A Pig, A Dog, A Bear, A Mouse & Some Castles: Ornament Stories

Putting up the Christmas tree at the Jackson house is a big deal... over the years, we've added way more lights, gotten rid of generic ornamental balls in favor of a plethora of ornaments given to us during our 32 years of marriage, and (due to the smaller space we currently live in) we are actually having to move furniture into the foyer of the duplex to make room for the tree.

There's something about having the tree up that changes not only the traffic patterns in our house but also makes my mood more buoyant. Each morning, as the first person up in our house, I turn on the lights and watch them twinkle in the darkness. Then I slide open the drapes to share those lights with our neighborhood. (There's a sermon illustration in that somewhere... preacher friends are welcome to mine the story for all its worth.)

The majority of the ornaments on our tree have stories that go with them... and as I looked at the tree this morning, I realized I wanted to share some of them with y'all. (That's part of the joy of blogging... I get to send my random thoughts out into the world - and these are particularly random.)

Rowlf the Dog

I think this is the oldest ornament on our tree - it was given to me by my high school friends Gigi & Alea Fairchild. Yes, my Muppet obsession has been around for 40+ years.

The Pig

When I was a youth minister here in Nashville, our youth group mascot was - wait for it - a stuffed pig. Some of my wonderful youth gave me a pig ornament which still has a place of honor on the tree.

Want to know more about the Pig and his autograph book? Here's the story...

• The Tale of the Pig (And How His Influence Still Touches My Life)
• Pig Quotes

Pinky

Also a gift from that same group of youth... a homemade Pinky & the Brain ornament. We cherish it.

Winnie the Pooh + Mokei

We have a lot of Winnie the Pooh ornaments... Shari has always loved Pooh Bear, so I think I counted 4 or 5 of them on the tree. This one is particularly special, as it was the Christmas of 2000 when Shari was pregnant with Braeden. 

Except... at that point, we didn't know if our baby was going to be a boy or a girl. So, we'd jokingly put the potential names together (Moriah & Keith) to come up with Mokei... which is what you see on the star. (Keith became Braeden's middle name - but that's another story involving Shari's cousin and her threat to name our child for us.) It was a gift from my Mom (and Dad)... and a really special memory.

Castles & Such...

We started a tradition of choosing an ornament to take home from our major Disney trips - as a souvenir, they are relatively inexpensive and actually have a place to be displayed on a regular basis (rather than being relegated to a dusty shelf somewhere or the bottom of a storage box). And, more importantly for us, they remind our family of the fantastic adventures we've had over the years. All of the castles are from Disneyland (celebrating our trips in 2003, 2007, and 2012) and the glass Mickey is all four park icons from our trip to WDW in 2019.

I've written a lot about those trips and about Disneyland (even with some spiritual stuff thrown in!) over the years... if you're interested, here's how to find some of the best of those posts.

• 1980: The Mouse Gave Me the Bum's Rush
• 2003:Disneyland Resort - Christmas 2003
• Monday
• Tuesday
• Wednesday
• Thursday
• Friday
• 2007: The Hypnotic Power of a Bug-Zapper & The Happiest Place on Earth
• 2008: Surprise (A Christmas Classic)
• 2009: It's a Goth World After All
• 2009: Disneyland at Christmas
• 2019: Facebook postings on our epic WDW trip
• Saturday
• Sunday
• Monday
• morning
• evening
• Tuesday
• morning
• evening
• Wednesday
• Thursday
• morning
• evening
• Friday
• morning
• evening
• Saturday

I'm Not Dead Yet

OK, so the blog's been in hibernation for a while... suffice it to say that my life has been complicated, my job (though financially a blessing) is a time sink, and I've been using precious blogging time to actually play board games.

I'm going to try and get going again - though I will warn you ahead of time that there could be dry spells through the early fall. 

If you have a question for me to answer - it can be personal, spiritual, weird or just hobby-related - leave it in the comments section. I'll see if that doesn't inspire some more interesting (and offbeat) posts.

