – 3 in front, 3 in back. The cars had no top; you simply stepped into them.  The faces of everyone getting out seemed quite bland. In retrospect that could have been because all expression had been erased by the final 2 minutes of the ride but this did not occur to me until MUCH later.   

As soon as a car empties to the left, riders are being loaded from the right. Thus keeping each ride moving almost constantly.  I was seated on the back right and tried to apologize to the man to my left on the off-chance that I might grab his arm during the ride.  It was then that I realized he was from “across the pond” and didn’t understand a word I said, nor I to him.  Two cars are connected and  then off you go.  The last thing I remember clearly was laughing and waving at Ron cause “I” got to go first – nyah, nyah…  Little did I know…

The start wasn’t so bad. I mean you kinda drive around listening to a “voice” nattering about crash dummies, etc, ABS braking and you get to experience stopping with and without ABS brakes. This was a tad unnerving but not a lot worse than some of my trips with Sissy.  After this intro, you climb a little hill and at the top there is a big, dark curve. Coming out of the curve your little car is headed directly toward an 18 wheeler with its lights glaring at you.  It was then I realized that I was on some type of roller-coaster:  hill, dark, curve and by the time it registered, it was too late.  We were careening down a hill that wasn’t too bad, by my standards, and headed directly toward one of the crash dummy doors complete with what looked like nuclear signs.  I had the good sense to slam my eyes shut because of course the door flew open and we zoomed outside into the cold and drizzle doing over 60 mph (cause some disembodied voice told you this) and made the mousetrack curve without my stomach.  By now I am both praying, sweating and thinking, “kids do this, kids do this, kids do this…” Little did I know this would become my mantra over the next 2 days.  I also had to remind myself that I was not going to die since this was DisneyWorld but truly my guts did not believe me.  When we sailed into the station to be unloaded, anyone looking at me would know that I had been terrified.  The fact that I kissed both the ground and the person who was standing by to assist should have been a clue but by the time anyone might have noticed they were already on their way out of the station. I had to lean against a wall to wait for Ron who was like a kid when he got off. I figured he was going to jump back in line for another ride. 

It was fully dark by now. Pleez be headed back to the room! But alas, Ron was hooked and since we were ‘here’ we might as well see what all the fuss was about concerning a ride called, “Soarin”.  Okay, I had read about it so I had a clue but my clues proved to be WAY OFF BASE.  The premise is that you are having a hang-gliding experience over the state of California.  OK.  I’m not much on heights without something metal under my feet but I reminded myself, “kids do this” and off we went.  At “Soarin’” we were introduced to the concept of the “Fast Pass” which allows you to skip some of the waiting by waiting somewhere else. This involved leaning against a wall and watching some Disney entertainment which required participation to create strange pictures the size of movie screens to amuse the folks waiting against the wall.  There were 2 teenage couples ahead of us thoroughly involved in snogging and 3 older teenagers behind us who became totally engrossed in creating the pictures so we were amused for a while.  One thing you learn is that if the sign says your wait is 20 minutes, just double that and you won’t be disappointed.  During our 3 days I kept reminding myself that we could have been there during high season when folks would have been lined up forever in these metal mazes – we had none of that. Although we were certainly in “stroller hell”, it could have been much, much worse.  In a lot of cases once you get close to entry, you are put into corrals (uh, huh – the herd mentality thing) and shown a video or given something to do so that you won’t realize (RIGHT) that you are still waiting and Soarin was our first taste of this treat.  It was okay. You realize, after your first experience, that once you get thru whatever this delay, you are next on the ride. When the doors open and you are asked to board, or climb in or on or take a seat in the middle of the row, they don’t mean maybe – they mean MOVE IT ‘cause the next ride starts before you get completely seated. 

