Recently in Celebrity Category

IMG_0286
Originally uploaded by Club Josh.

Tiffany and I had a blast at Charo's CD Release party. It was great to see our friends as well as meet some new people and a few celebrities as well. It certainly was a highlight of the year for me and hopefully there will be many, many more to come!! The Flickr album contains some great shots of the party.

Tomorrow night, I will be a guest at Charo's house in Beverly Hills. What a long strange trip it has been from my Cuchi-Cuchi Hawaiian Style party in 1996 to this point. I am excited and I don't know what to expect, but Tiffany will be accompanying me and I will have my camera so look for some photos in the next few days.

Work has been going well - I am really happy with what I am doing, and I look forward to an exciting summer! It is hard to believe that it has been almost a year since we opened the Finding Nemo Submarine Voyage at the park. The other night, I found a one-year anniversary pin which will go well with all the other collectibles that I have gathered from the attraction. I really need to get organized and start hanging stuff up around my apartment. It seems whenever I want to do that it is near the time of year that my lease is up, and I think, this is going to be the year I am going to move, and I never do it. Five years later, I still do not have much up on the walls. All I know is that when I actually do move, one of my first objectives will be to decorate the halls.

Another exciting thing is that I have a second website to work on, so its nice to get back into some web work. I am a bit rusty when it comes to web site work, bit it is good to shake the rust off and get some work done. It is a bit challenging to balance my time since I am working long hours, but thank goodness I took the FOCUS class a few months ago!

I did see Prince Caspian last week (I know two movies in a week!). I was a bit let down - not that I thought it was a bad movie, but I think the LWATW was just a better story. It will be interesting to see how the movies will evolve since some of the major characters don't show up in all the movies. It's very different than most movie sequels and I feel it will have an impact on how well they do.

Toy Story Midway Mania opens in two weeks at Disney's California Adventure. I had mixed feelings about it when I heard what it was going to be, but I will be the first to admit it is a really fun ride with a lot of repeatability - something that modern attractions need in order to be a break out hit. If you get a chance, head on down to the resort when it opens June 17 - you will have a blast! (Of course I am still partial to Buzz Lightyear - better game play and the free photos! Sorry, I am totally biased!)

Josh and Walt
Originally uploaded by Club Josh.

Today the Gorn and I had the chance to visit the memorial garden where the plaque memorializing Walt Disney sits. It is located in a tucked away location at Forest Lawn Glendale (I always thought it was at the Hollywood Hills location near the Studios). It was a nice serene place, and I am glad I took my time to pay tribute to him. I am not sure if his ashes are somewhere in the garden or behind the wall. I do know Sharon was spread in paradise according to the plaque, so I assume that the rest are here.

Walt's parents are also on the grounds of Forest Lawn Glendale, but I did not find them. Also, I wanted to visit Roy over at the Forest Lawn Hollywood Hills (which is neat because he gets to look at the studio all day and night), but I could not find good directions. One of the things I want to visit is the Barn that is currently being used by the Los Angeles Live Steamers in Griffith Park. Like the original Hyperion Studio, the Carolwood house is long gone, so there are few things left in the area to visit.

Josh and Bob Gurr
Originally uploaded by Club Josh.

I had the chance to take a photo with Disney Legend and Imagineer Bob Gurr when he got his window dedicated on Center Street at Disneyland. Bob designed most vehicles in the early days of Disneyland including the Main Street Vehicles, Autopia, the Monorail, and the Subs to name a few. It was a honor to meet him!

So last Friday, I was just getting home from work and I was in a bit of a funk. I had come thisclose to getting something at work by a slam dunk. Instead, I am on a waiting list - which I am very proud of by the way, I have improved so much that I can't believe I got thisclose. But still, since I was not in for sure, I was in a bit of a funk.

Then it happened.

The phone rang.

"Hola Josh! Do you remember who this is?" I replied, "Charo, I could never forget you - How are you!"

We then had a festive 15 minute conversation. Just the day before I had been talking to David - fellow Charo fan who has put me in contact with her and invited me over to take this picture. David and I had been catching up on all things Charo since we hadn't chatted in a few months. He did mention that Charo owed me a holiday call, but I never anticipated what this call would be about.

It seems that with the Writer's Guild of America on strike, Charo cannot promote her appearances on talk shows and other outlets, and she is afraid that no one will know she is playing in Laughlin the weekend of December 27-30. I of course knew this and have it on the Charo.info site, but Charo has asked me to help get the word out. She is sending me a bunch of fliers as well as some art for the site as well as some future concert dates. Not only that, but since David let it slip to her that we were planning on going to see her in Laughlin, she wants us to sit front and center at the show (and I am sure point us out to the crowd).

So now I am working on ways to get the word out about Charo appearing in Laughlin. I am going to see if I can get something on MySpace et. al. so here is hoping we can sell the 1000 seats all four nights!

IMG_7062
Originally uploaded by Club Josh.

I have posted the photos from the Red Carpet and a few of the party in New Orleans Square and Frontierland. It was an awesome night and a great memory.

Here are the stars I saw that I remember:

Matt Ouimet
Cuba Gooding, Jr
Orlando Bloom
Geoffrey Rush
Yao Ming
Kobe Bryant
Muriel Hemmingway
Kyle Massey
Bill Nighy
Chow Yun Fat
Joey Fatone and Kym Johnson
Cheryl Burke
Wilmer Valderrama
Lee Arenberg
Johnny Depp
Hans Zimmer
Jonathan Pryce
Jack Davenport
Jay Rasulo
Ed Grier
Tony Baxter
John Lasseter


Thank you Ed Grier!

This past weekend, Tiffany, Daniel and I headed out for another trip to the Red Carpet. One of these years, we will get our act together and enter the raffle to get seats at the actual red carpet ceremony, but in the meantime we have to settle with visiting it the night before. Two years ago, we actually got to walk down the red carpet, but this year security was either tighter or our timing was off as we were only allowed to get next to the carpet. We still posed for some photos, but they are in Daniel's camera so it will take a few days to get them posted online.

On the actual day of the awards, Daniel and I headed over to Mandel's house to watch the awards as well as the Amazing Race. It was nice to watch them in true HD and we had a great time with the pause button as we caught various celebs and misc others in the audience doing dumb things or making crazy faces. There were lots of people at the party and we had a pool to see who could get the most winners correct. I must admit that I am way off my game (compared to years ago when I would actually post them on the site). Several people got 15 of the nominees correct!

We stuck around and watched the latest installment of The Amazing Race: All Stars which has been awesome so far. the first two teams that were eliminated were ones that I didn't really think should have been there - I like Kevin and Drew, but they just didnt seem ready - maybe Drew should have let Kevin pair up with someone from another team (maybe with either Gary or Dave from season 2).

It has been a rough few weeks since my return from Mobile and Mark's wedding. First out of the gate, the week of Thanksgiving my eye problem from last year re-surfaced. Nothing major, just another stye on the same eyelid as last year and it started almost the same day. Luckily, I had some of the ointment from last time around and it was still good so it went away fairly quickly. Unfortunately, I caught a bit of a bug - probably from the airplane despite my Emergen-C and Echinacea regimen. So for the last two weeks I have been balancing work with sickness and just a general malaise.

