Tuesday, November 29, 2011
Why is it...
...that I can't use a computer created in 1982 and write better code than if I was coding on a computer created in 2011? Violinists do it all the time. My violin is from 1742...it's a Gauadagnini (isn't that Voldemort's snake?)...it's worth a million dollars. If this just held true across fields, I could be coding enterprise masterpieces on a Vic 20 with a tape drive. Tempting.
How I can tell my sister reads these blog posts carefully...
She thinks Eryn got her own hedgehog.
I paraphrase my response, "I told Eryn that if we had a hedgehog, rabbit, mouse, or parrot, I would let it die rather than take care of it. And I would try to stop Pooteewheet from taking care of it, even at the risk of its life."
And no hamsters. I'm worried they might molest me with their giant dongs.
I paraphrase my response, "I told Eryn that if we had a hedgehog, rabbit, mouse, or parrot, I would let it die rather than take care of it. And I would try to stop Pooteewheet from taking care of it, even at the risk of its life."
And no hamsters. I'm worried they might molest me with their giant dongs.
Caching Overlook
We went caching for two virtual caches not so long ago. According to geocaching.com, no new virtual caches are allowed, but old virtual caches are still grandfathered in. These were sort of in our backyard (St. Paul), so I thought they were worth checking out.
Here's Eryn, at the footstep of the first cache.
Yes, that is Pooh at her feet. Sort of Banksy in nature.
Not the virtual cache. But I couldn't help but thing the gay versions of Arsenic and Old Lace lived here.
What we were really after was the Prospect Park water Tower. If you've read Emma Bull's War for the Oaks, you can appreciate the witch's tower for the parallel fairy domain it really is. The plaque reads, minus the screaming type: "The Witch's Hat Water Tower was designed by Norwegian architect Frederick William Cappelen and constructed by the city of Minneapolis in 1913. Occupying the highest natural land area in Minneapoplis, the water tower was built to improve water pressure in the homes of Prospect Park residents. The tower was decommissioned in 1952, but has been preserved as a significant part of this city's history. The Witch's Hat Water Tower and Tower Hill Park are listed in the national register of historical places."
Can you see an evil fairy lurking up there? Black gauzy 80's clothes, circa Prince and the Revolution? Sexy evil...
The view from one direction at the top of the hill. That is our fair city of Minneapolis in the distance. Closer is Moos Tower, home of many sexy nurses. And my sister and mother. And I'm not sure what the building in the foreground is.
Looking in the other direction. Absolutely beautiful.
Our second virtual cache was part of a trip around the world. It is the 45th parallel. It exists in many places in the twin cities, but is only commemorated in one location.
Here's Eryn, at the footstep of the first cache.
Yes, that is Pooh at her feet. Sort of Banksy in nature.
Not the virtual cache. But I couldn't help but thing the gay versions of Arsenic and Old Lace lived here.
What we were really after was the Prospect Park water Tower. If you've read Emma Bull's War for the Oaks, you can appreciate the witch's tower for the parallel fairy domain it really is. The plaque reads, minus the screaming type: "The Witch's Hat Water Tower was designed by Norwegian architect Frederick William Cappelen and constructed by the city of Minneapolis in 1913. Occupying the highest natural land area in Minneapoplis, the water tower was built to improve water pressure in the homes of Prospect Park residents. The tower was decommissioned in 1952, but has been preserved as a significant part of this city's history. The Witch's Hat Water Tower and Tower Hill Park are listed in the national register of historical places."
Can you see an evil fairy lurking up there? Black gauzy 80's clothes, circa Prince and the Revolution? Sexy evil...
The view from one direction at the top of the hill. That is our fair city of Minneapolis in the distance. Closer is Moos Tower, home of many sexy nurses. And my sister and mother. And I'm not sure what the building in the foreground is.
Looking in the other direction. Absolutely beautiful.
Our second virtual cache was part of a trip around the world. It is the 45th parallel. It exists in many places in the twin cities, but is only commemorated in one location.
Monday, November 28, 2011
Croutons
I wish I had a picture of what I'm about to describe, but I don't. And a quick perusal of the web revealed nothing that captured the moment. During lunch today, there was a bet at the table I was sitting at, "A container (think larger size take home container) full of croutons, passed off as a salad, on a per-ounce cost basis, will still ring in at less than $4." The issue was around what was the best deal on a cost basis at the salad bar. And there was some discussion about whether croutons might actually come in below the price of a box purchased at the store.
The result was $3.96. Mike, during the height of lunch hour (noon), stealthily scooped out a whole container, sometimes taking no more than two at a time, and paid cash. I opined that a similar container full of sunflower seeds would probably run $1000. I hope there's not a crouton shortage later this week. Mike wasn't willing to waste them. He was calmly eating them as a snack food right up until he looked slightly ill.
The result was $3.96. Mike, during the height of lunch hour (noon), stealthily scooped out a whole container, sometimes taking no more than two at a time, and paid cash. I opined that a similar container full of sunflower seeds would probably run $1000. I hope there's not a crouton shortage later this week. Mike wasn't willing to waste them. He was calmly eating them as a snack food right up until he looked slightly ill.
Hedgehog
Eryn got to pet a hedgehog last time we were at the Minnesota Zoo. And before Ming asks, I have no idea whether they're as well endowed as a hamster. You'll have to ask the zookeeper.
Here's the little guy eating his lunch.
Here's the little guy eating his lunch.
Invisible Ink
We used Eryn's Chem C2000 kit this weekend. We added ammonium iron(ii) sulfate, water, and potassium hexacyanoferrate(ii) solution to create a beautiful Prussian blue. The color, not the racist band of little girls who became liberals after a public education. Not that we wouldn't have been pleased as punch to create an anti-racist potion.
