BAJL Day 22: Strange Disneyland Facts

              I am hitting a blogger's block today so I am just going to blog about what I know a lot about, and that is Disney. So here are some interesting facts about Disneyland that hopefully you didn't know before. Hopefully I will have something more substantial to blog about tomorrow. Here we go!

             1.) Cats! Cats! Cats!- there is a sizeable population of feral cats that live inside Disneyland. They were brought in to assist in controlling the rodent population in the park. It must be working as I have seen a few cats roaming the park but never a rat or mouse other than Mickey or Minnie. The cats have been spayed or neutered and immunized and roam freely in the parks. Though they often hide or sleep during the daytime you can often spot them around the backside of the Rivers of America or near Big Thunder Trail. Don't believe me? Below are some photos 

This little one is sleeping next to the train tracks

These two are on the hunt near the Hungry Bear Restaurant

                2.) How you can leave the state of California in under a minute?- simply take the rafts over to Tom Sawyer Island. The Missouri State legislature annexed Tom Sawyer Island in 1956. It was part of a publicity campaign put together by Walt as the Tom Sawyer books take place in the state of Missouri.

                3.) Disney Deaths?- 9 guests and 1 Cast Member have been killed at the park since its opening in 1955. Of those 9 deaths, 7 were caused by the individuals stupidity. The most grisly of the three deaths that were found to be Disney's fault, was the death of a cast member working at the America Sings attraction (which is no longer with us, RIP). The cast member got trapped between a stationary wall and the moving theatre and was crushed to death. Don't believe me? All the incidents have been verified by Snopes at http://www.snopes.com/disney/parks/deaths.asp


                 4.) Nothing EVER goes to waste- Disneyland is well known for paying homage to former attractions and recycling ideas. Animatronics aren't cheap so when the imagineers went over budget on Splash Mountain they used the leftover animatronics from America Sings to fill up the remainder of the attraction. The most obvious ones are located on the steamboat at the end of the attraction.

                                    Here they are in America Sings
 
                              Here they are in Splash Mountain

               5.) How to stay in Disneyland forever- many people have tried and failed but there are reports of guests scattering ashes of loved ones inside attractions such as The Haunted Mansion and Pirates of the Carribean. I don't know if any have succeeded in not getting caught but here is a link to prove to you that it has happened and been stopped. Also a video is located below.

 There it is folks! Just a small sampling of the strange and crazy things I know about Disneyland. Hopfully you didn't and I was able to entertain you for a few minutes. Have any Disneyland rumors that you need affirmed or dispelled? Leave them in the comments and I will respond to the best of my knowledge. Have a great day!

 PS- in an earlier post I promised a photo of me in my new glasses once I picked them up. Today I went to pick up my glasses so here is a photo.

  

 

BAJL Day 15: Practicing For Fatherhood: Learning Patience

         In July of 2012 my then girlfriend, now wife, Alex brought something home that would change my life forever. She had gone out with her girlfriends to see Magic Mike and it was almost one o'clock in the morning when I heard a knock at the door. I opened it and there was Alex, holding a kitten. He had been abandoned near the movie theatre and Alex decided to bring him home.
         He was tiny, incredibly underweight, and covered in fleas. We bathed him in the kitchen sink and then wrapped him up in a towel. The next day I had to bathe him again as he still had fleas on his belly. He needed to be bottle fed as he was only a few weeks old at this point. We thought he was a she and named him Minnie. After taking him to the vet and finding he was a boy I got to name him and I chose to call him Louie.
          I have never been a cat person. In fact, I would often chase away stray cats, make fun of people for having cats, and claim that cats don't love their owners. Slowly that little guy got under my skin and into my heart. He is now part of our family. He may not be overly cuddly like a dog is, but he has his moments.
          People say that pets don't really prepare you for a child, but I say nay. Having Louie has taught me that I have a level of patience that I didn't know existed in my psyche. I am not a long-suffering kind of guy. Thanks to my dad's genes, I have an incredibly short temper at this stage in my life and I was afraid of what I was going to do to this cat if he ever crossed me. That was quickly put to the test as he loves to wake me up while sleeping. Those who know me at all know that I wake up ready to punch someone in the face(yes, I am that cranky when I wake up). However, instead of hitting Louie or throwing him off the bed I began to rub his head and ears. Is this my paternal instinct?
          Last night was when I really felt that I will be able to handle being a dad. Louie had just used his litter box but had some doo doo stuck to his foot. He walked out of the litter box and flung it all over the bathroom floor. Instead of getting mad and yelling about it, I simply picked him up off the floor and turned the faucet on to wash his poopy foot. Things were going fine at first but then he flipped out. He thought I was trying to bathe him and fought back. He began trying to climb over my shoulder to get away from the sink. In the process of doing so he scratched up my chest and back, punctured the skin on my back, and one of his claws pierced my nipple. Yet, I still did not get mad despite the facts that I was in pain and my shirt had been ruined with huge punture holes. I dried his foot off with a towel and then cleaned the poop off the floor.
           What had happened to me? My love for this childlike little creature had changed me in a way I had not foreseen. He continues to challenge me and teach me patience. Even as I write this blog on my phone he is all up in my face trying to knock the phone out of my hands.
         For those of you about to say "children are much different than animals" I know that. But, they are kind of similar in that both are unable to feed themselves, you have to clean up their pee and poop, and both want your attention when it is REALLY inconvenient for you. I didn't think that I would be able to deal with my child. Now, I have a little more confidence.
       How has your pet enriched your life? Let me know by leaving a comment.