On Occasion...

On occasion you'll read a book, see a film or perhaps hear a selection of music that will have a dramatic effect on how you view life. It may be a single paragraph in the book, a single line in the film, or a single phrase in the lyric. Yet still, it has the ability to transform.

As we close out this year and look towards the next, I want to share one such instance in my life.

It was a Wednesday evening, October 26 to be precise, and my wife and I had gone to the cinema to see The Way. This is a film written and directed by Emilio Estevez and starring his father, Martin Sheen. The story of The Way is of a father who must travel overseas to recover the body of his son who died while walking the pilgrim route, the El Camino de Santiago. Once there he decides to take the pilgrimage himself and through it, rekindles the relationship with his son, and more importantly, himself.

During a flashback sequence, we see Sheen's character driving his son Daniel (Estevez) to the airport so that he can leave for his pilgrimage. During the drive, Sheen (not looking at his son) says, "this is the life I have chosen." Daniel turns to his father and says, "You don't choose a life dad, you live one." This exchange, coupled with the premise of self-rediscovery, were cause for a transformative occasion in my life!

You see, all too often I would be focused on a destination; a goal. This is not to say that having a destination or a goal is a bad. To the contrary, they are not. Nor are having dreams for what may lie ahead in a near or distant future. However, when the drive towards a destination or the pursuit of a goal obscures or takes away the adventure of the journey, then something is out of balance. This has been my life.

I have spent most of my life looking ahead to what I hoped the next thing to be; to what my plan was for the next month, the next year, or the next five years. Then I began consider what I know to be the truth, which is, that we are not assured our next month, our next year or that we may be able to enjoy what was to come in five years. The truth is that we are only assured of the moment that we have right now.

Does this mean that I will not look ahead? No. I will still look to the future and I will plan for things that I wish to do. My wife and I hope to return to Europe, to travel, and perhaps, to live there again someday. We have cross country train trips we have in mind that we'd like to take. There are places I wish to see that I have yet to see; Venice, Vienna, the Greek Isles, the Isle of Iona, the Grand Canyon, and the list goes on. So yes, I will still look and work towards these things. But, in doing so, I will not forego the privilege and the pleasure of this moment. I hope not to miss an occasion to experience the adventure of life now because I am focused on a later occasion that is not guaranteed.

As we look forward to the coming year and make our resolutions, I suppose you may tally this as my resolution. As it concerns my life, I resolve to live one! That may mean I enjoy stopping to take a photograph or draw a picture. It may be an evening reading a book or laying on the floor playing with the dog. It could be taking a walk with my wife or enjoying a picnic in the park. It is trying a new recipe for dinner or dining at a new restaurant. It is visiting a gallery or strolling through the botanical gardens. It is laying on my back in the yard looking at the clouds or playing with the grandchildren. It could be any number of things that have absolutely nothing to do with some future time and has everything to do with the living life in whatever moment presents itself.

I suppose you can say that in my own way, I too am on a pilgrimage. I am on my own El Camino de Santiago. Along my way I seek to find and reclaim the joy, the adventure, and the complete excitement of what it means to live!

"Buen Camino!"

Hey there...

It has been a while hasn't it? So, how are you doing? Wonderful I hope. As you can see, the Fall has been pretty busy for me; that is if the lack of posts is any indication. But, it has been. Work is still rather busy, I am finishing up a commitment on one non-profit Board of Directors and in the beginning months of another Board commitment. This new one is on the board of a theater company I help to start some years ago. Oh, and look, there are 99 people regularly following this blog. Wow.

I am taking an art course. Well, it is an art course in that I do draw. But it is really so much more than just drawing.

Yes, I have been busy and I'll stay that way.

Something that also keeps me busy, is dreaming. I am a dreamer and I have no difficulty in admitting as much. Chalk it up to a constant state of wanderlust. I always look ahead to what may be the next thing. It isn't that I lack contentment with where I am at, but more, that I know that there is always something new to experience around the next corner. Taking a course is part of that. Looking at travel sites is another. I am always curious to know, or to dream about, what is next. Having had many adventures, I wish for more.