You can use the combination to create an invisible ink that turns dark blue when the second chemical is applied. Obviously, it's cheaper to use a lemon and vinegar, but not as much fun. This is a seriously science-laden/engineering heavy table.
You can use the combination to create an invisible ink that turns dark blue when the second chemical is applied. Obviously, it's cheaper to use a lemon and vinegar, but not as much fun. This is a seriously science-laden/engineering heavy table.
Two married oceanographers...
Two married oceanographers, Marine and Stratus League. One deep sea research sub containing two single person reinforced mini subs for even deeper exploration, beyond where anyone else has ever gone. The kicker, they want a divorce, but their careers can't afford it. Will their romance be rekindled by the dangers of the deep? Or will they learn to love again with the advice of their two gay crew members? Who gets the kids? Who gets Jeeks the dolphin who accompanies them on excursions and gets them out of tight binds? Lost cities! Espionage! The giant albino kraken that haunts them in their travels! Join us for an 80's style marriage adventure comedy, Two Leagues Under the Sea!
This was my dream last night. Enjoy the madness that haunts my sleeping hours.
This was my dream last night. Enjoy the madness that haunts my sleeping hours.
Sunday, November 27, 2011
It's a Chuck Norris Christmas
It's a Chuck Norris Christmas. He and his enemy, the Red Ninja, have found common ground on our Christmas tree to celebrate peace and goodwill. Well done you two. You give hope to humankind.
Thanksgiving
Thanksgiving was once again held at our house. We cooked both corporate turkeys. Mine, and Leon's. I think we could have once again done with one, but two ensured plenty of leftovers. Lee and his family showed up. Lloyd (my other uncle in law - or Eryn's great uncle, depending on how you color it). My father in law and mother in law. And my sister in law and her family. Cookie Queen and her kids showed up later for some play time.
Apparently snrky.com did a special cartoon to celebrate our turkeys noting, "It's the intangibles that count."
There were two rounds of poker. I lost the first, despite putting the hurt to my father in law and Eryn (that's right, no mercy in poker, even for my own daughter. And yes, she plays Hold 'em. I need to remind her to save some money for New Year's Eve). And won the second. $12. Enough to offset half a bottle of one of the two bourbons I bought for Thanksgiving, as that seems to be the drink of choice - both for the menfolk and womenfolk. The beer was virtually untouched.
Buffalo Trace and Eagle Rare. Kyle's Kentucky trip influence is clearly visible in my choices. When I was buying my bottles at The Cellars, there was a kid in a suit shopping for Scotch. He was clearly excited and I had the impression he was either hosting Thanksgiving, or taking a bottle to Thanksgiving, or had gotten a promotion. He had some good $40 bottles in hand. Then asked the guy from the Cellars, "So these are nice, but what's your favorite?" The clerk noted his favorite was just over $100 a bottle and the kid looked simultaneously taken aback and intrigued. Definitely the appropriate approach. Some skepticism in your $100+ purchases. I should have taken down his name and number so we could do scotch sharing nights. That's the best way to try $100 bottles. Hear that Kyle? Up for Scotch or Bourbon nights with a group of 4 or 5?
My wife and I discussed the possibility of making squash soup for Thanksgiving next year. I am loving the squash soup with crustini/french bread. Don't panic. In addition to the turkey, not instead of the turkey. While listening to MPR, I heard them discussing this recipe, harvest stuffed squash, which I'd also like to try. Might have to experiment earlier to get an idea for whether it's good. But the ingredients sound delicious. Here are the details, courtesy of Beth Dooley at MPR.
HARVEST STUFFED SQUASH
Serves 8
Ingredients:
4 small Cinderella pumpkins or acorn squash, halved and seeded
2 tablespoons sunflower oil or olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 fennel bulb, diced
1 red bell pepper, seeded, deveined, and chopped
1 large carrot, finely diced
1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts
2 cups cooked wild rice or barley
1/2 cup chopped parsley
2 tablespoons rubbed sage
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Directions:
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the squash cut-side down on a baking sheet and bake until it is tender, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet and saute the onion, garlic, fennel, red pepper, carrot, and hazelnuts until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the wild rice and herbs, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove the squash from the oven, turn it over, and place it cut-side up on the baking sheet. Fill the squash with the stuffing. Return the squash to the oven and bake it an additional 30 minutes.
Finally - you can't declare Thanksgiving over until the naked Barbie balances on an exercise ball. Haven't heard that saying before? Get used to it. And just so you don't have to imagine it...
There were two rounds of poker. I lost the first, despite putting the hurt to my father in law and Eryn (that's right, no mercy in poker, even for my own daughter. And yes, she plays Hold 'em. I need to remind her to save some money for New Year's Eve). And won the second. $12. Enough to offset half a bottle of one of the two bourbons I bought for Thanksgiving, as that seems to be the drink of choice - both for the menfolk and womenfolk. The beer was virtually untouched.
Buffalo Trace and Eagle Rare. Kyle's Kentucky trip influence is clearly visible in my choices. When I was buying my bottles at The Cellars, there was a kid in a suit shopping for Scotch. He was clearly excited and I had the impression he was either hosting Thanksgiving, or taking a bottle to Thanksgiving, or had gotten a promotion. He had some good $40 bottles in hand. Then asked the guy from the Cellars, "So these are nice, but what's your favorite?" The clerk noted his favorite was just over $100 a bottle and the kid looked simultaneously taken aback and intrigued. Definitely the appropriate approach. Some skepticism in your $100+ purchases. I should have taken down his name and number so we could do scotch sharing nights. That's the best way to try $100 bottles. Hear that Kyle? Up for Scotch or Bourbon nights with a group of 4 or 5?