 Recent & Recommended

• APP - Descent: Road to Legend (app for the iPad that works with your Descent: Journeys in the Dark 2.0 games & expansions to create a GREAT cooperative experience)
• BOARD GAME - 7 Wonders: Duel (fantastic re-imagining of a multi-player classic as a 2 player game... can't wait for the expansion!)
• BOOK - The Aeronaut's Windlass (first book in Jim Butcher's newest series... steampunk-y and creative)
• CARD GAME - Bear Valley (weird little racing game that is easy to teach and fun to play... a run through bear-infested wilderness)
• MOVIE - Captain America: Civil War (all the ways it could have gone wrong... and it didn't)
• MUSIC - Andrew Peterson: The Burning Edge of Dawn ("The Rain Keeps Falling" is the song of my heart some days)
• PODCAST - Revisionist History (Malcolm Gladwell + odd bits of history + musing on human behavior)
• TV - Limitless (it's on Netflix... and it's cheerfully wacky)

My Top Five Podcasts (Which Could Change)

Let's start with a few simple statements of fact/personal opinion:

1. Podcasts are wonderful because I can listen to them in the car on my commute.
2. I have no interest in watching a podcast. Internet video as a review/podcast medium is pretty much lost on me.
3. I've actually gotten bored with most board gaming podcasts. 

That said, here's the top five podcasts on my iPhone (in order of how excited I am to listen to them):

• Pop Culture Happy Hour - I have not been shy over the years about expressing my love for the writing, humor & commentary of Linda Holmes, who is now runs the NPR pop culture blog, Monkey See. I first discovered her stuff on the (sadly) now-defunct Television Without Pity website where she recapped both Survivor and The Amazing Race. I'm not sure why it took me so long to add this roundtable discussion of music, film, books & television to my list, but I'm hooked by the witty conversation, the exuberant geekiness, and the "kicky theme music".
• The Unofficial Guide's Disney Dish with Jim Hill - The titular Jim Hill is great - and his co-host (Unofficial Guide's Len Testa) makes a perfect foil as they delve into Disney theme park plans, history and general craziness. For my money, the best of the Disney podcasts out there.
• Serial - I've written about Serial before... and goodness knows, the Internet has weighed in over & over about this podcast. During the first season, I downloaded the podcasts the MINUTE they were available and listened as soon as I could... it's a fascinating & evocative way to report on a huge story. Season 2 is coming...
• BoardgamesToGo - Mark Johnson was one of the earliest podcasters... and certainly one of the earliest board gaming podcasters. His wry yet warm & endearing approach to talking about our shared hobby is a delight to listen to. (Note: I've been a guest a number of times on the podcast and consider Mark a good friend*, so I may be a little prejudiced here.) Mark is currently taking a sabbatical from podcasting - but you've got a great back catalog to listen to while he's having a well-deserved "vacation". 
• Stuff You Missed In History Class - It's quirky, it's short (30 minutes), and the two hosts feel your geeky history nerd friends who can't wait to share their most recent research with you. 

For the record, I also listen to (though much more sporadically):

• Boardgame Babylon (why no new episodes, Eriku?! why!?)
• Garrett's Games & Geekiness (another podcast I've been a guest on)
• Ludology
• On the Media
• Theology of Games
• This American Life

I'm curious if my loyal readers have any suggestions for podcasts for me to add. What say you?

* Mark Johnson & I are often confused for one another - similar names, similar facial hair, same hobby. Here's how you can tell us apart:

• if you see us together, he's the tall one
• if you see one of us playing a fantasy-themed game, it's me
• if you see one of us working on actual science-y stuff, it's Mark Johnson

Disneyland at Christmas (Classic)

This post was originally written in December of 2009... and it would be three more (2012) before we'd find our way back to the Disneyland Resort. That's not the point, though. (Note: the pictures with this post are from the 2012 trip.)

It's Christmas time at Disneyland... and for the first time in 3 years, we aren't there. (This would be the appropriate time to say "thanks" to my Imagineering buddy for getting us in last year & to Klutz Publishing for making me a consultant the year before that paid for most of our trip... and to the folks @ NewLife, who are incredibly generous about vacation time for myself & the rest of the staff.)

