Kayoh @ 190

I witnessed a rare display of gratefulness and humanity that I just have to share…it made my day, quite possibly my month.

I was standing around in one of the concourses at the Phoenix airport while waiting for my airplane to arrive. Meanwhile, an airplane had parked a few gates down and the majority of the passengers getting off that airplane were military personnel coming home on leave. As these “kids” (they are definitely getting younger, because I am surely not getting older!) were streaming into the terminal in the uniform of the various branches, I watched as every other passenger in that particular building stood up and applauded until the very last one came off that airplane.  I was completely moved and in awe that we, as Americans with all of our faults still have a deep sense of patriotism no matter what. I was so proud to witness and be a part of a small gesture to show our troops that they are appreciated.

I have recently discovered Trader Joe’s, and if I could have a relationship with a store, TJ’s would be “the one”. Everything I have tried in the Trader Joe brand has been wonderful, and even though the employees are super friendly and chatty, they do it in such a way that you actually feel like they care, instead of just being flat out annoying.

As I wander around the store in bliss (it would be so much better if they gave out serious Two Buck Chuck samples), I realize that I am the only person who has not brought with me several canvas totes to lug my groceries home. So there I am, waiting patiently in line to check out, watching the lady in front of me pack up her own groceries in her self-provided earth friendly tote bags, when I start to feel actual guilt.

My confession:

a) I love the Trader Joe’s paper bags, they are so handy!

b) I don’t own any canvas totes.

Does this make me a bad person? Am I allowed to call myself a Californian? How do I keep shopping at my beloved Trader Joe’s without the guilt? Any ideas?

With unemployment on the horizon and the world economy crashing down around us, I have been attempting to cover my ears (la, la, la) and ignore it a little bit by getting out and having some fun. Now, where is there a better place to ignore life’s difficulties than Disneyland? “The Happiest Place on Earth”- who can argue with that right now? So, in my attempt to stick my head in the sand, I have been to Disneyland three times in the last couple of weeks.

Crazy! I know, however, when you live in Orange County that’s just what you do. Considering that a walk-up one day park hopper to both Disneyland and California Adventure costs $94, it doesn’t sound so crazy that almost everyone who lives here has annual passes. We who live behind the “Orange Curtain” are incessantly mocked for this behavior, rightly so, we are an entire society of Disney-dorks.

So yes, three Disney visits…  This is my favorite time of year at Disneyland. All of the Halloween decorations are up and they have converted the Haunted Mansion into the “Nightmare Before Christmas”. FYI, they did change it up a little bit this year!

The hubby and I have a new favorite at California Adventure- Toy Story Mania. A 3-D ride that is comprised of interractive carnival games. Men tend to do better at this game than women, but no worries, I’m working on it…..hubby be afraid!

Over the past year or so, I have noticed a disturbing trend, and because I don’t have children, I probably don’t understand but will rant anyway :)  The amount of strollers running around the park lately has more than doubled which would be completely acceptable if there were stroller-aged children occupying said strollers. But I swear I have seen ten year-olds wheeling around getting a free ride! Ok, so I’m not very good at guessing a child’s age when they are shoved into one of these things, but seriously, I would think that if the kid is bursting out at the seams, and I keep getting kicked because it is just not possible for them to contort their little bodies into a human ball, that maybe, just maybe, it’s time to make them walk.  Just a thought.

Hopefully, I will make to Disneyland again next week strollers or no strollers

Walking off the jetway in Chicago the other night, I hear the gate agent say “It’s not my problem!”. Now I have felt that way on several occasions throughout life, but as I look around and see a woman in a wheelchair with her son standing by her side, I take notice of the situation.  Apparently we had three people in need of a wheelchair with only two wheelchairs actually present and only one woman to push all three.  I guess in Chicago after midnight, they hide all the wheelchairs.  The gate agent promptly disappears leaving these three people to fend for themselves.

We (the crew), go in all directions trying to find another wheelchair, and as I get back to the gate I hear one of the flight attendants say “I don’t know why we have to deal with this”.  Are you kidding me?

I am fully aware that it is not in my job description to chase down wheelchairs, but in the interest of not being a complete jackass, I do it anyway.  Would you really want your loved ones to get stranded in an empty terminal of Chicago O’Hare in the middle of the night? There are just some things in life you don’t do, and stranding elderly people who can’t walk in an airport definitely falls in that category.

A few minutes later, everyone is on their way to baggage claim and off we go to the hotel for our layover, but this whole epsiode got me thinking.  How on earth did we become such inconsiderate jerks as a society? Has it always been this way over the decades?  When did America become the land of the free, home of the rude?