In Soarin’ you are buckled in. Once buckled in, you cannot unbuckle until the buckles are unbuckled by the Disney god.  I learned to appreciate this fact but at first,the realization kinda freaked me out.  You are also sometimes given places to store your stuff (coats, purses, etc) and if you don’t, some attendant will do it for you.  There is a reason they don’t want you holding stuff. When you do freak, they don’t want you tossing your crap on the people under or behind you or at the screen, in this case.  Sure enough moments after you are seated and I have to say you often see the people who were just in your seat the experience begins.  We were on the front row so our seats, like a hang-glider for 20 of your closest friends, actually rise up and yes, swing out toward an IMAX-like screen.  I grabbed the arm of the man to my right and realized that he was hanging on with an effort similar to my own. I could actually feel the muscles in his arm. I relocated my own handle and proceeded to open my eyes and found us sailing over a river where rafters were traveling below us.  The best part of this adventure was the fact that you could actually smell the evergreens as you sailed thru them!!  (Same with an orange grove later on.)  Just as I began to enjoy the views we sailed to the top of a mountain and then zipped down into the ocean gliding just above a wave while I wondered if my stomach was going to catch up with me; over a golf course where someone hits a ball that comes right at your face and then we are sailing along beside real hang-gliders.  As the ride comes to an end the seats are lowered back into position and you are hurried out so that you have to try and process the experience as you are leaving the building – strange but cool. 

By now we are both tired and there are very, very few people still out and about but we are next door to the Nemo ride which I knew was QUITE calm. So I herded Ron toward the entrance and since no one was ahead of us, we simply walked in and boarded our own clam shell. This ride was through an aquarium-like experience which was a great follow-up to the previous adventures.  Upon disembarking, we found ourselves in a cool REAL 2 story aquarium where Ron enjoyed a lengthy viewing of the fishes!  Rest assured that each ride/experience is in its own area and within that area there is usually some place to nosh and of course some place to shop.  ALWAYS some place to shop.  So the only place to find Nemo items would be in this area. If you want it after the fact, you have to order it thru Disney because all items are not online.  We agreed that we have no idea how families afford a week at Disney because as you might imagine everything is pricey.  I did understand why they had sent me so many emails about dining packages.  I ignored each and every one to our detriment. 

Back to the monorail, to the transport center, to another monorail and finally back to the hotel only to realize that we had to be in the Magic Kingdom by 9:15 the following morning.  Luckily we were able to get cookies and great desserts from the cool lounge area on our concierge floor before heading to bed.  Having noshes and drinks throughout the day and evening was a real plus,even though most of the stuff was sweet.  My favorite was “Dirt Cups” – a mixture of pudding and chocolate cake topped with a heavy layer of cookie crumbs with gummy worms sticking out of the top – DIVINE!  So ends Saturday, January 9, 2010. 

Sunday, January 10^th: Up and attem!

We score breakfast in the lounge; it ain’t bacon and eggs but enough Danish, muffins and yogurt that you never know the difference. Then off to the Magic Kingdom with hundreds of our new friends! We can walk from the hotel or ride the monorail completely around in a circle so we walk. It is a beautiful,
cold day – 29 degrees. The serious marathoners ran early this morning and it is not much warmer as we begin our day. Long before arriving I made reservations so that we could take in the “Keys to the Kingdom Tour”, never thinking it would be BELOW freezing for, what I thought was, a 3.5 to 4 hour tour. I felt a bit like Gilligan when I realized it was more like a 5 hour tour and could have been 6 had it not been so dang cold. The good news: lunch was included.

Ron handled this much better than I anticipated since it went on and on and on. Of course following the tour I wanted to do the things I had noted on the guide map so let the day begin. The tour included more Disney proselytizing than we preferred and not nearly enough “secret” good stuff. Virginia, our guide, began by saying she would answer any question we asked and at the end of the tour I asked how many “Mickeys” there were and she immediately clammed up. “There is only ONE Mickey, just as there is only one Santa and one Jesus. Many folks may step into the costume but there is only ONE.” SO I have no idea if there is only one servicing the entire park or if you might catch one at Epcot orAnimal Kingdom at the same time one is milling around The Magic Kingdom.

There was one family on the tour, mother, father and 3 kids in their very late teens or early 20s who knew all manner of Disney trivia. So much so, that Virginia found herself deferring to one of the boys periodically. We were seated at lunch with a couple who had been visiting WDW for the past 34 years at this particular time to celebrate their anniversary. They LOVE the place and have favorite rides,attractions, etc. They brought their children annually and now their grandchildren at other times during the year but in January, it’s all about them! Folks are besotted with the place. This couple told us that often in the summer if you get to do 2 rides during a day that’s agreat day. I couldn’t even imagine…

There were some interesting tidbits tossed out during the tour but I
appreciated the fact that we got to experience the Jungle Cruise and learned that this was one of the original Disney attractions that old Walt loaded up and took to the World’s Fair a zillion years ago just to see if folks on the East coast would get into the whole Disney gig. On the Jungle Cruise you ride along in boats and are regaled by the humor of your safari dressed tour guide. The whole thing is supposed to be funny but we missed that part cause our tour guide took over to tell us secrets about the cruise so no humor, but I loved the ride AND got to mark it off my list!

