The Silent "I"

Disney California Adventure Cars Land Opening: Seeing Stars

Disney California Adventure' s new Cars Land opened recently, and I was fortunate enough to be part of the media corps of bloggers covering the grand reopening of the park as a guest of Disney Parks & Resorts.  It was an exciting, memorable event that included a red carpet with celebrity guests, thousands of media folks from television, radio, print and online news sources, and a chance to experience Cars Land firsthand before the eager public arrived.  As usual, Disney put on a thrilling show, featuring the opening of Cars Land, an entrance reimagined to look like Walt Disney's Hollywood of the late 1920's, and a brand new techno-night party called the Mad Hatter's T-Party. 

 

Larry the Cable Guy, voice of Mater in "Cars"

The first night featured a red carpet with some of the voice talent from the movie "Cars", including the voice of Mater himself, Larry the Cable Guy.  Larry is a very friendly guy, much like Mater in the movie, and joked around with everyone from the mombloggers to the TV broadcasters to the Radio Disney correspondent on hand.

Larry's co-star, Bonnie Hunt, seemed a little more shy, and was hiding under a baseball cap.  I didn't realize it was her until she was halfway down the red carpet. Owen Wilson was nowhere in sight.

Real Housewives of Cars Land Carry Prada

John Ratzenberger, the Pixar "good luck charm" who appears in some capacity in every Pixar movie, was seemed to enjoy the attention. Ratzenberger's date was carrying a very interesting Cars-adorned Prada bag.  I didn't see these on sale in the gift shop.  Apparently, only the Real Housewives of Cars Land know where to get these.

RIP Lonesome George, Last Pinta Island Tortoise

Lonesome George, the face of the Galapagos Islands conservation efforts, passed away yesterday.  He was well over 100 years old, and may have been around to meet Charles Darwin when he landed there in the 1800s.  He was the last of his sub-species of Pinta Island tortoises and marks the extinction of his kind.

We had the privilege of meeting Lonesome George on a trip to the Galapagos in 2006.  He was a friendly, albeit slow-moving fellow, who munched on greenery and seemed nonplussed by the amount of tourist attention being lavished on him.  At the time, his caretakers had introduced four female tortoises into the pen with him, but he didn't seem at all interested in mating with them.  He was a confirmed bachelor to his dying day.

We joined the Galapagos Conservancy on behalf of our son, largely because of meeting him and understanding the importance of preserving the unique, spectacular wildlife found in the Galapagos Islands.  Even though Lonesome George didn't leave any offspring behind, it is important that we do our part to preserve these islands for our own kids and their kids.

Farewell, Lonesome George.  You were truly one of a kind.

My Trop50 Fab Five Bloggers

Thanks to Trop50 for sponsoring my writing about fabulous bloggers. This year Trop50 is granting 50 Fabulous Wishes. Click here to enter for a chance to win $1,000 to celebrate a friend with a refreshing attitude about looking and feeling fabulous!

One of the things I love most about blogging is getting to meet bloggers. I've made some unexpected friendships in the blogosphere that I hold near and dear to my heart.  When the Clever Girls asked the Clever Network to write about "Five Fabulous Bloggers" I had a hard time narrowing it down to only five.  I could name 50 right off the bat, and probably 500 if you gave me a minute.  The assignment, however, was five, so here are my five:

1. Aimee from Greeblemonkey - Aimee is a photographer, blogger, music maven, web designer, and more. As a photographer, she's showed me that photos don't just represent what you see, but what is in your heart. And her heart? Is a warm and wonderful place, full of light and shade, sparkles and shadows, color and texture.  She's also that girl who will make you a mixed tape full of wonderful, undiscovered surprises that will rock your world and broaden your horizons. Aimee is rock & roll with soul.

2. Amie from Mamma Loves - Another brilliant writer/photographer and a working mom like myself. The best way I can describe Amie's photography, writing, and persona is beautiful. There is something so exquisite about her words, her images, and her person.  Her tagline is "for 3 minutes in the 80's, I was awesome," but I think she has it completely wrong. I think she has been and will be awesome for decades.  Amie is someone that I don't see often enough, but when I do, I always feel right at home with.  I wish we lived closer to each other, but for now, I'll settle for glimpses into her beauty through her blog and photos.

3. Donna from Socal Mom - Witty, wonderful, and wise, Donna is a blogger, podcaster, and former Hollywood comedy writer.  Donna's blog was one of the first blogs I read when I first started blogging, so I've always thought of her as a trailblazer. I was thrilled when she joined MOMocrats and I was able to get to know her off-line.  Her keen eye for detail and wry sense of humor come through whether she's blogging about politics or travel or being mom to a teen or the latest car show. On top of that, she's the kind of friend who will sit with you in the emergency room for four hours, just so you don't have to be alone. I know this from experience, and it's something I will never forget.

4. Marsha from Sweatpantsmom - Marsha, Marsha, Marsha! Everyone wants to be (or should be) like Marsha. Marsha is probably the funniest and most charming person on-line and in person, with style to spare. Although she's my age, she rocks the funky glasses and mini-skirts, can wear leggings and not look like a burned sausage, and is generally one hot mama.  In fact, I've told her she should change her name to "Hotpantsmom."  Mom to two teen girls, she is also a graphic designer, and celebrity interviewer extraordinaire. Marsha finds the humor in just about any situation. Marsha's the friend you want to take shopping with you, because you know she would tell you what looks good and what makes you look like a sad clown hooker.

