The one where a princess steals my heart...

I'm not going to lie. I've been very excited for the release of Brave. I got sucked right into all of the hype with very little hesitation. The story sounded great, the animation looked spectacular, the music that i'd heard so far was beautiful, and for the first time ever....we were introduced to a princess with a real pair of stones.


Jasmine came pretty close, Belle had a good head on her shoulders and seemed to be going down the right path, but Merida? She takes it to the next level. So I showed up to the theater first thing Saturday with my friend and sat anxiously. By the time the credits rolled around, I was pleased to say that once again Disney and Pixar did not disappoint.


I'm a little bit biased. Archery is a big thing in my family so I think that's awesome to start with. I also know how difficult it is to handle a bow and arrow, so her ability to do so won me over almost instantly. I also adored the fact that she wanted to do things for herself. I went in hoping they stayed true to that story line. A princess that doesn't need a prince? It's a good message to put out there. If  had a little girl, I think i'd rather she learn a lesson like that over one that tells you to give up everything you have and know, including your own voice,  for a hot guy with pretty blue eyes who you've never said two words to. No offense, Ariel, this particular ginger seems to have her head a little more together than you did. 




In the end, I walked away and got exactly what I expected from this film. A lot of Pixar fans so far seemed to be less than thrilled with it, and I can understand that. I knew going in that this wasn't going to be your average Pixar film. It's their first shot at a fairy tale. Brave hangs in the area somewhere between Pixar and the classic disney animated features we all know and love. I think that's probably why I'm so in love with it. It's a mix of old and new. They've managed to mesh the movies I've come to love as an adult with the ones that I loved growing up and in my personal opinion, it mixed perfectly.


The animation was absolutely stunning and I found myself caught up in admiring the details throughout the movie. It really is difficult in some of those scenes to tell that they're actually animated. The soundtrack, as I mentioned before, is beautiful. The story, however, was the icing on the cake. It was action filled, full of meaning, and very touching. There is of course, plenty of comic relief. Most of this was provided by a very dainty bear and Merida's three younger brothers.


I've read that the pizza planet truck does, in fact, make an appearance though I was way too caught up in the movie to catch it. I've also been informed that here's a cute little scene after the credits along with at small tribute to Steve Jobs in there as well. As with any Pixar flick, there's a million things hidden here and there, i'm definitely going to have to check this one out again. I recommend you do too.

Disney posted part of the schedule for this years Candlelight Narrators, excited!

Schedule & Narrators†
American Gardens Theatre (5:00 p.m., 6:45 p.m., 8:15 p.m.)
November 23 to November 25, 2012 — Isabella Rossellini
November 26 to November 29, 2012 — Neil Patrick Harris
November 30 to December 1, 2012 — Whoopi Goldberg
December 2 to December 4, 2012 — TBA
December 5 to December 7, 2012 — TBA
December 8 to December 10, 2012 — TBA
December 11 to December 13, 2012 — Jodi Benson
December 14 to December 16, 2012 — Olivia Newton John
December 17 to December 19, 2012 — TBA
December 20 to December 22, 2012 — Trace Adkins
December 23 to December 25, 2012 — Gary Sinise
December 26 to December 28, 2012 — TBA
December 29 to December 30, 2012 — Marlee Matlin / Jack Jason

* Candlelight Dinner Packages do not include Park admission.

†Narrators are subject to change without notice.

I did this last year for the first time. It's breathtaking and quite moving. Sadly NPH's shows are going to be Monday through Thursday. Bah! 

Happy Cupiversary!

I started this blog after hockey season so I've not yet touched on the other love of my life. The Tampa Bay Lightning.

Eight years ago today the Bolts won their first Stanley Cup. I say first because I fully believe that sooner or later those a-holes are going to bring us another. The fact of the matter is, the 2004 Stanley Cup run is extremely important to me. Not just because my favorite hockey team won it all, but because of the memories that were made over those couple of months. Alexis, (the disney co-hort that's often referenced) and I met the year prior. She'd drive all the way down from Jacksonville for the festivities and we, along with a few other close friends, rode out the cup insanity together. 

The Lightning have long had a policy of selling discounted game day tickets. Two sections, one behind each net, would go on sale the morning of a game. For the majority of the playoffs, these were given out on a first come, first serve basis. What did this mean? Camping in Downtown Tampa. And we went all out. There were tv's and PS2s, lots of music, and just a really amazing time. Snowball fights from the zamboni leftovers, dancing on the bar across the street (RIP Outpost!), lots of laughs and a million smiles. The plaza of the St Pete Times forum had become it's own little community, and a fantastic one at that. Everyone was there for the same reason, to cheer on our bolts. 