Splash Mountain, in Frontierland, is one of the most popular rides but it was out of commission to be refurbished and they couldn’t have chosen a better time. I mean who wants to zip down into a pool of water in 30 degree weather? Somewhere between Frontierland and Adventureland, our group was allowed to go behind the scenes to see what we could see and just like out front, it was neat and clean as a pin. The one big difference is that you could see characters walking around without their character-heads on. There are sight-lines and markings here and there that all the cast members use to know when and where guests might possibly see them and they are basically “on” all the time. ALL employees are called “cast members” because according to Walt the whole visit should make one feel like they are in a fantasy world, a movie per se.

Allow me to digress since I have been extremely curious as to
how we would be treated during our visit to WDW. For years I have heard that this is THE Gold Standard for customer service. Well… having been steeped in customer service from my early days with business to the present, I beg to differ. Most Disney “cast members” were cordial and although no one was rude some would certainly rather not have been bothered. Perhaps it was the weather. That could make one pissy, for sure. No one went above and beyond the call of duty, which surprised me. Many had what mother would have described as “surly” expressions. I’m sure
doing the same thing over and over and over and over all day must be terribly boring, not much different than working on a factory line, so I guess my expectations were higher than necessary.

After lunch we got to experience the “Haunted Mansion”, another
‘must-do’ from my list, so again I was thrilled. Virginia told us some
secrets of the house and then made sure we were all loaded into our
“doom buggies” (ha!) for the very calm tour. I was hoping for scary but I guess you have to go to the Hotel of Terror in another part of the park for that experience. Supposedly in the Hotel, you are in an elevator conveyance and experience a drop of 14 floors which leaves folks breathless. (Guess they don’t mention that some of those same folks also wet themselves.) I think I’m glad we missed that event.

Following the mansionwe made our way back up Mainstreet and then snuck thru a double-door ina shop, which led us out back again. They use double-doors so that should a child see someone disappear thru a door, he will not be able to see anything on the other side of the door but darkness. From this point we headed underground for our tour of the famed utilidoors. I had been panting, waiting all day to see this magical underground of tunnels and connections. It was a bit of a letdown to realize that in fact the utilidoors are built on ground level and all of the Magic Kingdom is built ABOVE them. It’s Florida, remember? You can’t build UNDEGROUND –d’uhoh… And ‘utilidoors’ is just a made up word for utility corridors. The tunnels are large enough to drive or bike through so cast members, food
and products can get from one place to another without being seen. One wonder of nature is the giant vacuum/trash system. Folks are continually changing out trash cans in the kingdom and someone (or a lot of someones) actually go thru every piece of trash in the utilidoor area. They sort out all recyclables; watch for anything that might have value so it can be left with Lost and Found and then send everything else to this monster trash compactor. I still get the willies just thinking that people have to physically sort all this stuff BY hand – oh my!

All tour members were issued audio headsets that used a single earphone that hung over one ear like a Bluetooth set and the gizmo connected to it rode on your belt or in your pocket. This allowed Virginia to speak in a normal tone of voice into a tiny mic. We could hear her without the public being able to do so. I was most impressed with the system with only one exception. It was quite sensitive so we were able to hear every sniff and since it was cold,Virginia was doing as much sniffing as the rest of us. She also made the whole trek in pumps and I can only imagine how her feet must have hurt and she made no bones about saying her toes were absolutely frozen.

