Nrthwnd

Hmmm. And that's a .... good thing.

Somewhere in Europe. Starting June 22, 2008.

Just found out. He's left us, quietly just as he was with us in life. A genius in the art of not speaking but being able to tell a whole tale/story with just his body, spare props and a face that rivalled Charlie Chaplin in expression and emotion. Sad. And nothing else to say, really.

Our civic workers strike in Vancouver, Canada... Is still going... 66 days and counting... Yuck.

^ One of your blackouts is safe with me, roomie. How you doing since getting back, Shane? Your kids still going OMGOMGOMG over all the "stuff" you've bought and brought back for them? And have you saved at least one of those things for......Christmas maybe? Your concerned former roomie.

Thanks for posting your TRs. But one of the first photos I see that you've posted, made me go OMG - I know a few of them!!! Wish I could have added-on, but wasn't able to for this tour. Thanks for sharing what you've visited with the group, so far. OMG I know some of these people! (I hate you.) Some peeps have all the time, huh? (wink)

"My Junk" from the Orig.Broadway cast CD of Spring Awakening

Sorry, I forgot there's more than one "Playland" in North America, lol My home park in Vancouver, Canada is called Playland. Home to one of the top 25 (still, I hope?) wooden coasters in the world. Celebrating it's 50th Birthday next season! And that's about it for this crapular place. Here: http://www.themeparkreview.com/forum/viewtopic.php?t=38879&start=0&postdays=0&postorder=asc&highlight= Take a look. Think some themeing of some/ANY kind would be good for it?

I finished scanning all my photos from the TPR Japan Tour! Looking good, they are. All... 105 of them!

"What You Want" from the orig.Brodway Cast CD of Legally Blonde: The Musical

NO ^ you take another 35 hours+ (just a number I thought up, lol) and rest, enjoy the memories of the trips you've just been on (and supremely organized, kiss kiss ) ---- and then get everybody caught up... Mmmm'k??? Just a suggest.

^^ Great and nicely varied collection you have there. I especially like the shot glasses, heh heh. I have a couple of shooter glasses myself (one for 'Air' at Alton Towers; other of DisneyParis) that I use regularly; coffee mugs and drinking glasses, too. I didn't think any other parks but the American Disney parks did 'currency' in them. What's the (is that a) Dora The Explorer dollar from? I got two flattened pennies at Tokyo Disney - one for Scary Teddy at HM/NBC (my little hero) and the Disney Resort Line (shows the mouse ears hand strap on the monorails). And managed to keep a few un-used Fastpasses from the Tokyo parks I didn't think I wouldn't use. Also a few from the Universal FastBooks that I just couldn't use up in time, before leaving the park. Fun stuff to keep and look at, from time to time. And hey - some of it you can even use in daily life, LOL!

Sorry to hear you lose a pet that way. Sucks. Am glad to hear they found somebody who did it, although that'll be tough to go through too I know, finding out who actually did it, etc. But glad to hear you've found another new member of your family! The pain of loss will subside eventually, in it's own way/time. Never entirely, but enough to make current things easier for you and your family. Looking forward to pix of the newbie in your brood, lol.

Not sleepy enough to get to bed, yet.

The song you pick just starts, once you lave the station and head for the lifthill. Unlike the onride sound systems that Disney puts together (Space Mountain; Rock "n Roller Coaster) and usually creates and times it's music with the length and ups/downs of the ride.... This was just a matter of: you pick what style of music you wanted (out of five choices), and the song started just after you left the station. Then, if the song happens to run longer than the coaster ride istelf - they just faded the song out when you reached the station. My fave was the Classic Rock selection, being the Beatles' "Get back." But I never heard the entire song since like I just said, the ride was shorter than the actual music , heh heh. Nothing more complicated than that. And for the $$$$ money they probably spent on this ride, I owuld have thought they would have done more in synch-ing the music with the ride's timing. Like Disney does. But it was still a nice coaster with a great time riding over and around the Universal buildings, hitting a couple of air pops and a helix before hitting the station. And at night, it was great-looking with star-like bursts of lights (comet-like?) streaking from the front car to the back of the trains. First roller coaster I have ever seen using on-train running lights like this. It might be something Universal might use in one of their future coasters in IOA and/or the US Studio parks. Was definitely very cool to ride.

Very nice TR. I would imagine the place takes on an even more festive "look" to it when the winter and actual Christmas seasons roll around, hmmm? But to maintain that kind of atmosphere in a non-holiday season can be pretty hard. It looks like the people at this park, do just fine. Maybe that's what our Playland should do - go with a really heavy seasonal theme to it. Would certainly be an improvement over "Parking Lot Chic" lol. Thanks for sharing your trip.

