EPBOT

This week's a bit hectic with MegaCon coming up this weekend, but I had to tell you guys the good news: John FINALLY got to go to the Wizarding World of Harry Potter today! (Or, as everyone calls it: Harry Potter World.) He took his mom for her 70th birthday, and they've spent the afternoon there at Universal.

I don't really have an excuse for why we haven't been before now, except to say we have Disney annual passes, so any time we have a free day we just go there. Plus we almost never get a whole day off; just evenings from time to time, and those tickets are expensive.

Anyway, the biggest and coolest thing at HP World is the ride, of course, so John and his mom spent two and a half hours in line for it. Because they are clearly insane. Anyway, John was texting pics to me along the way, and then called me right after to give me his review.

Me: "Well?! How was it??"

John: "It was amazing, and worth the wait, and I am never ever going to ride it again."

Me: !?!

John's a big roller coaster fan, so he's used to extreme rides like Hulk and SheiKrah, but apparently this was "too overwhelming." The articulated arm that moves the ride cars flips you around quite a lot, so he left pretty queasy, and he says the intense scenes were really intense. He tells me there's no way I'll ever be able to tolerate it, which makes me sad, but I guess it's better to know now than after flipping out on the ride. Heh. (Plus I can still walk through the queue, at least, which looks soooo cool.)

Another part of the problem was the ride seats, which have harness restraints that click down over your shoulders and gut. When the operators secured John's harness it was so tight he literally couldn't take a full breath. He pleaded with them to loosen it, which they did, but that made the green light go to yellow, so they had to crank it back down again. Universal has added seats for larger guests that don't have to lock down as tightly, but for some reason the attendants didn't offer one to John (grrr), and he didn't know to ask. I'm sure the inability to breath made the experience that much more unpleasant, although John insists it was still well worth it.

Oh, and the ride stopped halfway through for a few moments, which I've heard from some of you happens a LOT. Since being stuck on a ride is a huge trigger for my anxiety, that pretty much clinches the fact that I'll never get to experience it myself. SAD POTTER HEAD.

On the plus side, Epcot has the Flower and Garden show going on right now, and this year they've added food, and tomorrow I might get to try a Dole Whip with rum in it. Awwww yeeeeeah.

Now, here, since I don't have any HP pics to share, have some Haunted Mansion eye candy:

It used to be that a fresh rose was laid on Master Gracey's tomb each morning, but I spotted one here by Madame Leota's last time we were there. I guess they must alternate between the two now. (I took this through the iron grate; hence the fuzzy black bar.)

Ever peeked inside the hearse outside the Mansion?



Hard to see with the reflection, but there's a bouquet of dried/dead roses inside.

Then there's my favorite hidden gem:

Mister Toad's statue in the Pet Cemetery! (I won't say grave, because he lives on over at Disneyland. :))

This photo's several weeks old now, but if you've ever wondered what Splash Mountain looks like during rehab:


I chased them down for a photo - felt like I was at a convention. Ha! (And it's always nice to see a fellow Donald fan. Buy ALL THE TOYS!)

And finally, here's a pretty shot of the castle during the projection show:


These pics are left over from my last trip out to the MK, but I hope to have some new ones from Epcot after this week! (It's 75 glorious degrees outside right now. I need to take advantage of this weather before it gets blistering hot again!)

Oh, and I have lots of shiny new Epbot and Vader buttons to give away at MegaCon this weekend, so remember to tweet at me if you'll be there and want to meet up!

There's a whole world of geeky plush out there that I've never really explored - I guess because my own sewing skills are right at the level between "able to thread the machine" and "able to sew in a straight line."

Sometimes one of you will send me something like this, though:

Which finally prompted me to do a little Etsy exploring, and OMIGOSH SO MUCH SQUISHY AWESOMENESS. Seriously. I am overwhelmed. Did you guys know all this was out there?!


Remember Sir Squibner, the little plush octopus John got me last year? Well, now I'm tempted to get Sir Squibner a little geek girlfriend:

On a whim I decided to see if there were any Grumpy Cat plushies, and OH YES, there are Grumpy Cat plushies. I especially like this Grumpy Cat pillow, though:



There are also lots and lots of amazing My Little Pony custom plushies out there. Many are so perfect you'd swear they were officially licensed from a store, but I also like this more handmade-looking style with exposed stitching:



Then I stumbled across this little guy, who's only about 3 inches tall: