Mystic and Exile's High Times at the D23 Expo, Day Four!

Happy 12th Anniversary to us!!! Up at 5:30 and in line at 7:00 for Day Three of the D23 Expo wearing our Happy Anniversary Buttons! We entered the ACC and went directly to the Third Floor and Stage 23 for the Disney Cruise Line Presentation. We had pretty good seats and enjoyed the presentation by Joe Lanzisero and Bob Zalk on imagineering the Dream, although it was similar to the presentation we had heard from Joe Lanzisero on the Wonder in May. Of much greater interest to us was the sneak peak into the Fantasy, since we will be sailing with her in Dec, 2012! It looks like it's going to be beautiful! Can't wait to embark! We weren't able to get into the queues for any of the other presentations and we had decided to skip the Marvel presentation in the Arena, so we went back to the show floor for a final tour and a little more transfer of our wealth to Disney. We had pretty much seen all we wanted to at that point, so we decided to bid the Expo goodbye, head back to our room to drop off our final purchases and board ART for DCA. We picked up a fast pass for Soarin' and went over to lunch at the Paradise Garden Grill, where we both had Grilled Steak Skewers, Wayne's with Moroccan Chili Sauce and mine with Tzatziki sauce. We took a quick ride on the Tower of Terror and enjoyed a stroll around the park. We headed back to Soarin' for our fast pass time but, while we were in line, our side of the ride went down. We were given a fast pass for any attraction except Star Tours or World of Color. We then headed across the Esplanade to Disneyland. We rode the DL Railroad for the full circle tour and one more stop to New Orleans Square Station, giving our tired feet a chance to recover from three days of Expo standing and walking and went to Cafe Orleans for dinner. Wayne had the Monte Cristo and I had the Mardi Gras Chicken Sandwich. After a ride on Pirates of the Caribbean, we decided to leave before the fireworks crowds really started gathering. We got back on the DL Railroad for a ride to Main Street Station, again resting our tired feet, and departed Disneyland with smiles on our faces. We took ART back to the hotel, had another early night and happily didn't set an alarm for the first time on the trip. No lines tomorrow, just a drive back home to Vegas. We're sad to leave, but Disneyland, we'll see ya real soon!

Mystic and Exile's High Times at the D23 Expo, Day Three!

Up at 5:30 and in line at 6:30 for Day Two of the Expo! Today we were joined by our son and daughter-in-law, Chris and Michelle. We had a bit of a mishap and got separated because the electronics check-in at the Arena for the Studios presentation was handled differently this year. We had planned to wait in line and let Chris and Michelle explore the show floor since they only had one day. Fortunately, they heard about the change and got out of the show floor line and into the Arena line. Still, they ended up on standby and it appeared that they wouldn't get in. We saved them seats and were thrilled when we saw them enter the Arena and be shepherded to the nosebleed seats! Amazingly, they saw us frantically waving at them from the other side of the Arena and were able to come join us! The Studios presentation was awesome! Disney Animation Studios announced several new projects. We were especially excited about Wreck It Ralph, an animated feature about an 8 bit video game bad guy character who wants to be a good guy. It looks great! Walt Disney Pictures presentation included live appearances by many of the stars of their upcoming productions, including all of the stars of The Avengers! The Pixar Presentation, hosted by John Lasseter, announced upcoming projects including two as yet unnamed features, one about dinosaurs and one that will take us into the workings of the human mind. Buzz and Woody brought out a huge cake to celebrate 25 years of Pixar and they gave cupcakes to everyone in the audience! Yay, free cupcakes! After the presentation, we went upstairs and got a sandwich from the grab and go ( a much better experience than the previous day even though all they had was ham and cheese sandwiches). We then got in line to visit the Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives Exhibit. We were in line about 45 minutes before entering the exhibit. It was much larger than last time, with three rooms. We all really enjoyed it and the best part was that we were allowed to take pictures this year as long as we didn't use a flash! We went back down to the show floor and revisited the Parks and Resorts Pavilion so the kids could have a chance to see it. Then we visited the Expo Dream Store (amazingly, no line! We walked right in and no line at checkout either!). We once again transferred a little more of our net worth to Disney. (It's a good thing we're shareholders!) We spent some time touring the show floor and then it was back to the hotel for dinner with the kids and another early night.

Mystic and Exile's High Times at the D23 Expo, Day Two!

