Good 'Til the Last Drop

In just a few hours 2012 will be no more, and 2013 will start.  In some parts of the world 2013 has already started, but while I still can call it 2012, let's have one final post.  The last post of the year, and I've also achieved my goal of posting fifteen times this month!

I am spending the last few hours of 2012 in Philadelphia with my best friend Kay, her husband Brian, and Zan.  Last night we stayed up too late eating amazing Chicken Parmesan prepared by Brian, drinking red wine, and answering trivia questions from our new board game "Geek Battle."  This morning we slept late, then spent several hours in the kitchen drinking tea and chatting some more.  Is there a better way to end the year?

New Year's resolutions?  As I mentioned in my last post, I just want to live simply, but I did take some inspiration from my friend Amanda Lee, and following her lead I also want to do a bit more self nurture.  A few massages might be in order in the new year, as well as a bit less being so hard on myself.  I need, essentially, to de-stress.  To let myself believe that I'm ok where I am in my life, and to admit that taking a few months off actually helps my mental and physical self, rather than stunting it.  I also want to take time to do some things that I really want to do, particularly in the cooking/crafting realms.

And now, for the second year in a row, I will commemorate the books I've read this year.  I slacked these past few months and haven't read as much as I should, but a new year is on the way, and I received several books for Christmas that I can't wait to start.  I also want to read the three Jane Austen novels that I've never read and sink my teeth into some literary theory.  So, here is my list of Books, 2012.  Again, to count, I must have read the whole book or play, cover to cover, so it does not include books that I read the majority of (like Shakespeare After Theory, which has two chapters left to go-- though I should probably just re-read the whole thing) or scholarly articles.

The Ruby in the Smoke, Philip Pullman; Salmacida Spolia, William Davenant and Inigo Jones; The Communist Manifesto, Karl Marx and Frederick Engels; Woyzeck, Georg Buchner; Marat/Sade, Peter Weiss, trans. by Geoffrey Skelton; The Orphan's Tales: In the Night Garden, Catherynne M. Valente; The Cherry Orchard, Anton Chekhov; The Weavers, Gerhart Hauptmann; The Exception and the Rule, Bertolt Brecht; The Good Woman of Setzuan, Bertolt Brecht; Mephisto, Ariane Mnouchkine (and the Theatre du Soleil); Angels in America, Tony Kushner; A True Reportarie of the Baptisme of the Prince of Scotland, William Fowler; The Tower, The Zoo, and the Tortoise, Julia Stuart; Stardust, Neil Gaiman; Ubu Roi, Alfred Jarry; The Order of Books, Roger Chartier; Harvest, Manjula Padmanabhan; Doctor Faustus A-Text, Christopher Marlowe; The Knight of the Burning Pestle, Francis Beaumont (and possibly John Fletcher); A Doll's House, Henrik Ibsen; The Spanish Tragedy, Thomas Kyd; Lucrece, William Shakespeare; A Discovery of Witches, Deborah Harkness; The Historian, Elizabeth Kostova; The Forgotten Garden, Kate Morton; Eat Pray Love, Elizabeth Gilbert; Jane Eyre, Charlotte Brontë; The Paris Wife, Paula McLain; Baby-Sitters On Board!, Ann M. Martin; I Capture the Castle, Dodie Smith; The Hobbit, or There and Back Again, J.R.R. Tolkien; Palimpsest, Catherynne M. Valente; Childcraft: Poems of Early Childhood, various authors; Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children, Ransom Riggs; The Phantom Tollbooth, Norton Juster; Anne of the Island, L.M. Montgomery; Practical Magic, Alice Hoffman; Notes from a Small Island, Bill Bryson; Lone Star, Catherine Palmer; Little House in the Big Woods, Laura Ingalls Wilder


Goodbye, 2012!  And hello, 2013!!!

Useful and Necessary

This holiday season I reread all of Little House in the Big Woods.  I usually only read the chapters about Christmas and the sugar snow, but I started it this year and wanted to read it all.  So, I did.  And now I long for times I never knew.  Not that I necessarily want to live in 1871 in the woods of Wisconsin, but I love the idea of using everything available without waste and having no unnecessary items.  I love the idea of appreciating everything, which so few of us do these days. 

