bert425

chiming in as well. it BARELY makes my top 5: MF Maverick TTD Gemini SV

it should be laughed out of court.

yes, I'm logged in and working on a Sunday morning (sheesh). but while waiting for a response to an email from overseas (it's Midnight in Asia right now, but they are online trying to resolve something) - I'm gonna post a few more shots of things purchased on my Japan trip: T-Shirts (some Godzilla ones!), Diecast vehicles, Disney Halloween swag, and a Totoro coin purse (that got lots of "so cute!" reactions every time I pulled it out during the trip to pay for things. T-shirts, Japan Gay Pride (RainbowFesta!) souvenirs, and the UFO noodle pack I made at Yomiuriland. yes, I schlepped that whole thing home in my suitcase (most others who made the noodles, at them while in Japan. . LOL). closeup on some of the T-shirts (with magnets/keychains on the left. . I guess since the 2020 Olympics got postponed, some of that stuff is now more collectable?). More Magnets the Doom Buggy / Haunted Mansion candy-holders that I did my search for on the final day (I bought 3, but kept two of them for me, and gifted one to a friend who had asked me to get him anything Haunted Mansion from Japan) - the Hello Kitty stuff above it were gifts for another friend more magnets / gifts for friends/coworkers, and some Disney Capsule Machine toys bought at the parks (the gift shop exiting Tower of Terror at TDS, and I believe by Pirates of the Caribbean) Studio Ghibli & Godzilla magnets? oh..those are all for ME. no idea what this Bear was, but saw the magnets and fell in love, and bought different versions of him. the only "official" park magnets I could find (other than that one TDS Halloween one in a prior picture). i bought two of each, because another friend had asked me to please try to get her any Disneyland Magnet I could find for her. So since there are two parks, two magnets. . . total 4 bought. they aren't my favorite magnet type (not a fan of the "puffy" ones), but I do like them and I LOVE the music on the CD - it's the Spooky Boo parade soundtrack. more gifts for another friend -this time for a friend who's a Star Wars fanatic, and when I discovered these pins are TDL park exclusives, I picked them up for him. I was confused by the popcorn bracelet, but once it was explained it was an "R2D2 popcorn bucket" charm bracelet, got that for him too. the HardRock Yokohama limited edition Halloween pin, I picked up when we were at CosmoWorld (and Jon and I wandered across to the Hard Rock so I could look for a KISS pin). Godzilla diorama I spent way too much time (and some $$) trying to win from a Claw Machine in a claw arcade with Jon. but yes, it was a ton of fun. and the Super Deformed version, won from another claw machine, in another claw machine arcade (both were near the Giant Godzilla statue/hotel in Shinjuku) the 2020 Disney Calendar (hanging on my wall next to me) that I picked up in TDL on the way out one evening. the images in it are absolutely lovely - even if none of the USA holidays are noted, and those holidays that are noted are in Japanese. still, it's amazing, and love it. 3D Godzilla Magnet - picked up at the "Hotel Gracery," (the Godzilla statue Hotel) in Shinjuku gift shop close up of some of the Studio Ghibli stuff.. the coal puff is a magnet section of stuff I got for my best friend Russell. . .. the Doom Buggy candy holder, a tin of treats w/ Chocolate Crunch, some die cast vehicles, and PVC blind box collectible (he told me it was a Country Bear with Pumpkin head) magnets bought as gifts for co-workers. . .gave me lots of choices to hand out. more gifts for folks, and swag for me. I prolly shouldn't have handed out the Olympic pendants to my group (as noted, they likely are way more collectible now, and I broke up the set to hand out 1 each to my 4 coworkers I work very closely with. . but at least I kept the green one for me ). and they all loved the mini boxes of Cubic Chocolate Crunch

5'10". . . per the height/weight I'm "Overweight" it CLAIMS I'm supposed to be 160 lbs to be "normal" Of course, I look in the mirror and see "fat" regardless. . years of yo-yo weight, ya know? I've been stuck for several weeks now, and as noted didn't weigh yet until next week. .and suspect I'll be back up over 180 when I do . . but at least I'm keeping up my daily exercise!