When the tour ended, I dragged Ron back into the park so we could experience “The Pirates of the Caribbean”. I had heard numerous times that your boat falls over a 14 foot drop and that this is the largest/longest ride in the park so I was looking forward to both. Well, it was a very, very tame ride. I don’t know if I even noticed the 14ft drop. After you hear, “Yo ho, yo ho a pirate’s life for me!” for a full 10 minutes, believe me, you leave humming or cursing the tune.Now before we were able to do this Ron INSISTED on an ice cream cone and once he got it, he balked like a donkey. I was ready, ready, ready to proceed and like Sissy’s Honey horse I was pulling at the reins. The more I tried to get him to move the more stubborn he became; standing, staring at the Mickey production in front of the castle while I pouted and pawed at the ground. When he was almost finished with his cone he began to move very
slowly toward Adventureland and in his ‘haste’ (I use this word
sarcastically) the rest of the ice cream on his cone plopped onto the
sidewalk. I was torn between mortification (he messed up Mickey’s
driveway) and fear (I wasn’t sure if he was going to grow fur and
fangs). I mean by now we were both exhausted but I wasn’t about to quit till I had checked off everything on MY list, by gum! So off we went.

From the Caribbean we hustled through Frontierland on a search for a Sheriff’s badge for Maureen and then Ron got a short respite while we waited for the 3PM parade. I was pushing and shoving, like a good tourist, while Ron was leaned up against some wall or fence. When the parade finally made its way to us I was almost in tears wanting to be waved at by characters and whisked away into the fantasy we didn’t have as children.

As the parade passes, it is followed by cast members immediately
removing the ropes that keep you from being run over so that as the last car or character goes by tourists are allowed back into the roads to continue to shop or ride or whatever. We were off again back across the park to Fantasyland to experience another of
Walt’s original attractions: “It’s a small world”. This was one of the 4 taken to the World’s Fair and was an incredible hit, as they say. Being an old attraction it was unbelievably antiquated compared with Test Drive or Soarin but still popular. I would kill myself if they
assigned me to work in or near this attraction because before you even enter to begin your wait, and yes, you had to wind your way back and forth and forth and back through several verses of the song before boarding your boat where you continued to hear the song in various languages (same tune, mind you) for the duration. I am truly surprised that Ron’s head did not spin off during this and as I look back I should have seen that this was truly the beginning of the end of that day – ha!

Lucky for me that the next thing I wanted to do was just down the block and mind you although all of this looks close together on the
diagram/map, it isn’t. From one area to another is a hike. Within an
area might also be a hike. We were not mentally prepared for this and by this time of day, the park was crowded. I snatched his coat and led the way to Mickey’s PhilharMagic, which may well have been my favorite memory. This is a 3D movie experience that is similar to Walt’s dream for Fantasia. He had hoped that movie theaters would allow patrons the full experience; sight, sound, smell, touch. Since few agreed,Fantasia for the public never fulfilled his dream, but this movie fulfilled mine. It was fun, funny and full of special effects: the smells, the sounds around you and of course the FULL 3-D effect where I really thought I could touch Donald Duck (he was IN YOUR FACE). At the end of the movie Donald ends up flying out of the screen and into the projection booth (well, not really but you get the idea). So that the entire audience ends up looking behind them to find a giant Donald bottom sticking out of the projection booth with his legs shaking around. And from this originates the Donald hat that many people were wearing during the race. I had no idea why they were wearing what could only be described as Donald’s butt with 2 duck legs sticking up in the
air. Well, now I knew but what I didn’t know was that THE ONLY place in WDW to get that hat was RIGHT there as you exited the movie and of course, I wasn’t smart enough to stop. When I finally did give it a thought I figured I could find one of the hats in some other Disney store everywhere on the property and this is when I learned the lesson: Nemo at Nemo, Donald at Mickey’s Philharmagic, etc. I should back up and say that as we waited to take our seats in the theater, Ron became more than antsy. Surrounded by children at the end of the day he was THROUGH! Stick a fork in him, he was DONE. So was I but I could NOT leave this park until I completed my mission and I would have been P-I-SSSED if he had walked out which he threatened to do. I had to beg him to stay and I
think even he would admit that he enjoyed the show but when it was over – so was HE!