Up early and in line by 7am for Day One of the D23 Expo! The line is insane! We're glad we got here early! We picked up our lanyards and guides, made a quick tour of the show floor to get our bearings and Wayne got in the Arena line for the Disney Legends Ceremony. I spent some more time walking the show floor while Wayne kept our place in line. It quickly became apparent that I would need some sort of bag to hold all the items I was receiving. Happily, the Disney Store was handing out nice blue bags! I joined Wayne in line and we headed into the Arena. The Legends Ceremony was beautiful! We especially enjoyed hearing the new Disney Legends, Paige O'Hara, Jodi Benson, Lea Salongo and Anika Noni Rose, sing the songs of the Princesses they voiced! We exited the Arena after the ceremony and got right back in the Arena line for the Parks and Resorts presentation. Once we entered the Arena, we had good seats and had a nice view of the presentation. There were no new announcements, but some excellent reports, video and fly throughs on the progress of the Fantasyland expansion at WDW, Cars Land at DCA, Aulani and some other fun things. I know several attendees have complained about the presentation and its lack of new announcements, but I enjoyed it. I think we all may have been a bit spoiled by all the project announcements at the first Expo. We visited the Mickey's of Glendale store and transferred a significant amount of wealth from our bottom line to Disney's. We just couldn't resist the wonderful imagineering items available! We waited and waited and waited in line for something to eat at one of the convention center's food outlets. They were out of almost everything. I ended up with loaded nachos and Wayne with loaded fries. Not a very healthy selection, but we were really hungry! I remember the food locations being not so great at the last Expo. Apparently, ACC hasn't learned much in the interim. We will try the grab and go upstairs by the Treasures of the Walt Disney Archives tomorrow We visited the Parks and Resorts Pavilion and the Carousel of Projects Exhibit. We had a great time exploring the HUGE WDW Fantasyland Model, The Seven Dwarves Mine Train ride vehicle, the Cars Land ride vehicles, the huge Disney Fantasy Bow, the Mademoiselle Minnie sculpture for the Fantasy and all the other exhibits. Sadly, we weren't able to attend any other presentations because the queues filled before we could get in line. Once again, just as it was at the first Expo, we had to choose between spending all of our time waiting in line or miss some presentations. At the first Expo, we elected to spend more time in line and see presentations. This time we decided to allow ourselves more time on the show floor. We visited the D23 Dream Store and transferred some more of our quickly dwindling net worth to Disney! :-) . Then, back to the hotel for dinner and another early bedtime to prepare for Expo, Day Two.

Mystic and Exile's High Times at the D23 Expo, Day One!

We hit the road, leaving Las Vegas at about 6:30am on Thursday headed to Anaheim and our 2nd D23 Expo Adventure! After an uneventful drive, we arrived in Anaheim around 10:30 and checked into our lovely room at the Hilton Anaheim. As soon as Bell Services delivered our luggage, we immediately jumped on ART and were on our way to Disneyland Park. We are Premier Passholders, so are able to visit Disneyland often, but it never loses its Magic for us! We took the requisite stroll down Main Street and headed to Fantasyland for a quick ride on It's a Small World since we missed it on our last trip. Next, we had a nice lunch at the Carnation Cafe, one of our favorite dining locations. We both had a cup of the Loaded Baked Potato Soup, I had the Cafe Steak and Wayne had the Main Street Meatloaf Stack. Both meals were great, but it was a lot of food, so no room for dessert! :-(. We headed over to Tomorrowland for a ride on Star Tours, the Adventures Continue. This time we went to Hoth and Coruscant! We found our perfect seat for Mickey's Soundsational Parade and enjoyed a Mickey Bar while we waited. We hadn't seen this parade yet and we loved it! We were a little tired after the drive and park visit, so we boarded ART for the Hilton. We walked next door to the ACC to look at the Expo banners and make sure our credentials were in order. They were. Back to the hotel, dinner and an early turn in to be ready for a big day tomorrow!

MY DAD

Roy Norman Murphy, Born May 23, 1917 in Jackson, CA, Died August 31, 2000 in Las Vegas, NV.

With Father's Day approaching, I've been thinking about my Dad.

He was born in a modest house in Jackson, CA. He loved Jackson and would readily tell anyone who would listen that he was born there.

He served in the army in World War II, traveling to Europe on the Queen Mary when it was used as a troop ship. He was a decorated veteran who fought in the Battle of the Bulge and at the Bridge at Remagen. He served in the Navy Seabees in the Korean War and was stationed in the Aleutian Islands and in the Phillippines.

