Let's Start a Drive-In Chain

I miss Drive-Ins.     

I'm a little young to have truly experienced the Drive-In Era.

I have vague recollection of seeing parts of some Charles Bronson movie at the drive-in when I was too young to see Charles Bronson movies.

(That is Charles Bronson, the ridiculous mustachio'd bad - ass heavily armed viglilante, not the Charles Bronson  you see on Gas Pumps in Florida, warning about Drive-offs and ethanol percentages.)

Anyway.  Let's start a drive-in.   I just need a financier and business person.   I'll handled the technical details of the FM-Broadcast system, projectors, manage construction of the screen, find and acquire property in the area.

I will find and train a manager who will maintain an appropriate workforce of low-wage teenagers.

I need a business person to handle setting up the Business Documents, Franchise Rights & to help to finance the project.  My salary will be $1/year for 2 years and I only want 32% ownership stake.

Willing to start immediately :)

Bill's Poolside Basement Arcade, 1.0

The year was 1984.   A certain fruit-logo’d computer company had run an iconic ad on television announcing a line of computers that would ultimately mostly fail but lay the groundwork for an electronics revolution in decades to come.

I was a 5 year old in Smurf pajamas when that ad ran. 

There was very little in the world that sparked my interest than when dad would flip me a couple quarters to sit down and play Pacman on the arcade table at the Red Roof – Pizza Hut in Clarksville, Indiana.

The 80’s and 90’s arcade, really helped to define a lot of who I am today.  Bands like Journey, Prince, Phil Collins, Jefferson Starship & more would pump from speakers in musty, kinda-dirty, overcrowded arcades while America’s youth would feed quarters into machines in hopes of seeing their name on high score lists or while playing head-to-head with other players.

When we moved to Alabama, I didn’t know anyone besides people that connected to my Warez BBS (google it), so I’d occupy my time by riding my bike to the local Gas Station to spend every possible quarter I could find playing Mortal Kombat head-to-head versus other looser kids.

Game Consoles, or the idea of them were considered mostly laughable.   It was for this reason, the NES was actually referred to as a “control deck”, Nintendo trying to sneak around the failures of so many tv-attached game systems and family “computers.”

It’s both sad and intriguing that “The Arcade” is basically a dying industry. 

Arcades killed the first game systems.
Nintendo gave birth to a new breed of “consoles”
Eventually, consoles all but killed Arcades
..now smartphone games stand to kill console gaming.

So, when we recently moved into a house with an unfinished basementesque storage area beneath the living room, I was anxious to get started on my own nod to the 80s and 90s arcade genre, pictured here.   I mean, who DOESN’T like an arcade??

I had really no official budget for this project, so everything that I bought or acquired, I did so on-the-cheap.   I first halved the storage area by making a wall out of $9 clearance’d indoor-outdoor rugs from Target and my handy stapler used for stretching canvas.

For sound, a $180 Klipsch/Denon receiver speaker set I found at a Best Buy. (Ahem, more than a little drama on that purchase.. but it all worked out..)  Music is supplied by our Kindle fire and a side-loaded copy of Spotify with my “80’s and 90’s Arcade Music” playlist that I frequently tweak.

I found 72 –pin cartridge connectors and repaired my original NES (still had it).

 A Sony Dreamcast, Sega Genesis, Nintendo 64 & xBox 360 round out the other systems in the room, connected to a Optimo Pico Projector (a $100 craigslist acquisition)  The projector is mounted with an upside-down Manfrotto tripod from Best Buy’s open-box section, affixed to the rafters with all-strap.

Then, I found Wayne.

Wayne Pully is a late 60’s/ early 70’s ish super-nice guy and proprietor of Waynes World of Home Amusements, located somewhere in the dangly-part of Florida. J

I found his site from a Craigslist ad, basically (I’ll be in Pensacola Area around July 9^th, order and I’ll deliver the machines at that time).

