Hi everybody. My husband and I got a kick out of this article in our local (Omaha, NE) paper yesterday.:
Rainbow Rowell: I'm going to Disney World - yet again
BY RAINBOW ROWELL
WORLD-HERALD COLUMNIST
When you're going to Disney World for the fifth or sixth . . . or seventh time in five years, don't tell people that's where you're going.
Say you're going to Florida.
They'll understand that. They'll think of sunshine and sandy beaches and leave you alone.
But if you tell them you're going to Disney World, they get a bit judgmental.
"Disney World? Weren't you just there? You don't even have kids. That place is so fake."
As someone who goes to Disney World . . . well, a lot, I still haven't found a way to justify my vacation habits.
Maybe I shouldn't have to justify my vacation habits. But I work with reporters, and reporters never let you off the hook when you're acting ridiculous.
And even I think it's ridiculous.
Normal people go to Disney World when their kids hit a certain age. They have a good time, buy some mouse ears, then decide to go skiing the next year.
Only Michael Jackson and people who collect snow globes spend every vacation in a Disney park.
And not that I spend every vacation at Disney World.
I've also been to Disneyland and Disneyland Paris. (Next stop, Tokyo Disney!)
I've turned saving for Disney trips into a science. I should probably stop trying to write a novel and write "Disney on the Cheap" instead.
I've got books on Disney theme park history and theme park design, Imagineering guides and a shelf full of Disney travel books.
Yet, I still can't explain why I keep going back.
When people push me - and Disney haters love to push - I find myself lamely talking about doorknobs.
Most doorknobs are strictly utilitarian. No one pays attention to doorknobs. But at Disney World, even doorknobs are an opportunity make the place more beautiful or fun.
You might be standing in a gift shop and notice one that looks just like the talking doorknob in "Alice in Wonderland."
Also, the trash cans there are painted to complement the buildings. And the fountains always work.
This stuff just tickles me. I find myself taking photos of carpet patterns, light fixtures and pedestrian traffic ropes.
My husband is in the family entertainment business, so noticing those things is research for him. (Our more recent trips to Orlando have been for amusement industry conventions.)
The attention to detail is liberating. I can let my guard down in a place where they have standards for doorknobs and garbage cans.
Now, saying this out loud usually brings on a lecture about oceans, mountains and cultural diversity. Real things.
Yes, real is good.
But unreal can be more interesting - and, frankly, less stressful.
Fake isn't the same as evil.
If pushed too far on this issue, I end up arguing that Disney World says as much about our culture, good and bad, as the pyramids - also man-made, also decadent - say about ancient Egypt.
Nobody tries to make archaeologists feel shallow.
* * *
Rainbow Rowell: I'm going to Disney World - yet again
BY RAINBOW ROWELL
WORLD-HERALD COLUMNIST
When you're going to Disney World for the fifth or sixth . . . or seventh time in five years, don't tell people that's where you're going.
Say you're going to Florida.
They'll understand that. They'll think of sunshine and sandy beaches and leave you alone.
But if you tell them you're going to Disney World, they get a bit judgmental.
"Disney World? Weren't you just there? You don't even have kids. That place is so fake."
As someone who goes to Disney World . . . well, a lot, I still haven't found a way to justify my vacation habits.
Maybe I shouldn't have to justify my vacation habits. But I work with reporters, and reporters never let you off the hook when you're acting ridiculous.
And even I think it's ridiculous.
Normal people go to Disney World when their kids hit a certain age. They have a good time, buy some mouse ears, then decide to go skiing the next year.
Only Michael Jackson and people who collect snow globes spend every vacation in a Disney park.
And not that I spend every vacation at Disney World.
I've also been to Disneyland and Disneyland Paris. (Next stop, Tokyo Disney!)
I've turned saving for Disney trips into a science. I should probably stop trying to write a novel and write "Disney on the Cheap" instead.
I've got books on Disney theme park history and theme park design, Imagineering guides and a shelf full of Disney travel books.
Yet, I still can't explain why I keep going back.
When people push me - and Disney haters love to push - I find myself lamely talking about doorknobs.
Most doorknobs are strictly utilitarian. No one pays attention to doorknobs. But at Disney World, even doorknobs are an opportunity make the place more beautiful or fun.
You might be standing in a gift shop and notice one that looks just like the talking doorknob in "Alice in Wonderland."
Also, the trash cans there are painted to complement the buildings. And the fountains always work.
This stuff just tickles me. I find myself taking photos of carpet patterns, light fixtures and pedestrian traffic ropes.
My husband is in the family entertainment business, so noticing those things is research for him. (Our more recent trips to Orlando have been for amusement industry conventions.)
The attention to detail is liberating. I can let my guard down in a place where they have standards for doorknobs and garbage cans.
Now, saying this out loud usually brings on a lecture about oceans, mountains and cultural diversity. Real things.
Yes, real is good.
But unreal can be more interesting - and, frankly, less stressful.
Fake isn't the same as evil.
If pushed too far on this issue, I end up arguing that Disney World says as much about our culture, good and bad, as the pyramids - also man-made, also decadent - say about ancient Egypt.
Nobody tries to make archaeologists feel shallow.
* * *
