A new post?!?!?!

I know, I know. You never thought this day would come. Well fear not dear reader(s), whoever you may be, for today I have been struck by the blogging bug. What brought it on? An event I've been pondering since childhood:

A day alone at Disneyland.

Would it be magical? Would it be lame? It was hard to know. When I was 8 and throwing temper tantrums at that stupid Country Bear Jamboree show, going to Disneyland alone sounded like the ultimate freedom. When I was a teenager I began to realize going to Disneyland "alone" (aka sans parents) would be simply expensive. And in recent years as I've gone with friends and family, it seemed that going to Disneyland alone would be awfully lonely.

So today I faced this query head-on. Since 11/11/11 only comes once in our lifetime, I knew something exciting had to happen on it. We are having a roommate date to Color Me Mine in the evening, but what's a girl to do all day alone? Solo day at Disneyland it is.

I actually made the drive with my anxiety level floating a little higher than normal. I felt like the parking guy must have been judging my empty car. My fellow tram riders must have noticed me sitting there quietly. The bag check lady must have wondered who I'd be meeting. But once I got inside, I got swallowed up in the crowd, and relaxed while I took in the music, characters, and newly added Christmas decorations.

Now, I will admit that it did not occur to me that most schools have today off. So it was more crowded than I had hoped, which of course cut in to the amount of things I could do. But here is my list of things to do at Disneyland by yourself.



Number 1: Gather your Disney swag and march in like the BAMF that you are.





Number 2: Get really excited about 11/11/11 parking ticket. Save to frame.





Number 3. Utilize the Single Rider passes and bypass all those suckers who came with friends.

I did not look it up ahead of time, but I knew Indiana Jones offered it for sure, so I went there first. It's a little bit of an irksome process, as there are 5 different locations within the line that you have to stand and wait, but I got on in 15 minutes when there was an hour line, so whatever. And the lady in line with me told me the other rides you can do single rider on, which turns out is only Splash Mountain for Disneyland. Major bummer, since I am not a big fan of that ride (can't they just put in seat belts already??). But there are 4 in CA Adventure that offer it - CA Screamin', Soarin' Over CA, Grizzly River Run, and Goofy's Sky School.

Beware. The pricks at Soarin' Over California WILL get testy with you when you step over the yellow line. Not the one at the boarding zone, no. The one where you're standing in an empty hallway waiting to go around the corner into another empty hallway. Whatever, Disney.



Number 4: Stop and stare as as an entire area is emptied and blocked off because someone left a suspicious bag at a table.

Sadly I then realized this meant the place I walked back across the park to eat at would not feed me. So I went on Indiana Jones again while I waited, partly to pass the time and partly to be far enough away in case the diaper bag in question really was an explosive. I sat next to two little boys who talked my ear off and made fun of me for being scared, then screamed the whole time and held each others hands. Made my day.



Number 5: Eat somewhere you've never eaten before, to keep things exciting.





Number 6: Take said exciting food to a highly trafficked location, so you can sit and watch at all the people go by. Marvel at how many people wear those platypus shirts from Phineas and Ferb, and the fact that your delicious lunch only cost $3.50.





And finally, Number 7: Sit down on an empty bench and count how many kids point and laugh at the huge pile of horse poo on Main Street.

It only took 3 minutes (and 9 kids pointing and laughing) for this poor man to trudge over and clean it up


I tried to single out other people who were there alone, and took comfort in the fact that every time I saw someone walking alone I assumed they were merely waiting for the rest of their group. Interestingly, it seemed that every other person I was ever in line for Single Rider with was actually with a group, whether they were present or not. At first I couldn't decide if I should feel lame or superior, as I was actually using the passes for their true purpose, not just to cut the line. But my superiority was solidified when a group of teenagers came up next to me, one of them farted, and they ran around screaming and laughing like 4 year olds. Honestly, this is Disneyland, not Great America. Can we make some sort of screening process?

Anyways, I found most of the rides to be as fun alone as with others, though it is a toss up if the strangers around you will be fun and conversational with you, the weird alone girl. Especially when you finally work up the nerve to go on Pinocchio, where it will be painfully obvious that you are alone. I held my head high and hopped in to line.... mistake.

I was pleased that the party in front of me took up a whole car so I didn't have to wonder if I should squeeze in or not. I hopped in to the next one, pulled down my lap bar, and smiled at ride operator guy to let him know I was ready to go. Unfortunately, ride operator guy was looking at couple behind me, as though confused as to why they weren't joining me. Couple behind me was looking at me like, who is this weird girl going on Pinocchio by herself? I hung my head in shame as they noticed they were causing a hold up and awkwardly climbed in to the front row of my car without looking at me. Is it really that abnormal for a single adult to ride the storybook rides??

Oh well. Overall a good experience, and my life feels a little more complete each time I have a new Disney experience. Next on my list, finally doing that Mr. Lincoln thing on Main Street.

New New New

New goal:
To run half of a half marathon in October.
Chance of success: Minimal.

New plan:
Moving to Pomona in Sept.
Chance of joy: (jennifer + disneyland) - socal fashion expectations.

New Phone:
Proud owner of a Samsung Evergreen
Chance of mastering it: Slim to none.

Things are a-changin'.