Some good highlights:
- I finally replaced watch bands and batteries for my backwards Goofy and Mickey Mouse date watches after my Timex indiglo watch from Mom finally had the face plate fall off. I have no idea when it happened, but Paul at work told me that he had noticed it for a few days before I realized it and pointed it out to him. I went a few weeks watchless, but now I feel whole again.

- I went and saw Casino Royale with Daniel. I thought it was pretty good, but hope that this "reboot" of the Bond franchise does not jettison all of the classic Bond elements (esp. the cool gadgets) that seemed to be missing from this story. It did feel a lot like Dr. No and From Russia With Love and I enjoyed the basic feel. Daniel Craig did a great job, but one movie is not enough to start the "Is he better than Sean or Roger" debate - we will see if he lasts a few movies.

- I am trying to enjoy the Shatnerrific "Show Me the Money" on ABC. I think that if there were a few trims here and there and the pace was speeded up a tad, it would be a blockbuster. Unfortunately, it is difficult to stay interested past 30 minutes so I do not think it will last a long time.

- This past week I had a chance to meet the new President of the Disneyland Resort Ed Grier twice. The first time was at the family holiday party on Monday and the second time was at a Cast Member Forum I was picked out to attend. He was much more personable than I expected and since I am working on the Nemo Project, I think I will probably see him again and hopefully he have a positive remembrance of me. Who knows where you can go if you network with the right people.

- As I posted earlier, I also met Bob Iger, CEO of the Walt Disney Company at the Family Christmas Party. Honestly, I was thrilled beyond all believe that I actually got to chat for a quick minute and get a photo. It was way better than being in the foreground of a photo with Michael Eisner and never actually talking to him. I like what Bob has done for the company and the direction we are going, and I hope his success continues. And yes, I forgive him for canceling "Twin Peaks" back in 1991.

- Finally, work has been going well. After months of waiting, Test and Adjust is just around the corner and I am getting busier and busier. Hopefully I got my sickness out of the way and I can go head on into working on the project. Every day I am amazed at the progress being made and I really think we are building something special. All the attractions I have worked on have been special (yes even Pooh), but this one has a little something extra. Maybe because of the complexity or maybe its the passion of the workers. Who knows but I can't wait for it to open and everyone gets to see it.

That's about it for now!

Bob and Josh
Originally uploaded by Club Josh.

One of the highlights of my 5 years with the Walt Disney Company was posing with Bob Iger at the Family Holiday Party. He was very genuine and personable.

IMG_0817
Originally uploaded by Club Josh.

I got to meet and chat with Charo in West Hollywood!! She had nothing but nice things to say about my Charo.info site which she saw for the first time.

One of the things that I have wanted to do more than anything since I returned back to the LA area in 1999 was to go see a taping of the Price is Right. I have had many dreams about going on stage and making a fool of myself because I have watched the show for years and years and inevitably when I get onstage, I completely mess up on some easy game like One Right Price.

I came close in 1999 as some Edmunds staffers got together and we had planned to go on Yom Kippur since our office was going to be closed. (Gosh the glory days of working at a small company that could give its employees the Jewish Holidays off.) At any rate, the Wednesday before going, Bob had to be rushed to the hospital and our taping was canceled.

I have put it off for years, but now I have only until June 2007 to get to a taping since Bob Barker announced he is retiring then. I would love to go just as a possible contestant, but I think I will have to take Mandel up on his offer and just go as his guest and be ineligible to go onstage. But darn it I want to win the showcase!

Bob you have been a part of my life since even before I was born - Mom likes to tell the story that in one of the early shows in 1972 she was at a taping of The Price is Right. She was called to "Stand Up" - as they said in those days - and then when she made it to contestant's row they sent her back because she was 8.5 months pregnant. So naturally I feel this connection with you and you will be missed.

Charo called me again on Tuesday! She just wanted to touch base with me and let me know that her concert in Vail, CO over the weekend was a resounding success. She also wanted to let me know that the people from GEICO called her agent at William Morris to tell her that they have received tons of positive feedback on the commercial. I was floored that she called me back so soon and that when we talked it felt like we were old friends.

She told me that we would get together soon and she thanked me again for all that I have done. Needless to say I was giddy when we were done on the phone.

A friend at work burned me a copy of the GEICO commercial and I will post it on YouTube and then post it on the Charo.info site as soon as I can.

Wednesday night I was sitting at home minding my own business when I received a phone call from David Nash. David is a super Charo fan and regularly talks with Charo and then passes information along to me. David informs me that he just got of the phone with Charo and that she is going to call me sometime on Thursday. I had just recently changed my off days at work so now I work on Thursdays so I told him that hopefully she will call after 5pm. He told me he was going to send her a fax so it should not be a problem. David also pointed out that some of the photos were missing from the Charo site since it moved to the new server so I was able to fix it before Charo called.

So Thursday I get home from work and the phone rings. I squeal with excitement and try and locate the handset and rush to answer the phone. "Hello?" Turns out it was a survey company from EZ Lube where I got my oil changed last week. Needless to say I was disappointed. I am about to eat dinner when the phone rings again. I look at the clock and its 5:45, still within the window. I pick up the phone.

"Hello?"

"Hello, can I speak with Josh Catalfo?" says a heavily accented voice.

"This is Josh"

"Hola Josh this is Charo!"

I was floored. I could not believe that I was speaking on the phone with Charo. We spent a good 20 minutes on the phone as she told me how much she appreciates the hard work I have done doing the fan site for her and that I know her better than she does. She then told me the story of her birth (she wants me to make sure I have the correct information on the site) and all about her new GEICO commercial that will be premiering this week or next.

The whole thing was surreal and I asked her a few questions including, "Do you have a picture of Cuchillo, the dog that inspired "Cuchi Cuchi?" She told me the story of when she was a child living in a Moorish castle in poor conditions and how her grandma took in this poor dog with fleas and lice and missing teeth. A car had also hit it and when it shook, it made a funny wiggle, which Charo imitated. She told be that back in 1952, 1953, and 1954 that no one had a camera back then ("It was not like America, Josh" she told me) so there are no pictures. "Besides", she told me, "if anyone saw that dog they would say that is the ugliest dog ever."

It was a great conversation where she told me that I was now her friend and that she feels like we have known each other forever. I mentioned to her that I work for Disneyland and she said what a magical place it was where you can have some chocolate ice cream and a churro. I told her those two things are my favorites too and she replied that we have so much in common.

I am still reeling a bit from the whole experience. She said she would call me again soon and tell me the details of her next big project that she wants to have the first announcement on Charo.info. Stay tuned!

It has been a weird week at work with celebrities coming out of the woodwork. Maybe it has to do with the Pirates premiere next week at the park or more likely they decided to wait for the second summer of the 50th celebration for the crowds to die down. I love it when they show up because all the new cast members go nuts when they see someone they like.

Amont the celebs making appearances: Celine Dion and her husband Renee, Courtney Cox and David Arquette, Laura Dern (who was hanging out with the Cox-Arquette family), Hugh Jackman, Cindy Crawford, and the asian guy from Lost. Kobe Bryant should be around soon, he loves to come in the summer.

Of course the celebrities I like the best are the ones that insist on getting a guide and security and then no one recognizes them.

Thanks to my new pro account on Flickr, I have posted the long awaited Hong Kong 2005 and Japan October 2004 Non-Disney photos. I am still not 100% happy with Flickr since I had to try and use the Uploader program several times for it to take my photos. I also don't like sending people to other sites, but I think I can work around that and have the slideshow pop open a new window when people select it.