So, this week, Wayne and his lovely and sweet wife Grace, drove from Pierson, Florida to Spanish Fort, Alabama to visit with family and drop off the game systems you see here.     An Air Hockey Table, A Foosball Table, A Mortal Kombat Arcade machine, a 309-in-1 Multicade and a 60-in-1 Cocktail Multicade (back in the back of the room, on the other side of the foosball, beneath the stretched out sheet acting as a projector screen)

… all for less than you’d pay for a really good Digital Camera and lens..

The room will continue being a work in progress and in a year or so, I hope to reclaim the full space from storage to use as arcade.   For now, I’m very happy with the result, considering everything …   My kids will love the space, for us to play in, my wife will love the space because the kids will be out of her hair.

A place to visit, enjoy a nice craft beer and listen to the soundtrack from an Adam Sandler movie.    Really, how better to spend a Saturday?

If you are in the Florida area and would like a MultiCade, Pinball or other system, I’d recommend you jump over to 2waynesworld.com and check out Wayne’s ever-growing and ever-changing selection - a veritable arcade-bone yard, ripe for refurbishment, which he does.

That’s http://www.2waynesworld.com .   Thanks, Wayne.  It was great to have met you and your wife and we’re looking forward to having you back the next time you’re in town!  Keep an eye out for that Star Wars Pinball machine!

The Drunken Do-Over!

 If you couldn't tell, this isn't going to be a high-minded post.

The first shot I ever had on Flickr Explore was a shot of this replica Torii.   I never was satisfied with that shot and was looking forward to a do-over!

One Challenge:

On my trip to Disney this year, a good friend's birthday fell on the day we were to be @ Epcot.   How else to celebrate a friend's birthday than to 'drink around the world'-showcase?  

I'd like to recount to you the thoughtful setup of this shot.  
The minutes spent trying to perfectly frame the shot to balance the elements and light… Waiting for that perfect moment between stroller-wielding tourists.  Setting the perfect aperture and struggling for the right perspective…

Alas, it wasn't like that at all.

It went something like this..

"Man, those frozen-alcoholic-whatever-they were drinks at France were great, oh look a Sake stand -- wait, let me snap this shot real quick.   Click Click Click Click Click. 'Cuse me ma'am, a cold sake for me, please. Do you have a large?"

Enjoy your Tuesday.

:)

Green Glass

Do you remember at the turn of the last century, how green, almost luminescent "uranium glass" was really popular?   A uranium glass bead, say, from a necklace can actually fog a film badge (one of those things you wear when working around radioactive materials to determine you've had enough)

In fact, a single bead of uranium glass, about the size of a good pearl, can put out about 12 microRads/hr.  Grant it, that isn't that bad.   You get about 10 microRads of background radiation just living in civilization.

I started researching other things with a home-made geiger counter circuit..   the results were interesting.   Some very old lenses I had, actually registered about 50 microRads, much more than the uranium glass!

As it turns out, from the 40's to the 80's, some lenses were crafted with Thorium, a radioactive material.   Apparently my old Pentax lens isn't a bad example of a radioactive lens.   It isn't unheard of to find 1950's and 1960's camera equipment pushing out 100 microRads/hr.

..of course, these numbers are all obtained from an Edmund Scientific DIY Geiger Kit from the Mid 90's that has been in attic storage for years.   I'm not really sure how many years in your underwear in front of the leaking microwave 100 microRads equates to but it's still something to keep in mind the next time you put that 50 year old camera to your eye.

:)

Look Down

Credit for anything  good on this shot goes to my buddy Brody  

We hung out a bit after the Blue Angels Practice back in Spring.  (My last  dedicated photo outing, really)

We were standing on this balcony, talking and he looked down to see this car.  The perspective is cool.

Anything bad about this shot,  yeah, - that was me :)

On the Horizon

Pensacola, Florida from atop the Lighthouse

Flagged

.. It wouldn't be Independence Day or.. the day after... without an obligatory photo of a huge American Flag.

Here we are.   

July 4th-5th huge flag picture.   Check.