One of the added bonuses of homeschooling our kids (in tandem with me pastoring a church) is the flexibility it allows us in taking vacations - we're not restricted to weekends, holidays & summer. In fact, weekends are pretty much out (seems the good people of NewLife Community would like me to show up on Sunday mornings & talk to 'em!). So, we go to Disneyland during the week while public school is still in session between Thanksgiving & Christmas.. meaning the crowds are low, the park is decorated beautifully & there are fireworks every night.

I really do have a spiritual point to this... hang on a minute.

The first time we went (back in 2003 - Braeden was only 2 years old!), we had a number of wonderful experiences:

• taking pictures of Braeden & Shari riding Dumbo from the elephant in front of them - which is almost a perfect echo of a picture my dad took of my mom & me 40 years ago 
• riding Heimlich's Chew Chew Train enough times that we memorized all the dialogue... (btw, one of the downsides of low crowds - if your kid likes a ride, you're going to get to see a lot of it) 
• Braeden getting his picture taken with Mickey... and as he left, turning around & running back to hug him and tell him, "I love you, Mickey." 

But the particular memory I want to focus on is standing in line for It's A Small World right around dusk. They turn off all the surrounding lights... there's some dramatic music... and then the colored lights come on all at once. There's an almost collective gasp/intake of breath at the beauty of the moment... and then people erupt into spontaneous cheers. (I've seen this a number of times now - in fact, we try to time it so that we're near Small World around dusk if we can - and it's the same response every time.)

That moment awe & wonder, that childlike delight in the lights & the music & the "magic" of Disneyland - frankly, that's just a taste of what we're meant to enjoy when we realize the meaning of the Christmas celebration. We are kneeling (physically or metaphorically) at the feet of a baby who is fully man & fully God, who will - in a short 33 years - give Himself up on the cross in order to pay for all the cruddy, evil, horrible things we've done. We are in the presence of God - it's worth a gasp of breath & an eruption of cheering & praise.

I love to turn the lights on our Christmas tree... particularly when it's dark in the living room. It reminds me - just a bit - of the amazing show Disneyland puts on each night through the holidays. I want to challenge myself (and you, by extension) to be reminded each time you see the lights wink on & the room fill with color to remember the amazing grace of God that He showed so clearly through the birth of Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas!

Surprise! (A Christmas Classic)

This happened almost exactly 6 years ago... but it's still a story that warms my heart. I've made some changes to the original Grapevine post - hope you enjoy it. Merry Christmas!

Back in December of 2008, we were given the rare & wonderful gift of a day at the Disneyland Resort by friend who works for WDI (Walt Disney Imagineering)... his generosity enable us to experience both Disneyland & California Adventure for the day. We had a wonderful time riding the rides & watching our boys experience the parks.

But the story starts a bit farther back, as Shari & I decided to surprise the boys with this trip... especially the final destination. We'd been hinting that a special surprise was coming - but not that it was a trip. When we locked down the details with a few weeks to go, we began letting them know that a trip was coming, but not where we were going.

Braeden tried to figure it out, seeing if how far we were traveling (4 hours) or where we staying (Anaheim) would tell him anything... but that's one of the disadvantages of being 7 - he didn't realize that Disneyland was in Anaheim, just 4 hours away.

We did all sorts of things to keep things hidden - I took a different (slightly longer) route into Orange County to avoid all the Disneyland signs along I-5. (Plus, I hate driving through downtown L.A. on the 5... even at mid-day, it's stop-n-go traffic.) We brought the boys in through the side entrance of the hotel so they wouldn't see the big Mickey Mouse statue in the lobby. I even hid the Disney ads in the room so they wouldn't be reminded.

We had all kinds of slip-ups & near misses as well - a good friend wished us a great day at Disneyland with the boys in the room, but they didn't notice. Shari & I had to cover up a question about the Christmas parade at the parks with a long-winded discussion about the Visalia & Caruthers Christmas parades. I was very aware that I was talking about the theme parks a lot - so I tried to find ways to make the conversation seem "natural"... ha.