The final series was intense, but in the end, the bolts prevailed at home. I stood in the spot I'd spent so much time in over the past two months and watched my boys, one by one, hoist Lord Stanley over their heads. Call me a dork, but it was an extremely emotional moment. I'd watched them fight so, so damn hard to get to that point. I'd shared the experience with a truly fantastic group of people, many of whom I still consider very dear and very close friends. It was an experience, one I wouldn't give up for the world.

 A lot has changed since then. We went through a pretty rough patch for awhile. We try to ignore that that ever happened.  Players have left, returned, and left again. There are new faces everywhere and the area itself has gone through a very amazing face lift. Old faces are still there, though now in front of the camera instead of on the ice. But their presence still shines through. Having Captain Dave, or as I like to call him, "Dad" be there game after game gives me a sense of comfort. I feel like his leadership and experience still effects us all. Thanks for the memories, Bolts. I'm looking forward to a lot more.

Exit to your left, Please. Please exit to the left....

I've said before that i'm not a fan of Disney making big changes. Usually, I get fairly sad when I see a ride get taken out. I was beyond angered at the removal of Mr. Toad's Wild Ride and 20,000 Leagues Under the Sea from Fantasyland. I won't lie, the first time I walked into that area of the park and saw the lagoon completely filled in, I cried. The thought that nothing resembling that original ride would ever be there again absolutely broke my heart. Even walking through the park recently and realizing the fantasyland skyway tower had been demolished broke my heart.

I'm not a big fan of changes either. I think the only complete refurb on an attraction that i've ever been 100% happy with is Space Mountain. (Though I do miss Mario Lopez's brief appearance in the queue!) HOWEVER, I think I was young enough not to get worked up over the changes on Snow White's Scary Adventures. I fully admit that I was a huge chicken growing up, everything scared me. I didn't get on a coaster until I was in my twenties. I was terrified of haunted houses until I faced my fear and ended up working in an amazing one. (I suppose nothing is going to get you over your fears like standing in the middle of Eastern State Penitentiary alone in the middle of the night will.) The Snow White scared the ever loving crap out of me as a child. It took me YEARS to get back on it without practically having to be forced into one of the mine carts. So most of my encounters with one of the fiercest of Disney villains occured with my eyes closed while clutching my father for dear life.

No, Snow White isn't the most exciting of rides. No, it's not the best ride in the park. It is (or was), in my humble opinion however, a very iconic part of Fantasyland. I get what Disney's doing. I get that they're appealing to bigger crowds and trying to grow. I get that they're putting this big focus on all of the princesses. The thing is, you're taking away the ride that centers around THE ORIGINAL Disney princess. The one that really did start it all. Yes, it's not the original and I know that. They ruined that for a lot of people what? Twenty years ago? But now it's gone all together. And for what? Another meet and greet? That upsets me. Taking down an opening day attraction, a ride that has been there for 41 years to make way for another meet and greet area, that upsets me even more. The princesses are all over the damn park, there's plenty of room elsewhere.  Maybe if they were making way for something bigger, better, newer, more exciting...then I might not be as upset. But this? I just don't like it.

I don't like that Fantasyland has become this vague, twisted version of the one I treasured in my childhood. The one thing I liked about this big expansion for the "New Fantasyland" was that they were adding on. I had it in my head that Fantasyland, the way I remembered and treasured it as a child, would still be there. Little by little, it's all disappearing. First 20k, then Toad, now Snow White. Even my little corner with It's a Small World and and my beloved Peter Pan has been torn up and pretty soon i'm sure that will be beyond recognition too. Ugh.

I'll end this on a positive note and tell you the one thing I do like about the changes so far. And this is going to tag me as a really big Disney nerd. I like that they moved Dumbo. The flying elephant attraction is present at almost every Disney park and all of them, with the exception of ours, has been built over a water fixture. Disney World's was the only one that was unable to be built around/over a fountain because of the ulilidors. Birthdayland/Starland/Toontown fair was added on long after the park was added and built without utilidors, so with the moving of Dumbo to the new Storybook Circus area, we finally got our water fixture. Well, I guess it's fixtureS since we're going to have double dumbo hubs. And it really does look beautiful. I won't take that away from everything. I'm sure the new fantasyland is going to be gorgeous. And yes, i'll be there asap to check it out once my blackout dates are over and everything starts opening up. It's just sad to see everything getting moved, changed, and torn apart. Disney's killing off my childhood piece by piece, so thank goodness for memories.

Maybe this is why EPCOT took over as my favorite park. Well, this and the margaritas. And French Kevin. We can't forget him.