Soda Jerk

While in Hollywood, I had to make a stop at Disney's Soda Fountain and Studio Store next to the El Capitan Theatre. Sure, I'm lactose intolerant, but I want not there for the ice cream, oh no. When you order a special sundae, you get a Disney pin! That's why I'm there. You can keep the ice cream!

Click here for the PDF to the Menu

Disney's Soda Fountain and Studio Store

Make It So

Allow me to geek out a bit. Since we were in the area, we decided to hit Madame Tussauds in Hollywood. I was so excited to see two of my favorite Star Trek captains immortalize in wax. I guess I need to be careful how I cross my legs when I wear shorts. No peeking!

Madame Tussauds

I also attempted to do my best Spock imitation, and there were flowers and a guest book dedicated to Elizabeth Taylor.

Paying Respect

During a trip home, I had a chance to go to Forest Lawn Memorial Park in Glendale, CA. Of course my mission was to revisit the Disney family grave, but as it turns out, Elizabeth Taylor had passed away five days ago on Wednesday, March 23, 2011. There still were a lot of fans and flowers at her burial site.

Find a Grave

Togo's! Togo's! Togo's!

One of the other things I miss about California. Sign me up or a #6, #7 or #8 any time.

Togo's

Snowmageddon 2010

How were we to know we would be going into one of the snowiest winters on record? The December 10-11 Blizzard is the 5th largest snowstorm on record for the Twin Cities since 1891.

The largest snowfall for the Twin Cities since the 1991 Halloween Blizzard began late Friday night and continued through the day on Saturday. 17.1 inches of snow fell at the Twin Cities International Airport. Not only is this the largest snowstorm on record for December for the Twin Cities, but this storm is the fifth largest snowfall in a single storm to hit the Twin Cities since 1891.



Heavy snow with visibilities of a quarter mile or less was reported at the Twin Cities Airport for eight hours straight from 9am to 4pm December 11. The International Airport was closed for four hours.

This storm packed quite a punch with wind as well as snowfall. Blizzard warnings were posted on December 11 for all of southern Minnesota, including Carver, Scott and Dakota Counties of the Twin Cities. The Twin Cities International Airport was closed for a time during the storm and numerous holiday events were cancelled, including the Holidazzle Parade. The Metrodome collapsed under the weight of the snow.

For days afterward, cities struggled to remove the snow from streets and sidewalks. School was cancelled for two days for St. Paul and Minneapolis.

Minnesota Climatology Blizzard and Snowstorm Summary - December 10-11, 2010

Buried in the snow is this bench at a nearby bus stop.

Sure, it's fun at first, but it would turn into a pain in the parka.

This is after the plows came through, and it was still bad. A group of pedestrians had to help push cars out of ruts in the street.

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

At my new job, they took us to the new Twins Stadium in Downtown Minneapolis. I use to watch the former Anaheim Angels at their outdoor stadium, and it was a fun and inexpensive way to catch some rays and mock watch people.

They had a suite for us, which was fantastic. And actually, the entire stadium is well constructed. To the left of this first picture, the Lightrail and Northstar connect here, as well as local buses nearby.

And as fate would have it, my friend and former coworker, Jennifer, just happened to be at the same game! So I snuck her into our suite since there was plenty of room. And I even found a mug with some Disney characters in Twins gear, so it was a perfect night for me!

Stay Awake

Well, Caribou Coffee asked and I told them! Too bad it didn't make the printed version. Probably due to copyrights and whatnots.