I'm not sure why, but Collin was pretty sure that he was going to Disneyland. Braeden patiently explained to him Tuesday afternoon why that couldn't be true (he thought we'd driven the wrong direction).

The close calls kept coming - our hotel was about a mile & a half from the parks, but it was right by one of the major intersections for Disney Way. Tuesday night, we could hear the fireworks in our room, but the boys were distracted by the TV and didn't seem to notice.

The next morning, we loaded back into our car and headed out to Dad's "meeting" (with my Imagineering friend)... and as we drove past the entrance sign, Braeden saw it.

"Where do you think we're going, buddy?" I asked.

"Disneyland," he answered.

"So what's the surprise?" she asked.

With a catch in his voice, he questioned, "Disneyland?," and when Shari & I told him he was right, he started laughing & yelling, "Collin, we're going to Disneyland!" The surprise & excitement in his voice was worth all the effort.

If you want more details about the trip, I blogged about most of it...

• DLR in a Day: Morning
• DLR in a Day: Afternoon

On the way home (we drove back after Disneyland closed), I had lots of time to think & pray - Shari & the boys fell asleep and I had 4 hours of driving to do. So my mind wandered from surprise trips to Christmas celebrations at Disneyland to the real reason for the Christmas season.

Some random thoughts:

• it was a surprise to the Jews, even though God had littered clues all the way through the Old Testament writings - starting with Genesis 3 and continuing through the promises to the patriarchs... and just in case they hadn't figured it out by then, He gave the prophets one hint after another
• just like Braeden, even with the evidence staring them in the face, it seemed too good to be true that the Messiah had finally come...
• as I pondered this stuff, I realized that my role in the story is similar to the Enemy's role in our story, as he attempts to  distract us from the story of Jesus Christ at the center of Christmas and instead tries to get us to focus on other things
• finally, as cool as Disneyland is (and I'm a HUGE Disney parks fan), it doesn't compare to how amazing & wonderful it is that God sent Jesus to Earth
• How much surprise is left in your Christmas celebration? No,  I'm not talking about the sticker shock you have when the Visa bill shows up in mid-January... I'm talking about Braeden-like wonder & awe at having been given such an incredible gift.

The Kitchen Sink: The "Go Check It Out" Edition

the lego movie

You should go see this.

I know, I know... it looks like a kid's movie (and it is) - but there's some wonderful stuff in there and some really nifty twists that I don't want to spoil.

So just go see it already...

disney dish podcast

The Unofficial Guide folks have teamed up with Jim Hill (who has a long history as one of the most interesting Disney Parks behind-the-scenes bloggers out there) to produce a series of really enjoyable podcasts. Give them a listen.

baseball highlights 2045

I'll probably write a full post on this in the next couple of weeks, but when Mike Fitzgerald (the designer of the Mystery Rummy series - which I love) puts out a game that Tom Lehman (the designer of Race for the Galaxy and Fast Food Franchise - both of which I love) gushes about, it's time for me to back it on Kickstarter.

Check out the project... and give it some financial love!



Avatar + Disney's Animal Kingdom = Redbox?

 

 

A few weeks ago, the Disney Parks blog shared some of the video from D23 Japan about the planning & dreaming for an Avatar-themed area in Animal Kingdom (the fourth Orlando park). The ideas look really amazing - you can even watch this video from James Cameron & Joe Roehde to get a better feel for what they're dreaming.

So, I guess this means I have to actually break down and watch Avatar, right?

The Hypnotic Power of a Bug-Zapper & The Happiest Place on Earth (Classic)

This classic post is from 2007... and I repost it today with some slight edits in honor of our trip to Disneyland last week. (I'll write more about that delightful experience later.)