A Year Ago, Today

I hesitated on whether or not to do this but I ended up at the conclusion that putting a face to a healthcare story would make it more meaningful.  Though, out of respect, I darkened his features for this photo.

The radio waves and blogosphere have been all abuzz concerning the Supreme Court’s decision on President Obama and the Democrat Party’s Healthcare plan.  (http://www.healthcare.gov/)

In due fairness, I tend to travel in a more conservative-than-liberal social pack.  I haven’t, yet, had anyone come to me, “High Five!  It Passed!”  In fact, I’ve heard a myriad of friends, coworkers and relation bellyache about it.  Not to mention the non-stop end-of-the-world antics of Talk Radio.

I don’t particularly support this legislation, by the way.   But, the legislation itself isn’t why I’m writing today.   

There are a lot of very sterile words and phrases being bandied about by both parties. Healthcare exchanges, actuarials, health savings accounts, physician reimbursement percentages and increased accountability.  Leave it to lawyers, politicians and accountants to find terms in describing the situation that obfuscate the real underlying topic with capitalist terminology.   

Human life and wellness.  People.

This photo is of a person.  My Dad.   1 year ago today I snapped this photo (and a myriad that I will not share outside my family) of my father in his final days of life.   He was a veteran, at one time a business owner and in recent times very much an example -case-scenario of a person using “government money.”

He and mom, died within 3 weeks of each other from complications related to being smokers.   Some complications, I as a non-smoker also face but thank the lord – to a lesser degree, so far.

Mom had Asthma, COPD and dad had full-on Inoperable Lung Cancer.  His cancer was treated by the VA Hospital in Biloxi.  His medicines were largely paid for by the Veteran’s Administration and Medicare.     Mom, was a SSI/Medicaid recipient for at least the last 20 years.

The treatments that dad received from the VA most likely did nothing to extend his life.   His experience was that of confusion, frustration with a smattering of a few undignified moments.  

Not to be construed as an indictment of the VA  They did.. something… A doctor there,.. tried.. something.. But as a poverty-level Veteran, certainly Dad’s level of care wasn’t equal to that of what Steve Jobs received.    

Free markets are great, if you have the money to participate.    Cancer is evil.

During the last week of June, 2011, dad found himself in an awkward place.   He was unable to care for himself but he had run out of “covered” days for his inpatient stay.   Some of the many “cracks” in our existing low-income healthcare safety net.  They sent him home, knowing he was unable to care for himself.   He went from receiving around-the-clock care to a once-a-week caseworker.

That lasted one night. 

I moved the kids into one bedroom of my .. then.. quite modest home and called some friends.  We moved dad in and I began to care for him while my mom’s health further declined.

Hospice provided.. some.. support but their level of support was limited by classifications and the potential for reimbursement of the service they could provide.  

Not to be construed as an indictment of hospice, either.  The nurses were tender and special people – tons of respect for what they do but an accountant stands between you and the nurse.  Therein lays the problem.

The Chief argument I hear is that you don’t want the Government making healthcare decisions based on monetary policy.    My thing is..  I don’t want ANYONE making healthcare decisions based on monetary feasibility.    These are peoples’ lives.  Fathers, mothers, sons & daughters.    In the capitol of the free world, I agree that healthcare should be available to all (citizenry) but I can’t help but wonder if sacking the economy with more taxes is the worst possible solution.

I suppose this is the age-old debate.  Everyone wants the services to be available but no one wants to pay for it.   

What I do know is… Government-assisted healthcare, in my Dad’s case… did provide medication reasonably cheap or free.   He didn’t receive top-notch care but he received some attention from a physician, who tried.    Eventually he fell into fiscal and legal loopholes that left him confused and out in the cold.

In mom’s case, a “hospice level of care” document she signed, eventually led a nursing facility to withhold vital treatments that lead to her death.

You could say that bureaucracy, as much as smoking, killed both of my parents last summer.  

You can also say that the free market didn’t help them either.

The Hidden Payment

I have this problem.   I’m really actually too nice, generally.   When someone asks me for something and frames the request in the sense of a favor, I can seldom say no.