My most excellent feline companion, She Who Is Named CAMILLE, has been following my posting of my TOP TEN LIST of the TPR Japan Tour with most interest, especially looking forward to who (or what) will be The #1 Pick of The List. In between postings though, she is bored as heck, so she started her usual "look at me pose and look cute" thing nearby, making sure I was close by to see AND to of course, have the available camera for such cuteness and posing.... So here she is, looking cute, and as bored as ever, lol. And stay tuned for TOP TEN LIST (of the TPR Japan Tour) #4-2 on Monday. Kon bon wa. Nothing like looking cute, to pass the time away.

Hate to make you less po'd at us Brian, but the fact is, we only saw these sweet girls three times at TDS. #1 - In the queue, on same ride vehicle, and at on-ride pic booth of Indy/Crystal Skull. #2 - In the queue, on the same ride, and after the ride of Scooter's Scuttles - and that's when we ran into you, lol. and #3 - And I swear to Goofy, we ran into them only one more time, in the middle of the bridge (awww) connecting Cape Cod with the American Waterfront. Said our goodbyes as best we could understand, of each other. Then as we headed to the front gate, and they headed to the back of the park - it started to POUR. Buckets. But "for the record...": Here's my little souvenir of..... my gals. Six charming lovely young women. And me. GRIN.

Monday, September 10, 2007 Hamanako Pal Pal park, Japan I found my true in flat rides. So much so, I rode it four times in a row! As did several of us there at the time, lol. A two-seater Paratrooper-Enterprise-like thing. One that can have the seats LOCKED in place (see top of the wheel in the pic below?) at the BWWWA-HA-HAaaaa merciless desire of the ride op??? The real deal in this amazing flat, is that when your chair was unlocked you could possibly swing your seats around into a 360' loop! Or more, as or Au$$ie A$$hole rep Rich proved on every ride he took, with or without a buddy passenger! (Ask Lou 'bout that one, lolol.) Never thought I'd want to ride something like this again - and again - and again! Mmm, man does my home park need this flat. Yummers.

^ Same went for Terminator 2: 3D, for me. The hostess was a hoot, and she was just falling over herself overacting and sending up a pretty lame part for the attraction. Definitely had the preshow audience in stitches and I still didn't understand what was really going on, but it didn't really matter. It felt very funny and I laughed along, just because. Same went for the Jungle Cruise guide we had on our boat, at TDL. Over the top in movements and actions, which made up for lack of understanding the language, lol. They were all great.

^ They took several takes of the Corkscrew running, and then made up whatever layout they chose to fulfill their needs for the movie. With those shots. It's a really simple layout, and not much else. It doesn't run the way it did in the movie. Man, that would be way more exciting, hmm? Dangerous too, LOL!

^ Thanks Brian. Remember, Peter has been on the S.Korea trip so he may not want to post anything (including "Our Girls") until he returns home this weekend. Then again - it's his choice whether to publish the pix or not, hmm? You may have to bribe him somehow, heh heh. $$$ thru PayPal always helps, I know. And I'm STILL waiting for BIG MIKE to post his poolside pix of the TPR Beau-tays during the TPR Spain Tour . Actually, I think several hundred fanboys are waiting for those pix too, lolol. More Top Ten picks (incl.The Best Park Ever, IMhO) on Monday!

Back in May, after returning home from another great visit to Disney Paris I decided to go for a Sat.afternoon first visit this season, to my home park Playland. Since it was only a 40 min. or so walk to the place (I walk there, then take the bus back to home) I decided I might as well use my season pass and check out the place. And after that visit - well, I went once more and didn't return for the rest of the summer. Then, the Japan Tour happened, and now I have two weekends left to oooo and awe (ick) over our "parking lot theme park" that looks like it's in constant readiness to pick up and move to the next county, lol. Overcast skies that day too. Enjoy my park. One final look across the front of the park. Been just over an hour or so. Yeah, that's enough time to spend here. Till next season, and Coaster's 50th Anny! (o: The Mouse. Fairly wild. Simple layout. I like Blackpool's Mousie muuuch better. Our Corkscrew. Yeah, it's the one featured in Final Destination: 3. Yummy Vekoma pain and rust. Moving to the other end of the park, we find a thoroughly neglected, under patronized Hell's Gate. With no working water effects whatsoever. Let's see. They got a "new exciting attraction" called WONDER WHEEL here. Bigger than a normal ferris wheel! Woo. And this was our new ride for this season... The Only Reason this crappy asphalt park continues to survive. And our great woodenCoaster will be celebrating 50 years, next year! Note closed shop and games? And it's 1 pm all-friggin' ready! This is how the park "greets" you when you enter the main gate. Um... yeah. Season Pass processing center there in front. My glorious black and white Season Pass! Pretty simple, huh? On the way to the park - random house shot. WHY would anyone paint ONLY part of a house dark blue???

^ Totally agree with that. You couldn't pay me enough to even sip that.... stuff, lol.

^ Looks like you've got a very sweet setup, whichever way the job offer goes. Good luck on that.