By sheer will I managed to direct him to Tomorrowland, pretending that it was on our way to the exit. Well, you could argue that it would take us there. It wasn’t a straight shot but he clomped along with me fully expecting us to get “out” so imagine his displeasure when I pulled up beside “Stitch’s Great Escape” and begged him to do “just ONE more thing…” huh-uh, no way, no how… There was NO line, I begged more, I pleaded, I cajoled, I made promises I could never keep and still he wouldn’t budge. I was left to experience Stitch by myself. Crap! Well, it was very fun and funny, complete with SMELLS again!!! Stitch burps and you smell this AWFUL oniony mess that could make one gag and then you have the sensation that he is jumping on your shoulders – loved that. Overall worth the non-wait so I raced out and told Ron what fun it was and wouldn’t he just love the experience… not on your life. While I
was inside he had found the way to the exit so off we went, me pouting and him on a mission. When we once again hit MainStreet he willingly followed me into the Emporium, a store that covered an entire city block where he actually helped me look for the shirt we wanted to get Sissy’s husband. When we couldn’t find it, we both almost ran from the park. I must admit that I still wanted to ride the train that runs around the top of the entrance and if I ever return it will top my list but by the time we walked back to the hotel and loaded up with goodies from the lounge, it was all we could do to crawl to our room where we immediately canceled
our dinner reservations at the Wilderness Lodge. As much as I wanted to ride the boat over and see this unique resort property there was no way you could have blasted either of us out of that room. We were whipped. And so, we crawled in our beds cursing strollers, small children and the tune “It’s a small world after all…”

Monday, the 11^th, and we are exhausted. (imagine that!) Today our plans take us back to Epcot. I had chosen not to purchase Park Hopper passes so we could not move from one park to another in a single day; frankly, I don’t see how folks do that anyway but it is quite popular. This means that we completely missed visiting Animal Kingdom and Universal Studios and we blew off Downtown Disney because it is mainly a shopping extravaganza. Getting to these other parks requires you to board buses at the Transportation Center, which would have been fine, except for the cold and again the lack of a ticket. We could have used our last day pass at any park but decided that there might be a few more attractions at Epcot
we would like to see AND we had reservations for lunch at Tutto, the Italian restaurant Sally had suggested.

We took our time getting out of the room and down to the monorail to begin our trek so of course when we arrived at Epcot I panicked. I thought it would be useful to mark things off on our way to and from lunch and if you check the diagram you will see, once again, what a stupid idea this was. The one thing we both agreed on was that we could not leave Epcot at the end of the day without going into the Epcot sphere. I mean it is THE emblem for the place like the star on the front of my car and what the heck IS in there? Since the sphere marks the entrance, we wisely chose to go there LAST on our way OUT of the park. Somehow, in the 24 hours or so that had passed, I had forgotten how long it was going to take us to get from the entrance to lunch but this didn’t deter me from taking a chance and dragging Ron in to see, “Honey I Shrunk the Audience” another 3-D movie complete with the sensation of something furry bumping your ankles and water being sprayed on you when
the dog sneezes at the movie’s end. I LOVED it and Ron was tolerant until we walked out and realized that it was already 1:30, our reservation time and we were not close to Italy! Off we hustled with Ron lagging behind and asking at every kiosk, “why can’t we just get something here?” Well, because this was to be our only ‘real’ meal and I wanted the ‘experience’ (do you see a pattern here?)

By the time we dragged ourselves into the Tutto we were sweating from the exertion, the amount of layers we were wearing and I was fully prepared for the hostesses to say, “SAWRY, you are way beyond your appointed time.” But alas, they had pity on us and after we ‘rested’ in the special rooms, we were seated. Poor Ron. We were seated in a VERY crowded space surrounded by, what felt like, jillions of children. The entrees were not inexpensive and once again I was agog that folks could afford to feed a table full of folks. I have to re-visit the dining plan should I ever become demented and choose to return to Walt’s world.

I broke down and celebrated with a single glass of Proseco while Ron had coffee and 2 appetizers. My meal was mahi-mahi prepared some Disney-way that was truly fabulous and would have been even more enjoyable had I been able to hear anything other than the low rumble of the crowd. When we finished we were both more than ready to get back outside and since the day had turned out beautiful, cold but beautiful, the sidewalks were packed. Imagine summer???

We both thought it might be cool to ride Soarin again so we headed
slowly back toward that side of the park trying to take in sights and
sounds along the way. One of the kiosks sells giant turkey legs, which I had oogled on Saturday’s visit not really knowing what they
were. Wanna know why? Because they had some sort of raspberry red goo or something in the meat that made me feel quite gaggy as I watched folks gnaw on them and was very glad that Ron either didn’t notice them or made no comment about them. I don’t think I could have watched him devour one of these because from my home-eccky background I had the serious inclination to think that they were not properly cooked. Of course I knew better since WDW’s NUMBER ONE GOAL is safety so I guess the goo was just goo… EEEwww…

Back to Soarin where there was a 40 or so minute wait and we did just that. We waited. Since there are 3 rows of ‘gliders’, as luck would have it, this time our places in line put us on row 2. Now because we had already done this once I was inclined to look around a bit and not focus on the unknown. The first thing I noticed once the ride began was that you could see the feet of all the people on the front row. Their glider is raised to the highest level I guess allowing their feet to dangle above and in front of our glider. I guess if this had been my initial ride I might not have even noticed this since I would have been focused directly in front of me instead of gaping around like “country come to town”.