Still to come: Europe 2002, Japan March 2004, and Boston 2005. Of course, just on the horizon is the Australia trip so there are those photos to look forward to as well. I do not have any plans to migrate Charo or Gorn photos to the site. The Disney photos are also staying put since I like the way they are organized here (well mostly).

Speaking of Charo - This fan of Charo's named David has been in touch with me on and off for the last year or so, and he finally got to meet Charo yesterday. He then left me a message saying that I should expect a call from her. When I got home today, there was a voicemail from her husband Kjell! I was floored. I am hoping to get in touch with them soon. David has hopefully opened the door to getting an up to date and accurate list of appearances for all of her fans. Stay tuned!!

One other little nugget: I went up to the Walt Disney Studios to the Welcome Home Celebration for Oswald the Lucky Rabbit. It was mostly a bust but I did get to score an Oswald button and then go over to Imagineering and pick up a cool jacket I had been lusting after. I was with Daniel and we decided to go to lunch at Bob's Big Boy on Riverside Drive in Burbank (right near Warner's and NBC Studios). I mentioned to Daniel that David Lynch likes to eat there (see older entries for more). So the lady who was seating us asked us if we wanted to wait for a booth or if we wanted to sit at the counter with Drew Carey. I thought it was a joke, but lo and behold, there was Drew Carey reading the paper enjoying a nice meal. Daniel sat 3 seats down and I was four down. It was a fun time!

Two-time Academy Award winner and member of the 100 Stars who influenced Josh List has died due to heart failure. There is no truth to the rumor that she suffered a heart attack after swimming through a corridor and saving the life of a preacher and helping people she barely knew. But we will always remember her sacrifice, as one of the reasons the original Poseidon Adventure is still the best. Thanks for everything you have brought to the world. We will miss you.

So the whole giving up soda thing is turning out to be harder than I had imagined - but not for the reasons I thought. You see I had a bout of food poisoning this past week, which rendered me cranky and liquid for most of the week. The one thing I really wanted was some 7up or Sprite to calm my stomach down. One of my managers recommended seltzer water as an alternative, but I was determined to do it without soda of any type. I made it (it wasn't easy by a long shot), but when I went to the store last night I noticed something very disturbing.

It seems that carbonated soda alternatives like Hawaiian Punch and Lemonade have just as much sugar as soda, if not more! If you get diet HP, then the sugar level is way low. I then had a crisis in faith. Why exactly was I giving up my beloved Root Beer and the occasional Coke to get me through the day? I had reasoned to myself that I wanted to drink more water and in the process loose some ancillary pounds in preparation for my vacation in March. But now I was not sure if not having soda was actually doing anything to help me. Then I got on a scale. I have lost 5 pounds in two weeks. I haven't really done anything special (though the loss of appetite for a few days from the food poisoning might be the real cause of the weight loss). Whatever the cause, it was enough for me to keep going for now.

As for the rest of the New Year it has been pretty uneventful. It is the season of no guests at work so I am enjoying every moment of it I can before the crowds roar back to the resort. I am convinced it will happen any day now.

Still trying to hammer out the details of my March vacation, and when it is all settled, I will post details here.

Al Pacino was on the ride the other day. The best I got out of him was a "Thank You". I had to laugh when greeter called and asked if Al could come up the exit. I pretended to thumb through a list and said to them "Yes, Mr. Pacino is on the A-List send him up." We have a long-standing joke at the ride as to who gets to come up the exit and who gets to go through Fastpass. In reality, most VIPs use the exit if they ask and if they don’t most are willing to go through Fastpass.

Oh and I know this is posted everywhere else, but you just have to watch the Chinese kids sing BSB (via Leia and WebJunkie and featured on VH1's Best Week Ever)

James Doohan died today. He is the second of the original Star Trek actors to pass away, following DeForest Kelley, who died in 1999. I remember when I was younger and in more of a Trek haze than I am nowadays, I could never imagine what would happen once my heroes started to pass on. To me, it was like a relative that you see on occasion no longer being there - tough to stomach.

I met Jimmy several times at conventions (look, I said I was a geek). Three that were always favorites were Jimmy, Nichelle, and George. They all suffered through endless repetitive questions and flashes of cameras with big broad smiles. Some would cut off the autograph lines after a certain point, but Jimmy just kept signing. I remember how I felt bad at one convention when near the end of his speaking time (I think this was near the time Star Trek 5 came out), he started to get into some poetry he wrote. I good chunk of the audience started to bolt for the door to get to the autograph table. I thought that was really rude of people. In the end, I got my autograph (It's on a crew photo from Wrath of Khan) and walked away a happy little goober.

When I worked on Pooh, there was a cast member who dressed up like a Klingon for conventions and special events and we often talked about Jimmy since he was having his final convention appearance last year. His health was fading fast, but he still had that twinkle in his eye. I wanted to go, but my convention days were long gone. I am glad I at least got to meet and thank someone who helped shape me growing up.

Sweet Dreams Mr. Scott.

Ps: I forgive you for that appearance on Knight Rider 2000.

After a year of preparation and lots of paint, the Disneyland 50th anniversary celebration is underway. It certainly is a step up from the 45th anniversary, though I still think they should have ahead a dream machine giving out prizes like they did for the 30th anniversary. However there is still so much to see and do, and if you haven't been to the park in awhile I think you will be very pleased.

The fireworks are simply amazing. Just be sure to get your spot in the hub early, since I would imagine it to be packed to the gills. Of course there is the little Buzz ride which has been popular with the guests and the cast. The Parade of Dreams is good too. I am not a big parade fan, but the floats are all dazzling, and despite the fact it re-uses a Brother Bear song, the music is good too (though not nearly as catchy as 'Style'.

The past week I have seen numerous celebrities come and go on the ride including Jodie Foster, Sean Astin, Jenna Elfman, Kelsey Grammar, Tim Allen, Michael Eisner, Jim Belushi, and Christina Aguilera. All of them were having a great time and were in good moods. Part of me wishes I could have the Gorn somewhere so I could have them pose for photos, but alas, to us celebrities are just like everyone else - guests who are there to have fun - and not to be harassed.

On Tuesday, I bought the limited edition CD box set of Disneyland music and am currently converting it to my iPod so I can listen to it on the go. It is truly an amazing collection!

I've finished my first two Netflix movies, and will post reviews soon!

Not being a catholic, it is an interesting experience to live through a death of a Pope. I think my main interest is twofold: First, seeing how all of the catholics react to the death of the church, and second, seeing all of the ceremony and processes to select a new pope - something that has changed little since the founding of the church. Another thing that intrigues me is who the next pope will be? Will it be someone from Africa or South America? An Italian? Will he be someone progressive about things like abortion and women in the church or will he be more conservative?

At any rate Pope John Paul II's shoes will be hard to fill. He was charismatic, beloved, and respected by many. He really is the only pope I remember.

In local news, I am just getting over a nasty bug. I think everyone at the new Buzz ride has gotten sick since it opened. I am not sure if it is the hand sanitizer or just the enclosed space with thousands of people every hour passing by. I dunno. At any rate, yesterday was my first day back after being off two regular days and calling in for two days.