It isn’t that I’m too timid to stand up for myself, it is just that I do endeavor to try to be an okay human being.   I think of the number of times I’ve been fixing a car or lawnmower or building something – and how that extra pair of helpful hands is sorely missed.   Many hands, light work and all that jazz.  

This need to be helpful also stems from the experience of my father in law’s funeral.    I was struck by the 1 hour wait line and probably 600 people that came to see him off into the great adventure beyond life.  It was comprised of some family, a lot of friends and many-many people in the community that he touched through selfless action and general “Helpfulness.”

Early in the year, a friend of a friend opened a pawnshop near my old house.  I stopped by, I’m always looking for used tools, camera stuff, computer things or electronics I can dismantle and use for a project.

I talked to the shop-owner for about 45 minutes and our action items from that discussion were that

A)It would really help him out if I sold some of the stuff I was about to put on Craigslist as a spring-cleaning endeavor, on consignment.   Essentially giving him “inventory”

B)It would be really really extra helpful if I didn’t mind taking some photos of his shop for his facebook page/website.

I did both.

The consignment sale was… a bit of a nightmare but I’ll go into that later.

One afternoon, in favorable light, I found myself in front of his shop with my camera.  It was a bad week, I was super-busy and behind on all sorts of “real job” tasks.  I really didn’t want to be there, I really didn’t want to provide commercial photography stuff for free,  I was really annoyed with how the consignment stuff was going and I was generally starting to feel used.  

Still, my word is what it is, so I put on my smile and walked around the shop for about an hour photographing things.    

Camera work, really is therapy for me and before the hour was out, I got some pretty neat shots, like this one, which – looking back now.. is all the payment for the inconvenience of it all that I need.

..and maybe on the great Karmic scoreboard of my life, “the day you helped out the pawnshop” will work to negate the less-helpful things I do in life.   

Not that I put too much faith in works but ya know, that’s a different topic as well.

On the Edge

from Gulf Shores, Alabama's public pavilion.  I thought this was kind of a neat perspective.

In the Shadows

In the Shadows..
I've been on this 80's music kick ever since I started this project of building a retro arcade in the basement.   
In the 80's, ..everything seemed bold.   Studded leather, big hair, yelling guitar riffs and lots and lots of cocaine.

My basement arcade will be a little more family friendly:   Absolutely No big hair allowed.

:)

For Pete's Sake..

 My little girl is cracking me up tonight..   Summer sleep hours.  She and her brother are still not real comfortable sleeping in their new rooms. (Even though the rooms are pretty awesome)    So far, this summer it has been like a constant slumber party in the living room.   Watching movies into the night until they pass out... Sleeping in the next morning until around 10 am. 

My office is just off the living room..

I'm in my office jamming away, doing some android development (I have like three apps to release tonight) and my daughter comes in and just starts rambling. (Like me.)   She talks about 100 things in 60 seconds and it occurred to me that if I didn't know she was tired, I would swear she'd been drinking.

"Another chocolate milk, Barkeep - and keep em' coming.  Long night ahead."

Help to Identify

Any armchair botanists or nature photographers willing to shed some light on what sort of plant/flower this is?   These are in my back yard.  I really like them and would like to identify their species so I can read up on how to properly care for them. 

Your knowledge is appreciated :)

The Internet... It's Everywhere. Right?

When I was 18, I decided my mom’s house trailer wasn’t where I wanted to dwell forever.   So, I made it a priority to get a place of my own as kids that age do.   Intent on marrying my high school sweetheart, the opportunity to build an actual house with a low-cost builder, seemed like a great idea.

We converted a piece of farmland for our house.  We did everything to the grounds ourselves (with help of neighbors and family).  We turned over the dirt, knocked down the crop-rows and planted grass seed.   I put in my own clay driveway and a paver sidewalk.  We sodded, within our limited budget, around the house.  Time went on, I worked more.  Rented big equipment for variouds projects, did some landscaping, planted trees.   12 years and alot of work later, we had a pretty good looking yard for our growing family to play in. 