My wife and I discussed the possibility of making squash soup for Thanksgiving next year. I am loving the squash soup with crustini/french bread. Don't panic. In addition to the turkey, not instead of the turkey. While listening to MPR, I heard them discussing this recipe, harvest stuffed squash, which I'd also like to try. Might have to experiment earlier to get an idea for whether it's good. But the ingredients sound delicious. Here are the details, courtesy of Beth Dooley at MPR.
HARVEST STUFFED SQUASH
Serves 8
Ingredients:
4 small Cinderella pumpkins or acorn squash, halved and seeded
2 tablespoons sunflower oil or olive oil
1 large onion, chopped
4 cloves garlic, minced
1 fennel bulb, diced
1 red bell pepper, seeded, deveined, and chopped
1 large carrot, finely diced
1/4 cup chopped hazelnuts
2 cups cooked wild rice or barley
1/2 cup chopped parsley
2 tablespoons rubbed sage
Salt and freshly ground black pepper
Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Place the squash cut-side down on a baking sheet and bake until it is tender, about 40 minutes. Meanwhile, heat the oil in a large skillet and saute the onion, garlic, fennel, red pepper, carrot, and hazelnuts until the onions are translucent, about 5 minutes. Add the wild rice and herbs, and season with salt and pepper to taste. Remove the squash from the oven, turn it over, and place it cut-side up on the baking sheet. Fill the squash with the stuffing. Return the squash to the oven and bake it an additional 30 minutes.
Finally - you can't declare Thanksgiving over until the naked Barbie balances on an exercise ball. Haven't heard that saying before? Get used to it. And just so you don't have to imagine it...
Douchery
Old Chicago shows me this picture when I go to their website. I'm glad this guy doesn't hang out at my bar. He looks like a tool. They're encouraging douchery by showing him with two women, while the guy behind the woman in pink is just joking with the bartender about color coordinating beer and is all alone. Unless he's gay. But if he is, he's still alone, which is sending a message. And I think this picture just tells one of those sad love stories. Girl in pink likes guy, is trying hard, getting all up in his chair space. Drinking with him and hoping he'll "take advantage" of her even though it's a set up. But guy is more interested in chesty brown shirt girl, and is trying so hard not to look at her chest that he won't even acknowledge yes, she did eat a lot of wings. Meanwhile, she won't even drink a beer because she doesn't want to find herself in a beer goggles situation at the end of the night where he looks as much like Brad Pitt to her as he does to himself.
They should have spent more time thinking about their advertising message.
They should have spent more time thinking about their advertising message.
Grammar Boss
Kyle let me know that a fourth season of That Mitchell and Webb Look was on Netflix streaming. My favorite bit so far was the grammar boss.
Saturday, November 26, 2011
Computer Technician
I spent part of this weekend fixing Dan's new Gateway laptop. Cookie Queen bought him a new machine because the old laptop is the only machine at her house that will play the kids' games. But apparently he got hold of it and it wouldn't work. I think normally this would entail just taking the damn thing back to Best Buy or ordering the recovery software which they never seem to ship anymore and has a separate fee, but having been a consumer who wants a machine in a few days, not a few weeks, I can sympathize. So I took it on, and booted it up. I was expecting to find water in the boards, or a porn-related issue, but as near as I can tell, part of their OEM install was a copy of AVG that crashed Win7. Or at least auto-updated to a crashable state.
I poked at it for a while, and then decided the easiest plan of action was just to nuke it. So I installed a new copy of Win7 Home basic over the top. Reminder - read the bottom of the machine so you know what version of Windows to install now that there are about a thousand of them. I had to burn a second disk with Windows Premium Home on it.
That worked. I followed it up with browsers - Chrome and IE9, both with their home page set to the theme song from Small Wonder. Patched the Ethernet so it could reach the web (nice job of making that publicly accessible, Gateway. Much appreciated). Added Ghost Busters wall paper with nametags for Kyle, Dan, Ben, and myself. Grabbed a bunch of pictures from Facebook for the screensaver so he can see his kids. Installed League of Legends. Most of Lord of the Rings MMO. And Steel Panthers (with a hack so it works on Win7). And put AVG back on it - can't be too safe with a machine that's intended to be used in a solo pad with friends and beer (enabled the full scan three times a week with a failsafe to kick in on the next boot up as well if the scan window is missed).
Runs like a champ. Cookie Queen told me Dan'l was dubious I could get it going because his friend couldn't get it going. Dude - if your friend could fix PCs, he'd be making more money as tech repair, not working for the Catholics as a maintenance guy.
At least it wasn't f-ed up hardware. I can fix that too - but it makes me cranky.
I poked at it for a while, and then decided the easiest plan of action was just to nuke it. So I installed a new copy of Win7 Home basic over the top. Reminder - read the bottom of the machine so you know what version of Windows to install now that there are about a thousand of them. I had to burn a second disk with Windows Premium Home on it.
That worked. I followed it up with browsers - Chrome and IE9, both with their home page set to the theme song from Small Wonder. Patched the Ethernet so it could reach the web (nice job of making that publicly accessible, Gateway. Much appreciated). Added Ghost Busters wall paper with nametags for Kyle, Dan, Ben, and myself. Grabbed a bunch of pictures from Facebook for the screensaver so he can see his kids. Installed League of Legends. Most of Lord of the Rings MMO. And Steel Panthers (with a hack so it works on Win7). And put AVG back on it - can't be too safe with a machine that's intended to be used in a solo pad with friends and beer (enabled the full scan three times a week with a failsafe to kick in on the next boot up as well if the scan window is missed).