I am glad to get over it now since I am due to head to Boston next week! I can't wait to get a real non-sick vacation!

I had an awesome time on Sunday. It was great to be back on the boat and I truly will miss it when it comes time to move over to Tomorrowland in the near future. I think I owe the good time to the fact that Kris, Andy, and Vance were all there on the boat. I am fortunate that I get three more shifts on the Columbia next week. I guess it pays to have learned the boat while it was under refurbishment - there are more people with just Twain knowledge than those who know both.

I am diving in headfirst to the Buzz project. I am in the process of developing all sorts of neat documentation as well as taking notes on all sorts of little odds and ends in the attraction. With each day that passes working on the project, I get more and more excited. I think people will be very happy with the ride.

In the midst of my Pooh shift sat night, Diane Keaton was seen running around with her kids with Pooh and Tigger in Pooh Corner. I think she was having the most fun of all.

All the work doesn't leave much playtime lately. I still have massive amounts of holiday shopping to do before next week's return to Arizona. In two days Nathan will be here!! I think he is just what the doctor ordered and since I am off on Thursday we get to hang out all night. (OK maybe not all night - he does have a plane to catch on Thurs!)

The end of the road is near on some web projects that have been in the oven for months. Of course the client had TONS of comments at the last minute, but I should be able to hammer most of them out this week. Then what? Maybe I'll get that idea in my head out into some HTML!

While I was watching my new Aladdin DVD Bonus features, I noticed that one star was given the least amount of coverage - Brad Kane. He was the singing voice of Aladdin and I thought he should have been given at least as much time as Lea Salonga (the singing voice of Jasmine). Lea didn't get much time either, but at least they got her opinions on the whole thing. They did show Brad and Lea singing "A Whole New World" at a recording session, but alas no interview.

A quick web search hasn't really turned up anything. Some items of note: Brad goes by the name of Caleb and performs in a band called "The Fates". He apparently has composed music for Freddy vs. Jason and Devil's Pond. He still provides the singing voice of Aladdin.

So Brad if you are out there drop me a line and let me know what's up.

Apologies for the delay....

So up I went to Tower Records on Sunset early in the AM on the 5th to get the new CD and wristband. I realized that the demand was not really great and that I could have just come later. Oh well. Flash forward to around 7pm.

I am standing in line at the store and I have convinced the guy behind me in line to get a shot of me getting Shatner's autograph with the Gorn. First, the Tower people say as long as you don't hold up the line, you can take the photo. Then Shatner shows up with his wife in a Chevy Tahoe. He mulls around outside for a bit to talk to the entertainment reporters that have staked out the site. I was going to go over and try and get someone to hold the Gorn, but since I was going to get the inside photo, I wasn't too concerned.

After Shatner goes inside Tower to get ready, a new security person shows up and says no photos at all inside. Crud. All my planning down the drain. Around 8:30 or so it is my turn. As I am waiting to get my turn, the security guy inside says its OK to photo after I get my autograph. I walk over to Bill and here is what transpired:

Me: It's such an honor to meet you. I really enjoyed your album - I have been listening to it all day. I was surprised by it really..
Shatner: Really? What surprised you about it?
Me: Well, I wasn't sure what to expect from it, and I was surprised at how much of your feelings you put into the album. I really enjoyed the song "Common People" as well as the poem about your late wife.
Shatner: That's great. Maybe you can help answer a question that I have been trying to without much success. What kind of album is this? Is it a music album or a spoken word album.
Me: Hmmm... I think the album is really you. A little bit of fun with some seriousness. Its the best kind of album because it is you for all people to see.
Shatner: Well thank you Josh
Me: Thank you too.

My answer to his question sucked. I should have said something along the lines of "Its a performance album - a little singing, some spoken word, and a lot of feeling." Oh well.

So after the exchange (which from the group I saw was one of the longest), I go to take my photo and the security guy on the other side says keep moving. SO no photo of the Gorn with Bill. By this time, I am shaking a bit and head back to the car. When I get there, I decide to go back and wait for him to leave to try and get some more shots.

While I am waiting, I start talking to the Prize people from KROQ Radio in LA. They had been giving tickets out to the Shatner-Ben Folds concert, but I didn't win. I told them all about the Gorn and we had a good time passing the time. When Shatner came out of Tower, I managed to get some good candid shots of him, but still didn't have the chance to get one with the Gorn. He was moving too fast, and since it was dark, very few of the shots came out. I left a bit disappointed, but I did manage to get some photos taken (one by a paparazzi with my camera, and then some other guy took like 10 photos of me and the Gorn with his camera. Who knows, I might make it into People.)

So that is the story. You can see what photos I managed at: The Gorn and William Shatner.

The big celebrity sighting at the park this week was Michael Douglas and Catherine Zeta-Jones at the Pooh ride. They were there with one of their kids who was celebrating his birthday. All the CMs at the ride mentioned how nice they both were while they were on the ride. When they exited I thanked them both for riding and told them to have a great day. Unfortunately, they were in mid conversation so I doubt they even heard me.

But the truly big news is that William Shatner is going to release a new album. That is right, I said album. It is called "Has Been" and he has put up a website with some samples. Rest assured, I will be getting my copy on Oct 5!

Nothing like a rainy weekend in LA to set the world on its ear. You see everyone here has forgotten what it is like to drive in the rain. As a result, they all drive the same speed and get in some spectacular accidents. Here at the apartment complex, a lake forms around my parking spot so that I need to jump or walk the long way around in order to get from the car to the apartment. At work, it wasn't raining hard enough to make the ride stop, just enough to get everyone cold and wet. This is alarming to me because with the secret trip coming up in three weeks, the last thing I want to do is get sick. I have started on the Echinacea and vitamins and will soon add the Vitamin C/Zinc combo to my regiment so that I can avoid anything. I'm also trying to get to bed earlier. (Not really working tonight though...)

One bright spot this weekend was today when I was at Load, I got to escort Cal Ripken onto the ride. Pretty cool - it was nice to have a group that was organized and not prone to breaking the ride down. I also got to see Lev and family at the park today. It was the first time I had seen the newest addition to the family. I certainly wish we all got a chance to get together more often.

One more Gorn note - according to the Gallery program, there are currently 399 Gorn photos on the site!! (actually 404 since there are 5 in the AV Day 2003 Gallery I haven't copied over yet...)

Been a busy week at work and around the house. Where to start..hmm. Perhaps it will be easier to do some quick blurbs:

Got a new couch this weekend. Went to a furniture maker behind Dad's work on Friday and picked one out. It was delivered on Monday and boy is it huge next to the futon. I had to move some other stuff around to make room and things are a bit tight in the apartment these days. I just need to get rid of my dining room table and chairs and I'll be OK.

Alan Menken and a posse of teenagers came on the Pooh ride the other day. Nothing noteworthy, they were very nice.

I almost went to Japan in March. Today is the last day to get the $399 round trip fare LAX-Tokyo, but I don't think I have enough time to organize the hotels and tours, let alone have enough money to afford the whole thing. It was very tempting because Daniel and I were talking about going and then the same day the airfare came out. Although it appears every time I plan a vacation with him, things get weird.

A little bit of a shakeup at work, but I guess I am still being evaluated so no decision on where I lie in the pecking order at the attraction. There is so much I want to do, but sometimes it gets frustrating.