For Christmas, Laura got a pair of mittens, a piece of candy, and a rag doll.  The rag doll was special; she was the only child who got more than mittens and candy.  Ma got a baker's rack carved by Pa.  Ma herself sewed a felt needle-holder for Laura's aunt, and Laura's aunt gave Ma a sweet-smelling apple full of cloves.  Not much, but so appreciated.  I think it really hit a cord with me this year because aside from a needlepoint ornament, I didn't make any gifts this year.  My clay stayed in the closet, my paints and canvases remained in their boxes.  I like making things.  I did get things to make, though, like a cross-stitched sweet-bag kit for potpourri, and a book on doll-making.

And now I'm looking around my room and I see so many unnecessary things.  Too many books (though those can never actually be unnecessary in my opinion), too many clothes that I've been holding onto for sentimental reasons or simply because they look "ok" and haven't totally fallen apart yet, too many brochures from places I've visited, hotel keys, and all the bric-a-brac of life that piles up until you can't see the shelves or the floor anymore.  Things that I don't need.  Things that are neither pretty nor useful anymore.  I desperately need to organize and clean.  Same thing with food-- I need to use it.  I need to use my olive oils and jars of honey that came as gifts.  They are good, and need eating.  I shouldn't put them on a shelf, "saving" them for a "special" enough time.  That turns into crystallized honey.  Same with soaps and candles.  They are meant to be used.  I shouldn't save a soap or candle.  Then they pile up.  They were made for me to use.  I can't enjoy them if I don't use them.

So, as far as I have a New Year's Resolution, it's to live more simply, more usefully, and more beautifully.

Not What I Thought

My exciting plans got significantly less exciting after my car accident.  While physically I'm still able, thank goodness, I'm down a car.  We discovered worse damage than originally thought.  Now there are insurance people to deal with, transportation issues, and I had to cancel a trip to Atlantic City.  I'm disappointed; I planned to meet my friends from my study abroad for a reunion.  I thought I wouldn't get to post much because I had planned to travel for this whole week.  Now, I'm trying to figure out how to make my New Years plans a reality; I'm trying to figure out how to take care of all the stuff I need to take care of in association with the accident; I'm trying to make sure that everything else in my life gets done that needs to get done.

On the docket today: a trip to Target to put in a prescription and to pick up more vitamins, meeting with the insurance guy as he examines my car, changing the cat litter boxes and taking a cat fecal sample for the vet, and hopefully getting to organize my room.  My room is a huge mess; I've barely touched the boxes that I brought back from Seattle.  I'm feeling overwhelmed.  I'm feeling a little down. 

In happy news, I had a wonderfully lazy Christmas day with my mom and dad, I ate good food, I got lovely and fun gifts, and I am, you know, alive.  So, that's a plus.

Oppa Gangnam Woody

Merry Christmas, everyone.  As promised, Toy Story's Woody dancing at Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party.  Taken with my iPhone, so not the best quality ever, but I hope you enjoy.

It gets really good/clear around 0:18.

Unexpected Post

Merry Christmas Eve, everyone!  I love this day, perhaps more than any other all year.  I curl up with my Christmas stories (Merry Christmas, Strega Nona!, Santa Calls, Little House in the Big Woods, How Little Porcupine Played Christmas, etc.), drink tea and cocoa, go to church in the evening, and finish the night with a family viewing of A Muppet Christmas Carol.  I had planned on this day to either write nothing at all, or else to tell you about my wonderful weekend with Zan, but before I write about how much fun I had with Zan this past weekend, I must first write this.

I was in a car accident yesterday.  I am luckily completely uninjured, and my car survived... ok.  It still runs.  I was driving home from Zan's and had been on the highway for probably less than two minutes when I glanced in my rear-view mirror to see a car coming up fast behind.  I couldn't get over, as there was a car in the right lane that I would have struck.  I thought the car coming up fast would have to slow down, but it didn't.  Instead it tried to get around me by going between me and the car in the right lane.  I thought, "He can't make that, the gap isn't wide enough!" and just as I thought that I got hit from the right (passenger side) and pushed off the road.  I was very, very lucky and got pushed into a wide, tree-less median.  My left front tire went flat, but I managed to keep control of the car and slowed to stop in the median.  Four other cars or so stopped and people came running back to see if I was ok.  The car that hit me drove on: a hit and run.  Like a miracle, a VDoT worker showed up and stayed with me through the whole ordeal.  This sounds stupid, but I kind of think that VDoT worker was an angel.  Eventually the cops showed up, I told them what happened, they took pictures of the damage.  Turns out, I was hit by a guy driving a stolen car, who already had multiple warrants out for his arrest and who the cops think was intoxicated by either drugs or alcohol.  They caught up with him in Richmond. 