Runs like a champ. Cookie Queen told me Dan'l was dubious I could get it going because his friend couldn't get it going. Dude - if your friend could fix PCs, he'd be making more money as tech repair, not working for the Catholics as a maintenance guy.
At least it wasn't f-ed up hardware. I can fix that too - but it makes me cranky.
Tuesday, November 15, 2011
Elm Creek
I went geocaching after vacation up by Kyle's house. I needed to pick up Luna (she didn't eat one of his combs this time) and I had the day to myself, so I spent it hiking around in the woods. Elm Creek wasn't nearly as rich a geocaching environment as the Woodville Trail. But at least no dogs tried to eat my ankle.
It was chilly out. Which was good. Running away from this next full of wasps might have been more difficult during high summer. Toward the end of the day, I looked for a cache at a place called "lake view" or something similar. After stomping around a big tree for a long time I thought, "maybe it's a diversion, and the cache is really at that nearby bird blind." I poked around the bird blind, and then went to reach behind the sign in the blind that listed the birds you might see. At the last second, I hesitated, withdrew my fingers, and took a peek. Behind the sign was another wasp nest and half a dozen groggy wasps. I took it as a sign that caching was done for the day.
This nest was NOT a cache.
But this bird is a cache. You have to fish a small rolled up log out of his cloaca.
Out at the moose cache, which I almost skipped because it was almost a mile from the previous cache, there was a particularly interesting choice of loot. I'm glad I didn't take the Casey Scott album because a.) it's a little boring if you look it up on YouTube, and b.) the First 4th of July has to do with printing presses, so it gives me some insight into Kyle's worklife. I'm much more in tune with the day-to-day struggles of a friend.
I know they're just child zombies, and it's not their fault, and I should feel bad for them. But they're zombies in the end and they'd eat my brain given half a chance, so I had to call in the troops. A lady on a horse asked me if I'd found a cache. I bet seeing a guy playing with toy soldiers and zombies on top of a thermos top isn't something you see every day while riding your horse in the woods. I think Lewis Black once made a joke to that effect.
It doesn't look nearly as sinister as it was. I followed trails in a circle for what seemed like forever.
Back at Kyle's house. I really enjoy this picture because it looks like some sort of official Ford advertisement for a Fiesta. It's just his front yard.
Doesn't his yard look beautiful? You can really appreciate it if you don't have to do any of the raking.
It was chilly out. Which was good. Running away from this next full of wasps might have been more difficult during high summer. Toward the end of the day, I looked for a cache at a place called "lake view" or something similar. After stomping around a big tree for a long time I thought, "maybe it's a diversion, and the cache is really at that nearby bird blind." I poked around the bird blind, and then went to reach behind the sign in the blind that listed the birds you might see. At the last second, I hesitated, withdrew my fingers, and took a peek. Behind the sign was another wasp nest and half a dozen groggy wasps. I took it as a sign that caching was done for the day.
This nest was NOT a cache.
But this bird is a cache. You have to fish a small rolled up log out of his cloaca.
Out at the moose cache, which I almost skipped because it was almost a mile from the previous cache, there was a particularly interesting choice of loot. I'm glad I didn't take the Casey Scott album because a.) it's a little boring if you look it up on YouTube, and b.) the First 4th of July has to do with printing presses, so it gives me some insight into Kyle's worklife. I'm much more in tune with the day-to-day struggles of a friend.
I know they're just child zombies, and it's not their fault, and I should feel bad for them. But they're zombies in the end and they'd eat my brain given half a chance, so I had to call in the troops. A lady on a horse asked me if I'd found a cache. I bet seeing a guy playing with toy soldiers and zombies on top of a thermos top isn't something you see every day while riding your horse in the woods. I think Lewis Black once made a joke to that effect.
It doesn't look nearly as sinister as it was. I followed trails in a circle for what seemed like forever.
Back at Kyle's house. I really enjoy this picture because it looks like some sort of official Ford advertisement for a Fiesta. It's just his front yard.
Doesn't his yard look beautiful? You can really appreciate it if you don't have to do any of the raking.
Sunday, November 13, 2011
Blue Springs and the Manatees
Our last full day in Orlando, we rented a car and went to Blue Springs State Park. When I was younger, let's say it wasn't 25 years ago, Kyle, Ben and I did a summer trip from Minnesota to Washington, D.C., then down the coast to Florida, and back to Minnesota. We were poor and operating mostly out of a car with a tent and some bicycles, so we did a lot of camping at ad hoc locations. One place we stopped was Blue Springs, renowned as a wintering area for manatees. Around mid-November they shut down the swimming because hundreds of manatees swim into the spring area to enjoy the relatively warm 72 degree water coming from the spring. But on November 1 swimming was still open and there was a chance we'd see a few. You're supposed to stay away from them as the rangers have had problems with teenagers carving their initials into them (yes, really) and pushing the babies away from their mothers, but even when you don't go near them, they like to come give you a shove and swim under you, and roll around in your space.
There are alligators in the area as well, although for the most part they seem to stay away from where the manatees are. I suspect they lose to the manatees in any shoving match. And the water in the spring area is so clear you can see everything in your space. Over the "boil", the spring, which is like 120 feet deep and has a constant stream of scuba divers going to and from it even on a slow day like the day we were there, you can see down to where all the water is welling up to push you around which is a bit creepy.
Near the entrance to the spring area, where it joins the river and the water is more brackish and full of weedy places to hide, there are many warnings about the alligators. They don't want you to miss them.
Although Eryn's not scared of any damn sign. I think I see some eyes in the water to her right.
The water is even clearer than it looks in this picture. All those brown things are big three foot long gars.