This photograph, taken from the Impressions de France film, somewhat speaks to this. When I see this couple walking beside the Channel, I like to think that perhaps this is my wife and I in some distant year. We will have grown old together, but still find the joy in seeking out new adventures and... holding hands.

Five Hundred

I felt that I should write something profound for my 500th post. Sorry, don’t have anything, profound that is. So, maybe just a bit about why I started The Disney Obsession.

The simple, quick answer is because my wife suggested I start blogging. She understood how important Disney was in my life and felt that I should share that with others. I think too that she knew it would provide an outlet for a lot of pent up anxiety owing to the fact that I live too far away from the parks to go every other month or so. Okay, every other week or so. It was not a bad idea and I decided to begin blogging.

I started with no real vision or plan for the blog. In fact, on September 30, 2007 I wrote:

“Am I certain of how this will work? No! Do I know specifically what I will write about? No! Will I be a generalist or a specialist? I do not know. There are so many great blogs out there covering so many aspects of my obsession. What can I possibly add to the dialogue? I do not know. What I do know is that I have to start somewhere and sometime, and today is that day.”

And here I set, October 7, 2011, a little over four years later, typing my 500th post, and that paragraph still holds true. I still don’t really know what this blog is about. I know what it isn’t. It isn’t the place you turn to for news about the parks, or in-depth studies on attractions. You don’t come here to determine what books to read or what films to go see. How do I know this? Well, because I write this blog and I know where I turn to when I need to know these things. It isn’t The Disney Obsession. In truth, I learned very early on that my blog could not keep up with the quality and quantity of content that is out there, and frankly, I am glad I learned this. I didn’t want to keep up that pace, either then or now. But is saying that, I offer my greatest admiration and appreciation to those that do. And you know who you are.

Honestly, knowing that blogging can sometimes be a struggle, and that keeping up even my lackluster attempt at providing content is challenging, I have often considered simply letting is drift into the sunset. I thought of quitting. I thought of taking a one-month break, I’ve thought of... well, a number of things. But it all comes down to this: I really enjoy having a blog. I am happy that through this experiment that I have had the chance to meet some “really swell” people; some of whom have become some of my closest friends. It has opened a door to some wonderful friendships here in at home. I wouldn’t know you. I think that without it, the friendships I enjoy today would not exist. And, friendships that are yet to be made would not take place. For those reasons, I am happy to have started. And I am happy to continue.

Have I found my voice? I still don’t know. I do like what someone once said about this blog, “Greg, your blog has heart.” I think they meant that I write is from my heart. It sometimes reflects the emotion of life. At times there is more photographic content than there is written content, but this comes from the fact that I sometimes don’t know what part of my life to share. As much as Disney is important to me (and it is a large part of my life) there are other areas that are more important. My family and my family experiences are wonderful and mean more to me than anything else in this world. My faith is important because I believe that it is through my faith that God has blessed me with my family. My life experience has been varied and adventurous and I have the honor of sharing those adventures with an incredible lady; one who encourages me daily towards the next great adventure! If only I were as courageous as she.

Gerrie and I on the shores of Lake Victoria, near Jinga, Uganda

I have said some of this before and I beg your forgiveness if I am beginning to sound like a broken record. But, I need to say it again (maybe more for my benefit than yours). I feel that if I keep saying it, that I will some day miraculously stumble upond something.

The Disney Obsession seems to be forever at a crossroads, and here at number 500, we haven’t moved much from that place. I still don’t know what I am doing, but I do know that I will continue doing it and not knowing. I do know that I still wish to share my love for Disney with who ever wishes to visit this site; yes, it may be more photographic than words, but didn’t someone once say that “a picture is worth a thousand words”? But I also want to share my life and my heart with you and so I will explore more ways to do that.

After all, when all is said and done, it is how we share our lives with those around us that is most important and that is best remembered. Someone once said that “Life isn’t about the number of breaths we take, but about the moments that take our breath away.”

My friends, I want to go through what is left of my life always fighting to catch my breath!

I wish you many breathless moments.