5. Beth from Techmamas - Although Beth is totally famous and one of the Time 140 most spectacular twitterers on the planet or something, she is also one of the nicest people in the blogosphere. Check out her blog for tips on the latest technology, and how to keep your kids from becoming video-game addicted zombie roadkill.  I'm fortunate to have Beth live near me, because she is one of the people I know I can count on in a crisis.  When my husband had open heart surgery recently, Beth volunteered to take my son at night when I had to be in the hospital ICU. This is no small feat for a mom of 3 boys.  Adding a fourth boy to a household would likely drive most moms to the bottom of a bottle of gin, but Beth? No way. She also collected donations from MOMocrats and friends to buy our family Waiters on Wheels gift certificates so I didn't have to cook. Beth is simply good people.

Again, it was really difficult to narrow down this list to only five, since there are so many fantastic bloggers out there, many of whom I've been privileged to meet in person.  If you're not on the list, you can be sure you were next on the list.

So, who are your Fab 5?

Don't forget to enter the 50 Fabulous Wishes contest for a chance to win $1,000 to celebrate a friend with a refreshing attitude about looking and feeling fabulous. I was selected for this Tropicana Trop50 sponsorship by the Clever Girls Collective, which endorses Blog With Integrity, as I do. I received compensation to use and facilitate my post.

Edgar Mitchell: To the Moon and Back

During our trip to Alaska, we spent some time with Apollo 14 Astronaut Edgar Mitchell.  Dr. Mitchell was invited to speak at the dinner banquet as part of the EIPBN conference, at my husband Frank's request. He is a fascinating person, and it's not every day you get to meet someone who actually walked on the moon.

The reason Dr. Mitchell was asked to speak is that this year marks the 50th anniversary of the invention of the laser.  The conference keynote speaker, Dr. Tony Siegman of Stanford, gave a retrospective on the history of the laser in the conference's opening session.  Dr. Siegman mentioned that one of the most unique scientific uses of the laser came in the early 1970's, when the Apollo astronauts placed laser retro-reflector arrays on the moon.  Because of this, scientists on earth can bounce a laser signal off the reflectors and measure the distance from the Earth to the moon, within a few centimeters of accuracy.  As Dr. Siegman got to this dramatic point, he invited Ed Mitchell up on stage with him, as a surprise to the audience. 

Dr. Mitchell related to the rapt audience that he actually didn't know much about the experiments that were planned with the lasers, but was under strict orders from NASA not to kick any dirt on the reflectors or he would be in trouble.  He showed a picture of one of the reflectors, with his footprints around it, and it looked like he accomplished his mission of keeping it clean.  He was told at the time that they would be in use for twenty years or so, so they needed to last.  That was in 1971, and the same retro-reflectors are still being used by NASA today, nearly forty years later.

It was Frank's idea to invite Ed Mitchell to speak at the conference.  As Conference Chair, Frank wanted to make it a memorable experience for the attendees.  As a boy, he admired the Apollo astronauts, and remembered the laser experiments as he grew up and became a laser scientist himself. He diligently researched which of the Apollo Astronauts were available for speaking engagements.  Sadly, many of them have passed away.  He was overjoyed when Dr. Mitchell agreed to speak. He was thrilled that our son would have the opportunity to meet someone who had actually traveled to the moon.

Our family had the pleasure of spending a little time with Ed Mitchell during our stay in Anchorage, at the official conference functions and by being his unofficial chauffeurs and guides.  He is a delightful, charming man, and was gracious in giving autographs and posing for pictures.  Alex got to meet him at the airport, and he signed one of Alex's stuffed animals for him, a little bear wearing a space suit that Frank bought at the National Air & Space Museum.  He even brought a photo of himself on the moon with him, and signed it "To Alex."

At the banquet, he spoke about the Apollo 14 mission, most of which is well documented in history and science books, in movies, and TV documentaries.  The part that interested me most was hearing about the profound personal and spiritual impact going into space had on him, the beauty of the earth from so far above, and the feeling of connection with the vastness of the universe.  Dr. Mitchell has written about his mystical experiences in his book, The Way of the Explorer.

Disney World of Color Slideshow

"Disney's World of Color Premiere"

Create a free slideshow with Picnik!

I created this slideshow on Picnik.com of all the pictures I took on the Disney World of Color Blue Carpet and at the event. Some I've posted before, and some are new. Enjoy!

Disney's World of Color Blue Carpet: Or, In Which I Officially Join the Celebrity Snarkerazzi

Part of the Disney World of Color Premiere night was a chance for the mombloggers to line up with the other papparazzi members of the legitimate media to take pictures and chat with celebrities on the red carpet. Only this carpet was blue, because this is Disney and water is blue. Get it?

Anyway, I've never been to a red or blue or rainbow-colored carpet event before, and it was pretty exciting.  I've seen or met a few celebrities in my day, mostly at airports or stalking them in back alleys after the theatre.  This was more like seeing them in their natural habitat, swimming frantically upstream to spawn or make it into the next issue of Us Magazine, or whatever payoff comes from walking down a blue carpet with people screaming at you and being forced to smile into various digital devices while total strangers gawk at you.

 

Of all the various TV and movie personalities who came sauntering down the field of blue, Teri Hatcher was probably the most accommodating.  She was a total doll and spent quite a bit of time with the moms, taking questions, posing for pictures, and just looking gorgeous in a green dress.  She even took a few arms-length photos of herself and fans, which was probably way beyond what was required of her. She has a new website called Get Hatched on Disney Family that she was promoting, and someone very likely astutely pointed out to her that mombloggers were both her target audience and likely her biggest allies. Well played, Teri, well played.