Mosquito #1: Larry, no! Don't look at the light!
Mosquito #2: [entranced] I-can't-help-it. It's-so-beautiful.
A Bug's Life

I know I've got Disneyland on the brain right now (we just got back from 4 days at DLR), but this post has been fermenting in the dark corners of my brain for nearly six months now. Blame Erwin McManus... it was an off-handed comment he made during the Ethos part of The Origins Experience. He suggested that different cultures have different icons that give us clues to the underlying values that permeate those cultures:

• the English have Big Ben - a giant clock. Is it any wonder that order & consistency are highly valued in that society?
• for Germany, Erwin suggested the iconic value of the automobile (Volkswagon, Mercedes Benz, Porsche)... and that leads easily into a culture that finds precision & attention to detail.
• Brazil's icon is not an object but a celebration: Mardi Gras (Carnivale) - which fits a country where living life to the fullest & enjoying the party are deeply valued.

Then Erwin asked the question he'd been leading up to: "What are the metaphors of the culture that you are in?" And since the majority of us in the audience were from the U.S., he answered the question for us: "Mickey Mouse. Disneyland."

Of course, I was prepared at that point to hear your standard anti-Disney diatribe: [snob]"Just like Disney, Americans are shallow, interested in being lulled to political & moral sleep by a Pied Piper with promises of a fantasy world & happy endings."[/snob] But that wasn't where Erwin headed...

"Disneyland stands for the promise of imagination - that we can create something bigger & better & more amazing. It suggests that every one of us can live a heroic life." (This quote, btw, is paraphrased - this is what I can construct from my personal notes & my failing memory.)

 With that nugget burrowing into my head, I began reading Erwin's most recent book, Soul Cravings (you can read a chapter that particularly moved me, 'cuz I blogged about it earlier: Pathos [Entry 24]) His premise is that each person has three needs:

• meaning - we want to know what we can know (truth) and what we can control (security)
• intimacy - we want to experience community (acceptance) and love
• destiny - we want to make a difference (success, signifigance)

Mix into a pile of books I received for my birthday on Disney & Disneyland...

• The Gospel According to Disney: Faith, Trust & Pixie Dust (Mark Pinsky)
• 101 Things You Never Knew About Disneyland (Kevin Yee)
• Disneyland Detective: An Independent Guide to Discovering Disney's Legend, Lore, & Magic (Kendra Trahan)

...along with my already well-documented obsession with the Disney parks and you've got yourself the makings of a world-class philosophical/theological rant.

I'll try to spare you most of my musings, which are probably only interesting to me & a couple of other Disneyphiles... still, I've started down this road, so join me as I address the key question here.

Why is that so many of us are drawn to Disneyland like a moth to a flame? (Or, to borrow from A Bug's Life, a mosquito to a bug zapper?)

I've come to believe that it's because Disneyland, knowingly or unknowingly, taps into all three of these core desires (or cravings):

• meaning - In the world of Disney (and by extension, Disneyland), there are heroes & villains. Rather than a world that seems to be sometimes painted in shades of grey, the park offers a place where visitors can see good triumph over evil.
• intimacy - From encounters with characters to the special attention to guest relations that each Cast Member is trained in, the folks at Disneyland want you not only to enjoy the attractions but also to connect on a personal level. It's telling that none of their publicity materials (that I know of) advertise this as a great vacation for individuals - instead, they emphasize how experiencing the park together brings families & friends closer with the bond of shared memories.
• destiny - The park is designed to involve you in adventure after adventure - whether it's flying through outer space (Star Tours, Space Mountain) or dealing with pirates (Pirates of the Carribean) or facing ghosts (the Haunted Mansion) or exploring the wilds of Africa & Asia (the Jungle Cruise). Challenging your fears, diving headlong into adventure... these kind of experiences touch base with your need to do something meaningful with our lives - to escape the monotony of our everyday slog.

I'm not suggesting that Walt Disney (or anyone else who's making the "big decisions" for the park) was/is a follower of Christ... or even that they sought to satisfy these cravings in a purposeful way. I'm simply suggesting that the appeal of Disneyland is not as simple as "it's clean & has wormed it's way into a definition of the American experience." (One clue to that being false: there are now 3 "Disneyland" parks outside of the U.S. - in Tokyo, Hong Kong & Paris.)