Something On A Sunday

I try to be a bit creative in posting my Facebook status. I do not always succeed, but I try. A few weeks ago I had a series of updates that highlight places I have, on occasion, considered moving to or moving back to. One such update mentioned that I have considered moving to Alaska.

Can you blame me?

An Anniversary

... just sayin'

And closing in on 500 posts.

More to follow...

Something On A Sunday

Wilson County Fair August 2009

I don't go to many fairs.

I suppose I am spoiled. I go to Walt Disney World often enough and thought of fairs simply isn't that appealing to me. Plus, I am old enough to remember a small amusement park once had in Nashville called Fair Park, which was a delight as a child to go to. I still miss it. I also, still miss, Opryland U.S.A. It was music themed park that occupied many of my days as a teenager and young adult.

So, I don't go many fairs, but did visit a county fair a few years ago. It is called by some, the best county fair in area. I could agree with that, though honestly, I don't have much of a basis for comparison.

Apologies

You've heard me say it before, and sadly, I must say it again. Life has gotten a bit busy lately and I have not been able to keep to my regular schedule. Sorry!

Please keep stopping by. I hope to be back on a more or less regular schedule in the next 7-10 days; but will add some things here and there as I can.

Thanks.

Photo Phriday

I dreamed of Africa.

Having lived in a place where you woke up every morning to gentle sound of bells on the necks of sheep and looking out your window to see the French Alps, you wonder what could be more beautiful. This is a question that people have asked my wife and I. It is a question we ask ourselves. What is the most beautiful place you've ever been too?

It is a difficult question to answer for we have been blessed to see many magnificent places. It may be the shear magnitude of a mountain, or the barrenness of a sweeping moor. We've walked along the rugged coast of the Irish Sea and along the quiet waterfront of an North Sea inlet at a time when there was 20 hours of daylight. We've walked the dusty roads of Uganda and the sidewalks of the Champs Elysees. This does not account for the many spectacular places we've seen right here in our country and our state.

But still, the question remains. What is the most beautiful place you've ever been too? My wife will tell you Switzerland. I would answer, Zimbabwe.

When we arrived in Harare, it was like other African cities I had been to. But once you leave the city, then it becomes the place that dreams are made of; my dreams at least. I had dreamed of what Africa would be and one day, while on a safari east of Harare, I saw it. I saw a landscape that said, "I am Africa."

Yes, I once dreamed of Africa. Now, I simply dream of Africa. I dream of time that I may get to return to Zimbabwe. To ride in the back of a truck out onto the savannah and witness the variety of wildlife found there. To walk through the grass and get nearly get close enough to a giraffe to touch it.To ride on the back of an elephant again and to sip tea in the shade of a koppie. These are things I dream of.

I dream of Africa.

In Doc's World - A Door

I was sharing with a friend last week saying that "Life would be a lot more fun if it wouldn't get in the way so often." This week has been one of those times. It has been a good week, but a busy week and I didn't have time to get something ready to post on Wednesday. Sorry.

I was puttering around (one of my favorite pastimes) in my office earlier this month and was taking a few photographs, all the while thinking that we haven't paid a visit to Doc's World lately. So here goes. A visit to Doc's World.

This is board I have hanging on the closet door of my home office. When we built our house my wife said I could have one room to fill with all of my Disney things. And, for the most part, I have kept things confined here. Though it has spread a bit; we both believe that every room needs a little Disney. For example, the Galleries of Light live in the living room and dining room. But most of my collection resides upstairs in my little haven, my laughing place, my "Li'l Disney".

The board holds a selection of pins, old wristbands from past events (and PI), a couple of now tarnished jingle bells with a pin saying "Believe" that I picked up at Mickey's Very Merry Christmas Party a few years ago, some notes to myself and doodles, and a few photos. You may see my son posing by a Photo Spot and then a little further down is a picture of me in front of Sleeping Beauty Castle in Paris Disneyland. Just below that is a picture of my daughter when she was a bit younger and my dear grandmother, Nannie. We lost her a few years ago. If fact, I was just coming off of Expedition Everest when I got the call that she went home to be with the Lord.