Still, what could have been a completely shitty (or fatal) day ended up being actually kind of fun.  I called Zan, of course, and he came to find me because he's the most amazing boyfriend ever.  He waited for me at the exit just past where I crashed for over forty-five minutes.  After I was done with the cops and the VDoT worker had put on my spare tire (a donut), I met Zan.  He hugged me and kissed me and made me feel a million times better, then Zan drove me to Charlottesville.  We found a tire store that was open on Sundays and got a new tire put on the car.  While we waited, we got lunch; the guys at the tire place recommended a good lunch spot down the road.  Oh. My. Goodness.  Best burgers ever.  And such a fun place.  Everyone seemed to be a regular, except us.  As we finished our lunch a little old man dressed as an elf came in, everyone welcomed him by name, then he walked up to the bar and announced, "This elf needs a Christmas beer!"  We, personally, needed cake.  A triple chocolate fudge slice to be exact. 

My parents came up to Charlottesville and my dad drove my car home, and my mom drove me home.  We got here safely and I have had a lovely Christmas Eve.  Basically, what I learned from this is that the world is full of good people: the ones who came back to make sure I was ok, the VDoT worker, the guys at the tire place, my family, my friends, who all care so much.  I feel so lucky that the car accident was not serious, that I came out uninjured-- not even a bruise.  Everyone says that it was Christmas miracle, and I agree.  So many factors could have made yesterday horrendous.  So, this Christmas, hold your loved ones close, thank God for your blessings, and drive safely.

Zan, Rhett, and Felix

I promised fifteen posts this month, but that may have been a pipe dream.  The next couple of weeks look incredibly busy-- and exciting!  While that's good news for me-- and ultimately leads to more blog posts for you-- it means less time to blog this month in order to meet my goal.  So, today I present you with a simple picture post, so that I at least make ten.

 

This is one of my favorite photos from Seattle: Zan, Rhett, and Felix sitting on our couch one lazy afternoon.  Rhett is, in fact, sitting on both Zan and Felix.  All of my boys on the couch.  My heart just swells with love when I look at this photo, and I hope it brings a smile to your face.

Love and Christmas

I really want to post today.  I have a lot of thoughts swirling in my head, mostly about love and compassion and the magic of Christmas and how people pull together in hard times.  But the words refuse to come to me.  I want to say that Christmas is about love: God gave Jesus to the world, and Mary loved God enough to risk pregnancy as an unwed woman in the ancient world, and Joseph loved Mary enough to stick with her as she had Someone Else's child.  Then Joseph loved Jesus, too.  Which, I mean, he put up with a baby/toddler for Mary.  And God, I guess. :)  To me, that is a huge deal.  Some people don't even put up with their own children.

But even if you don't adhere to Christian theology, Christmas-- even commercialized and secularized and all those other buzz words-- still remains about love.  Each gift under those trees, every package sent through the mail, represents love.  They represent thought and care.  They represent the strong bonds we feel towards our family and friends.  We condemn the commercialization of the season, but I think the abundance of presents, holly, Christmas movies, and music is really just people wanting to give love and feel love.  We watched Love Actually last night and the beginning really got to me, especially in light of the events of last Friday, about how it might seem that the world is a terrible, greedy, awful place, but if we look for it love exists everywhere.  Quietly, non-news-worthy, but there.  There in every smile, every gift, every cookie, every too-long-car-ride to another state to visit family.  There in every hug and every random act of kindness.

That's what Christmas is about, Charlie Brown.

New Fantasyland

For the past few years, a huge part of Fantasyland had been blocked off by walls.  These walls said things like, "Pardon our dust, preparing for New Fantasyland" or something along those lines.  There were little peep-holes in the walls so you could peek through to check on the progress of the area.  One day, Beast's Castle appeared on a mountain visible from behind the wall.  We waited with bated breath for the day when all would be revealed.

That day was December 6th, 2012.  We weren't there for that day, but we were there by December 9th, 2012.  And New Fantasyland shines!  The new area includes Belle's House, Bonjour Village, Gaston's Tavern, the Be Our Guest restaurant inside the Beast's Castle, a new Ariel's Grotto, a new The Little Mermaid ride, and Eric's Castle.  Another area also opened, and is considered a part of New Fantasyland: Storybook Circus.  It includes two new Dumbo rides, a giant splash station for kids, and character meet 'n' greet areas.  It's beautifully themed.