I almost reached a point last week where everything was going well - work, friends, etc. and then starting Sunday it all started to go amiss. Ugh, can't I just get to a point where everything is nice and balanced??

Had a few people over tonight to exchange gifts and generally toast in the new year. We all took a picture together and my gift to them was to get them whatever Cafe Press item they wanted with the picture on it. The evening got off to a crash when David, ever so excited, bumped into my brand new Martini set (Taken out of the box 30 minutes before) and managed to knock one of my glasses off the rack and onto the floor. Needless to say, I now have a set of 3 glasses, and I think it set a record for how long I had a gift opened and it broke. A close second was Daniel's planetarium gift to me. The bulb burned out in about 5 minutes after spending almost 45 minutes figuring out how to get it to work. We did have a few mimosas to smooth things over and in the end, we all had a great time.

Monday night, Kobe Bryant, his wife and child were whisked onto the Pooh ride near closing. Thankfully, we managed not to pull a Heffner and break the ride down. (Although we should call it a Grammer since Kelsey pulled a Heffner months before.) He and his wife seemed nice and their baby, cute as a button, was asleep.

So ends 2003. Good riddance I say! Bring on '04. I am not sure how I will be celebrating the new year tonight. I am envisioning a low-key affair. I'll let you know how it turned out next year.

Been working like crazy out at the park this week. Its that heart warming time of year when 60,000 people a day come out to the park. In the middle of it all, celebrities have been dropping into the Many Adventures like an old 70's variety show. In the past week, Hugh Heffner and some bunnies, Cindy Crawford, and Melissa Joan Hart have all stopped by the ride. Heff was my personal favorite because the ride broke down while he was on it and yours truly was the lead at the time so I had to evacuate them. Highlight of the whole adventure? When I explained that you can see the outline of Pooh's head on his pillow near the end of the ride in the birthday party scene one playmate turned to me and said "Oohh, he's a dirty bear!" I nearly fell over from laughter. Heff was pretty cool as well. I do wish company policy allowed for photos with action figures since it would have been cool to get a Heff/Gorn pic.

Kevin stopped by the day after Christmas and to celebrate the family headed over to the Woods and get some cheese butter. We ate relatively early (like 3pm or so) and it through all of our clocks off. The whole night we were wondering what time it was and being amazed how early it was. We also had a chance to check out some classic family 8mm and Super 8 home movies. It might just be me, but air shows just don't translate well without the audio.

This is the last busy week at the park for awhile - I am scheduled 42 hours, but get a nice 3 day weekend at the end of it. From there, its back to the 26 hours a week schedule and the nice 17k days at the park.

As for Christmas, it was a low-key affair this year. I worked both Christmas Eve and Day so I didn't see any relatives until after the actual holiday. Lemme tell you, when you are hungry on a holiday like Christmas its near impossible to get something. Thank goodness for my stockpile of frozen pizzas!

2003 has been an interesting year. I certainly hope 2004 is better. Oh, that reminds me, time to change the copyrights!

I'm sitting in the Internet Salon at the Hotel Beacon in NYC as I type this reflecting on the trip so far. We got off to a whirlwind start with a trip to see a taping of "The View" which, despite the lines getting in, was a lot of fun. I even got a good shot of the Gorn with the cast in the background. I also managed to get a nice close-up shot with me, the Gorn and Robert Verdi of Discovery's Surprise by Design. We then headed over to see the Christmas show over at Radio City Music Hall. Overall, it was a good show, but dang, them Rockettes sure know how to get a crowd going. I thought there were only 10 or so, but there were 36! Afterwards, we got over to Rockefeller Center and strolled down 5th Ave. We then got word of the immanent snow so we wanted to get an early start on Friday.

Friday rolled around and we were at the Empire State Building at 10 am. The Accuweather (tm) forecast said snow by 2 and when we were in line they said that visibility at the top was enough to see the Statue of Liberty. Sadly, by the time we got to the top, it was snowing and COLD. Ever the troopers, we kept going as long as we could making our way down to the WTC site and then over to the United Nations. I must say the slog to the UN was tough since it was blowing snow (4-6 inches by the time we got to the UN), but it was very educational and worth it. We then found a shortcut back to the Grand Central Station and then made our way back to the hotel.

Today, the snow was worse, but that didn't stop us from getting to Macy's at Herald Square (the one featured in the classic "Miracle on 34th Street") and getting a picture of the Gorn with Santa. We then went to the CBS Store after some pizza. I had hoped the CBS store would have the Amazing Race poster they had on the outside but no luck, they had less merchandise than the one at Television City in LA. We then headed back to the hotel, only venturing out for food.

I have been nagged by a cold on the trip, but have tried to keep my spirits up. Still might venture out tonight to see the nightlife since the snow has stopped coming down (17 inches in Central Park - a few blocks from where we are).

All in all, its been a good trip, despite the lack of the Statue of Liberty and Ellis Island. If I feel up to it, I am going to try and get up early tomorrow and go down to see if I can get a pic of it. I am a bit worried about the airport situation since many flights were delayed the past two days, hopefully it won't be too much of a mess when I get there tomorrow night.

I've picked up a wee bit of a cold from somewhere. Suspects abound and many fingers are being pointed. After a good NyQuil sleep last night, I feel a bit better, but still a bit raspy in the voice. I wonder why it seems that my voice always goes out when I get sick lately. I think it is because of all the talking I do to guests at work.

Speaking of work, my interview went well (well as good as one can tell from the other chair) and they will be notifying the people who get the position at some point on Wednesday. I am excited and scared as I always get when these things happen. I am not expecting anything and will not be disappointed if I don't get it (ok, maybe a wee bit). It is interesting timing, though. I have mentioned several times that when I go on vacation life seems to change course. With the wee bit trip to Phoenix on Thursday and New York next week, I am ripe for change - no telling what will happen or when but stay tuned!

Somehow it missed the daily update last week, but Pamela Anderson was spotted in the staging area of the Pooh ride on Wednesday. I tried to convice her with my wit and charm to go on the ride, but she opted to stay there and wait for her party and make a phone call.

This past weekend I had the opportunity to work the ABC Primetime Preview weekend at DCA. Basically, standing around trying to lure people into the audience for ABC's Casting Call and ABC's Reality Check. Both shows allowed members of the audience a chance to re-create a scene from an ABC hit with a star from that show. One of the highlights for me was with Constance Marie of "The George Lopez Show". I had the chance to escort her with her VIP guide back to the hotel. She was good humored and was always willing to pose for a quick pic with a fan in attendance as we made our way back to the hotel. She even made an elderly Latino woman in a wheelchair start walking.

All in all, the stars I got to see up close and personal were:
Anthony Russell from "Life with Bonnie"
Kevin Weisman from "Alias"
Constance Marie from "The George Lopez Show"
Amy Davidson from "8 Simple Rules"
Bill Brochtrup from "NYPD Blue"
Zachary Levi from "Less than Perfect"
and Andrew Firestone and Jennifer Schefft from "The Bachelor"

It was a welcome change of pace from the grind. Monday, I spent the entire day training some new people at Winnie the Pooh, only to have them both either call in or get out of their training on Tuesday. I was a bit bitter (mostly cuz it felt like I was wasting my time all day Monday), but I did get to go into rotation at trainer rate.