Then about the pins; one of my many goals is to have a pin for every attraction in the Magic Kingdom. So, I have a park map on the board and I place an attraction pin on or near the spot on the map. I still have a few pins to go.

Some day, very soon in fact, I'll show you behind that door. I am in the process of clearing it and then I'll re-purpose the space into a small studio for my drawing. I like to doodle and I like to work on pen and ink renderings. Hoping to get back to it soon.

So there you are. Just a little bit more about life In Doc's World.

Photo Phriday

You'll recall that last week I shared how Gerrie and I had a bit of a reunion in Oxford. I also mentioned our deep appreciation for the writings of C. S. Lewis and our desire to seek out the haunts of Lewis during his tenure at Oxford University. We were especially interested in visiting places where he and his friends gathered.

His friends were called the Inklings, and among the places they gathered was The Eagle and Child.

The Eagle and Child, affectionately known as the "Bird and Baby", is found at 49 St. Giles in Oxford. Their history claims that public house sat on this site since 1650. In addition to sometimes meeting in Lewis's rooms at Magdalen College, Lewis and his friends would meet in the Rabbit Room of the pub on Tuesday mornings during the term. The bar keep informed us that they would usually gather at 11:00 a.m.

The Inklings were an informal group; "neither a club nor a literary society" as Warnie once said, but it did meet to discuss literature. In fact, Inkling member J.R.R. Tolkien first read excerpts of The Lord of the Rings at the gatherings. C.S. Lewis, in turn, shared readings from his Out of the Silent Planet and parts of The Chronicles of Narnia.

Today the room looks much as it did during the 1930s and 1940s. The literary connection and history of the room is noted with photographs of members of the group and sheet of paper with the signatures of Lewis, Tolkien, and others saying that they had drunk to the landlord's health.

During our time there, we enjoyed a meal (I had Fish & Chips no doubt) and spent time looking about the room. Once finished, we took a while to sit quietly and write. We both kept journals and being in this place, with the memories of the men who once met here stirring around us, we could not let an opportunity to write escape us.

There are many things I miss about our life in England. I miss our friends, our work and mission and how simple life seemed to be. I also miss being a place filled where I am surrounded by history. In fact the very road we lived on, the Watling Street (A5), was built by the Romans. Hundreds of years before we lived there, Roman troops would march along the road towards the northwest.

I miss being there.

Next up? I don't know. Perhaps we'll stay in England or cross the Channel and visit Paris. Or maybe we'll go further afield. Africa perhaps?

Photo Phriday

My wife had just returned from having spent six weeks in India. I was just coming off the road from having toured England in the musical "Godspell". It was time to take a small vacation to rest and get away from our small flat. We decided to take the train to Oxford.

It was an easy trip to remember. As we came down the stairs from our flat for our taxi to the railway station, we heard that Diana, Princess of Wales had been in an automobile accident in Paris. The thought, at the time, was that she had been killed in the accident but this was not confirmed yet. By the time we arrived in Oxford the news had confirmed her death and the flags of the nation had been lowered by half. I share this only to put things in a time.

Among the many interests that my wife and I share is a deep appreciation for the writings of C.S. Lewis. Not only his works of fantasy and science fiction, The Chronicles of Narnia and the Space Trilogy, but also his spiritual writings. The apologist works such as Mere Christianity or the Screwtape Letters. We thought, with the journey to Oxford, we would make it a sort of Lewis Pilgrimage. We'd visit Magdalen College and seek out the pub where he and the Inklings would gather. We also wanted to visit The Kilns; the home that he shared with his brother Warnie in the Headington Quarry area. Near the home is the church, Holy Trinity Church, where he worshipped and where he is buried.

Us standing just outside the hedges at The Kilns.

Our time in Oxford was very restful. We took a room at a small bed and breakfast near the Lewis home. For a few days it was quiet and we enjoyed our walks, our reading and the refreshing that comes with not being quite so busy. Then we had to return to the real world. But we did so with a greater appreciation for Lewis and his surroundings.