While my Dad wasn't perfect, he was hard-working man. He was a sentimental guy who could be brought to tears by beautiful music or any touching event. He was married to my Mom for 47 years. He loved my Mom and me with all his heart.

He was proud of my accomplishments in life and bragged about me every chance he got. He loved and respected Wayne and was so happy when I married him. He was the life of the party at our wedding reception! He loved Chris and Kelly and was proud and happy to welcome them into our family.

My Dad fell ill and passed away a year after our wedding. He remained funny and joked with us about life and his illness right up to the end. It's hard to believe he's been gone nearly 9 years now.

I love you, Dad and I miss you.

So, it has been pointed out that I have not been very diligent about my blog, so I'll try to update with the not-so-exciting details of my life since my last post.

I was in Washington, DC in March for the NADCO Government Relations and Management Conferences and my annual visits to our congressional representatives. My visits on the hill went well. I got to have dinner with my cousin, Tracey, her husband, Marc and their 2 sons, Geoffrey and Ethan! It was great to visit with them after so many years!

Wayne and I continue with our adventure-packed life of work, books, video games and TV. Yes, I know that the excitement is almost too much to handle! lol

My work has been very busy as the retirement of my boss, Bobbi, on June 30 is fast approaching. On July 1, I will take over as President of NSDC. I'm excited about the challenge and not nearly as nervous as I expected to be (or probably should be). I've stepped up the travel between Las Vegas and Reno to work with Bobbi on the transition and to spend time with the Reno staff as this will be a bigger adjustment for them than the Las Vegas staff who are used to me being in charge.

Because of my work transition and a never-ending remodel at Wayne's office, our travel this year has been, and will continue to be, limited. We are managing to fit in a cruise and a week at WDW right after Thanksgiving and we're planning a Las Vegas staycation in August for our 10th anniversary. It's hard to believe we've been married for almost 10 years already! I've also been cancer-free for the same amount of time! I am incredibly grateful for my husband, our kids, our comfortable and joyful life and my health!

Animal Crossing and Pins, Oh My!

It's been pointed out that I haven't posted in a while. We haven't really done much lately that I expect would be of interest to anyone but us but, hey, you asked for it!

Wayne and I have been busy with projects in the last couple of weeks. His: creating a usable Animal Crossing inventory list. He's so far completed the inventory sheets for the shirts, accessories, fish and bugs, and carpets and wallpaper. He still needs to finish the furniture, songs, specialty items, fossils and gyroids. Those of you who play the Animal Crossing video games will understand the absolute necessity and priority of his endeavor. For those of you who don't, just trust us. You gotta have an inventory list!!!!

Our latest Walt Disney World vacation included some intense pin trading sparked by Chris providing us with pins, hints and instructions. Let me just say that Matt turned out to be an intrepid pin-trader! Impressive, most impressive, but you are not a Jedi yet! But I digress. Wayne and I have pins that we have collected over the years. We've never been into trading, but I'll admit it was fun and I may be the tiniest bit hooked. Thanks, Chris....

Anyway, I returned from our trip determined to organize and catalog our pins. It has turned out to be a bigger job than I anticipated. (Picture our entire living room floor covered in 1 inch pins!)
On our Panama Canal cruise, we purchased the Tomart's Guide to Disney Pin Trading and I've put it to good use. The first step was to locate our pins in the book. That took all of one weekend and a few evenings. The second step was to categorize the pins for organized storage in several pin collection and display bags. Now the pins are in several large Ziploc bags labeled with such titles as characters, theme parks, cast exclusives, commemmoratives, etc. Oh and one large bag of those that I didn't find in the book. The third step was to catalog the pins in a database on my computer. That took half of one weekend, a few evenings and all of another weekend. I just completed that step last Sunday. I should mention here that I've only entered those pins that I've located in the book, a total of 344 pins! I was shocked, SHOCKED, I tell you, at the number of pins we've collected without even trying! I haven't yet counted those that I haven't entered yet. (Maybe I don't want to know...) The next step is to check the pins I couldn't locate against the book one more time and catalog those that I missed on the first comparison. Then I will enter those I still can't find in the database, but will need to value them from another source. There are several on the internet. Lastly, I will need to affix all of them to the display pages in the various pin collection bags. We currently own 3 bags. Somehow, I don't think that will be enough and I'll need to purchase a couple more. Sigh....

Yes, I know: NERDS!

So, that's what we've been up to. You're probably sorry you asked. :-)