I decided to go ahead and leave early so I could pick up my Sleeping Beauty DVD. I almost got the Core as well, but I decided to skip it for now since my vacation is coming up in just two weeks. I will say that the Sleeping Beauty movie on the DVD is stunning - rich, crisp colors. It's too bad it is just a regular release, the extras are a bit dull and standard (very similar to Dumbo). Next month is the release of the Lion King and then in November it is Finding Nemo. Time to save the pennies!

It has been six months in the new apartment, and I finally decided to ante up for another year. One of the things about my apartment that I have not been happy with is my thermostat. The timer inside the little box is so loud, that since I moved in, I have slept with my bedroom door closed to stifle the sound. When I was sick at the beginning of July, it was one of the noises that led me to spend the weekend at my Dad's. So I happened to mention it casually to the rental lady in the office, and she says the repair guy will come to look at it (along with my door lock which sticks and makes the key hard to turn and the noisy fan that Mom insists is loose).

Fast forward to today: Repair guy shows up and WD40's the lock (works beautifully) and inspects the fan (Just loud, nothing loose or amiss - sorry Mom). Then he turns his attention to the thermostat.

"It's noisy", I say. "It's the timer", he replies. "I never use it", sayeth me. "Oh, then we can just do this", he states and with one swift move he silences the beast. What does silence look like? This:

Now, I can sleep easily.

At work, thinks have also quieted down. The crowds have dropped into the high teens/low 20s and the construction walls are going up fast and furious. Splash is closed for two months, and Mansion goes down next week for the annual holiday layover. With both of them down, and the new landlocking in place, I have been squeezing out hours where I can. This weekend I will be working the ABC preview weekend at DCA. Speaking of celebs, I saw Mr. JAG himself, David James Elliot, yesterday (He's very tall!). He asked me for directions to the train station in New Orleans Square. Andrea nearly had a heart attack outside the attraction - she was that excited.

One final note, while enjoying the quietness of the park, I took some more morning photos, this time of New Orleans Square and Critter Country.

I agonized over it for several days, but in the end, I decided that even if I did have $3500, I have better things to spend it on than being Governor of California. Besides, I don't think I could find 60-70 people that would sign a petition to get me on the ballot. I am all for populist voter revolts, but it seems to me this whole thing reeks of sour grapes. On the other hand, what does the Governor do by himself? He is surrounded by advisors and most of the legislation involves compromise. Will Arnold be better? Probably not. But he sure won't be worse than we have now. I don't think anything will happen unless they recall everyone in Sacramento and start from scratch. But since we are not going to have a revolution in California anytime soon, we better work with what we have. I do find it funny that the issue most Californians are all hot and bothered about is the car tax. Not the deficit, not failing schools, but a restoration of 1990's level car license fees.

Things I can get for $3500:
1758 Whoppers(tm)
74 One Day Admission tickets to Disneyland
15 Premium Annual Passes to Disneyland
74 Fantasmic premium view seats
175 Subscriptions to Travel + Leisure
7 Canon S400 Digital Cameras
11 TiVos (without service)

Add what you can get for $3500 to the comments...

It has been over a week and I still haven't hooked up the laserdisc player. Sorry, Joe, but it has been a busy week. I only have a few more days and then it is off to Four Corners. I will be taking three cameras on the trip and will try and take the same picture with all three.

Camera #1: My ol' trusty Olympus d-400 Zoom
Camera #2: My Motorola T720 Camera phone
Camera #3: My new Canon S400.

The resolutions and megapixels are widely different and I think it will be an interesting study. I am also looking forward to some awesome Gorn in Monument Valley pictures!

I have finally gotten around to working on the Gorn galleries which have been in a state of migration and disrepair for the better part of a year. The Gorn Page was a guinea pig for the Gallery program, but as with any test, I got halfway through it and decided that it wasn't working exactly the way that I wanted. So I left it there with some of the Europe pics loaded and disorganized. I finally re-installed Gallery in the correct subdirectory (I like to have one for each area so I can customize some of the links in the headers). Today, I finished all of the Europe Galleries once and for all. I must say, they all look a million times better:

Gorn Europe Pictures

I am now starting to work on the Hawaii and South Pacific pictures and then it will be on to the big bulk: North American pics. My goal is to have the whole thing redone before I head out to Four Corners next month. One drawback is that I notice my Atomz search program has now exceeded the allotment I originally gave it. I guess I might have to spring for something else. So beware that you might get flaky search results.

In celeb news, I spotted Holly Marie Combs of "Charmed" fame on the Pooh ride yesterday. The only other recent sighting was Tom from Blink 182 and his pals on the Matterhorn.

It's official. After much promising and procrastination, me and my friends finally committed to going to Walt Disney World at the end of September. It will be the first time I have gone on vacation with a group of friends since Dome to Dome - I hope this group fares better. (A-V Day wasn't a vacation - it was a party!) We will be staying on property at the All Stars Sports Hotel, which I hear is just like a Motel 6. Thankfully, we all get into the land parks for free and get discounted entries into the other areas (water parks, DisneyQuest, etc.) and our hotels are 50% off. No word on whether we get discounts on food, but I'm sure we will get something. When I went to Disneyland Paris in November I was able to get discounts on souvenirs and food at most places, so WDW should be a piece of cake.

In flipping around Trio waiting for Battle of the Network Stars to start, Daniel and I watched this old variety show called "Pink Lady and Jeff". It was very surreal. Pink Lady is a Japanese duo and Jeff is some second rate comedian. Together they form one of the oddest groups in show business history. The show was so bad that it was actually funny. Sadly, since it was only on for six weeks in 1980, it will be off Trio this week. Don't forget to catch the Battle of the Network Stars marathon on Sunday!

My aunt woke me up at 6:30am to tell me Charo was on the Today show. I was taping it on TiVo, but since I was up I watched it. She performed the Ketchup Song and Bolero - her two new staples. One thing that was interesting to note is that they showed a CD entitled Bolero. One wonders if she is putting out a new album or just a single of her classic version of Bolero. The Las Vegas Sun mentioned that she was going to promote Vegas in a big way, but it appears she ran out of time. I hope NBC puts up some clips on their site.

Fourth of July was a bit kick back. For the first time in ages, I wasn't working and didn't have plans for the gala celebration, so I sat at home and listened to the fireworks setting off all the car alarms. I did manage to catch some of the fireworks on TV, but after a long day in the sun, I was content to sit inside and go to bed early.

Saturday, I was rewarded with a nice day off and a party at a friend's place. It was mainly Matterhorn peeps, but it was a nice medium size get together with all the booze you could drink. After my experience at Daniel's party, I decided to take it easy, which upon hindsight was a good idea since I had to be at The Many Adventures at 7:45a yesterday. I seem to be falling into my old habits. If I have a long 8 hour shift in the daytime, I spend a good portion of the evening sleeping it off. Sometimes, it wreaks havoc - like forcing me to wake up at 3am, but other times it pays off in that the next shift I have, I am not tired and tend to enjoy work more.

Is it me, or have some big celebrities been dropping like flies lately. First it was David Brinkley, then Hume Cronyn, then Gregory Peck, then Katherine Hepburn, then Buddy Hackett, then Barry White, and now Buddy Epsen. I think summer is particularly hard on celebrities. Usually you can count on three every other month or so, but this month it's been open season. Mind you most of the celebs were up there in age, but Buddy Hackett and Barry White has a few more years left in them.