Note: in a few weeks, perhaps next Friday, I'll share a bit more of the visit. In particular, to a small room, in a building found on St. Giles.

Photo Phriday

When we were not in the Midlands, more often than not, you'd find us London. We would stay at a friends flat in the City of Westminster; roughly 5-10 minutes walk from the Abbey. Some days we'd have a nice fish and chip from the corner 'chippie' on Strutton Ground then walk over and spend a nice afternoon in St. James' Park. Others would find us at the National Gallery or listening to classical quartets in Covent Garden.

Then there were occasions when we'd take the train and visit Stratford-upon-Avon for a few days relaxation and take in a play at the Royal Shakespeare Theatre. There were trips to Oxford or further out, to the West Country to my wife's favorite seaside village of Port Isaac.

But as I mentioned a few weeks ago, The Beatles have been a part of life for lo these many years. I visited Abbey Road and hastily made my way across the road. But, if Abbey Road was the end, then there was a beginning and I needed to experience that as well. One weekend we visited a friend living just outside of Liverpool and being this close begged for a drive into the city and a visit to Mathew Street.

Located at No. 10 Mathew Street is the Cavern Club. The Cavern opened on January 16, 1957. A little over four years later, on February 9, 1961, The Beatles played their first lunchtime gig on the cramped stage of the club. The band went on to play 292 shows in the cellar with the last one being on August 3, 1963 shortly following the recording of She Loves You. By this time the group had become too popular for the already overly crowded club. The group made a promise to return, but this never happened while they were together. The promise was fulfilled in part on December 14, 1999 when Paul McCartney played his last show of the old millennium in the club.

Also found along the street is a statue of John Lennon, a la the 1975 Rock 'n' Roll album, leaning against the wall. A little further along, at No. 31, is The Beatle Shop. It is a great little basement shop selling all manner of Beatles music, art and other items. Not too far away is the Adelphi Hotel. Gerrie and I stopped for tea here, but anyone watching the Free As A Bird video from The Anthology, may recall the lobby. A lovely place.

I have not been one for completions in all that I do. The work stuff, yes, but not everything. It is my way of combating my tendencies towards perfectionism. Concerning Liverpool, my pilgrimage is not complete. Someday I hope to return to visit the barber selling photographs on Penny Lane or to find out if anything is real in Strawberry Fields. But until that day, I have the memory of standing on the stage at the Cavern. Of sitting there, leaning against the wall, enjoying a pint and thinking about all the great music that came out of this cellar.

Photo Phriday

During my trips to Paris, and when time allowed, I loved visiting Shakespeare and Company.

Shakespeare and Company is a bookstore that opened as a lending library in 1919 by Sylvia Beach. The shop has a storied history. It was a regular gathering place for members of The Lost Generation during the time between wars. The with the occupation of Paris during World War II, the shop closed. Beach secreted her books away in a vacant apartment during the occupation. These books were later liberated from their hiding place by Ernest Hemingway.

Following Beach's death in 1951, another English-language bookstore adopted the name Shakespeare and Company. This shop, operated by George Whitman, strived to carry on the traditions of Beach's shop and became host to many of the writers of the Beat Generation. The downstairs with its shelves and tables overflowing with books was host to public readings, while the upstairs, complete with sleeping quarters, provided a place for writers to live and work.

Why Shakespeare and Company? I first learned of the shop while watching a travelogue. My wife and I, having spent our honeymoon in Paris, were planning a return trip in '95. So I bought a few books and watched a view videos to prepare. While watching I learned that the current location of the shop at 37 Rue de la Bucherie is within Kilometer Zero for France. The marker is located in the square of the main entrance to Notre Dame. When you purchase a book from Shakespeare and Company you can have the inside page stamped, indicating that the book comes from the shop inside Kilometer Zero. Being a collector, of sorts, I had to have book stamped. So one day while we were out walking and we visited the shop. I purchased a copy of W. Somerset Maugham's The Narrow Corner for 55 Francs and had it stamped.

We then went a few doors up and found an outdoor table with a view of Notre Dame. We had glass of wine, a plate of cheese, and talked about how nice the day was.