We began our trip to New Fantasyland by wandering over to Bonjour Village themed to look like Belle's "poor provincial town."  There's a little gift shop carrying some unique Beauty and the Beast-themed merchandise, a fountain out front with a statue of Gaston, and Gaston's Tavern.  Gaston's Tavern is most excellent: it uses antlers in all of its decorating.

 (The mantle of the "fireplace" in Gaston's Tavern)

Gaston's Tavern is also home to the new "Lefou's Brew," a frozen beverage with a foam on top.  It does look like a cup of beer-- until you taste it.  I personally really liked the drink, though online forums are divided on whether or not it's a success.  The drink is apple-flavored with hints of toasted marshmallow (the marshmallow sips were my favorite) and a passion-fruit foam top.  The drink apparently premiered as the "Red Apple Freeze" at Disneyland's Cars Land.  The drink is a hit out west, from what I read.  I think part of the reason for the mixed reviews at Disney World is the name-- "Lefou's Brew" does not lead people to expect a sweet apple flavor, but rather something more "butterbeer" like.  Incidentally, I heard that this drink is supposed to be Disney's answer to Universal's Harry Potter World butterbeer, though the two drinks have wildly different recipes.  I have not tried butterbeer personally, but I hear it's great, so maybe that also accounts for the mixed reviews on "Lefou's Brew"-- too many people at Disney World were expecting a drink that tastes like butterbeer, and were disappointed by the apple-marshmallow thing.  Anyway, if you go to Disney World, try it.  See what you think.  Maybe get it in a souvenir goblet.

After our trip to Bonjour Village, we wandered over to the Little Mermaid section.  The new ride is exactly the same as the Little Mermaid ride in California Adventure in Disneyland.  But, I love it.  Since my trip to Disneyland with Liz, I've really been noticing the theatrics of the dark rides.  The set design.  The sound design.  Most of all, the light design.  These rides amaze me.  They are three minutes of incredibly well-planned theater.  The sheer amount of time and talent that went into designing the light plots-- taking into account the constantly changing sight-lines of the audience-- amazes me to no end.  The way the sound envelopes you in your little ride car (in this case, a shell) and doesn't let you go until you're stepping off the ride-- it's incredible.  Really.  Next time you're on a dark ride, take a minute to appreciate all of the work of the set, sound, and light designers who made your three minute experience top-notch.

(From the "Under the Sea" section of the ride; photo via)

(A view of Eric's Castle from the bridge to Beast's Castle)

(Someone else's better photo of Eric's Castle; photo via)  

We saw the signs for Ariel's Grotto, but didn't go back there-- it's a meet 'n' greet area for children to meet Ariel and get her autograph.  It's a neat idea, but my mom and I are a bit past the "standing in line to meet characters" phase, unless we're on a cruise or it's Phineas and Ferb. (Don't judge until you've seen the show.  You'd stand in line, too.)

So after checking out The Little Mermaid section we wandered back through Bonjour Village, past the bridge to Beast's Castle, and over to Belle's House (note: I just realized this sounds a little like "over the river and through the woods...).  Belle's House houses the attraction "Enchanted Tales with Belle."  We didn't really know what it was, just that it was "part-show, part-walk-though, and don't miss it."  After about twenty minutes in line we found ourselves in the main room of Belle's oh-so French "Provencal" house, complete with a portrait of little Belle and her mother!!!  Then a cast member ushered us into Maurice's workshop, which featured a huge mirror.  The cast member explained that the mirror had been given to Maurice by the Beast, so that Maurice could see Belle anytime he wished.  We all then looked hard into the mirror, recited some magic words, and the mirror opened and we walked through it into the castle!!!!!  It really felt like magic.  

In Belle's room in the castle the wardrobe gave us all props/roles, then we entered the library to surprise Belle with a story.  If I were still little, I would have just been thrilled beyond belief.  Why?  Because Belle herself enters the room and we act out the story of Beauty and the Beast with her!!!  Then all of the people who played roles (like incredibly tiny toddler who played Chip) get to have their picture taken with Belle.  This was definitely an attraction geared towards families with younger children, but I still enjoyed it. 