----------

For those of you in the reading audience who need to hear me quote some Scripture right now so you won't brand Erwin (or me, by extension) as a Mickey-ears wearing heretic, how about John 14:6?:

• destiny ("I am the way")
• meaning ("the truth")
• intimacy ("and the life")

Or how about 1 Corinthians 13:13, Colossians 1:5, 1 Thessalonians 1:3 & 5:8?

• meaning ("faith" - what is really true?)
• destiny ("hope" - where are really we headed?)
• intimacy ("love" - will we really know & be known?)

----------

A final thought about movies & amusement parks & well, church (maybe?):

"Don't write stuff & produce stuff about answers - don't do that," Winter said. "Write stuff & produce stuff that will stir up cravings inside of us, because that's the DNA that God's put inside of us. You stir that stuff up, and that's where [people] want to go to church. That's when they want to talk about the good news." Ralph Winter, producer of the X-Men series, quoted in The Hollywood Project by Alex Field

We'll Be There in Less Than Six Months...

Cars Land opens to the public today... I can't wait!

Steampunk Star Wars

New art from the Disney Parks blog... color me interested.

"It's A Small World" is 45!

Yes, the theme song is one of the most notorious ear-worms on the planet... but I have such fond memories of this ride. Until reading the post on the Disney Parks blog - 45 Years of Laughter & Hope - I didn't realize that I rode "It's A Small World" for the first time only a couple of years after it opened at Disneyland.

In 1966, Walt Disney presided over the opening ceremonies of the attraction in its new home at Disneyland park. Children representing countries from around the world came together to pour water from all seven continents into the “Rivers of the World.”

Since that moment, more than 233 million Disneyland park guests have joined “the happiest cruise that ever sailed” – enough to circumnavigate the Earth more than 190 times.

One other Small World memory: my family used to kid me that the dancing girl was winking at me. (I believed them.)

Lego in My Pixar, Pixar in My Lego

Retro Attraction Posters...

...for Disney's California Adventure. (OK, I want to make a collage of these for my office wall.)

from the Disney Parks blog

It's Almost Here!

The Vault of Walt: Stokowski

I'm putting this extended quote here to:

• show you some of the nifty stuff in this book full of essays on "lost" stories about Walt Disney & the Disney films and parks...
• give my friend, Jonathan, a bit of a birthday present (thought it is inexcusable that I crossed Stravinsky & Stokowski in my memory)

This comes from Jim Korkis' book, The Vault of Walt (available at fine booksellers everywhere!)...

When Leopold Stokowski was recording the music for Walt Disney's Fantasia with the Philadelphia Symphony Orchestra, the complex recording system set up in the basement of the Academy of Music (also known as the American Academy of Music & is the oldest opera house in the United States still used for its original purpose) was declared a fire hazard & work was ordered stopped.

On the advice of friends, Stokowski called Joe Sharfain, then city solicitor for Philadelphia and an ardent music fan. Sharfian quickly withdrew the stop order & recording proceeded. Later, Stokowski expressed his gratitude and asked, "Now, what can I do for you?" Sharfain said jokingly that one of his greatest wishes was to be rich enough to engage Stokowski & the orchestra for a single performance at which he would be the sole audience. (The price at that time would have been at least $100,000.) [Note from Mark: run through an inflation calculator, we're talking $1,441,000+.]

Stokowski asked, "When did you have in mind?" Sharfain answered, "Oh, that's a long time away." Stokowski countered, "How about tomorrow at two o'clock?" The incredulous Sharfain appeared at the side door of the Academy of Music the next afternoon, to be escorted by a deputy of the maestro into the hall, empty except for the orchestra & conductor. The maestro turned to make sure Sharfain was there, raised his arms and conducted for four hours - all the music of Fantasia - just for Joe Sharfain.

Now, Jonathan, if you can just figure out how to make friends with a well-connected conductor... Happy Birthday!

Small World Christmas

It's Christmas time at Disneyland... and for the first time in 3 years, we aren't there. (This would be the appropriate time to say "thanks" to my Imagineering buddy for getting us in last year & to Klutz Publishing for making me a consultant the year before that paid for most of our trip... and to the folks @ NewLife, who are incredibly generous about vacation time for myself & the rest of the staff.)