The staff pointed us at a geocache that doesn't seem to be in geocaching.com. Perhaps it's because it's full of two kilos of cocaine? I jest. Those are two bags of rock/sand, and the cache was some sort of Sea World cache. Eryn grabbed a coin and bracelet, but there was no way to log the find.
Let us get to the actual manatees. Here are the two that were swimming with Eryn and I. A mother and her pup.
It's not well known that manatees are particularly susceptible to mind control. Here I do my best to start my manatee army of evil by implanting the mental suggestion that they go forth and do my bidding. If you're an enemy of mine, I'd stay away from any temperate waters and avoid any manatees dressed as mermaids.
They seemed to particularly like Eryn and would follow her around. She was a little nervous when she was out in the open water where she couldn't touch the bottom, but there was a nice set of steps you could sit on, as well as some shallow areas with rocks. In this picture she wasn't going under to look at them first. They were definitely coming over to stare at her.
Go forth! Do as I command! In this picture do I look as cold as I felt? 72 degrees isn't freezing, but it's not exactly swimming pool warm, and there was a good breeze blowing branches out of the trees that added to the chill and called up goose bumps on my pasty white Minnesota skin.
Pooteewheet checking out the manatees. They made it a point to wander back and forth underneath her.
The steps I was referring to and the manatees getting a close look at Eryn. She says this was her favorite part of vacation. Even better than the roller coasters and Harry Potter world.
My favorite picture was one I could have taken in Minnesota. SQUIRREL!!! I think it lends itself to putting a word bubble on it so I can add silly captions.
There are alligators in the area as well, although for the most part they seem to stay away from where the manatees are. I suspect they lose to the manatees in any shoving match. And the water in the spring area is so clear you can see everything in your space. Over the "boil", the spring, which is like 120 feet deep and has a constant stream of scuba divers going to and from it even on a slow day like the day we were there, you can see down to where all the water is welling up to push you around which is a bit creepy.
Near the entrance to the spring area, where it joins the river and the water is more brackish and full of weedy places to hide, there are many warnings about the alligators. They don't want you to miss them.
Although Eryn's not scared of any damn sign. I think I see some eyes in the water to her right.
The water is even clearer than it looks in this picture. All those brown things are big three foot long gars.
The staff pointed us at a geocache that doesn't seem to be in geocaching.com. Perhaps it's because it's full of two kilos of cocaine? I jest. Those are two bags of rock/sand, and the cache was some sort of Sea World cache. Eryn grabbed a coin and bracelet, but there was no way to log the find.
Let us get to the actual manatees. Here are the two that were swimming with Eryn and I. A mother and her pup.
It's not well known that manatees are particularly susceptible to mind control. Here I do my best to start my manatee army of evil by implanting the mental suggestion that they go forth and do my bidding. If you're an enemy of mine, I'd stay away from any temperate waters and avoid any manatees dressed as mermaids.
They seemed to particularly like Eryn and would follow her around. She was a little nervous when she was out in the open water where she couldn't touch the bottom, but there was a nice set of steps you could sit on, as well as some shallow areas with rocks. In this picture she wasn't going under to look at them first. They were definitely coming over to stare at her.
Go forth! Do as I command! In this picture do I look as cold as I felt? 72 degrees isn't freezing, but it's not exactly swimming pool warm, and there was a good breeze blowing branches out of the trees that added to the chill and called up goose bumps on my pasty white Minnesota skin.
Pooteewheet checking out the manatees. They made it a point to wander back and forth underneath her.
The steps I was referring to and the manatees getting a close look at Eryn. She says this was her favorite part of vacation. Even better than the roller coasters and Harry Potter world.
My favorite picture was one I could have taken in Minnesota. SQUIRREL!!! I think it lends itself to putting a word bubble on it so I can add silly captions.
The Other Univeral
Between the days at Islands of Adventure, we went to Universal Studios. The area with Shrek, Jaws, Terminator 2, the Simpsons, and the sorts of rides I remember from being a kid at Universal in California. I think Eryn was originally dubious about why we'd want to spend time there when we could be going back to Harry Potter, but she ended up having a great time. Particularly on the interactive rides like the "make a movie" ride with Christopher Walken (nice orange sneakers!) where they film members of the audience and make them part of action-adventure movie/train ride. Or the MIB ride where you shoot at aliens with a laser gun. She's all about laser tag. My favorite was the Simpons' ride, where you don't really go anywhere, but the roller coaster car you're in shakes and rattles as the walls move around it, and giant screens make you feel like you're on a hell of a roller coaster ride that includes being chewed on by a giant Maggie.
Pooteewheet and Eryn not too long after the Jaws ride.
I got in trouble for spray painting on a wall.
Who's a dingus? Eryn's a dingus!!!
After a day of rides, we went to Hard Rock for dinner. Not my usual choice of faire, but Eryn wanted wings, and I was pretty sure that was the closest place with good wings. This picture is for Kyle. It's Alanis Morissette's harmonica, next to a picture of her playing a guitar. And it says she used it for a hand in my pocket, but if you're playing harmonica, then your hands can't be in your pockets. It's all very ironic.
Eryn wanted a picture next to Pete Townshend's guitar. Or what was left of his '73 Gibson Les Paul. I quote the Hard Rock Orlando description that it is, "a testament to the raw energy and aggression of The Who's brilliant guitarist and songwriter, Pete Townshend. A landmark instrument, it was immortalized in the famous print ad for the film The Kids Are Alright. The ad featured Mr. Townshend (at the Newcastle Odeon) with the guitar over his head moments before it was reduced to it's current condition. The caption read, "This Guitar Has Seconds To Live."
That said, this isn't that guitar. The waitress led us astray. But it is pieces of a Stratocaster Townshend smashed in 2002 during a concert in which he played The Kids Are Alright. Tomato/tomato.