Gerrie and I are now planning to travel to London and Paris in October 2012. I hope to find time to visit this wonderful little shop, find a really good read, and add to my memories of one of my favorite cities in the world.

Something On A Sunday

U2 @ Vanderbilt 07.03.11

Something On A Sunday usually concerns itself with some of my other photographic endeavors; some successful, some less so. This Sunday is no different, in that it is a photograph of something other than Disney, but it isn't flowers or having to do with the adventures of Gerrie and I.

Strike that, it does have to do with the adventures of Gerrie and I. Last night we attended the U2 360 Tour here in Nashville. It was the one hundredth show of the tour. I will not give you a song by song review, but I do want to share one or two things.

I have seen U2 on two prior occasions. The first was on November 28, 1987 at Murphy Center in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. It was the Joshua Tree Tour. The set opened with Where the Streets Have No Name and closed with 40. The second was on October 10, 1992 at Legion Field in Birmingham, Alabama. This was the Zoo TV Outdoor Broadcast Tour. This concert opened with Zoo Station and closed with an a Capella tribute to Elvis Presley, Can't Help Falling In Love. The two concerts were, in my opinion, almost polar opposites. The '87 event bordered on an almost spiritual quality. Even before U2 took the nearly bare stage, with the crowd singing along with Beatles music, it was moving, challenging, emotional. The Zoo TV concert was spectacle and I missed the near communal quality of the former.

Last night, the concert was both large and small. The trappings, the set, were large, as were some of the selections. But it was small in that it had moments recaptured some of the transcendent moments of '87. Moments such as a Bono singing Amazing Grace and hearing 47,000 plus people sing along. Or when all the lighting was turned off, save for the lights of cell phones (photo above) that he asked be held up as stars of hope to the thousands in search of freedom. The audience sang nearly the whole first section of I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For, while the band listened. All moments. Followed by a closing moment of Bono having a blind fan from the audience play All I Want is You as he sang. All the man said was that he wanted to "play a song for my wife.'

I don't know. I don't go to enough concerts these days, save the Nashville Symphony, so I don't know what happens. These moments that can cause your spirit to soar and make you think, even if only for moment, that you are a part of something that is bigger than yourself, may happen all the time. I don't know. Perhaps its every concert using the medium music to cause you to think, if only for moment, that there are hundreds of thousands, if not millions, of people in the world who long for freedom. Who suffer for it. I don't know. I imagine every concert has a moment when you realize that it isn't about me, but it is about us. I don't know. Like I said, I don't go to enough concerts.

But I did go to this one. I like to think that perhaps I came out of it a little bit better person than I was.

"At the moment of surrender

of vision over visibility"

Photo Phriday

My wife and I were driving home from having seen Cars 2 this past Saturday. A good film but it will not (in my opinion) rank among the best of Pixar. Still, a good film and Pixar still tells a good story and creates stunning digital scenery. But I digress. We were driving home and our talk turned to favorites and the subject of favorite bands came up. That is one of the easiest questions I will ever have to answer. My favorite band is The Beatles!

While we lived in England, my mother and sister flew over for a two week visit. This was shortly after the funeral for Diana: Princess of Wales. It was their first time in England and we planned to as much as we could during their stay. My wife and my mother took a trip to West Country for a few days and my sister and I took the EuroStar to Paris for a few days. But prior to these trips, my sister and I took a Beatle walking tour. This, along with a number of other tours, are conducted by a The Original London Walks.

The stop that I looked forward to most on the tour was the chance to see Abbey Road Studios. Sure, we saw other landmarks: Paul McCartney's townhouse in Soho, the Indica Gallery, the Apple Headquarters on Savile Row (site of the famous rooftop concert), and others. But it was Abbey Road that I looked forward to most. Abbey Road - home to some of the most creative music ever composed and recorded.

The tour would not allow us to enter the building or to visit the studios, but I did manage to have a photo taken on the steps.