One of the added bonuses of homeschooling our kids (in tandem with me pastoring a church) is the flexibility it allows us in taking vacations - we're not restricted to weekends, holidays & summer. In fact, weekends are pretty much out (seems the good people of NewLife Community would like me to show up on Sunday mornings & talk to 'em!). So, we go to Disneyland during the week while public school is still in session between Thanksgiving & Christmas.. meaning the crowds are low, the park is decorated beautifully & there are fireworks every night.

I really do have a spiritual point to this... hang on a minute.

The first time we went (back in 2003 - Braeden was only 2 years old!), we had a number of wonderful experiences:

• taking pictures of Braeden & Shari riding Dumbo from the elephant in front of them - which is almost a perfect echo of a picture my dad took of my mom & me 40 years ago
• riding Heimlich's Chew Chew Train enough times that we memorized all the dialogue... (btw, one of the downsides of low crowds - if your kid likes a ride, you're going to get to see a lot of it)
• Braeden getting his picture taken with Mickey... and as he left, turning around & running back to hug him and tell him, "I love you, Mickey."

But the particular memory I want to focus on is standing in line for It's A Small World right around dusk. They turn off all the surrounding lights... there's some dramatic music... and then the colored lights come on all at once. There's an almost collective gasp/intake of breath at the beauty of the moment... and then people erupt into spontaneous cheers. (I've seen this a number of times now - in fact, we try to time it so that we're near Small World around dusk if we can - and it's the same response every time.)

That moment awe & wonder, that childlike delight in the lights & the music & the "magic" of Disneyland - frankly, that's just a taste of what we're meant to enjoy when we realize the meaning of the Christmas celebration. We are kneeling (physically or metaphorically) at the feet of a baby who is fully man & fully God, who will - in a short 33 years - give Himself up on the cross in order to pay for all the cruddy, evil, horrible things we've done. We are in the presence of God - it's worth a gasp of breath & an eruption of cheering & praise.

I love to turn the lights on our Christmas tree... particularly when it's dark in the living room. It reminds me - just a bit - of the amazing show Disneyland puts on each night through the holidays. I want to challenge myself (and you, by extension) to be reminded each time you see the lights wink on & the room fill with color to remember the amazing grace of God that He showed so clearly through the birth of Jesus Christ.

Merry Christmas!

P.S. If you'd like to read more about Disneyland at Christmas, you can check out my Disney-related posts on my blog: http://akapastorguy.blogspot.com/search/label/Disney.

It's a small world... at Christmas

Picture originally uploaded by LowellB23

Lego Toy Story 3!

7596 Trash Compactor Escape Originally uploaded by fbtb

Man, my wallet is in SO much trouble next fall.

For more info, check out this page on From Bricks to Bothans.

Someday...

Dante's Inferno
Originally uploaded by The Devil in the Detail

Yep, someday I'll get there and see it with my own two eyeballs.

Living Character Initiative

Anything I write can't do justice to the creative wonders that the Disney Imagineers have brought to life - so you'll just need to watch the videos.

The newest Living Character is Luxo Jr. who just debuted this last week at Disney's Hollywood Studios (in Orlando, FL).

Earlier this year, Remy (from Ratatouille) began appearing at EPCOT (also in Orlando) after a hit run at Disneyland Paris. (You'll also see shots of Lucky the Dinosaur in this clip - the first of the Living Characters.)

Finally, my personal favorite - Dr. Bunsen Honeydew & Beaker... and the Mobile Muppet Lab.

Yes, I realize that I haven't mentioned Mr. Potato Head (at Disney's California Adventure, where he welcomes guests to the Toy Story Mania ride), Turtle Time with Crush (both at California Adventure & EPCOT) and Stitch's Supersonic Adventure (which is closing this weekend). Ah, well.

Toy Story 3

The teaser trailer is online - and nicely done. Since it's coming out next June, it's nice to know I have something to do to celebrate my 46th birthday!