My first and last grad night of the year is in the book. Quite a bit different experience of working the Matterhorn instead of the routes. Definitely busier, though easier as a cast member. Most people listened to what they were told and we only had to kick a few people out of line for smoking or trying to be cool and put their feet up in the sleds. It's all mostly a blur - like I forgot to go home after a long shift and the next thing I know it's 7am.

I really don't know what to say about this link, other than I think it's fun for the whole family. You decide.

I purchased Charo's "Bailando con Charo" album off of eBay to complete my Charo record collection. Still need to get some of the singles, and of course now I need to get a record player so I can transfer the files to MP3 and make CD's out of them. I also can creat nice 30 second sound clips for the Charo section.

Brad Edwards and I go way back to January 14, 1995. It was a dark and stormy night in Davis. I had just moved back there after a brief stint at Cal State Chico in graduate school. My grandfather had died just a month earlier. For the first time in awhile I was alone and without a job. A group of us set out that night filling out applications for the Park Service - specifically to work as park rangers in Denali National Park. Our friend Steven had done it before and extolled how much fun it was to sit in a little kiosk selling park admission passes every now and then and enjoying all the scenery.

So there we were that night filling out the applications and watching "The Weather Channel". Brad was on that night doing another outstanding job. Then IT happened. We all looked at each other in amazement. We called The Weather Channel. Years went by, and we never knew if we really saw what we did. We still laugh about it.

Flash forward to 2003. On a random thought, I decided to look up and see if I could find Brad. Turns out, he is the chief meteorologist at a station in Des Moines, Iowa.

The following is the e-mail I sent him and below you will find his reply:

"Hi Brad,

You California fans,
Josh, Susie, Wendy, and Matt"

Here was his response:
Hi Josh, Susie, Wendy and Matt!

Brad Edwards
The Clumsy One!"

To Brad, with Love. You will always have a special place in our hearts.

A quick trip up to the Bay Area last weekend for Alex's wedding (pics here!) provided just what I needed. It was good to see everyone again - even Alex's parents whom I haven't seen in almost 10 years. The ceremony was nice and the setting was spectacular. The reception room overlooked San Francisco Bay with a panorama that only can be appreciated this time of year before the summer fog rolls into the Bay. Susie and I carpooled up from LA and Santa Barbara and had a great time. We didn't set any land speed records, but it seemed like we made excellent time - even showing up early. We took advantage of this and headed over to the Marin Headlands for some photos. We were shocked by Mark's mustache, but sadly neglected to get any good photos for posterity since he shaved it the very next day.

After the wedding, Susie and I headed over to my aunt and uncle's place in San Rafael for a quick visit which featured the Vibra 4000 Massager (ok, I don't know if that is what it is really called but it should be) which turned me to Jello after a few minutes on setting 5. We then had a nice pizza party and root beer taste test upon our return to Wendy and Mice's condo. It was sort of weird since they live in a condo not too far from one of the places I used to live. They were familiar with some of the stomping grounds, but from an entirely different perspective.

Sunday, after a much needed sleep in, Susie and I headed off to the USGS for a quick two hours. We wish we could have been their sooner, but our bodies wouldn't allow it. I was feeling kinda worn out from the combo of allergies, the late nights, and the drugs to remedy the allergies (Claritin is non-drowsy only after being in your system a few days - one thing I don't miss about Nor Cal is the allergies). By the time we headed back to parts south I was already pooped and managed to guzzle a few Cokes to keep me going. The only bad thing is that we had to increase the number of pee stops.

It was a fun weekend and with Monday off, I was ready to head back to work on Tuesday. I did find out that I made trainer at the Matterhorn, and that there even is a chance for more in the near future. Other than that not much excitement except for Lisa Kudrow on the Pooh ride today. That reminds me I did see Kathy Ireland on the Pooh ride a few weeks back. The celebrities are finally making their way to the ride.

I will not forget the events of the last few days. Its difficult to say which day was the one with the biggest impact, but if I had to pick one it would be February 26. It is actually difficult for me to put into words the range of emotions that I have experienced. I will say, that despite the pain, sadness, and tears that well beneath the surface, deep down inside I know that things will be better for everyone involved, and if anything, this is the beginning of another chapter waiting to be written. I do feel that I have neglected the site, but sometimes life takes precedence over virtual life.

The biggest change in my life is that for the first time in over 5 years, I will be living alone. I am scared and excited all at the same time. I'm glad I have had the experience of doing it before, so I know what I am in for on those long nights. Certain people's actions have also changed my opinion of them and in some cases made me realize my true feelings. Part of my 2003 To-Do list is to make sure that I am more open and honest about my feelings, so once feelings are realized, I have this new habit of telling people. I think I just need to work on my timing.

So in short, I will be moving out of my apartment of almost 3 years sometime in the next week or so, I just need to find a new place. I am looking in Orange County so I will cut my park commute time.

If February 26 was the day of shock and realization, February 27, was a day of mourning. You know you are on an emotional roller coaster when hearing "Deep in the Hundred Acre Wood" sap version in the queue music for the umpteenth time starts to make your eyes well up with tears. I remember listening to the radio in the car on the way in and hearing the about the death of Fred Rogers. Mr. Rogers was one of the few people who always told me that I am special and that there is only one me. I always wanted one of those cool trolleys around my house to go off to the Neighborhood of Make Believe. The PBS site has a good page of helpful information on how to tell children and explain his death. It certainly helped me to read it.

Thanks to all who have expressed their support and have helped out during this week, it means a lot, especially you mom.

Has been a fly-by-the-seat-of-your-pants week. Out of the blue, I get a call from a company that wants to interview me. The phone interview was scheduled for 1pm today was called off at the last minute when the HR person called me and let me know that one of the interviewers was called out of town. Shades of another interview from last year. Thankfully, I actually got a rescheduled phone interview for next week and hopefully it turns out well.

In web news, I have made a few updates to the Charo site, mainly reporting all the latest news, including ticket prices for her new show Bravo 2003. Thanks to the registrar that Haim pointed me to, godaddy.com, I finally broke down and registered charo.info. You can now access my charo site from that simple URL.

Next week, I make the move over to Winne the Pooh fulltime. I think I will still have the occasional Matterhorn or Classics shift since I don't work on Friday mornings. Once the ride opens in April, I will be over at Pooh full time. So far, the crew looks like its going to be a good one and some of my friends will be there as well. Of course, how long I will be there will depend on what happens in the next few weeks.

Why does everything happen at the same time? Pace yourself life, pace yourself!

So my back is feeling much better. Not a twinge at all when I move. Maybe granny was right when she said I had a cold in my muscles. My throat has taken a thrashing and I once again sound like Bea Arthur. So perhaps the cold has moved up into my throat.

It might have something to do with the wild and crazy week that included my first ever ride on the LA Subway system. Now, having recently rode the Tube in London and the Metro in Paris, I was interested in seeing how our famed subway held up. Turns out, pretty darn well. Our stations (or at least the two that I went to) were clean, well-lit and best of all ran on the honor system. Of course the honor system sent shudders down my spine as I recalled the infamous Europe 1998 Munich fiasco, so needless to say I made sure I got the right ticket.