I completed the tour by making my walk across the Abbey Road Crosswalk. I made my sprint across sporting denim, as the late George Harrison did. I would have preferred to wear white while making my cross, in honor of my favorite Beatle, John Lennon, but sadly, my white suit was in Nuneaton at the time.

Sprint? Yes. You must bear in mind that the Metropolitan Police halted traffic during the photo shot for the Beatles. Fans making the pilgrim across Abbey Road must do so minding the traffic. Cars are were not obligated to stop, so you pick your moment, make sure that someone has a camera ready, then you set out.

I did.

"And in the end

The love you take

Is equal to the love you make."

Photo Phriday

"Adventure is out there!" This is one of my favorite lines in UP. Truth is, it is one of my favorite lines in any film I've seen. And that is a lot of film. "Adventure is out there!"

In the nearly twenty years that my wife and I have been married we have had our share of adventure. We have lived in Switzerland waking up with a view of the French Alps each morning. We walked and prayed for over a 1,000 miles through France, Switzerland and Italy sleeping in monasteries, convents, churches and once, in the same lodgings used by Napoleon at St. Bernard Pass. We've twice been to Africa; once to Uganda and the other to Zimbabwe, enjoying a short safari on a game preserve just outside of Harare during our time there. And as I have mentioned previously, we lived in England. It was in a small market town called Nuneaton. Nuneaton is in Warwickshire - "Shakespeare Country". It is about an hour and twenty minutes north of London by the fast train, and was the home of George Eliot.

While we lived in England we had the opportunity to travel some and over the next few weeks Photo Phriday will look at some of the adventures we've enjoyed during our life together.

Vindolanda

Found along Hadrian's Wall in the north of England, Vindolanda was Roman auxiliary fort. Construction of a fort on this site began in 122 AD. Gerrie and I visited the dig while on a trip with friends to Scotland.

"Adventure is out there!" As we prepare to begin our next twenty years together we are looking and working towards a few new adventures! Life is great!

...if i lived in central florida i'd...

... drive to kissimmee (if i wasn't living in that area), and welcome amy and craig petermann and their two daughters home! if you have not been following the relocated tourist these past sixteen months, let me recommend you visit their blog and read about their incredible and inspiring journey.

"welcome home" amy, craig, kyra and emily! your's is a wonderful adventure!

Forwarding Email

I am not a big fan of forwarding email. Most people who know me know that. Consequently, my inbox is not littered with subject lines that begin "Fwd:" And this is a good thing. More often than not when I see something has been forwarded I'll delete it without reading it. However there are some occasions that I will open a forwarded email.

These times are when the email comes from family or one or two very close friends. Knowing that they know my aversion, yet still forwarding something, I'll usually take a look.

No long ago my daughter-in-law sent something. It was a PowerPoint show that someone had put together about aging. It had a nice Windham Hill-esque soundtrack and a variety of outdoor images; epic grandeur. Each slide featured a bit of wisdom as to growing old. So, being one who is growing old I thought I'd take the few minutes to watch the presentation.

I must say, I was struck by what I read. In fact, some of what I read that day brought about some changes in how I live life today. If I may, in the spirit of departing from the Disney theme for a moment, I'd like so share these small pieces of wisdom with you.

1. Throw out nonessential numbers: age, weight, height.
2. Keep only cheerful friends - the grouches pull you down.
3. Keep learning: learn more about the computer, crafts, gardening, whatever. Never let the brain be idle.
4. Enjoy the simple things.
5. Laugh often, long and loud.
6. The tears happen. Endure, grieve and move on. The only person who is with us our entire life, is ourselves. Be ALIVE while you are alive.
7. Surround yourself with what you love, whether it's family, pets, keepsakes, music, plants, hobbies, whatever. Your home is your refuge.
8. Cherish your health: if it is good, preserve it. If it is unstable, improve it. If it is beyond what you can improve, get help.
9. Don't take guilt trips. Take a trip to the mall, even to the next county; to a foreign country but NOT to where guilt is.
10. Tell people that you love them at every opportunity.

Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away.