The usual Universal Globe picture you have to take when you visit. The stuffed animal is "Patch." Eryn won it playing head to head whackamole against Pooteewheet. No one else would play and they guy felt bad for her because she'd been there for ten minutes without a challenger.
Pooteewheet and Eryn not too long after the Jaws ride.
I got in trouble for spray painting on a wall.
Who's a dingus? Eryn's a dingus!!!
After a day of rides, we went to Hard Rock for dinner. Not my usual choice of faire, but Eryn wanted wings, and I was pretty sure that was the closest place with good wings. This picture is for Kyle. It's Alanis Morissette's harmonica, next to a picture of her playing a guitar. And it says she used it for a hand in my pocket, but if you're playing harmonica, then your hands can't be in your pockets. It's all very ironic.
Eryn wanted a picture next to Pete Townshend's guitar. Or what was left of his '73 Gibson Les Paul. I quote the Hard Rock Orlando description that it is, "a testament to the raw energy and aggression of The Who's brilliant guitarist and songwriter, Pete Townshend. A landmark instrument, it was immortalized in the famous print ad for the film The Kids Are Alright. The ad featured Mr. Townshend (at the Newcastle Odeon) with the guitar over his head moments before it was reduced to it's current condition. The caption read, "This Guitar Has Seconds To Live."
That said, this isn't that guitar. The waitress led us astray. But it is pieces of a Stratocaster Townshend smashed in 2002 during a concert in which he played The Kids Are Alright. Tomato/tomato.
The usual Universal Globe picture you have to take when you visit. The stuffed animal is "Patch." Eryn won it playing head to head whackamole against Pooteewheet. No one else would play and they guy felt bad for her because she'd been there for ten minutes without a challenger.
Friday, November 11, 2011
Islands of Adventure - Rain or Shine
These are the pictures from Universal Studios Islands of Adventure. When we went on vacation to Orlando, Eryn's goal was to go to Harry Potter World. So in the interest of single threading our vacation (who was a developer?), I requested that we forgo Disneyworld during this trip and just focus on enjoying one theme park location. I bought the family a three day "base pass" which meant we could go to either Islands of Adventure or Universal Studios, although not both in one day. My assumption that Eryn would want two days at Islands of Adventure was correct. In retrospect, two days seemed like a long time to spend at one park. But the rain chewed up part of both days. And we didn't get to the roller coasters until Eryn had a chance to work up the nerve on the second day. And we discovered some things we'd missed by the second day. And we had the luxury of no lines whatsoever. If the lines had been 60-90 minutes long, two days might not have seemed like enough.
Doesn't it look like a great vacation? Umbrellas on Halloween! Guess who's dressed as Hermione for October 31st once again? This was an interesting picture because Eryn was being super cute, and only twenty feet away there was a couple having a serious argument about going to the amusement park while it was raining and about how vacation was ruined and whose fault it was, and who understood better how miserable the kids (4 and 6?) were, despite that the kids looked to be happy as clams until they realized mom and dad were fighting and asked them to stop. I can't picture dropping $200 on tickets to Islands of Adventure and then fighting over who was more miserable. At that point, the divorce is already a reality, even if the paperwork hasn't been signed.
But enough. This is a damn cute picture. We went and had coffee and muffins and waited out part of the rain while trying on ponchos only moments later, but it made for a great picture.
It also makes for a cute video, although the video displays a bit of the disapproval of going to an amusement park in the rain that the picture doesn't convey. You can't just hop on that bike and ride it, by the way. It's bolted to the stones. Not that I tried.
We're going to go about this in a rather haphazard fashion. This isn't the day it rained. But it's Eryn's first time seeing Harry Potter World...or the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (tm)...something like that. It's impressive when you first see it with the snow on the roofs, the wand shop, the castle, the sweet shop, the joke shop, the butter beer (ugh...sickly sweet...not my cup of tea), the neap cart (which a British tourist told us was a turnip), and the animatronic doodads in many of the windows. This obviously isn't very crowded and it's at least twice as crowded as the second day we went.
Back to the rainy day. The Forbidden Journey ride is in the school. You sit in a chair and it turns and twists and flips past animatronic trees and dementors, and almost seamlessly switches to video quidditch and a video dragon chase. Out of all the rides in both parks at Universal, this ride was the only one I couldn't go on more than once in quick succession. I had to have a 10-15 minute wait between rides or I'd have gotten ill. And it didn't matter that we did it several times. I was just as queasy the last time as the first time.
Another angle on Hogwarts. They did a great job using perspective to make it look enormous. It is enormous - you walk for a long time to get from the entrance to the ride. But it's not as enormous as this makes it look.
I front loaded some of my favorite pictures. I really like this one, because it turned out exactly as I wanted it to. This is at the kids' playground. The longest wait we had in the whole park was for the pteradon ride at the kids area because each flyer only seated two people at a time. Fortunately, we'd mistakenly gone on the Jurassic Park water ride (damn is that a serious drop into a big puddle of water after you're faced with the T-Rex) just prior to the play area, so it was a good chance for me to dry out for 90 minutes while Pooteewheet and Eryn were in line for the ride.
Here's the ever-so-long Pteradon ride. Looks like a great time, but you have to have a kid with you under a certain height to ride it. That is Pooteewheet and Eryn on the ride. You can tell by my wife's red hair. I watched a lot of riders go by before I finally caught them on film.