The trains themselves were unremarkable. It looks like Metro Rail went the low-bidder way - no frills on this subway. Also, the anemic maps on the wall further underscored how long L.A. has to go before it has a bonafide system. Maybe in a 100 years we will be just as advanced.

Coming out of the Hollywood and Highland station, Daniel and I were passed on the escalator by a young lady, who once passing us, proceeded to fall on the escalators. Daniel asked her if she was O.K. and she replied, "Yeah, I do this all the time at work". She then proceeded to tell us that she was a stripper and showed off her scars. Daniel and I looked at each other as she left and wondered how many times she fell off the pole.

It's been a surreal week and the holidays are just around the corner. I need to get my act together, otherwise I will never get everything done in time. Not only is Christmas less than two weeks away, Sarah is getting married on the 27th!!

Ahh yes, for those of you planning on riding the Matterhorn when it comes back in January, better postpone those plans. February is looking more and more like the return date.

After some hard work and integration magic, I have finally posted the all-new Disneyland Paris section with photos from 1996, Scott and Debbie's Trip in January 2002 and my recent trip earlier this month. There are a total of 298 photos in the collection now, and I think they look great. I have retouched a bunch of my recent ones due to the bad lighting conditions, but I think they came out good.

I was also able to create a separate version of Gallery running just for the Disneyland Paris section. This allowed me to play around with the headers and the footers to add some navigation back to the main index page. The only thing left to do is to add the descriptions of the photos and blow away all the old files.

Other than working on the site, Roger and I made it out to see "Die Another Day" last weekend. I had mixed reactions when watching it, but upon reflection I like it more and more. It reminds me the most of "From Russia With Love" and even a bit of the Dalton-era due to its darkness which most fans will recognize as Bond's true nature from the Ian Flemming books. There were some great scenes. What I can't figure out is that in the two Brosnan films with cars I like (Goldeneye and The World is Not Enough), the cars do nothing. In the two with cars that are cool, but not on my wish list, the cars have extended scenes doing really cool stunts. I guess a Z8 convertible wouldn't do so well in an Ice Palace.

And finally in the who-did-you-see-at-Disneyland-lately? category: Johnny Depp with his wife and child near Casey Jr. Railroad as well as backstage.

It's the first Jarre webcast since the failed one New Year's eve 2000/2001. This is the Aero concert from a windmill park in Denmark. The concert feed is working slightly better than the Vizitors concert, but still not as good as the one at the Pyramids in Egypt titled "The Twelve Dreams of the Sun". I can hear the live audio stream and I can watch the one camera angle, but I can not see the live feed for TV2. Oh well something is better than nothing. Right now, they are playing a new version of one of my all time favorites, "Chronologie 6".

As with the Twelve Dreams concert, I hope someone comes up with some MP3s or a capture of the video from TV so that I can enjoy it on CD.

You can see the official Aero concert site here

UPDATE: That's more like it. Around Oxygene 2, they finally started the broadcast of the real concert footage. The Windows Media feed is slower and lagging behind the far superior Real Media feed which hasn't skipped or timed out yet. The audio only feed is still better quality, but I'm sticking with the Real Media for the overall experience (and it's in stereo too).

Quite the parade of the stars at Disneyland. On Thursday we had both D.L. Hughley and Jamie Foxx on the Matterhorn within 10 minutes of each other. One has to wonder if they were together or if there was some WB promo going on somewhere.

Also on Thursday, Jim paid a visit from Northern CA. He was down in the area visiting some relatives out in Irvine. It was good to see him again, I think the last time we saw each other was at least three or four years ago. We met up at the Block at Orange where we ended up participating in some market research for the new Charlie's Angels picture. Our task? How did we feel about the titles. Let's just say most of them sucked (Charlie's Angels 2, Charlie's Angels: Second Coming, etc.) and the one I picked (Charlie's Angels: Full Throttle) was the least sucky. Well at least at the time it was. I still think they should have picked Charlie's Angels 2: Electric Boogaloo.

I managed to get the Mobile Club Josh working, and the PDA version should be just down the corner. My main concern is still the PDA archives, but I am sure I can get it formatted with no problems.

This week it has been visit Josh week. In the middle of last week I was visited by Mom and Gary who had my grandparents from Northern California in tow. We met up for a bit at their hotel and went out to eat at Art's Delicatessen in Studio City. On my way to see them, I ran into the Sprint PCS guy sans trench coat. I wanted to ask him if he wanted to go hiking tomorrow, but before I could he had rounded the corner and disappeared. Apparently, he had dined at Art's right before we did, because when I was mentioning my encounter to the relatives, the waitress said that he was just there.


Over the weekend, Wendy and Mice dropped into Disneyland for Wendy's birthday. I hadn't seen them since A-V Day and since they bought their condo. It was good to catch up. I am still waiting for Wendy's report on the Birthday cake from the Plaza Inn.


This week, the Coopers are in town for an extended vacation. I saw them briefly on Monday and hope to get together later this week. This weekend I get to spend one of my off days at the park entertaining some friends.


All in all, not the busiest of weeks, but enough to keep me on my toes, and sadly lagging in update entries.

It's been a week, so let me try and catch up on things that have been going on:


I managed to catch Austin Powers in Goldmember last Thursday. I thought it was pretty funny, some parts were pee-in-the-pants funny while some parts were just "uh yeah, ok, that one must be for Mike's friends". I do wonder if they have painted themselves into a corner and if there is any way to make a funny AP 4.


I still haven't heard back from the mojo job. I called them yesterday and they said they would call be back right away, but alas, I am still waiting. I did get scheduled for an interview for this City of LA job I applied for over a year ago. I guess the city operates on a different time-space plain.


I saw Tommy Lasorda at Disneyland again. He is the first celebrity in Los Angeles I have seen twice (at least that I am aware of). He seemed to have a larger, different group with him this time. For those of you planning a visit to the park in September or early October note that the Matterhorn is down for rehab for about six weeks. A couple of other Fantasyland rides will be down, leaving me to wonder just how many hours I will be getting come September.

Spent the weekend up in Santa Barbara at the request of Chaos. This was her birthday party - Part 2, this time up at a cabin that she is renting for six weeks up near Lake Cachuma. A great time was had by all - despite the constant buzzing of the bugs and countless mosquito and lord only knows what bites. Alex and Mark even managed to make it down from the Bay Area, and it was good to catch up with them. I always enjoy a trip out into the wilderness where you can see satellites moving across the sky with the naked eye.

Sunday was spent napping and recovering from the late night on Saturday. Thanks to some of Chaos' co-workers, our total sleep was about four hours. Roger and I made a detour on the way home through Simi Valley due to the nasty Sunday afternoon traffic on the 101 - it provided a nice change of scenery as well as being rather quick.

Monday it was off to my favorite shopping mecca - South Coast Plaza. This king of malls always has a special place in my family's heart as many a Christmas-time shopping spree was partaken here. I was disappointed that the Ghiardelli Chocolate store had closed. It was one of the last few remaining not at Glendale Galleria stores left. Glendale is much closer and offers many of the same stores, but does not have the enormous Crate and Barrel and of course, the Cartier and Gucci ambiance.

I also went and explored where the interview I have is tomorrow (or more correctly in less than 12 hours). I am nervous and excited all at the same time. If things go well I will go into more details, but for now just keep sending the good mojo.

Finally - another celebrity sighting: Kathy Ireland at Disneyland near the Info Board on Main Street.