 

(Belle's House)

After Belle's "Enchanted Tales" we left New Fantasyland-- it was time for us to begin our Mickey Party in earnest.  We headed down to Storybook Circus, which was just gorgeous at night, though I don't have any pictures, then had our hot cocoa and cookies, saw the parade, the fireworks, rode some of our other favorites like "Pirates of the Caribbean" and "The Haunted Mansion" and had a generally wonderful time.  But our New Fantasyland experience was not quite over.

We came back two days later for lunch.  At lunchtime, the Be Our Guest Restaurant is a high-tech quick service place.  You wait in line on the bridge to Beast's Castle.  Finally, you are ushered into the main hall of the castle, complete with talking suits of armor and screens that advertise what you can order when you get to the Beast's study.  Once there, a cast member hands you a magic rose that you touch to button on your order screen.  Using the touchscreen, you order your food.  We chose a croque monsieur with frites, a kids pork/sweet potato mash/green beans meal, a French onion soup, a lemon meringue cupcake, and a strawberry cupcake.  

After ordering, you enter the Beast's ballroom.  There are two antechambers, too: the West Wing and the Rose Gallery.  We opted to sit in the ballroom.  After finding a nice table for two and setting our magic rose on it, I got drinks and my mom got silverware (real silverware-- not plastic!).  Within a few minutes, our food came out to us, wheeled on a lovely little cart by a cast member dressed in the Beast's livery.  Our hot food was under a glass and our cupcakes were down a shelf.  I have never eaten such good quick service food.  It tasted like a sit-down restaurant meal.  The cheese on my French onion soup had clearly been heated under a broiler.  Yum.  The cupcakes were absolutely to die for.  I will be dreaming of that strawberry cupcake for a good long time.  And of course, the setting of the meal could not have been more gorgeous!

(Outside the restaurant/Beast's Castle!)

(Beast's Ballroom, photo via)

(Beast's study/ordering area. Photo via)

(Belle and Beast dancing "music box" in the Rose Gallery of Be Our Guest Restaurant)

(The Enchanted Rose, in the West Wing)

(The stained glass from the final scene of the film)

You really just need to experience the magic of this restaurant for yourself.  The detail of the ballroom is stunning; the atmosphere of the West Wing cannot be described.  And if you go at dinner, you do get an actual sit-down experience.  They also serve alcoholic beverages at dinner.  Plus, you might meet Beast in his study.  

The best part?  It's not over yet.  Opening in 2014, more New Fantasyland!  Here's a photo of the wall that still stands around the area that has yet to open.

(Unless otherwise noted under the photo, all photos belong to me.  Please do not use my photos without credit)

Christmas at Disney: Joyful Photos!

As a follow up to my Disney Highlights post, I present: Photos from Disney World at Christmas.

 These were the decorations in the lobby of our hotel.  I could have sat in front of those Christmas trees all day.  Just looking at the picture makes me feel happy inside.  Plus, the fireplace scene in the second photo is actually made from gingerbread and candy!!!

 A very nice gentleman offered to take our photo in Epcot.  We are at the entrance to the World Showcase by the giant Christmas tree with ornaments depicting flags from the nations of the world and banners saying "Merry Christmas" in many languages.

 I snapped a picture of this Christmas tree at The Primetime Cafe in Hollywood Studios when my mom and I stopped in for a vanilla coke.  Doesn't it just take you back to the 1950s and 1960s?

 Here begins a series of photos from our Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party!

Isn't the Magic Kingdom just lovely at Christmastime?  In this photo you can even see the "snow" that falls on Main Street U.S.A. during the Christmas parties.  So much fun.

 Jodi Benson, the voice of Ariel in The Little Mermaid tells us the Christmas story in Epcot's iconic Candlelight Processional.  She's so beautiful.

And don't forget-- I still have to show you my video of Woody dancing to Gangnam Style!  Plus, be on the lookout for a post dedicated to New Fantasyland!

(Photos are mine; please do not use without credit)

Terror on the Shelf

Have you heard of Elf on the Shelf?  It's a new Christmas tradition, apparently, where people buy the Elf on the Shelf book, and it comes with a little elf doll that your family names.  Then, everyday between Thanksgiving and Christmas parents place the elf in assorted spots around the house and the children find him-- thinking he got there of his own accord, of course-- but they can't touch him or his magic will go away.  The story, from what I gather, basically says that your elf is a terrifying little spy from Santa who is spending the holiday season on a reconnaissance mission in your house and every night he flies back to the North Pole to report on his findings to Santa himself.  So you better be good.  Or else.