In a momentary lapse of sanity, I thought it would be fun to sign up for the Nike Women's Marathon and train to do the half. HA.
Envisioned: Get up early every day and run a mile or so to get started, while looking very cute in running outfit. Be productive and healthy for rest of day.
Actual: Went out at 11:15am in ill-fitting mickey mouse tshirt, and did about 65% walking, 30% jogging, 5% laying in grass at park. Napped after and was almost late to work.

Then I decided it would be fun to move to Pomona. I hope I am more on the ball for that decision, with no delusional "running for fun DOES exist!"type judgments still floating about. I get to live with lovely people in a lovely house, so what's the worst that could happen? Other than me wearing overalls and getting evicted in the ensuing mutiny.

The brightest side is that my new phone is made from 70% post-consumer materials, and the packaging is 80% recycled papers! Plus it's all printed with soy ink (omitting the petroleum that normal ink has). HOWEVER, it very nearly has me in a panic attack because of my inability to text quickly on it. The front buttons work like my old phone, but a QWERTY keyboard slides out sideways. The front buttons have a weird feel to them and the predictive text cannot keep up with me, but the QWERTY board is too wide for my baby hands. Plus, it has a zillion little quirks that my old phone did not have, and many of the buttons are different. So I'm having a mild technological breakdown; I feel like I've had a stroke and can no longer figure out how to achieve my daily activities. It is a cool phone, though.



My friend at work said she has to drive in to Davis with her husband early tomorrow, but doesn't have to be at work herself until 12:30, and did I want to do something in the morning? I very stupidly mentioned that I'm trying to get in shape for the half marathon (she is an extremely competent runner), and she got super excited. So I am going on a run tomorrow with someone who could probably finish a full marathon at the drop of a hat. I hope I can still look her in the eye after I have an asthma attack and keel over after 5 minutes.

EXCITING UPDATE!

30 hours without Wii Fit in my life proved to be too much. I caved in and bought one.



I understand that this was not the wisest decision on my part. I make very little money, and I do not actually own a Wii. These are but minute details compared to the joy this game has brought me.

I decided to make Randy bike to Target with me to get it, but that turned out to be an awful decision. It's freezing outside and by the time I got to Target my ears and lungs were so cold that I never wanted to exercise again. I had to take a few minutes to recover, then bravely made my way to the game aisle. I had a little relapse when I picked up the game - it was so damn heavy I couldn't imagine getting it home. After shamelessly begging Randy to ride home and come back and pick me up in his car, he put the box on his handlebars and we headed out. Clearly I am in dire need of this game.

I was tired and cranky when we got home, but my complete and utter glee was rekindled when I took the time to actually read the box, and GUESS WHAT!! TARGET EXCLUSIVE!! It came with a free game! I am now the proud owner of not only Wii Fit Plus, but ALSO The Biggest Loser! Score.



I put in 30 minutes on Wii Fit and think I will try The Biggest Loser after dinner. Be prepared to read many upcoming posts about my progress with these delightful games.

The Day the Blog was Born.

Good day, bloggers (namely, Jennifer Chau, probably the only person who will ever read this),

Despite the name of this post, I actually decided in August that I wanted to make a blog about my time in Davis - and wrote two entries on a Word file so I could create a blog when I had the time. In case you are unaware, it is now March, and this is the first time a blog is being created since my lovely Xanga days. I believe this is an omen of how this blog is going to go.

But, to be fair to my August self, I will post the entry now:

August 31

I hope that no matter how old I get, going back to the studio will always make me so happy. And hey, maybe some day I will actually go back there to train.

Filled with post-studio euphoria, coupled with “Aunt Jane got me a salad spinner!” joy, I decided to take on my room. Mission: pack clothes. Sounds easy; after all, I believe in living simply. One suitcase ought to do it, then I can return to my life of lounging.

I filled an entire garbage bag with dresses and jackets alone. Next came the stack of tank tops the size of a microwave (I should know, I just bought one!). Underwear has taken over my bed, jeans are everywhere the eye can see, and then of course there is the dirty clothes pile. Oh, and let’s not forget the chest of sweaters in the hallway.

I’m utterly appalled with myself. There are people who can’t afford school supplies for their kids, and I have enough clothes to survive the apocalypse of washing machines. Being a self-aware person, I decide that I have a problem and must start cutting back. To begin this new life style, I toss aside 5 or 6 shirts to donate. Look at me, helping the world. There are a good 12 or so left in the closet, but what if the past three years of me not wearing them was a mistake?

And I took this picture to accompany it:

So there you have it, my first interaction with blogs since high school. Now allow me to catch you up on that past 7 months. I live in Davis, we have a flock of wild turkeys for pets, I prestigiously work 2.5 hours a day, and yesterday our kitchen sink broke and our landlord does not seem to care.

This morning I woke up at 7:30am from a very vivid nightmare about a man breaking in to our house and killing our (nonexistent) friend Dylan. I woke up shaking and had to get up and walk around the house to check for suspicious activity. I forgot about the broken sink and almost cried when I heard a noise coming from the kitchen. It has been a rough morning. I hope this is not a sign of what Mondays without Greek are going to be like from now on.

Luckily, my artsy boyfriend must have anticipated my troubled times, as I received this in the mail today.


He drew faces on the shamrocks and everything :)

Seeing as this is quite possibly the only post I will ever make, I hope you enjoyed it!