the lap bar on 1001 Nachts was SO tight, we were miserable on it - was thrilled it was the shortest ride cycle we experienced. my only negative from a long, long day at Knoebel's with TPR we laughed about it for the rest of the day. . but yeah. . . .you missed nothing by not ever riding that. bigger question (for me) tho. . did you ride the OTHER carousel (the antique S&G one over by the rocket slide?. . that one has got some portraits on it of Knoebel's family members in the hand-painted panels) good job on the brass ring

^ good job, Dan. . slow and steady progress will always work. Even if you 'cheat' some days. i've been stuck on a plateau of 177.6 lbs. . .tho not sure if "stuck" is really the right word, since I'm actually below what my stretch goal was. so i guess, really I'm maintaining. I was supposed to weigh in today, but will wait one more week, as have been massively stress eating with a lot of casseroles (I cook when I'm stressed, and it's been very stressful lately). but I'm still doing my exercise (walking) - I walk outside in the neighborhood, either on the street, or an asphalt path in the park. keep it up!

^ I hadn't realized that Hagrid's is not at Universal Studios proper.. it's at Islands of Adventure? are there other Potter rides there? or are the other big rides (the one we rode in Japan, Hippogriff, and the bank one) all in USO? Came back to EDIT - since I made use of TPR's *fantastic* Park Index - right there at the top left link! - to look it up. I really had no idea that the majority of the Potter rides are at IOA. (then again, the USJ was my first Universal Park I've ever really been to - that I can recall at least).

yup! and I made them a few weeks later, and they were. . . . um.. . acceptable. (but I'm sure that was more about my choices of what to put in them than anything else. . LOL). I saved the hand made lid as a keepsake - it's on the wall in the comic room.

apologies it has taken me THIS long to get back to this thread. Covid-19 has really impacted my available free time - as tho I worked from Home already most days? since late March when everyone started working from home at my Company. . . well. . let's just say it's made for some VERY long days (having to talk folks thru having to do things, and working really late hours due to many many more virtual meetings with my co-workers around the world - via Skype or Microsoft Teams (won't do Zoom tho.. refuse to load that onto my work laptop!). add into this, some re-org changes that I was hit with in mid April, that resulted in me scrambling to find a different position within the company (so long hours training for the new position I found, and then even longer hours passing down my old position to the new folks taking it over - overseas of course - since the re-org meant what I had been supporting was only going to be overseas supported by end of Q3).... and .. *of course* the day before I was supposed to start in the new position? Crises that they need me to stay to help support for another 3 months on the old job. So still in situation where I'm working really long hours most days. all that has contributed to me simply not having a lot of time to post on TPR all that much. Tho I'm able to stay pretty active on the TPR Facebook Forums, since I keep FB open on my Home Computer behind my Work Laptop. So easy enough to pop in for a comment or a post there. anyways. . . gonna try to update this over the next couple of days/weeks, to show off some of the swag I got while in Japan with TPR. I've missed you all! and can't wait to be able to travel again. the dining room table after I got back from Japan. yeah. . I bought a few things. I'll post close ups over the next several updates, and give details (if anyone is interested). if you spot something you're curious about? ask.. I'll let you know if I have pics upcoming that go into further detail. just a few Souvenirs purchased. . LOL this was one of the fun things, I picked up from a Capsule vending machine at the Tobu Zoo. (at least that's where I think I got it). it's a series of Animals at Urinals. why? well, Duh! Japan! now opened the capsule, and here's the insert from it and the parts.. I didn't get the Bear (sad). .but I did get the penguin! notice the pieces left to right: Stand, Urinal, Baby (who watches daddy pee!), and Emperor Penguin the assembled piece. which I have sitting on my work desk, so I see it every day. . LOL

does anyone have pics of new Gotham with the new rides? would love to see how they look in the area (as well as the refurbed Harley Quinn)

^ thank you for the Carousel pics! it looks fantastic there! (the new coaster is good too)

They thought people would be decent humans and not show up claiming fake medical conditions by the thousands. I agree that trusting people to not be horrible was naive but I’m not mad at them for their optimism I guess.

another day, another survey. . this time about food options. sounds like they are considering selling "dining credits" at a discount that can be used inside the park. there are a few "brand name" restaurants listed among the "choose your preferred menu" options section - but some of the prices are insane (either too high or too low). but i'd love if they pre-sell dining credits (we have dining plan, but I get the impression that might be on chopping block for them selling these dining credits instead). we shall see what comes, won't we?