Crabby bird. The Lost Continent area was the first area after the little kids Seuss Landing that we encountered. It looked cheesy, but was very fun. Posideon's Fury was a mixture of acting and ride, and sort of an Indian Jones finds a trident adventure. The best part was that they led you into a small room and then flashed a strobe in pitch blackness. In the second your eyes were adjusting, the walls of the room lifted away to the ceiling and when you could see again it had suddenly turned from a small room into a huge area full of water, enormous screens to show Posideon fighting an evil sorcerer, and a water and fire display. Impressive. What was more amusing than impressive was that in the staging area where they did the preliminary story setup, one of the archaeology books was a book by my company.
There was also a sarcastic statue at Lost Continent. We talked to him on two separate days, and the second day he wasn't half as amusing as this day. Listen carefully and you'll hear "Bob" talking to Eryn. He sounds exactly like Louie Anderson.
This is for Kyle. He needs to go to the Harry Potter area and he could find himself a date. These women look well balanced. They have a hobby. They can afford over-priced outfits. And they have friends. I bet they're a catch.
But if you're not into black-hatted witches, there are also women who dress up like Luna Lovegood. The good news is they can find you if you're accidentally invisible, like I was.
Or even better, Pooteewheet and I conferred and felt you might like a crotch shot of Cathy. Sexy!
A sunny picture of Hogwarts.
These photos are from Toon Lagoon, yet another area of Islands of Adventure. Apparently neither Eryn nor I were smart enough to figure out how to appropriately use the Marmaduke picture kiosk. You're not supposed to stand on the cloud, but on the ground, so it looks like you're being pulled through the air by Marmaduke.
It is true that I'm heavier than Eryn. In that case, perhaps my picture is more appropriate. Damn Marmaduke.
In the Marvel Super Hero Island area, we went on the Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man, which was great, and then took a relative rest by riding the Storm Force Accelatron. According to the cartoons around the ride, our energy was used to defeat evil super villains. Yes!
Here's some video...the accelatron was actually sort of nauseating.
At the end of the day, we only had a few minutes before we had to get to the hotel shuttle, but Pooteewheet and I didn't want to sit in the parking lot, so we made Eryn go on the Seuss go round. As you can see from both the video and the picture, she was not impressed at being made to ride the "baby rides". That just made it more fun for Pooteewheet and me.
Here. You can ride it with us and put on your own crabby face.
The train into Hogsmeade! Across the street is Honeydukes. Eryn bought a chocolate frog. It's still up in her closest. We brought back half a suitcase full of candy and stuffed animals. Eryn's is dressed as Hermione, so you know what her first stuffed animal was don't you? That's right, Crookshanks.
The Frog Choir played here when it wasn't raining. It was Glee with realistic giant frog familiar puppets humming the Harry Potter music. It was also the one place you could get a good picture with all of the flags from Hogwarts.
While trying to avoid the rain on the second day, we discovered that the Jurassic Park area had a dinosaur exploratory area. You were encouraged to identify various dino eggs, and every half hour or so they had actors dressed as scientists show a hatching egg. Eryn got to name a dino "Emily" and was extremely happy. She'd wanted to be the person selected to talk to the wand seller (Ollivander), but only one kid out of a roomful is selected for that each time.
Another picture from the dino exploration area. I always try to show me inappropriately touching an animal statue. This time I show my wife inappropriately touching a brontosaurus. I think she's milking it.
Toon Lagoon had too many water rides. I say too many because it was pretty cool with all the rain, so no one was riding them during 2/3 of our visit. But the few times people were on the rides, Eryn learned from a local that you could feed a quarter into a machine that allowed you to squirt unsuspecting riders as they finished their ride. There was no escaping being wet. And on Popeye's boat, you could use one of the guns to squirt people on the barges for free. That may have been one of Eryn's favorite parts. On this day, probably 30 rafts went by with no one on them. I snuck down and got on one so she'd have someone to squirt at. I figured I'd get a little wet, but the barge ride was nothing like the one at Valleyfair or the State Fair. I was soaked top to bottom. When we went past Eryn I looked up, and she yelled "Dad!" and missed me, squirting the guy next to me.
Get 'em Eryn!
Evil wizards were afoot.
The flight of the hippogriff ride. This was the starter ride for anyone who wanted to work up to a big roller coaster.
A great time. We had no ideas what to expect for most of the rides, and it was a treat to be on things so different than what I was on over 20 years ago.
Doesn't it look like a great vacation? Umbrellas on Halloween! Guess who's dressed as Hermione for October 31st once again? This was an interesting picture because Eryn was being super cute, and only twenty feet away there was a couple having a serious argument about going to the amusement park while it was raining and about how vacation was ruined and whose fault it was, and who understood better how miserable the kids (4 and 6?) were, despite that the kids looked to be happy as clams until they realized mom and dad were fighting and asked them to stop. I can't picture dropping $200 on tickets to Islands of Adventure and then fighting over who was more miserable. At that point, the divorce is already a reality, even if the paperwork hasn't been signed.
But enough. This is a damn cute picture. We went and had coffee and muffins and waited out part of the rain while trying on ponchos only moments later, but it made for a great picture.
It also makes for a cute video, although the video displays a bit of the disapproval of going to an amusement park in the rain that the picture doesn't convey. You can't just hop on that bike and ride it, by the way. It's bolted to the stones. Not that I tried.
We're going to go about this in a rather haphazard fashion. This isn't the day it rained. But it's Eryn's first time seeing Harry Potter World...or the Wizarding World of Harry Potter (tm)...something like that. It's impressive when you first see it with the snow on the roofs, the wand shop, the castle, the sweet shop, the joke shop, the butter beer (ugh...sickly sweet...not my cup of tea), the neap cart (which a British tourist told us was a turnip), and the animatronic doodads in many of the windows. This obviously isn't very crowded and it's at least twice as crowded as the second day we went.