When we exited I decided to see if I could direct Ron into another ride in the same building and for some reason he allowed me to do so. I had read about this and thought it might be interesting to him and it turned out that I was RIGHT! This was one of the super slow, ride around in a little boat deals that showed you some of the Disney greenhouses. Even I liked it because they were growing veggies hydroponically – meaning NO soil. The items were, in some cases, enormous and in others unusual. Ron did like this so I felt like I was on a roll.

He was ready for an ice cream so I spent a little time wandering through a shop while he noshed as we worked our way toward the exit. One our way we were to pass one last attraction that I had marked: Mission:Space. Months ago I read an article in the New York Times written by a lady who had accompanied her teenage son to WDW. After riding this, he had cajoled her into doing so with him and she couldn’t say enough about the uniqueness of the experience and how unreal it had been to be able to feel the effects of 3-G force. Well, I thought – I’ve done these other
things and it is NOT a roller-coaster (oh and there is a roller-coaster in another park that flips upside down that is a supposed – ‘not to be missed’ ride that I am thoroughly thrilled that I missed…) Anyway, I started preparing Ron by giving him a few details from the article and as we got to the building he agreed we should give it a whirl, so to speak. There are 2 entrances; one for the lesser experience and one for the intense experience. Well, if kids can do this, surely I, too, can handle the intense experience, right? Although no one was waiting outside, the line moved slowly. Once inside you had lots of time to read the numerous signs and listen to the disembodied voices saying over and over and over that if you have a tendency toward motion sickness you might want to reconsider. Pppssshhhhaaww I thought – a simple Disney scare tactic; although as I think back on it, this scare tactic was not used anywhere else that I visited. Hhhhhmmm… I mean at each stopping point you were re-reminded that this ride is NOT for everyone. Ha! I laugh in the face of danger! I had ridden Test Drive and to top it off was one of the last ones to do so since they had closed the ride on Sunday to refurbish it. Wasn’t I lucky?

Upon entry to Mission:Space you are assigned a title: pilot, engineer, commander and navigator, in a feeble attempt to make you feel fully vested. You are seated in a row of 4 seats by your title – I was the commander, Ron the engineer – ha! There is a large cage in front of you for your belongings, which locked once you let the door close and then you are locked into your seat. There is a holder with airsick bags (the first time I had seen this on a ride) and that was when I realized that perhaps I had made a mistake. But now there was no getting out. You are told to keep your eyes OPEN at all times to decrease the chance of nausea and to hold your head BACK against the seat rest. DO NOT lean forward for any reason. It seems these directives were given in very ominous tones or at least that is how I recall them now. And then, it begins. You are pressed back until you actually feel the skin on your face pulling back taut (I liked that and wondered for a split second if
it would help some of my sagginess) but I had no time to dwell on this as you are looking at a video that gives you the impression you are on the shuttle. Not only do you have the feeling of incredible speed and force, you also get the wonderful sensation of twirling which made me break out in a sweat and begin to pray. Although every cell of my body begged me to close my eyes, I think that I actually forced them open wider with the sad idea that this might decrease the level of nausea whose grip had me surrounded. At some point one of us was told to press a button on our console to hit the thrusters and we surged ahead even faster. Although my peripheral vision is not great, I noticed Ron following commands when the engineer was told to do this or that but if our lives had depended on me following those given to the commander we
would be forever lost in space. I could not nor would I move my hands or arms and was intent on one thing – living through this.