 (photo via)

I'm sure you can tell from my description above that I think Elf on the Shelf is incredibly creepy.  I mean, look at this doll.  Look at his face.  It looks like he's from the Twilight Zone.

I have made these opinions known to Zan.  This was my first mistake.  My mom and I arrived home from Disney World last night, I kissed Zan, unpacked a little, said hello to the cats, wrote a blog post about my Disney highlights, then my mom, Zan, and I went out to dinner.  We arrived home and Zan began to work on his applications, so I decided to take a quick shower before we watched Mickey's Once Upon a Christmas (a real Christmas classic, by the way).

I ventured up the dark staircase alone, entered my room, shut the door, and proceeded to unrobe.  I walked into the bathroom, turned on the lights, shut and locked the door, started the shower water running, and sat down on the toilet seat as I waited for the water to heat up.  I looked over at the roll of toilet paper and nearly had a heart attack-- there, reposing on the roll of toilet paper, laughing behind those soulless eyes, mocking me with his devilish smile, was an Elf on the Shelf!  I've not been so scared in a very long time.  I quickly put on a bath robe, unlocked the door, and ran out of the bathroom and back down the stairs where I berated Zan for bringing one of those things into my house.  He denied all knowledge of the Elf's origins.  Likely story.  In a perverse way though, the fact that he scared the living daylights out of me with an Elf on the Shelf is actually pretty sweet.  Shows he really loves me... or at least that he listens to what I say.

And now that I look at the Elf again, he's kind of cute...

...or maybe I'm just saying that because I'm afraid that if the Elf doesn't like me he'll pull a Talkie Tina and you'll find me dead at the bottom of the stairs one morning.  "I'm Elf on the Shelf... and you'd better be nice to me!"

(Photo found here, but image search "Creepy Elf on the Shelf" photos; there are some great ones.)

Disney Highlights

My computer is on the verge of collapse.  A few times now it has decided just not to turn on at all.  In that case, I must take out the battery and put it in again.  The other night I shut it down properly, and then when I turned it on again I got stuck in a start-up repair loop because it claimed to have been improperly shut down.  I decided not to turn it on again until I got home and could back-up my data onto an external hardware-- lucky thing, too, as once home it took me taking out the battery two or three times before it would start.  But, all is backed up now and we're good to go... although, I should probably get a new computer soon.  Good thing Christmas is just around the corner!

What I'm trying to say is, I got behind in posting because I was too afraid to turn on my computer.  So I will simply give you a list of highlights from this Disney trip:

• Spending an evening with our family friends the Ghiglieri's.  We walked around Epcot and got chips, salsa, and tequila in La Cava de Tequila.  Then we had an amazing steak dinner with some to-die-for potatoes au gratin.  Mostly though, I just love being with people who love me as much as I love them, talking and laughing like family.   


• Watching Woody, Jessie, and Bullseye from the Toy Story films dance to Gangnam Style at Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party.  


• Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party in general.  It "snows" on Main Street U.S.A, there are special Holiday Wishes fireworks, and a Disney Christmas Parade.  I just love the decorations in the Magic Kingdom at this time of year.


• New Fantasyland!  Loved "Enchanted Storytime with Belle" (though it was geared towards younger visitors), the Be Our Guest restaurant had amazing food and great ambiance, the Little Mermaid ride is gorgeous, and Lefou's Brew was quite tasty. (I should probably write more about New Fantasyland in a separate post...)


• Lunch at the restaurant in the Moroccan Pavilion.  Those beef rolls with cinnamon and powdered sugar are delicious.  Plus, the service and hospitality is incomparable. 


• FaceTiming with Zan as we played the Agent P World Showcase Adventure.  It was so fun having Zan "there" as we solved a Phineas and Ferb mystery in Epcot's Norway.  We truly live in the future, when from nearly 800 miles away we can see each other and interact in real time.  How incredibly cool. 


• Listening to Jodi Benson, the voice of Ariel in The Little Mermaid, narrate the Christmas story at the Candlelight Processional.

In sum, we had a very fun time, I do have pictures-- and even a video of Woody doing the Oppa Gangnam Style dance-- that I will post soon (I hope).  From vanilla cokes at Primetime Cafe, to walking onto Jungle Cruise and Splash Mountain early Tuesday morning, to lounging at The Flying Fish with a good glass of wine, Disney always feels like home.