Back to the rainy day. The Forbidden Journey ride is in the school. You sit in a chair and it turns and twists and flips past animatronic trees and dementors, and almost seamlessly switches to video quidditch and a video dragon chase. Out of all the rides in both parks at Universal, this ride was the only one I couldn't go on more than once in quick succession. I had to have a 10-15 minute wait between rides or I'd have gotten ill. And it didn't matter that we did it several times. I was just as queasy the last time as the first time.
Another angle on Hogwarts. They did a great job using perspective to make it look enormous. It is enormous - you walk for a long time to get from the entrance to the ride. But it's not as enormous as this makes it look.
I front loaded some of my favorite pictures. I really like this one, because it turned out exactly as I wanted it to. This is at the kids' playground. The longest wait we had in the whole park was for the pteradon ride at the kids area because each flyer only seated two people at a time. Fortunately, we'd mistakenly gone on the Jurassic Park water ride (damn is that a serious drop into a big puddle of water after you're faced with the T-Rex) just prior to the play area, so it was a good chance for me to dry out for 90 minutes while Pooteewheet and Eryn were in line for the ride.
Here's the ever-so-long Pteradon ride. Looks like a great time, but you have to have a kid with you under a certain height to ride it. That is Pooteewheet and Eryn on the ride. You can tell by my wife's red hair. I watched a lot of riders go by before I finally caught them on film.
Crabby bird. The Lost Continent area was the first area after the little kids Seuss Landing that we encountered. It looked cheesy, but was very fun. Posideon's Fury was a mixture of acting and ride, and sort of an Indian Jones finds a trident adventure. The best part was that they led you into a small room and then flashed a strobe in pitch blackness. In the second your eyes were adjusting, the walls of the room lifted away to the ceiling and when you could see again it had suddenly turned from a small room into a huge area full of water, enormous screens to show Posideon fighting an evil sorcerer, and a water and fire display. Impressive. What was more amusing than impressive was that in the staging area where they did the preliminary story setup, one of the archaeology books was a book by my company.
There was also a sarcastic statue at Lost Continent. We talked to him on two separate days, and the second day he wasn't half as amusing as this day. Listen carefully and you'll hear "Bob" talking to Eryn. He sounds exactly like Louie Anderson.
This is for Kyle. He needs to go to the Harry Potter area and he could find himself a date. These women look well balanced. They have a hobby. They can afford over-priced outfits. And they have friends. I bet they're a catch.
But if you're not into black-hatted witches, there are also women who dress up like Luna Lovegood. The good news is they can find you if you're accidentally invisible, like I was.
Or even better, Pooteewheet and I conferred and felt you might like a crotch shot of Cathy. Sexy!
A sunny picture of Hogwarts.
These photos are from Toon Lagoon, yet another area of Islands of Adventure. Apparently neither Eryn nor I were smart enough to figure out how to appropriately use the Marmaduke picture kiosk. You're not supposed to stand on the cloud, but on the ground, so it looks like you're being pulled through the air by Marmaduke.
It is true that I'm heavier than Eryn. In that case, perhaps my picture is more appropriate. Damn Marmaduke.
In the Marvel Super Hero Island area, we went on the Amazing Adventures of Spider-Man, which was great, and then took a relative rest by riding the Storm Force Accelatron. According to the cartoons around the ride, our energy was used to defeat evil super villains. Yes!
Here's some video...the accelatron was actually sort of nauseating.
At the end of the day, we only had a few minutes before we had to get to the hotel shuttle, but Pooteewheet and I didn't want to sit in the parking lot, so we made Eryn go on the Seuss go round. As you can see from both the video and the picture, she was not impressed at being made to ride the "baby rides". That just made it more fun for Pooteewheet and me.
Here. You can ride it with us and put on your own crabby face.
The train into Hogsmeade! Across the street is Honeydukes. Eryn bought a chocolate frog. It's still up in her closest. We brought back half a suitcase full of candy and stuffed animals. Eryn's is dressed as Hermione, so you know what her first stuffed animal was don't you? That's right, Crookshanks.
The Frog Choir played here when it wasn't raining. It was Glee with realistic giant frog familiar puppets humming the Harry Potter music. It was also the one place you could get a good picture with all of the flags from Hogwarts.
While trying to avoid the rain on the second day, we discovered that the Jurassic Park area had a dinosaur exploratory area. You were encouraged to identify various dino eggs, and every half hour or so they had actors dressed as scientists show a hatching egg. Eryn got to name a dino "Emily" and was extremely happy. She'd wanted to be the person selected to talk to the wand seller (Ollivander), but only one kid out of a roomful is selected for that each time.
Another picture from the dino exploration area. I always try to show me inappropriately touching an animal statue. This time I show my wife inappropriately touching a brontosaurus. I think she's milking it.
Toon Lagoon had too many water rides. I say too many because it was pretty cool with all the rain, so no one was riding them during 2/3 of our visit. But the few times people were on the rides, Eryn learned from a local that you could feed a quarter into a machine that allowed you to squirt unsuspecting riders as they finished their ride. There was no escaping being wet. And on Popeye's boat, you could use one of the guns to squirt people on the barges for free. That may have been one of Eryn's favorite parts. On this day, probably 30 rafts went by with no one on them. I snuck down and got on one so she'd have someone to squirt at. I figured I'd get a little wet, but the barge ride was nothing like the one at Valleyfair or the State Fair. I was soaked top to bottom. When we went past Eryn I looked up, and she yelled "Dad!" and missed me, squirting the guy next to me.
Get 'em Eryn!
Evil wizards were afoot.
The flight of the hippogriff ride. This was the starter ride for anyone who wanted to work up to a big roller coaster.
A great time. We had no ideas what to expect for most of the rides, and it was a treat to be on things so different than what I was on over 20 years ago.
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