Meteornotes

The Dragons queue is amazing. It would also be about a four day wait if it was totally full... The worst that comes to mind right now is S:ROS at SFA. The regular line ends at the back row, and everyone piles up there, making it hard to get to other rows. dt

That was a kickass TR. Thanks for posting all the photos. Those ballparks, especially Detroit, looked really nice. Of course, I still think the best ballpark ever is in Baltimore... Is MA ever crowded? I guess it's just in a pretty much out of the way location, but it just never seems to be busy... dt

Well, I never made it to Whalom, but if you say that Miracle Strip was better, then I guess I missed nothing. I never understood the fuss over MS being shut down, when the park was there for years and no one really paid attention to it. I get the same feeling about Whalom, where only some of the locals cared about the place. After all, if it was making money, it would probably still be open... dt

I'd advise against using Mapquest to get to the park, as the route it sent us on during our first visit was, um, not good. Use the directions on Kennywood's site, so you spend more time at the park and less time attempting to figure out if you're still in PA like we did... dt

Sounds like an awesome time. Mythos is godly. The Express Passes at IOA do indeed rule. But Coconut Gusher sounds like a condition you'd get at 3AM after some questionable food... dt

The Onion ROCKS! As always, it is comedy gold... dt

There's some enclosed waterslide of death at PKD that I will NEVER go on again! In fact, I don't think I'll ever go on a slide that's enclosed the whole way. Just freaks me out for some reason. I'd rather ride the lazy river anyway... dt

Finally saw Episode III this past weekend. It didn't suck! It's not as good as any of the first three films (OK, it might be as good as "Jedi"), but it blows away the last two. Then again, two hours of Ewoks roaming around a rose bush might blow away the last two...anyway, Episode III turned out to be a LOT better than I expected it would be, and if this is indeed the last Star Wars movie, then Lucas went out on a high note. And I totally agree with Gregg's above assesment of The Aviator. I caught it in the theater earlier in the year, and thought it should have won some of the major academy awards, especially Best Actor. A really good movie, something people should check out now that it's on DVD... dt

^Yeah, that's it, Big River Brewery. They have godly meatloaf, and the beer is pretty tasty too! And I've only done Spoodle's for breakfast, but I'd imagine food at other times of the day is good, as the breakfast there is excellent... dt

Pleasure Island is certainly worth checking out. Don't miss the Adventurer's Club, and catch a show at the Comedy Club. As far as places to eat, "low cost" and Disney don't really go together. Having said that, I've found the food quality at WDW to be pretty much good or better, and don't think the value for the money is too bad. I think the Japanese pavillion in Epcot is an excellent place for food, as is the Fish & Chips stand in the England area. There's a brew place on the Boardwalk that's also good (can't remember the name right now). I've rarely eaten outside of the parks when I've been in Orlando, but pretty much every chain restaurant on the planet has at least one location not all that far from Disney. They can head over to I Drive and find many food places, along with mini-golf! You can't go wrong with mini-golf... dt

Glad you had a good time. That looked like the most cars I've ever seen in the PGA parking lot! We used to go down to the park almost every Saturday night for a Top Gun ride and garlic fries (I have no idea if they still sell those there, but they RULED!). And all parks, not just PGA, need single rider lines! Alcatraz is worth doing once. I got sucked into going there a couple of times when we used to have to play SF tourguides for visiting family/friends, so I really don't think I ever need to see it again. But it is cool to see. The GG Bridge is a "must see" site, as is Muir Woods over on the other side of the bridge. Anyone that's never seen the woods needs to stop there at least once. I haven't been to any of the Bay Area parks since I moved out of there in 2000, but I always liked SCBB and thought SFMW was "ok" at best. The ass operations of Medusa really need to stop! You're not the only person I've heard from lately that talks about how lame they're operating it. Lazy SF bastards... I keep wanting to get back to the Bay Area, especially to go to the Gilroy garlic festival again. SF is a great place to visit, but I'd never live there again, unless I was a billionare. Just too damn expensive... dt

That was highly entertaining! Thanks for posting... Dave "mini golf rules" Thomas

Well, it should be Son Of Beast... I could see Vortex going. I actually didn't find it all that bad, but then again the last time I rode it was 2000... dt

Is Clementon actually going to open this year? I've heard different stories. Have you been to Hersheypark? If not, there's a ton of credits there. Also, if you're going to Dorney, you might want to think about going to Knoebel's. There are three credits there, and besides, Knoebel's is the greatest park EVER! Lakemont and DelGrosso's are probably too far out of the way for the route you're taking. Have fun! I'll be getting my #300 this summer as well. I'm trying to find something really bad for that milestone... dt