The thing about turning a cornfield into a yard, is that along the way you miss some really simple modern conveniences.   Underground utilities? Nope.  Cable?  Nope.  Natural Gas? Nope.

I was excited, then, when we recently bought a home in an established neighborhood.   The lots are huge (1 acre), the houses are nice and tenants are retirees and professionals.  There is an HOA but the "good" kind.   Underground utilities, sidewalks, sewer, natural gas, city water, cable – things that fade into the background of life and we take for granted.

I was excited to receive the fruits of someone else’s’ labor and investment.  Low voltage path lights – Check.  Inground saltwater pool – Check.  Composite Decking – Check.  Perimeter fencing - Check.  Lightposts - Check.
This guy's a C-Suite exec somewhere, surely the communications situation at the house is bitchin'.

The sweet, sweet idea of having actual options for internet connectivity!  No longer must I hijack bandwidth from some random book store or eatery to have a Google Hangout.   Good bye Gulf Telephone turned Gulftel turned Madison River Communicates turned CenturyTel.    Hello, sweet – sweet suburban cable internet or DSL.
It all sounded great.    Then the cable installers came.   6 of them to date.   Still unable to provide CATV or Internet service at my new suburbia abode.    Sweet dreams of 20 mb download and 5 mb upload speeds crumble to make way for phrases like “dead tap”, “serviceability overrides”, “city permits” and “construction delay.”

But wait!   I’m in sweet – sweet suburbia.  The “city life” is upon me and options spring like flowers from every nook of the cyber landscape.  I see the “BellSouth” box in my yard and AT&T wifi names up and down the street.  Heck, there are even at&t two 2wire DSL filters on the home phone lines..  Surely, AT&T will be my knight in proverbial shining armor.

Negatory.

“Your address isn’t serviceable.”   “No free ports.”   “You’ll have to wait for someone to move out or cancel service.”
To get internet, in this… the United States of America…. One of my neighbors needs to foreclose, die or otherwise relocate?  

ARE YOU FRIKKIN KIDDING ME???

I really don't think I should have to go all, Dexter - Stabby Stabby three doors down to the owner of the WIFI Network bearing the SSID, "LANCE RULZ" just to get my IP on.

Well, okay.. where there is a will, there is a way.  I work from home.  I have a business.  It’ll cost more but surely I can get a T1 or other Business class service at this address.  

Stop calling me Surely! 

Negative.  “Sorry.. this is a residence, not eligible for a T1.  Looks like our business DSL ports are all full too.”

I plead… I beg… please, oh sweet mah Bell, won’t you let me speak to someone local, someone from engineering – maybe someone who drives one of those 15 AT&T trucks I see around town. (The ones with cones strategically placed to look like fangs on the front of the vans.)

No soup for you, Shirley.

So, I sit here, in my awesome new little office, looking out the window at those fantastic underground utilities.   This AT&T box in my yard..  it isn’t doing ME any good.  If I were to buy some chain and rent a truck, latch on and rip her’ out of my yard – surely I’d meet some local At&t dudes on my way to jail.

A very good, well-connected and patient friend a few Cities over, leaned on a guy to talk to a guy that knows the situation and is looking into it on their side..   Fingers crossed.

Meanwhile in MediacomLand…. 20 Phone calls, 6 techs onsite and 4 weeks later – still no CATV or Internet.   Won’t someone…. Take my money?

On the bright side, Thank you, trusty LTE iPad for providing me costly-yet-reliable and fast sips of internet during this most heinous connectivity drought.

As for wired options?  I could get internet service in a cornfield.   But not in a middle class, well established neighborhood. 

Banana Bike

On mindshare…   it would suck if you were in the business of building Turnip Trucks.  I mean, when they make an idiom about your career, maybe it is time to address the issue and build a better turnip truck – one that isn’t so easy to fall from.