Hey ya'll.. just noticed the "Club TPR Forum" has disappeared from my forum index options. . so just wondering if y'all are re-imagining/changing up ClubTPR. just wondering, as for sure I'd renew if option is available. best, bert

I got the idea they were just dangling that as an option.. I suspect they much more likely would be pushing the gold/platinum Flash Passes.

Got a survey from Six Flags. . and it reads to me like they are considering going to "Virtual Queue" for EVERY ride in the parks (the survey specifically says, you still wait the same amount of time, but you won't have to stand in the queue - you can eat, or play games, or walk around. . but what you CAN'T do while waiting? Go on any other ride, as EVERY ride will have virtual queue, and you can only book one at a time. You have to exit a ride, before you can book the next one). I do not like this idea at all. and I responded as such - and gave them the comment: maybe a Virtual queue on big/popular rides, with these restrictions, but I want to be able to go to a flat ride (such as a Carousel) with a short line, and ride it while waiting to go to the ride I have in queue). And yes, I realize, if I were to stand in a queue as things are now, I wouldn't be able to "go ride something else" during that period. oh. . it also offered a couple of "upgrade" options: such as paying $1 per ride to skip to the front of the queue at each stop. or paying for Flash Pass to cut the time in the virtual queue (gold and Platinum level were given as examples). I TOTALLY get they are trying to find ways to entice folks back into the parks, sooner rather than later (there are several questions about Covid, and feelings on waiting in queues for rides). . but yeah. . . I don't like the idea of *EVERY* ride in the park going to virtual queue, and it likely WOULD get me to visit less. just sharing that I got a survey.

^ that's a shame, as I love that coaster. what about Sidewinder and Trailblazer? (I mean, neither of those are must rides, but they are coasters there) . . . wondering if those two are closed, if they just closed that Section over by StormRunner? Since the 3 coasters are all right next to each other.

I just spent ~$78 on Nepalese/Tibetian food from Yak N Yeti OMG. . SO GOOD! (and I'll get at least 4 meals out of it). Yak N Yeti Cedar Park, TX: Order Type Pickup Pickup Time 6/27/20 @ 7:25p.m. 1 Samosas $5.00 1 Sadheko Momo High spice Chicken $10.00 1 Lamb Pasanda High spice $15.00 1 Chicken Saag High spice $12.00 1 Yak and Yeti Basket (1 regular Naan, 1 Garlic Naan, 1 tandoori Roti) $6.00 1 Lal Mohan (Gulab Jamun) $5.00 1 Aloo Cauli High spice $11.00 7 items Subtotal $64.00 Tax $5.28 Tip $6.50 Total $ 75.78 Paid Online

^ StormRunner is easily my favorite Coaster there, so that's a shame but they still have a really stellar lineup anyways - worth a visit for Great Bear, Lightning Racer, Farenheit, SuperDooperLooper, Coment, and I'm assuming Candymonium will be awesome. The Indoor spinner is fun too. can easily skip the Mouse and Wildcat I'm personally not a fan of Skyrush - so that's not a "deciding factor on a visit" for me.

Can't wait to go back. . tho looking like 2021 now wanna check out the new coaster and entrance!

I don't think the parks give that data.. . but I *think* from the opening orders, it said they could be at 50%. but they most certainly have more than 100 people in them again, we'll have to wait and see if Abbott's actions affect any Theme Parks. He's already getting a ton of pushback from Conservatives who truly seem to believe the virus is not serious and is just a Liberal plan to take away freedoms. so we'll have to see how this plays out.

(From the article you posted Bert.) I'd say so far no impacts thus far. that was Thursday. he just shut down bars TODAY (Friday) and yes, bars were already open.

^ good move, I'd say. this just happened: https://www.texastribune.org/2020/06/26/texas-bars-restaurants-coronavirus-greg-abbott/ tho it doesn't mention Theme Parks? Bars close as of noon today, Restaurants back to 50% capacity as of Monday, and "outdoor Gatherings" limited to 100 people or less. I suspect that the Texas parks across the board, are likely going to be impacted.. . but we shall see.

honestly? this sounds all kinds of Awesome. . and as popular as all the Chipmunks seemed to be in the Tokyo Parks, I was a little surprised there wasn't really any rides/attractions featuring them. (they are in every parade tho, and the Gift Shops, as you mentioned)

^ yeah. . but it was Schumacher who put nipples on the batsuit. and his choice to use the neon garish colors.