^I actually used to do PR for a game company, so I can answer that question. First, a lot of game companies outsource their PR work to established PR firms now, so if you are running your own business, you might want to look into picking up work that way. For those that still do it in house, you going to have a MUCH easier time if you have any sort of game experience, even if it's just working in tech support or being a game tester. If you have some sort of background in technology marketing and/or amazing PR job experience, then the best thing to do is look at company websites and watch for open positions, as well as checking out places like gamejobs.com or Gamasutra. Let me tell you up front that the pay you'll recieve working PR in the game industry is lower than you'd get elsewhere. And a lot of time will be spent doing dull tasks like mailing out copies of games for review, or rewriting a press release 5000 times until everyone in the company has gotten a chance to change a word. Be prepared to spend long hours at trade shows and/or media events being really happy even though your brain turned to goo about three days ago. The entertainment industry in general is not "fun" all the time like a lot of people think it will be, and I'm not trying to be negative, just pointing out that even though it's games, there's a ton of hard work involved. Anyway, if you have any more questions, ask away... dt

Good TR. Glad you had a good time and experienced IOA. It is my favorite out of all the parks I've ever been to (well, it's tied with Knoebel's ). Mythos is indeed amazing. Hell, the whole park is amazing. And you do need to check out the stuff in the Seuss area. One Fish Two Fish is amazing fun! I haven't been to Sea World since 1986, I need to get back there some time. Your friend's comment to the obnoxious woman behind you at the Shamu show was hilarious! What an ass, I can't stand people like that, she needs to be a volunteer at a new Sea World exhibit on how sharks eat people... dt

Blue Zoo is an EXCELLENT restaurant. It's my second favorite at WDW, behind California Grill... dt

^And don't forget my comment: If the guy owns 49% of Six Flags, you think he'd be able to have afforded to buy the rest of the suit... Dave "that guy was indeed bizarre" Thomas

She deserves the chair! Or at least a public tasering. How did people not know she was crazy?!? Did they not see pictures of her? Anyone that has that expression on their face needs to be watched carefully. Though I'll admit, I might run too if I was going to be at a wedding with 500 people... Dave "I don't even think I know 500 people" Thomas

Ah, you guys haven't lived until you've waited in line with someone telling us how he helped design Superman: The Escape. Or the guy walking around SFA with a clipboard, telling us that he and his friends were about to buy 50% of Six Flags... Dave "crazy people always find me" Thomas

I love random strange things you spot when you're out travelling. I'll have to post some pics later, but here's a few things I've seen that I sadly don't have pictures of: Somewhere in PA there's a sign advertising a hot dog place, and on the sign is a Hot Dog cooking another Hot Dog over a fire. Isn't that like cannibalism?!? On the front of an adult store in Hollywood: We Sell Used Porn (um, is this something you really want to advertise?!?) And I wish I had a picture of that "Jesus is coming back...AS LIGHTNING" sign in PA. I still don't understand that one... dt

Riding the bus can be fun. You can play "Guess The Psychotic Disorder" of your fellow passengers, which helps the miles fly by. Or you can engage your seatmate in a conversation about why they're Jesus (a conversation I've had on more than one occasion on the bus/BART). If nothing else, you should come home with some amusing stories to entertain the family at holiday gatherings... Seriously, just pay attention to your stuff and your surroundings and you'll be fine. Have fun! dt

Now THIS is an important topic!!!! Sushi owns. It is easily my favorite food, though no one else I know likes it, so I don't get to eat it nearly as often as I would like. But my favorites are Eel, Yellowtail, and Tuna. With rolls, I really like spicy tuna, eel, and tempura shrimp. As far as where to get it, there is no greater place than Tokie's in Foster City, CA. Trust me, I've had sushi all over the place, and this place blows all of the rest away. They have a lot of custom rolls there that I've never seen duplicated anywhere else. The Shannon Roll (tempura shrimp) is the most godly food creation ever... dt

A lot of these were really good, but I had to go with the Wes avatar, as it was the one that made me laugh the hardest the first time I saw it. I think an excellent prize for the winner would be a CD full of songs hand picked by me... Dave "could anyone listen to it for more than a minute?" Thomas

YAKOV!!! That made the photos rule right there! I really want to visit that park. And it's good to know that Dan is also on the "attempt to kill with sugar" list... Dave "Robb still has the video rights to my death" Thomas