The Chit Chat Chit Chat Thread

[MOXOMUMD]

21 days until Christmas.

 

[Wrangler-Rick]

Happy thoughts!!

 

[OSUgirl77]

Orion launch has been canceled. They are going to try again tomorrow.

 

[OSUgirl77]

My ultimate favorite Christmas movie is "A Christmas Carol" with Reginald Owen and June Lockhart (1938, black and white). In second place, is the Alastair Sim version (1951, black and white). Note: in the UK, they released it as "Scrooge" but here in the U.S., it was named "A Christmas Carol". Oddly enough, I also liked the Mr. Magoo cartoon version of this story as well!

I really like the George C. Scott version, too. He plays Scrooge very well.

 

[Gabe1]

On Amazon you can gift a friend for Christmas 1,500 Live lady bugs for $8.90.

 

[Gabe1]

What an excellent Christmas gift, someone could give me these Marshmallows.
Who needs the cereal?

One pound of Cereal Marshmallows, $14.99

 

[Gabe1]

Lazy day.

 

[Gabe1]

Friends of my parents took their kids to Niagra Falls on the Canadian side a few years ago. Kids were most excited about the very nice hotel room in Toronto that they booked.

Yep, my DS and his then GF from Buffalo and in college up there went for a long weekend to the Canadian side of Niagara. He summed it up as he was done after a couple hours.

 

[Gabe1]

Also, just a comment on that article you posted, that blogger is not wrong about MBs and to some degree spontaneity, but the whole article isn't really logical and just comes across as whiny and selfish. First of all, on MBs, why is she complaining? They had no issues with MBs. You can still request RFID room keys if you don't want to wear a MB, but they are more convenient. Just not worth what Disney paid for the system. They're not without issues, but they do have a positive side, one she conveniently ignores.

She said she felt stressed. If she had picked up a guidebook, particularly the Unofficial Guide to WDW, she would have been better able to plan and work her way around the park. I very much doubt her claim about going "three dozen times" because someone who has gone that many times will know what they are doing and will not let the new system make them feel stressed. They will know the parks well enough to know how to plan it out. She sounds like she doesn't want to plan. Well guess what? DL doesn't have MBs or MM+ or any of that stuff, and dinner reservations can be made closer to the time of your visit. But you still have to have a gameplan before you enter the park. This person just sounded like she was on vacation and didn't want to have to think. And if she wanted to be more spontaneous, you can do that in low season. The fact that she didn't plan on her family eating and then blamed the system is ridiculous. On the old FP system, you would still have a set time if you grabbed your FPs earlier in the day, so plan your meals accordingly.

And the complaint about crowds is absolutely absurd. They are trying to prevent guests from stopping and leaving ginormous spaces. You don't have to be on top of another guest sitting there. It is to prevent guests from stopping in the middle of the row. And again, they say the same thing in DL. Her complaint is silly and comes across as selfish.

And perhaps the most laughable complaint is germs on the interactive screens. Really? There are germs everywhere, including handrails, which kids touch and even put their mouths on. That's what happens when you have several thousand guests coming through a park every day. It's called Hand Sanitizer. Or soap and water. They can be found in every bathroom.

She's not entirely wrong about MBs and FP+, but it sounds more like a complaining article than a balanced viewpoint with both positive and negative aspects.

Did you watch the Middle episode where the family goes to WDW and they wind up doing nothing, over sleep, have problems with tickets because they were to be at DL not WDW so the whole getting into the park is a process?

To me the article read as if they saw the Middle and wrote an article with this episode on their mind.

 

[Goofyernmost]

Yep, my DS and his then GF from Buffalo and in college up there went for a long weekend to the Canadian side of Niagara. He summed it up as he was done after a couple hours.

I was stationed in Niagara Falls back in the late 60's. My feeling is if you have seen one drop of water drop off a cliff you have seen them all. The Canadian side does have a lot more tourist trap things though, like Ripley's and Houdini. (if it's still there) And you can go down under the falls through a tunnel on the Canadian side and see the actual backside of water.