You never hear of people complaining that they fell from the banana boat.   Admittedly, the banana boat interest has a better PR presence.    A banana bike, though?  Sheesh, I’d hate to fall from that, it would likely smart.

The Chairs, The Bridge and The Boat

um... it is a set of chairs with a bridge and boat in the background.  Oh.. and some clouds.  yep. there are clouds.  and sand.  yep. sand.

:)

Tusker House

I thought this room had a ton of character so I pull'd out a camera for a quick snap. didn't really take the time to compose or try to get the flooring in. Kids yanking on my arm. :)

Leave a Legacy

When my wife and I honeymoon'd at Disney in 2000, Disney had begun this idea for a millennial photo time capsule, called Leave A Legacy.    The gist was that you spent some nominal fee to have a metal plate with your photo attached to one of the obelisks at the entrance.   A locator desk would help you locate your thumbnail at a later trip.   I don’t remember the cost but I remember it not being a burden on my significantly modest y2k salary level.

It is pretty cool, walking past these things and thinking, “hey, our picture is in there!”   Though, in 6 trips together and a few with work, we’ve only once taken the time to locate our images in it.  

I wonder if a time will come where Disney will remodel this section of Epcot and move these monuments?  I hope not!

Tips for Staying on Disney Property

If you are planning to stay at a Disney Resort, I thought I’d provide some additional information that may help you choose where to stay.  Disney has lots of different “on property” options and I may be able to save ya a little money by distinguishing the categories a little more realistically.

I’m not going to consult the Disney site for exact names, there are:

Value
Moderate
Deluxe

..as Resort hotels.

There are also Villa accommodations often associated with Disney’s Timeshare offering.  These are a different breed than the above classification.

I’ve stayed at Value Resorts (Disney All-Star Movies) and Moderate Resorts (Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort, Disney’s Coronado Springs Resort).

For our honeymoon, we stayed at Disney’s Wilderness Cabins, which are their own sort of classification.

A few years ago, I stayed at Disney’s Saratoga Springs, a Disney Timeshare property.

I’ve also been to three so-called Deluxe resorts with other travel.

Most people intent on getting their Mouse on, choose a regular Resort Hotel options in the Value, Moderate or Deluxe variety.  If you are a vacation-every-5 years type person, you are likely inclined to choose a Deluxe category hotel.  If you are a vacation-every-year type person, you are likely to pick a value or moderate resort.  

We almost always stay at moderate resorts.  Caribbean, pictured here, being my favorite.  I’ve stayed there easily 4 or 5 times.

When booking your vacation you may feel that choosing the Deluxe category hotels will guarantee you a more “posh” stay.   This is seldom the case.    Consider that Disney All Star Value Resort Rooms, Disney Moderate Resort rooms and Disney Deluxe rooms are almost identical in layout and in amenities while the price difference will change hundreds of dollars per night.

If you were to book a vacation at an All-Star Value hotel, you are probably going to be around $89-$150 per night. The Caribbean Resort, you are probably looking at $180-$275 per night.    The Polynesian, (A Deluxe Resort) will run you from $250-$390 per night.

(on average)

Room sizes will vary but only slightly.  It isn’t like you will get 2/3 larger room for your money.   I like to say, “You pay for the walk.”    Disney All Star Resorts have cheaper – looking surroundings than Moderate Resorts and so on.   I’ll grant you that the beaches, lush walkways and tiki themes of the Polynesian are really pretty fantastic to putting you in the vacation mood.   But, when you close the door to your hotel room, you are still looking at a pretty standard Days Inn style shot-gun layout room.

One difference you will see among the classifications of resorts, is crowdedness.   Go Deluxe if you want more – empty-ish busses or transportation to and from the parks.   Go Moderate and you will see some full busses and some empty.  Go Value and expect to stand on some busses, as some value resorts share bus stops.

Disney Vacation Club Timeshare Amenities are a little different and I won’t get into that because this is already longer than most peoples’ attention spans. I just wanted to provide a little heads up to anyone who may be planning a future Disney trip.   You largely pay for the grounds your hotel is on, rather than the room.  If you want a suite – stay off property or at a DVC Timeshare.  If you are cool with a regular hotel room and would still like some decent surroundings, I tend to recommend the Caribbean Beach Resort.

