Mickey's Halloween Treat

A few years ago Disney started holding a Halloween event at DCA (Disney's California Adventure for those of you not familiar with the lingo). The park closes early and re-opens for a special event, Mickey's Halloween Treat. It's a chance for kids to dress up in their Halloween costumes and go trick or treating in a fun, safe, Disney environment. I attended the event for the first time this year. I met up with some of my friends (past Disney co-workers) and did a little trick or treating myself! I thought only kids dressed up, but as you can see adults got into the fun too. I thought this costume was really neat, but they wouldn't stand still enough for me to get a good picture.


If I go again I will dress up for sure.

Here are some shots of DCA decorated for Halloween.
Tower of Terror


Hyperion Theatre


Paradise Pier


The two cuties who inspired the trip:
Woody


Little Bo Peep

Happy Halloween

I saw this video on Tumblr and thought it was the perfect Halloween video. I hope you have ghoulish plans for the evening. I'll be getting dressed up and roaming the streets of West Hollywood looking at some great costumes.

Glee Single Ladies Clip

Last night's episode of Glee was awesome. I loved this opening clip so much I decided to post it here so I, and you, can watch it over and over again.

D23

Pictures from my day at the first D23 Expo.
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Fox 2009 Fall TV Preview Party

Tonight I went to the Paley Center for the FOX Fall TV Premiere Party. I've been referring to it as the Glee party since that was the only show out of the 3 I was interested in. The tickets were free, which was awesome. Chris was kind enough to join me and all my Glee fanaticism. The evening started off with a reception that consisted of free food and drinks (not much food so my dinner was 2 Heineken Lites) and a tiny red carpet. Stars from 3 new Fox shows (Brothers, The Cleveland Show, and GLEE!) walked the Red Carpet. Then there was a moderated panel with all of the FOX stars and producers who were in attendance. While I was getting some pictures of the Glee cast the theater filled to capacity so we sat in the library and watched the panel and shows from a tv (that looks similar to the one I have). We saw the pilots for Brothers and The Cleavland Show and tonight's episode of Glee. It was a fun night. I have tickets for the ABC party next week, but due to work I don't think I will be able to attend. :( Next year I will have to plan better. Here are some of the pictures I was able to get:

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Beach + holiday weekend = not a good idea

Yesterday was a very rare day... Steve and I both were off of work. We took advantage of this and made it a fun friend day. We thought laying out at the beach and reading our e-books would be a relaxing way to spend the day... we were wrong. Everything was so busy we scrapped the beach idea and went to the Fullerton Arboretum. It's amazing to me how there are so many places nearby that I have never been to. The arboretum was a really neat place. There were lots of little trails and grassy areas. We saw quite a few people lounging on the grass enjoying picnics. I will definitely be back to relax, read and take photos. Here are some of the photos I took during our trip today.

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Shoes, running, and sushi

Well I finally started my training for the Long Beach half marathon. I met up with Chris to go running shoe shopping. We went to the Road Runner Sports in Laguna Hills to be properly fitted for shoes. They have a system there, called Shoe Dog, to help you pick out the proper shoes. They have you stand and walk on a mat to see the arch of your foot and how you walk. The last part of the fitting process is to be taped running on a treadmill so they can see how you run. I tried out my new shoes on my first training run (walk). We found a neighborhood with a parkish area and ran (walked) 3.48 miles!!! I haven't worked out in a long time so I was quite proud of myself. I did more walking than running, but one day at a time right? It was a good start for my training. We topped off the evening with some sushi at You and I Sushi! (I love the volcano rolls!). I'll keep updating this blog with my training progress. I'm so tired and glad that tomorrow is a work holiday so I get to sleep in.

Here are my new shoes:
[caption id="attachment_21" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="New running shoes"][/caption]

Today turned out better than expected

Ok, I'm trying to start actually blogging so here is a short blog for today. (Normally these posts will have an actual topic, but like I said I'm trying to get into it.) I wasn't having a great day, but then I won a really cool prize pack of tv stuff from one of my fave blogs/tv websites. I'm also heavily considering signing up for the Long Beach half marathon. I'm going to try a first "run" (at the gym) on Friday.... we'll see how that goes.

Link to my awesome prize pack and to an awesome site:http://www.duckydoestv.com/2009/06/24/giveaway-win-huge-kick-ass-tv-giveaway/

Guide Dogs of America

Last Saturday Chris and I went to the Guide Dogs of America open house to learn about the guide dog training and placement process.  When we arrived the the event was in full swing and it was a little hard to figure out what was going on.  There were quite a few things to do... there was a silent auction, a dog obstacle course, a raffle, dog kissing booth, and tours of the facility.  We went on the last tour of the day.  I don't remember our tour guide's name, but our doggie tour guide was Dexter.

Some facts I learned on the tour:

• The dogs live with a puppy raiser (volunteer) for the first 12-18 months of their life.


• After their time with the puppy raiser they go back to the facility to work with a certified trainer.


• About 50% of the dogs who start training actually work as a guide dog.


• If a dog fails the training program the dog's puppy raiser gets first dibs at having the dog join their family as a pet.


• The minimum age for a blind person to get a dog is 16.  There is not upper age limit. (The person the house was started for was over 50 years old and denied a guide dog b/c they were too old)


• The total cost for a dog who makes it through the training and is teamed with a blind person is about $40,000.


• The blind people go through training with the dog and receive the dog free of charge.


• Guide Dogs of America doesn't get government funding.  It operates solely on donations and volunteers.

[caption id="attachment_4" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Guide Dogs of America facility"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_5" align="alignleft" width="200" caption="Puppy Kissing Booth"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_6" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Guide Dog in Training"][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_7" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Not sure why Llamas were there. I'm guessing for the kids."][/caption]

[caption id="attachment_8" align="alignleft" width="300" caption="Dexter, our tour guide"][/caption]

Guide Dogs of America Website