For We Need a Little...

Mickey Mouse. Come on, people, you're reading my blog.  Of course the answer was Mickey Mouse.



'Tis the Christmas Season, and that means it's time for our near-annual Christmas trip to Disney World.  Unfortunately due to work, my dad couldn't make it this year, but my mom and I are still doing our best to enjoy our Disney Christmas holiday!  We arrived yesterday and promptly made our way to Epcot for fish 'n chips in the "UK", pineapple margaritas and sangria with tequila in La Cava de Tequila, a hang-gliding trip over California on Soarin', and a look 'round at the Christmas traditions and decorations from across the globe.

For those of you who know me, you may be surprised to hear this is my first trip to Disney World this calendar year, and it sure feels nice to be back home. 

(Picture taken by me; from last year's Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Parade.  Please do not use without credit back to this blog.  Expect more pictures soon, as tonight is our 2012 Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party!)

Frustrations

I'm in a bit of a lousy mood right now due to a mixture of cats, applications, and, well, Christmas.  Seriously, though, if you had to wake up to the meow of a cat with the most powerful voice in all the world, followed by a few more hours of three cats running around, meowing, and occasionally hissing at each other, you would be in a lousy mood, too.  I read once that cats evolved so that their meows sounded like the crying of human children, which forces a human to feel like they need to attend to the cat immediately.  I've mentioned that I don't want babies, right?  I don't want cat-babies, either.  I hate the sound of crying.

Then applications.  I've already submitted some (hooray!) and I only have three or four to go!  I thought I could knock one out this morning-- signed, sealed, delivered-- but no.  I ran into a stumbling block when they wanted me to upload my official transcripts.  Say what?!  I already had the issuing institution mail you those.  Now you want me to spend another seven bucks on another official transcript just so I can immediately void it by breaking the sealed envelope and uploading its contents to you-- when you already have a copy? It's frustrating.  It would be less frustrating if I didn't have to spend a total of fourteen dollars on transcripts, which I feel is excessive for a total of six pieces of paper and two envelopes.

And finally, Christmas.  I think I'm trying to enjoy Christmas so much that it's backfiring.  It's like since I have no school/work commitments right now I feel that I should be spending at least part of everyday enjoying Christmas movies, decorations, lights, and gift-making.  When will I ever have this kind of time at Christmas again?  Unfortunately, that means if I don't feel that I got my Christmas quota in, I get depressed.  Also, gifts.  I love love love gift-giving.  Usually I find great gifts.  But somehow this year I just don't feel that I've really gotten the perfect gift for anyone.  A few of the things seem good-- really good-- but not perfect.  And I spent a. lot. of time on Amazon, Etsy, and Ebay last night looking for perfect gifts.  I have absolutely no idea what to get for my dad, and I want his gift to be really good.  Maybe I'm putting too much pressure on myself. 

Never fear, though!  I am going to leave you on a happy note.  Tuesday the weather was warm and springlike, and I had a needlepoint Christmas tree ornament to finish so I could post it to a friend in Seattle.  So, I got to spend the afternoon in a most Southern way-- working on needlepoint and drinking homemade sweet tea on the porch.  Now that is perfect.

Grand Illumination!

I better get on this posting thing, eh what?



Ok, so Sunday night was Grand Illumination in Colonial Williamsburg.  It's a big deal; every hotel in town is booked, there are essentially no parking spaces left anywhere near the historic area, and Duke of Gloucester Street fills with more people than at any other time during the year.  The line for cider is between 45 minutes and an hour long.  And they open more than one cider stand.  Seriously, my mom heard someone say that 30,000 people come into town over the weekend.

Grand Illumination technically takes place over the whole weekend, but Sunday is the big day.  Candles (electric now) in the historic area buildings light up the windows, the street fills with cressets of fire (real fire), Christmas decorations abound, and special entertainments are presented.  We knew of an out of the way, but still pretty packed, parking lot nearby, so Zan, my mom, and I headed over a bit later in the day.  Luckily, the weather was gorgeous.  It was warm for December-- in the low 50s (Fahrenheit, my Australian and English friends) even with the sun down.  I was glad for my coat, but also glad I didn't need to button it tight or wear a hat and gloves.