8 Days in Disney

 (click through for larger view)

(I’ve taken this shot, almost exactly, everytime I go to Disney.   Always trying to improve it.  What do you think of this one?)

Back in March when we put our house on the market, I scheduled a trip to stay at Disney’s Caribbean Beach Resort.   At our asking price, I felt confident we’d sell our house and figured we’d be crammed into some temporary housing about now – making the trip a much needed getaway for the kids.

We sold (and subsequently bought) a lot faster than I thought but we made the trip happen, despite the poor timing having just moved into the new house. 

I think the family had a great time.  I had a good time.  

I knew that it had been too soon since my previous Disney trip when I started paying attention to things that “Guests” are not supposed to, as opposed to looking around all, slack-jawed and in awe like the average 1 in 15 years visitor.

The thing that annoyed me the most this trip was what I call the unnecessary exercising of small powers.  This phenomenon, I’ve observed, occurs when you have an individual who is generally frustrated by some situation.  The person will then use their position to exercise frivolous use of their “power.”    It usually occurs frequently in individuals who typically exhibit little or no control in their careers or lives.

Eg, “I can’t control my kids.  I hate my current job, my wife/husband is pissing me off and my life is generally not what the postcard advertised.  I know, let me screw with this guy.”

As a table washer in Hollywood Studios, you can make those pesky visitors wait by looking at them in the eye, then turning around and taking a full 5 minutes to wipe the rag of the table they are waiting for.

(Yeah, that happened, it was funny.)

One particular instance that got me was this queue organizer, while waiting in line to see Mickey Mouse, right after the entrance to the Magic Kingdom. 

Let me setup the situation for you.

You’ve been waiting in a line for an hour.  It is hot.  The kids are pissed.   It is crowded.   The wait time-sign out front, said 30 minutes.  People are bumping into each other in tight spaces.  Kids are crying.   Your basic “Happiest Place on Earth” scenario.  

The queue wraps around to an entrance that is ostensibly where the Mouse is hanging out to take pictures with the kiddies.   An employee asks your party size and lets people trickle into the room.

The room, is a waiting area for another room where Mickey and Minnie are doing their “Say Cheese” bit.

A short, forties-to-fifties aged Hispanic lady with a warm smile manages this waiting room with no more than 20 people.   

I am a conscientious line waiter.  I don’t cut lines, I “fill in all available space”, I even try to keep the cubic presence of my family unit to a minimum.  We stay together in an almost-uncomfortable huddle and I (TRY) to keep my kids from being annoying to other people.  So, given all this, we move into the room and fill in all available space.   (A U-Shape around the outer wall)

Miss Queue Manager Lady commences to direct each individual person exactly where they can stand, even by grabbing you on the shoulders and placing you in an invisible square  all around the outer wall-line of this room.  Surely, some Disney Imagineer’d marvel will pop down into the center of the room, proving her exactness was in our protection… Nope.   Surely she’s just making room for more people about to enter behind us?  Nope.    In fact, my family unit was probably LESS compact in our cubic presence of the available surrounding space-time after her human-tetris routine. 

A couple things here.  I don’t like people touching me.  You need to know me to touch me.  Secondly, don’t you think, after waiting for an hour and 15 minutes, the very second a person can enter the next room to get the whole Mickey photo session thing over with, they will move, with post haste, of their own will? 

Ahh yeah.. oh wait, it’s my turn?   I dunno.. lemme see… hanging out in the room with poor Air Conditioning and unhappy kids while the kids behind me bump into me every 2 minutes because they are absolutely wild… or…… enter the next room to get awesome pictures of the kids in awe of the huge Mouse…  Which… will I do…???

At any rate... this one's to you, o' wielders of unncessary small bits of power.   May your anal-retentiveness make hundreds of more customers uncomfortable. ;)