Looking at the falls themselves I always felt that it was better on the American side because the Canadian (Horseshoe) Falls is much grander. The American Falls, as viewed from Canada just looks like a pile of ruble with water running over it.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

Did you watch the Middle episode where the family goes to WDW and they wind up doing nothing, over sleep, have problems with tickets because they were to be at DL not WDW so the whole getting into the park is a process?

To me the article read as if they saw the Middle and wrote an article with this episode on their mind.

I didn't see the episode, but I did think the author was being unfair. The complaint about the germs was the most ridiculous. Also about moving all the way across the row.

I don't believe her when she says she's been "3 dozen times." Maybe she went to MK and Epcot 3 dozen days in the 70s and 80s, but someone who has been on three dozen trips would figure out how to handle the system without feeling "stressed." The only reason she felt stressed was that she had unrealistic expectations on how to go about her day. You cannot get prime spots for the parade and fireworks and still get on every single attraction and have time for meals. Plan what's important. Which bring me back to the fact that she has not been 3 dozen times. Otherwiwe, she would know this.

Just felt like an article that was complaining for the sake of complaining and trying convince others not to go. If it were more positive and negative and if the blogger were willing to acknowledge her own failures, I would be more willing to accept it. Of, if she had said "It's nice every once in a while, but I'd rather go someplace on my next vacation where I don't have to deal with crowds and lines," then I would say to each his own. This though, just, no.

 

[StarWarsGirl]

Also, update on the laptop...

If you've been following my thread in the gadgets section, you've seen that I'm leaning towards a Levono that has a disc drive.

Also, before you purchase an HP, consider their customer service. They've been horrible to deal with.

 

[Gabe1]

I picked up dry cleaning and ran into store to pick up an 8 pack of toilet paper I had forgotten to get the other day. $6.77 and $7.49 with tax. Wow. A dumbfounded moment as I normally shop and fill the cart so I don't note that.

I come home and the mid-day news is on showing fast food workers and nursing home care aides protesting nation wide for more acceptable minimum wages. Yesterday Chicago raised the minimum in 2015-July from $8.25 to $9.00. Workers are stating that 75 cents is not going to fix the poverty they are living in and dependence on social services.

Having just paid $7.49 for toilet paper, the equivalent of an hours pay after deductions I suddenly had a reality check and more empathy than I already did have. 75 cents increase x 8 hours equals $6 increase.

 

[JenniferS]

What an excellent Christmas gift, someone could give me these Marshmallows.
Who needs the cereal?

One pound of Cereal Marshmallows, $14.99

I have a tooth-ache just looking at this.
I'm a Special K kind-of girl.

 

[JenniferS]

Did you watch the Middle episode where the family goes to WDW and they wind up doing nothing, over sleep, have problems with tickets because they were to be at DL not WDW so the whole getting into the park is a process?

To me the article read as if they saw the Middle and wrote an article with this episode on their mind.

I had never seen The Middle until my cousin from Calgary was visiting in September.
It is one now of my favourite sit-coms.
The Disney episode was the first one I ever saw.

 

[Gabe1]

If any of you are up now, I believe the launch of the Orion unmanned spacecraft is set for 7:05 AM (EST) from Cape Canaveral. I won't get to see it as I'll be out the door in a few minutes, but I'm sure the news channels will carry it "live" if you're interested.

Darn. If I had only read this 4 minutes earlier, instead of playing my new game first thing.

Darn, I missed it too!!!!

I watched. It was scrubbed. Maybe Friday.

 

[JenniferS]

From OTPN FB page:


A new crane has appeared behind the Land pavilion.

 

[JenniferS]

Never struggle again:

You're welcome.

 

[donaldtoo]

I do like Christmas movies.

This one is my favorite.

Mine too, along with this one...

 

[donaldtoo]

If any of you are up now, I believe the launch of the Orion unmanned spacecraft is set for 7:05 AM (EST) from Cape Canaveral. I won't get to see it as I'll be out the door in a few minutes, but I'm sure the news channels will carry it "live" if you're interested.

Yep, was ready to see it. Kept gettin' delayed, and then was finally scrubba dub dubbed...

Hopefully, tomorrow, that bird'll fly...!