We walked up to the green area behind the Courthouse where performers English Country danced, acted out a scene from Garrick's Lethe, Or Aesop in the Shades, sang traditional carols, and played bagpipes.  After listening for awhile, we decided to get some cider.  As we waited in the interminably long line, a group of women in front of us headed round the corner to a hidden drink window-- where they sold hot buttered rum!  We decided to go for it.  Such a nice treat and the line was a lot shorter.  With rum in hand, we walked up DoG Street towards the Capitol.  We were getting close to fireworks time, so we stopped near the Capitol to wait for the main event.

And what fireworks they were!  Seriously, one of the best displays I've ever seen at Colonial Williamsburg!  Greater than the Fourth of July ones, certainly!  Zan and I held hands tight and watched as the Capitol building shimmered with a waterfall of fire, was illuminated by waves of light, and as the sky above the building burst into a spectacle of color.  I am so, so happy to have been here for Grand Illumination this year.


(Photo taken by my mother with her iPhone; please do not use without credit)

Write all the things!

I aim to post in this blog ten times a month for a total of 120 posts a year.  Some months I only post nine times, sometimes eleven, but I try to average it out.  But, since moving back east, I have not had quite the same motivation to post.  This post will make 106 posts for the year-- I should be at around 111.  I'm five posts behind, which is significant when that equals about half of what I usually post in a month.  Can I double my recent post output?  Can I make it to 120 by December 31st?!  This will mean writing all the things!!!!  Or at least posting a picture and a caption.

So let's start!  Tonight is Grand Illumination at Colonial Williamsburg and Zan is in town for it!!!  He arrived yesterday evening, we ate our favorite Trader Joe's meal, and then went over to Jason's for a night of fine beers-- and I mean that literally, not ironically-- as Jason works at a fancy wine and beer shop and gets wonderful Christmas ales and microbrews.  I haven't written much in this blog, so you dear readers will likely not know who Jason is, or how much I've been hanging out with him since getting back to Williamsburg.  Jason is a friend of mine from undergrad.  We were pretty close during sophomore year and the first part of senior year, and he's always someone I make a point to see when I'm back in town.  Since returning home, I've seen Pippin with him, met his girlfriend over drinks at the DoG Street Pub, and on Friday he was in a staged reading of 8: A Play About Marriage Equality  so I went to see that.  He's also good to call up for an evening of Arrested Development or when I have a La Tolteca craving, since we both go there about once a week to eat.  Actually, I ran into him there at lunch the other day when I went in with my mom, so we just joined him and had a lovely time.  That's something I really love about Williamsburg: just running into people I know at random places.

Speaking of which, I ran into another friend from undergrad yesterday in the Colonial area.  She's working there, so she was all decked out in her 18th-century garb.  I couldn't very well call out her name, since she would have an 18th-century name for sure (she did, Agnes).  It was so wonderful running into her on my cider-walk (by which I mean, a walk down DoG Street with hot cider).  I also saw a friend from when Zan and I used to do 24-hour film fests working on a street Christmas production in Merchant's Square.  I just love having people all over to say hello to.  It really feels like home when there are so many familiar faces around.  And having people to eat lunch with!  On Thursday I had lunch at Nawab with Professor Whittenburg, and it was such a wonderful time.  And Nawab has redecorated!  Then Friday I had my meeting with Professor Popper-- after many, many reschedulings on both our parts and one total miss on mine-- and I got to see Jeff beforehand for a vanilla coke at Wawa, enjoyed out on a bench by the statue of James Blair.  Oh, and I'm still going to trivia on Monday on a regular basis.  We won last week!

Also, I feel that I should let you all know that I finally did a jigsaw puzzle.  It's something I've been wanting to do since summer, and I finally completed one!  I felt I had the time!  It was an amazing feeling, to sit down with a puzzle for fun.  My mom and I worked on it all this past week, and last night Zan and I put the last few pieces of the puzzle together.  It's such a satisfying feeling when that last piece clicks into place.  Ah, puzzles.  I already have my next one picked out.  It's called Christmas is Coming to Town and is a real work of Americana artwork.  So excited.

Alright, I think you're mostly caught up on the important things now.  The other things going on mostly involve working on personal statements and figuring out application business; that, or frantically trying to figure out Christmas gifts for people and who I need to send cards to this year.

So, this was long, and I seriously doubt the next fourteen (can I do it?!) posts will be quite so long and detailed, but here's hoping that I reach my goal of 120 for the year!  Who's with me?!