I don't know who to credit the PowerPoint to, or to whom these bits of wisdom came from. But I thank them. I also thank my daughter-in-law for going against the grain and sending these along to me. I find some of them quite profound and inspiring. And in my desire for a simpler life I have found them helpful.

Perhaps you will too.

Apologies

This has not been a month for keeping my resolution to post at least 10 items. You'd think that would be easy right? Especially with a blog that seems to do little more than post photographs. So for this lapse in content, I apologize.

Can we be honest here? For awhile now I have had the thought of giving up the blog. I believe that when it comes to Disney content, there are a lot of great sites. Sites that are providing readers with a wide variety of content; old and new, nostalgic and forward looking. I have often thought would this little endeavor be missed? My answer has usually been, "probably not."

This month has provided a great deal of distractions; some important, others not. There are things around the house that need tending to, other goals in life that need to be fleshed out and addressed and then, there are times when you simply come home from a busy day at work and not want to do anything. And I have had a few of those lately.

But you know, as these days of May have progressed I have decided that I really don't want to give up the blog. Although my output is minimal, not cutting edge and tends not to shed light on new and exciting things, it does, from time to time amuse. A photograph may take you away for just a moment from whatever your day is and cause you to smile. It may ask you to stop and think that there is not a whole lot on this earth that is more important than family and the time we have with them and give to them. That are blogs that I read that challenge me to dream; to ask myself, "What is my dream?" Perhaps The Disney Obsession has caused you to dream - to look beyond today.

I realize that I repeat myself at times and I know I have mentioned this previously. But, as I continue with The Disney Obsession you may find me writing about other things from time to time. I don't feel that I can stop posting (deep down I'd come to miss it) but I know that to continue means a change here and there. It is all part of the search for that dream that moves me forward. The blog may more closely resemble its tagline, "celebrating the love of life with a little obsession behavior towards disney thrown in." It may become more of a personal blog, but still contain that Disney passion that perhaps prompted 82 of you to follow the blog. For you, and for me, I promise there will still a great deal of Disney. But as my days continue I know I have so much more to explore.

We all are on a journey and we often encounter twists and turns on the paths we have taken. There is the occasional fork that prompts us to choose one direction over another. And all the while, we constantly need to look at where we have been and think of where we may be headed. We have to ask, "What it is the next thing?" I have a few ideas.

It is an often overused cliche, but it remains true, "keep moving forward".

And The Survey Says... Epcot

I have been a little late updating the last poll we took on The Disney Obsession. We asked the question "What is your favorite park once the sun goes down?" No, there wasn't an article that included the question (I checked, it was a casualty of being busy), it was just a question in the right hand margin. Yet, without an article, fourteen readers took part in the poll. And the results show that 8 of those 14 (57%) prefer Epcot. Five people (35%) preferred the Magic Kingdom while one vote (7%) was cast for Disney's Hollywood Studios. Disney's Animal Kingdom received no votes, but this comes probably from the fact that not many people have the opportunity to experience it after dark. You have to travel to Walt Disney World when we are not in Daylight Savings Time and also have a chance to be in the park with Evening Extra Magic Hours. As often as I go, I have only been able to get into the Animal Kingdom one time after dark. It was magical!

While my choice after dark is Epcot, it is not an easy choice. Each park takes on a different atmosphere once the sun goes down. Whether you prefer Main Street U.S.A. and Tomorrowland, the Art Deco of Hollywood Boulevard and Sunset Strip, or the countries of the World Showcase in Epcot, lighting does something to each. It changes the way we experience an area of the park as we look at things specifically illuminated to evoke a response from our senses. The Eiffel Tower at night looks much different than it does under the full glare of the sun. And Tomorrowland? Tomorrowland is a completely different feast to the eyes once the sun sets.

Now, let's more on.

Last week I placed a stand-alone poll asking "What is your favorite park icon?" The choices are Cinderella Castle, Spaceship Earth, the Sorcerer's Hat and the Tree of Life. Before time ran out on the original poll, I extended it another week. So, visit the margins and vote for your favorite park icon. And as always, feel free to leave a comment and let us know why it is.

Hope you have a great week!

More to follow...