Naturally we had to dodge meteorites and asteroids, which required
shifting left and right and this sent me to a new level of prayer. As we neared the surface of Mars, the purpose of this mission, I was as weak as a kitten and begging God to please let this be the end of the ride and NOT have to head back to Earth. I must have begged hard enough because sure enough it was over and as I moved my head very slowly to see what Ron was doing I noticed people already being loaded into the seats in the next car. The two folks to my left exited immediately but I had to virtually move at a snail’s pace to get out of the vehicle and then it was all I could do to exit the hallway so that they could start the ride again. Ron was mildly amused with me and maybe a tad concerned but I didn’t care. My initial thought was to sue someone or fall to my knees and kiss the ground again but I felt certain if I fell down I would never recover so I continued toward the light!

When we finally made it into the sunlight Ron admitted that he too got a bit woozy. A bit woozy? Let me say I was off-kilter ALL evening and it took very little for me to re-visit the place of extreme nausea for several hours. I really can’t remember if we sat down or stood still or what happened but for the next few minutes I realized that I was very thankful to simply be alive. As Oprah would say, “what I have learned is that if Disney suggests you might be sick – believe it – you MIGHT be sick.” I have wondered many times how they clean up after the ones who choose to move their heads or close their eyes. That must happen at least once a day but I swear I didn’t smell vomit at all.

We finally wobbled toward the sphere and found to our amazement, no line. This may well be because this is an older attraction so it isn’t filled with lots of cool animation and certainly moves at a speed that suited both of us. You board little roller-coaster-like cars for a ride that takes you around the inside of the sphere gazing at
panoramas/dioramas and the like and the wax or other type of figures look very much like they needed to be dusted. There was a very strange odor in this place that kept bile in my throat the entire time but since I was certain we weren’t going to flip over or race around a mouse-track curve I was able to hold it back. When you leave the station at the beginning of the ride, a camera takes a picture of the two of you and uses this at the end of the ride to create a story about you. A touch-screen is located on the back of the car in front of you and as you wind down you are asked several multiple choice questions. Of course I was going to be serious with our responses but Ron chose to make our answers most bizarre resulting in one of the funniest moments in the entire trip. The computer takes your responses, again creating a story, and superimposes your head shots on these cartoon (George Jetson like)
bodies. We were screaming – even Ron was hooting. People in front and behind us, having responded seriously were learning how they could protect the earth or save the planet and WE were in this hysterical situation where Ron breaks a leg in a skiing incident and then I have to take care of him in tree-house or some sort. We were still laughing when we got out of our car – no one else was – but we were. It was probably the perfect ending to our visit in Walt’s world.

From there, it was back to the monorail and back to the hotel to flop on our respective beds to try to assimilate all we had done in such a short time. I’ll say this; like aging, DisneyWorld is NOT for sissies.
 

HOME AT LAST!
When Tuesday arrived we were both ready to skip town. Riding The
Magical Express to the airport gives you an added kick in the butt. You are picked up 3 hours prior to flight time, which is good unless that means that now we had gotten up before dawn cracked for multiple, consecutive mornings. And even though you are leaving WDW the powers that be take another opportunity to regale with other vacation options. The “coaches” are wired with video so get comfy and prepare to learn all about Disney Cruises and Disney Rental/Timeshare choices. There was actually a man in our Keys to the Kingdom Tour who said he would love to be a rep for Disney Timeshares. I think my head spun around when he said this but he seemed both sane and serious.

Orlando’s International Airport is BIG so getting there a couple of
hours ahead of flight time is worth the effort. This is where Ron and I parted ways; he off to Miami for an eye appointment and me home to Bizmo and reality. 

The reality was grocery shopping and retrieving Ron from
the airport around 8:30 that evening. My flight was uneventful
and arrived a tad early allowing me a full day to get the house back in some semblance of order and catch up on a bit of this and that before another shower and off to the airport again. Ron had similar luck and arrived early so we were home by 9PM where I must have felt that the smoothness of the entire adventure had been entirely too mundane. As we walked down the steps from the garage to the side entrance, my right foot twisted under me and I fell right on top of it when I thought I was on the bottom step, rather than the one above it. Luckily, even though my foot looked awful, the pop I heard was a joint capsule breaking off rather than a ligament tearing or a bone breaking. I lucked out! In 6 to 8 weeks, following a stint in a walking boot and ankle brace I will be back to normal.

Within a week I canceled my plans to walk in Nashville in April and
registered to walk in the Coast-to-Coast Endurance Challenge at
Disneyland, in September!! The email teaser that arrived sucked me in with the promise of an additional medal celebrating the 5th year of this particular half marathon. What can I say? I like bling…